That Solo Life: The Solo PR Pro Podcast

How to Avoid the Dreaded Reviewer's Remorse

 

That Solo Life, Episode 249: How to Avoid the Dreaded Reviewer's Remorse

 

In this Episode

 

In this episode of "That Solo Life," Karen and Michelle dive into the common struggle of "reviewer's remorse" that many PR pros, marketers, and communicators face when working with clients. They discuss the frustration of finalizing a project, only to have last-minute changes or new reviewers throw a wrench into the process.

 

They  emphasize the importance of establishing a clear review process with clients, setting expectations early on, and limiting the number of reviewers to essential personnel. They also highlight the significance of trust between the client and the solo PR professional, ensuring that the end goal and messaging align seamlessly.

 

Throughout the episode, the hosts stress the need for open communication, patience, and understanding when dealing with clients experiencing reviewer's remorse. Karen and Michelle discuss the need to provide practical tips, such as creating a document workflow process, setting clear review criteria, and allowing sufficient time for discussion and revisions.

 

With personal anecdotes and insights, the episode aims to help fellow solo professionals streamline their review processes, minimize last-minute changes, and build stronger relationships with their clients. Tune in and let’s navigate the complexities of client feedback and strive to deliver the best possible outcomes in our solo careers. 

Episode Highlights:

 

00:01:19 - Reviewers' Remorse Discussion

00:04:09 - Minimizing Reviewers' Remorse Occurrence

00:07:04 - Digging for Core Issues

00:10:27 - Importance of Trust in the Review Process

00:11:29 - Considerations for Printed Pieces

00:11:52 - Limiting Number of Reviewers

00:13:18 - Streamlining Feedback and Input

 

Enjoyed the episode? 

Please leave a review here - even a sentence helps. Share and tag us (@SoloPR, @SoloPRPro) on social media so that we can thank you personally! Your support helps us keep bringing you insightful content every week. Thank you for tuning in!

Looking for more insights and support for your solo PR biz?  Head over to Solo PR Pro and become part of our community. Don't forget to sign up for our newsletter for the latest tips and trends.

The New Balancing Act of Communication

That Solo Life: Episode 248

The New Balancing Act of Communication

In this Episode

 

It’s a balancing act! Karen Swim, APR, of Solo PR, and Michelle Kane, of Voice Matters dive into the challenging topic of addressing current social and political conflicts in the workplace. The episode opens with a discussion about the ongoing Israeli-Gaza conflict and the protests happening across the United States, setting the stage for a conversation on how communication professionals can guide their clients through navigating these complex issues.

 

The conversation also touches on the evolving role of public relations professionals in shaping conversations and promoting sanity in communication. Throughout the episode, we highlight the importance of maintaining open dialogue, fostering mutual respect, and creating safe spaces for discussions on contentious issues. 

As you listen, we hope that you will gain valuable insights and practical advice to help you face the complexities of addressing social and political conflicts in today's world.

Episode Highlights:

• 00:01:05 - Addressing Current Conflicts : Discussion of the Israeli-Gaza conflict and protests in the United States.
• 00:02:33 - Navigating Conversations in the Workplace : What PR Pros can do to guide clients through addressing conflicts in the workplace.
• 00:05:19 - Misinterpretation of Company Statements : Discussion on how people interpret company statements and the need for clear communication.
• 00:08:48 - Importance of Context in Communication : The hosts emphasize the importance of context in communication and avoiding misinterpretations.
• 00:11:55 - Living Out Mission, Vision, and Values : Michelle and Karen stress the importance of companies aligning actions with their mission, vision, and values.
• 00:13:55 - Asserting Professional Counsel : The hosts encourage communication professionals to assert themselves and provide professional counsel in challenging situations.

 

Resources:

• Cultural Intelligence in Communications

Enjoyed the episode? 

Please leave a review here - even a sentence helps. Share and tag us (@SoloPR, @SoloPRPro) on social media so that we can thank you personally! Your support helps us keep bringing you insightful content every week. Thank you for tuning in!

Looking for more insights and support for your solo PR biz?  Head over to Solo PR Pro and become part of our community. Don't forget to sign up for our newsletter for the latest tips and trends.

Everything Old is New Again

That Solo Life: Episode 247

Everything Old is New Again

In this Episode

Karen Swim, APR, of Solo PR, and Michelle Kane, of Voice Matters delve into the importance of getting back to basics in our PR and marketing businesses.

Today’s  conversation is sparked by an email from Peter Shankman, the founder of the original "Help a Reporter Out" platform, which was eventually sold to a large corporation. Shankman has now launched a new platform called "Help Every Reporter Out," and in his announcement he shared his “back to basics” inspiration and how it led him to return to something he was no longer doing.

 

As PR professionals, we often find ourselves constantly reinventing our workflows, tools, and client work in an effort to keep up with the ever-evolving industry. But new is not always better. Sometimes returning the old things can improve not only how we do our jobs but how we feel about them. 

 

We delve into the topic of technology, staying true to our natural skill sets and passions in our careers, and how the basics include having a supportive community of fellow professionals. 

 

Episode Highlights:

• [00:00:18] - Old but new. The value of getting back to basics and the importance of realigning and retooling.
• [00:02:09] - Be a hero.  How Peter Shankman, Help Every Reporter Out inspired us to be a hero to ourselves by focusing on our areas of expertise.
• [00:05:04] - Reevaluating Tools and Subscriptions. All the shiny new tools hold so much promise and you can accumulate a pile of clutter. 
• [00:09:35] - Recognizing Natural Skillsets. It is important to recognize and focus on your natural skillsets and passions in order to maintain satisfaction and success in a career.
• [00:10:29] - Scaling Back for Success. Karen and Michelle discuss the idea of scaling back team members or business models to maintain a manageable workload and find fulfillment in solo work.

Resources:

• Help Every Reporter Out (HERO) - free sign-up for PR Pros and Journalists
• Back to basics in your business model -From Solo PR to Agency and Back Again

Enjoyed the episode? 

Please leave a review here - even a sentence helps. Share and tag us (@SoloPR, @SoloPRPro) on social media so that we can thank you personally! Your support helps us keep bringing you insightful content every week. Thank you for tuning in!

Looking for more insights and support for your solo PR biz?  Head over to Solo PR Pro and become part of our community. Don't forget to sign up for our newsletter for the latest tips and trends.

Ethical and Legal Challenges of the Modern PR Pro

That Solo Life: Episode 246

Ethical and Legal Challenges of the Modern PR Pro with Special Guest, Cayce Myers

New episodes every Monday

In this Episode

"That Solo Life" podcast hosts  Karen Swim, APR and Michelle Kane sit down with Cayce Myers, Ph.D., LL.M., J.D., APR,  an experienced public relations professional and author. In this episode, Myers discusses his latest book, "The Rules of Public Relations, Legal and Ethical Issues and Contemporary Practice," which tackles the intersection of public relations, law, and ethics.

Myers emphasizes the importance of understanding the legal implications of PR crises and the need for transparency when using artificial intelligence (AI) in PR. He stresses that PR professionals have a responsibility to navigate the challenges of disinformation and misinformation during election years. Brands are advised to align their communication strategies with their mission, vision, and values.

Throughout the episode, Myers draws from his extensive experience in the field to offer valuable insights into the ever-changing landscape of PR. 

Whether you're a seasoned PR professional or just starting out in the industry, this episode is packed with practical advice and thought-provoking conversations about the legal and ethical challenges surrounding public relations. Don’t miss out on this fascinating discussion!

Cayce Myers, Ph.D., LL.M., J.D., APR

Cayce Myers is a professor of public relations and director of graduate studies at the School of Communication at Virginia, where he researches and teaches about the legal, regulatory, and ethical aspects of public relations. As a lawyer who also holds a Ph.D. in mass communication, Myers has authored five books and sixty publications including peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, law review articles, and trade press pieces, covering topics such as public relations history, strategy, political campaigns, and related laws and policies. His newest publication, "The Rules of Public Relations," delves into the current laws and ethical challenges in the field of PR practice. The release is scheduled for this July.

Episode Highlights:

• [01:58] Risk and reputation. Lawyers and communicators view crises through a different lens, but do not have to be in opposition. 
• [06:37] Oh my AI. The murkiness of AI and what PR pros need to navigate this new technology.
• [11:27] I’ll just wait it out. PR Pros are reluctant to use AI, fearing it could create issues.
• [14:29] Embracing the future. The bright future of PR and what companies need to know when they hire younger workers.
• [18:56] The politics of it all. Elections, elections all over the globe and the impact on PR pros in 2024.

Resources:

• The Rules of Public Relations: Legal and Ethical Issues in Contemporary Practice (Publisher) (Use RLFANDF25 to save 25% off print book )
• The Rules of Public Relations: Legal and Ethical Issues in Contemporary Practice (Amazon)

Enjoyed the episode? 

Please leave a review here - even a sentence helps. Share and tag us (@SoloPR, @SoloPRPro) on social media so that we can thank you personally! Your support helps us keep bringing you insightful content every week. Thank you for tuning in!

Looking for more insights and support for your solo PR biz?  Head over to Solo PR Pro and become part of our community. Don't forget to sign up for our newsletter for the latest tips and trends.

Say Thanks to Cayce Myers! 

If you liked this episode with Cayce Myers, please say thanks on LinkedIn and follow his author page on Amazon.

Listen to the episode on our website, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can watch the interview on YouTube here.

Language, Landmines And The Peril Now Facing PR Pros

That Solo Life, Episode 244: Language, Landmines And The Peril Now Facing PR Pros

That Solo Life, a podcast dedicated to PR professionals, marketers, and individuals who work for themselves. 

In this episode hosts, Karen Swim of Solo PR Pro, and Michelle Kane from Voice Matters delve into the topic of avoiding generation gaps and cultural miscommunications.

In our discussion, we highlight how the emergence of a multigenerational workforce and multicultural society has made communication more complex. Together, we explore examples of misunderstood terminology, redefined norms, and quickly shifting cultural contexts. All of which could potentially influence the reception of our messages and client communications.

We also bring to the table the reality that not everyone has the same bank of references or base of knowledge. The universality of business references, iconic books, or even pop culture references is no longer a given. We navigate this landscape by encouraging PR professionals to provide context, or use universally understood language, thus facilitating clear and effective communication.

We also examine political influences, shedding light on how political parties or global events can assign new meanings to well-known terms, creating potential pitfalls for those unaware. We encourage communicators to be savvy, removing barriers, biases, and assumptions to truly connect with diverse audiences.

Closing the conversation, we impress upon our audience that everything communicates – the things we say and do (or don't do), often carry a message. PR professionals and communicators need to be involved in all sectors of an organization, as their insights could safeguard against reputation damage.

Episode Highlights:

• The modern communicator’s conundrum.  We can never assume that words have a universal meaning. It is important to check everything.
• Multi-generations and the mix-ups that can happen.Each generation has shaped language in their own way. PR Pros have to be careful to ensure that they are saying what they mean to say across all generations.
• The predicament of politics. How politics has influenced the way we communicate.
• Why PR needs a seat at the table. Why PR should never be siloed in companies.

More on this topic:

• Managing Across Generations 
• Talking About My Generation

Call to Action:
Looking for more insights into the PR world? Head over to Solo PR Pro and become part of our community. Don't forget to sign up for our newsletter for the latest tips and trends.
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What They Think We Do, What We Really Do And How To Bridge The Gap

That Solo Life, Episode 243: What They Think We Do, What We Really Do And How To Bridge The Gap

Welcome to the latest episode of "That Solo Life", the podcast passionately crafted for PR professionals by PR professionals. In this conversation, your hosts Michelle Kane and Karen Swim take you through the frustrations and challenges of people not understanding the role of public relations and the overlooked intricacies of articulating and demonstrating the value of public relations to clients and the public.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• The Perception Dilemma: Why the general public and even clients may have a skewed understanding of what public relations truly involves.
• Beyond Media Relations: How PR is much more than just press releases and media engagement; it's about vital strategic thinking and communication.
• Showcase Success: Why PR pros need to embrace measurement and demonstrating impact.
• Join the Conversation: An invitation to become a part of the growing Solo PR Pro community, where you'll find camaraderie and support from fellow professionals.

Key Takeaways:

• Recognizing the misunderstanding around the value of PR.
• Reflecting on the role of PR in shaping their own perceived value.
• Practical advice for PR pros to better communicate the wide array of services they offer.
• Effective strategies for PR pros to articulate their true value with confidence and clarity.

Rate, Review & Share!

If you found value in this episode, please rate and review our show, and share it with your networks.

Connect and Discuss:

Don't miss the opportunity to join the insightful discussions in the Solo PR Pro community. Connect with industry experts, exchange ideas, and get support from your colleagues.

Listen, engage, and grow with "That Solo Life." Happy listening!

Media, Mayhem and What Happens in a Small Town

Show Notes for That Solo Life: Episode 242

In this episode: That Solo Life co-hosts, Karen Swim, APR and Michelle Kane talk about some of the insights from the "Muckrack 2024 State of Journalism" and discuss the emerging trends shaping media relations today.

Episode Highlights:

• Discussing the Muckrack 2024 State of Journalism Report. We dig into the latest findings and what they mean for the future of journalism. What are the new challenges and opportunities for those in media relations? Check out the full report here: Muckrack 2024 State of Journalism
• The Art of Storytelling .Why storytelling remains the heart of compelling communication and how it's evolving with the times.
• Beyond Earned Media. How can PR professionals leverage their creativity and expertise beyond traditional media? We explore strategies to amplify your message and engage your audience.

Resources Mentioned:

• Muckrack 2024 State of Journalism: Read the report
  
  

Call to Action:
Looking for more insights into the PR world? Head over to Solo PR Pro and become part of our community. Don't forget to sign up for our newsletter for the latest tips and trends.
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Enjoyed the episode? Give us a rating and share the episode with a colleague. Your support helps us keep bringing you insightful content every week. Thank you for tuning in!

Navigating the New Terrain of Labor Laws for Solo PR Pros

In This Episode:

Join us as we dissect the implications of the Department of Labor's recent rule changes and what it means for solo PR professionals. We welcome Nathan Gibson, an authority in Employment Law and Independent Contractor Compliance, who is the Senior Director at MBO Partners. Nathan provides in-depth insights on staying compliant and the potential impacts on solo public relations businesses.

Episode Highlights:

• Understanding the Rule Change: Explore the specifics of the Department of Labor's new guidelines with our expert guest.
• Impacts on Solo PR Pros: Learn what solo PR professionals need to do differently to stay aligned with the new rules.
• Strategies for Compliance: Discover actionable strategies to maintain compliance without compromising on flexibility and freedom as an independent professional.

Featured Guest:

Nathan Gibson, an expert in:

• Employment Law
• Independent Contractor Compliance

Current Position:

• Senior Director, Risk Management at MBO Partners

Connect with Nathan on LinkedIn for more insights and personalized advisory.

Resources Mentioned:

• Join the Solo PR Pro Community: Solo PR Pro Premium Membership Signup
  • MBO Partners: For additional tools and expertise to manage your solo PR business, visit MBO Partners.
  • Free Resources: Stay informed with the latest solo PR trends and tips by signing up for our newsletter at http://eepurl.com/deC06f.

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  Thank you for tuning in, and keep thriving in your solo PR career!

  Note: This podcast episode is not intended to serve as legal advice. For specific legal concerns related to the topics discussed, please consult a qualified attorney.

The Hangover Episode: Oscar, Kate, and the Lost Hour

If you’re still feeling the effects of springing forward into daylight savings time, recovering from St. Patrick’s Day or are still wondering what is going on with the royals, in this episode we talk about it and how there’s a PR lesson in everything.

 

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Transcript

Michelle Kane (00:03):

Thank you for joining us for this episode of That Solo Life, the podcast for PR pros and marketers who work for themselves, people like me, Michelle Kane with VoiceMatters, and Karen Swim of Solo PR Pro. Hey, Karen, how are you today?

Karen Swim, APR (00:17):

Hey, Michelle. How are you? I am, I wasn't drinking last night, but I was partying with my family. We threw my sister a big birthday bash, and so I have a party hangover.

Michelle Kane (00:31):

There we go.

Karen Swim, APR (00:32):

I'm not sure if you're seeing straight. I'm tired, but so happy. My voice just came back like an hour ago.

Michelle Kane (00:39):

Well, that was good. That was it. And for our listeners, this will hit March 18th, but we are recording this March 11, which is the day, also the day after the Oscar. So since that's my Super Bowl, I have an Oscar hangover. Not to mention, we all lost an hour this weekend to daylight savings, so we're all just kind of coming into this day going like, what? But we're here, so we're going to keep it a little light. We're dubbing this The Hangover Episode since, hey, not for nothing. It's going to be airing the day after St. Patrick's Day. So if you all do your due diligence, you'll be feeling like us when you hear this so,

Karen Swim, APR (01:19):

So true.

Michelle Kane (01:20):

We'll try and keep it a little quiet.

Karen Swim, APR (01:21):

Okay.

Michelle Kane (01:24):

But yeah, it was an interesting weekend, I have to say. And we're just really going to riff on some things that we have seen. Of course, the Oscars usually give you a lot of things to chew on. And during the Oscars as I was too, screening the event as I do, this weird thing came up with, in the UK it was Mother's Day, Mothering Sunday, and this weird thing came up with a photo that the Princess of Wales had posted with her kids, and four major – AP, Getty -- agencies issued a kill order for this photo, which apparently is not done very often. And due to it not being what they called a true photo, apparently there was some manipulation that caused concern. Now, I'm not going to wear a tinfoil hat today and get into the weeds of all the conspiracies of Catherine. Where is she? I mean, look, this is not Scientology and Shelly Miscavige. No, but it's just like you're already watching a major event and you're scrolling. What? Huh? And people are pointing out some Photoshop issues. And although to say AP is saying, look, we expect things like if you do some burning, you do some tone changes. Those are okay as if you're a comms pro. But I don't know, it was just weird. Another weird blip in our lives of where every day is like, huh?

Karen Swim, APR (02:54):

Yeah. What's interesting to me about the recall. And then she had to apologize. And so I think as communications professionals, we all know that we hire photographers for clients, for events, for headshots, and we edit the photos. I believe that we are all safely in the zone of what passes as ethical and truthful editing. Correct? Correct. You're editing out flaws, you're editing for a better resolution, but you're not changing the narrative or presenting something that may have been a previous photo as brand new. And we're starting, I feel like this leads into this whole new era where we are with AI being able to create things and to change things so easily. There's an AI tool for absolutely everything these days. And it's interesting to me that, especially in the UK, that the news agencies recall the photo when they, in my opinion, very routinely cross ethical boundaries when it comes to reporting on the royal family. So they don't cover things that are truthful. They have these backhand deals with the royal family, and the way that they operate is so far outside of what I would consider to be ethical. But you have a problem with a photo that was manipulated. Yeah.

(04:30):

Really, how ironic.

Michelle Kane (04:32):

That certainly adds to the weirdness of it all. But as you say, it does open us up to the broader concept of how AI is. I'll use the negative connotation of infiltrating. I mean, we've already had an AI-created robocall, allegedly from President Biden, to influence primary voters in certain states in a negative way. So we know to be on the lookout, but people who aren't in this field of work, they're not expecting it as much as we are. And it's really going to be, I'll say a bumpy ride, but we really all need to be vigilant about what we consume. Even silly stuff like Royal news.

Karen Swim, APR (05:25):

Yeah. Honestly, we are seeing more and more AI generated content, and it's not necessarily coming from our traditional news outlets where they're adhering to a standard of journalistic integrity. This is coming from other outlets and they're flat out taking articles from other outlets and just rewriting them in ai. And we're going to try to discuss this topic in depth and with some seriousness at a later time. But it's worth calling it out at this time that, again, as you, not it, Michelle, and this is really important to us as communicators. As communicators, while we can, we have a trained eye and we're looking for these things, and we understand how to tell human generated content from AI content that's not always clear to consumers of information. And it makes our jobs a lot harder because at one point, I think we were all battling the battle against social issues and political issues and fighting against mal and disinformation. He also knew that it could come for our clients. But today, it's easier than ever, as I said, with AI bots taking articles and resending them out. And that means your client's quotes could get manipulated. Information about your client can be used in a malicious way. It's very concerning. And I think, if I'm being honest, for myself personally, you feel like you're fighting it and it almost feels like playing a game of whack-a-mole that you're never going to win.

Michelle Kane (07:14):

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it really amps up the reputation management portion of our work, whereas it's like, okay, keep my eye on Google reviews and things that people say and alerts, and now it's like, oh, okay. It's just a whole new sphere of potential influence that can harm clients. And again, I think vigilance is the word of the day is vigilance and just needing to try and stay ahead of this, but knowing that it is happening more and more is a definite good first step to that.

Karen Swim, APR (07:56):

True.

Michelle Kane (07:56):

So that's that. I'll be watching that silly story the rest of the day. I have a feeling it's just in case of, I dunno, they're tripping over themselves. I'm like, whatever.

Karen Swim, APR (08:05):

Well, we've had the photo things called out in the United States as well. There've been incidents with the Kardashians and their bad photo editing and fans have called it out on social media. Yeah, that's not your hand. That's not, and so photos, I would say, listen, the woman had surgery, apparently. Basically, she probably is not looking yet in her best self in a way that she wants to present to the public, but obviously we as PR people know, so just post a collage of old photos or post little from the past. There's so many ways that she could have managed this. She could have posted a photo to say, one of my favorite Mother's Day photos and post something that is not how you look right now in this moment and pretend that it's this year's Mother's Day photo. That was just dumb.

Michelle Kane (09:02):

That was dumb. There's so many different ways to play this. Take a picture of the pretty flowers that William should have bought. You

Karen Swim, APR (09:09):

Just photograph the

Michelle Kane (09:11):

That's true. Yeah.

Karen Swim, APR (09:12):

These are my loves. I mean, come on. There's just a million different ways to have handled that that would've been smarter than getting called out and then letting people spit out. Because even though I don't follow the royal family, I unfortunately cannot escape it when I'm reading news. And so I see these headlines about her being spotted and grainy photos, and I'm like, oh, for Pete's sake, it feels like she is a criminal. It's creepy.

Michelle Kane (09:46):

Well, one thing I did see, which I thought that's like a recipe for a hot mess this morning, saying that, and I guess I knew this on one level, again, it doesn't affect my day to day, but that each house, so to speak, has their own comms team independent of one another. So there really is no united fronts. So you've got the king and the, I can't say queen, the king and his wife have their press, and there's allegedly no uniform coordination. Yes.

Karen Swim, APR (10:21):

I think I had heard that in the

Michelle Kane (10:25):

They need to fix that. They need to fix that.

Karen Swim, APR (10:28):

Does that not speak to a lot of what happens in corporate America as well? There's no unified messaging or teams that people are disjointed. And when you have everyone operating on their own agenda, chaos rains. And so here's a lesson for brands out there, and I know that our solos have to work against these circumstances. In many instances, when you can't speak with a unified voice, you are going to have a problem at some point. And how it shows up can't, we can tell you some examples of how it shows up, but you will have a problem, not you might. You will for sure. Definitely. So it's a good lesson. You can't have that. You can't have everyone operating independently. And it's funny because now you also have the rise, or I should say it's firmly in our culture to have a personal brand. When you're an executive or when you're a rising manager and even just an employee of the company, people have their personal brands.

(11:32):

And sometimes when your brand has elevated enough, you have your own PR person or publicist. You might be writing a book and then you're pursuing your own interests, but you're leveraging your position in your company here too. There should be coordination because if you are a CEO of a company and you have your own PR team for your personal interests, you are still being seen as a representative of your company. So you need to loop in your company's PR team, and you all need to walk in a single step to ensure that you, in promoting your own brand, are not doing damage to the company brand.

Michelle Kane (12:14):

Yes. And so often the pushback that you get or the reaction that you receive is that, oh, you're just trying to control everything. It's like, well, yes and no. Yes. Within reason, because your paycheck is still signed by this entity that you are using, for lack of a better word, to raise your own profile. And yeah, we just need to know, I always say, I don't need to know everything, but I need to know everything. It doesn't mean I'm going to get into micromanage, but absolutely the united front, because that's something that certainly communicates. It could certainly harm your brand if your brand has to scurry after you. And even if it isn't a big mess to clean up, it just doesn't look, it makes the brand look like it doesn't know what it's doing, and that would instill doubt in their product or their service, and nobody wants that.

Karen Swim, APR (13:11):

I agree. Well, Michelle, you watched the Oscars.

Michelle Kane (13:16):

I did. It's my Super Bowl. And it's so funny that the infamous incident, I was sitting there watching this and that thing that happened last year, I thought, wow, was that just last year? It feels like 10 years ago.

Karen Swim, APR (13:30):

It does.

Michelle Kane (13:32):

So nothing like that happened. I don't think anything too crazy happened. At least it didn't register on my radar. It was a pretty mundane night. They ended relatively on time. There were some neat elements of the Hollywood community gathering, and I'm sure much of which were predetermined bits. It was fun to see interesting pairings like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito recreating their twins duo, and both of them having been Batman villains, calling out Michael Keaton in the audience for killing them both.

Karen Swim, APR (14:12):

That's fun.

Michelle Kane (14:12):

And they were going to have a talk at the after party, but the one thing that I really loved was the way they had the presentation of the four major acting awards. They pulled in five previous winners to do the presentation. And so each past winner got a nominee to speak to, and it was really neat. Sometimes there were some connections, and I thought, oh, you're making everyone cry before they even get up there. So that was kind of cool. Then of course, John Cena recreating the streak episode that David Nivan handled with such a plum in the seventies, but that was definitely a bit Jimmy Kimmel had coordinated. He was pretty good at coordinating some bits. So I would say it was relatively uneventful. Of course, I don't know. Anyone who knows me on social media knows that. I think I'm just Ken as an absolute banger of a song, and I get why the Nice song won. But Ryan Gosling brought it's, they did an incredible production number of, I am Just Complete with Mark Ronson, who was a co-writer slash from Roses, and of course Wolfgang Van Halen who was on the recording. So yeah, if you love movies, it was a good night. If you're a nerd like me that loves the history of it all, and oh, that's meaningful because X, Y, Z, it was a good night for you too. I hope so. That was fun.

Karen Swim, APR (15:40):

Well, I saw a couple pictures here and there, and of course I saw the fashion pictures, but you know what was interesting, the Essence Awards, which does not get far,

Michelle Kane (15:51):

No, it doesn't.

Karen Swim, APR (15:51):

Media attention was just a few days ago as well,

Michelle Kane (15:55):

Hit me up.

Karen Swim, APR (15:56):

These ladies brought the looks. They served looks that were incredible and fierce, and what an empowering time for women to come together to celebrate women. It was just, I wish that it got a lot more attention than it does, because this is not just a black woman event. It's just something that everyone can enjoy that you bring together this great talent and hearing from people who were in that room, just how it uplifts them and how everyone leaves feeling more creative and ready to achieve their dreams and fulfilled. And I will say, I don't know, I can't speak for men, but I know for women, period, when we get together and we celebrate one another, there is truly something special about that that leaves you on a high for a long time. We need more of

Michelle Kane (16:51):

That. That is so true. That is so true. And yeah, I don't like that. I have to trip over something like the essence of awards. Well, going through the remote, I love all of it. And what you said is so true because it's funny, I was messaging with a friend who is quite ensconced in her world right now, and she's like, oh, I'm not going to watch, and she's a creative, and I said, I think you really should watch, because people will slag off on award shows. Oh, it's just blah, blah, blah, and they just talk about themselves. I'm like, no, it's inspiring. It's soul food because these people, they share some of their story, many of them as they accept, and it's just a real touch point of Yeah, you're right. That's why we tell stories. That's why we do this. It's not just what are you wearing and who did what with who. It's important because so many of our films and our media are reflections of where we are, who we are, who we want to be, where we want to go. It has value within. Yeah,

Karen Swim, APR (17:56):

I totally appreciate that viewpoint. I've got a really good friend who is a writer and producer, and during the covid time, she encouraged people, even though everything was shut down to continue to write and create, because she saw it as their duty to chronicle history. And it's really such a beautiful thing, whether you're a comedian, whatever you do creatively, you are portraying the times. And even now we look back, we look at old films, we look at old paintings and sculptures, anything that was created in past times, and it gives us into a window, into the culture, into what was happening, the political scene, I'm sure that we'll look back. We look back at previous Oscars and we see the creatives that were unified around causes, we've seen them take stands about social justice and different things. This year, it was the war in Israel, and we see them take a stand, and I do think that you're right. It is important to sometimes, I know we PR people, we live in our world, we live in our industry, we live in the businesses of our clients. We live in the business world, but we should remember that the creative endeavors hold an important place as well, and they really do portray our history right now. So it's important to participate in that and to acknowledge that.

Michelle Kane (19:28):

Yeah, no, could not have said it any better myself. That is so true. So well, we hope this was a bit of a light touch for you today, and we thank you so much for taking the time to listen. If you did get value, please share it around, and of course, please check in with us@soloprpro.com. Check out what that amazing group of people has to offer and what Karen cooks up for us every week with new blog posts, new offerings. So make sure you sign up for the newsletter@soloprpro.com, and until next time, thanks for listening to That Solo Life.

 

Creative PR Strategies in the New Media Landscape

It’s no secret the media landscape is changing and it’s only intensifying the effect on how PR pros do media relations. In this episode we talk about taking the time to evaluate our tactics and get creative  to reach our client’s audiences.

 

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Transcript

Speaker 1:           Thank you for joining us for this episode of That Solo Life, the podcast for PR pros and marketers who work for themselves, people like me, Michelle Kane, with VoiceMatters and my wonderful co-host, Karen Swim of Solo PR Pro. Hi Karen, how are you doing today?

Speaker 2:           Hello, Michelle. I'm doing good. We are currently in the month of March. I had a client that was asking me for Q1 stuff this week and I'm like, yeah, I'm going to give it to you when Q one's over. And they were like, it's still March. And I'm like, it barely started so that many people are feeling exactly like my client.

Speaker 1:           Yes, yes. I've had to remind myself what month, wait. Oh, okay.

Speaker 2:           It seems to be running over us. It's not that it seems like it's later in the month, it just feels like it's running over us and then backing up in reverse and doing it again.

Speaker 1:           Yeah. Yeah. I wonder if it's that we're just so eager to maybe get through this calendar year for many reasons or maybe just afraid of falling behind. I don't know. There are a lot of factors at work, I think. Yeah, stuff's been a lot. It's been a lot. And to add to that, I mean we talk about this often about how our job is as the storytellers for our clients to really sing their news and their praises and their efforts and how the media landscape has changed. And it's really even changed that I've seen on the hyper-local level that what used to be the extremely low hanging fruit of Yay you gave so-and-so a something, lemme send a picture and it would be an easy get. And it's not so much anymore, which in a way it's been kind of fun to pull back and think, alright, challenge time, how do we get more creative about telling our story to the people we want to see and hear it? So we thought we'd riff about that a little bit because I'm sure many of you out there are experiencing that on a number of levels

Speaker 2:           To say the least. Media relations has undergone a significant shift and a lot of that is really due to the shrinking number of outlets and the lack of money with publications. So in addition to layoffs, there's just fewer publications altogether. And then publications that even used to be free are now charging. So you can get in there if you for a fee, but then that really harms organizations like nonprofits and smaller companies that had a fair shot at doing some of those things. And those publications targeted their audience. I mean, I think the other thing, Michelle, and I'm sure that you're seeing this, is we really do have to take a step back and say, where's our audience at these days? Because it used to be pretty clear cut, but I feel like that is changing so much. And it's because coupled with the shrinking media outlets is that consumers do not trust institutions. They don't trust employers, they don't trust companies, they don't trust media outlets. And so where are people really going for their information,

Speaker 1:           Right? Because we also know that while some may give social media as the easy answer, that's not the complete picture either. There are people that you might think, oh, I bet you're on Facebook who don't have Facebook accounts, or are you doing TikTok? Are you not doing TikTok? So you really do. It's not as simple as it was not too long ago.

Speaker 1:           And I think in many ways, perhaps the answer is in hyper targeting your digital advertising efforts, but that's a whole other conversation for a whole other day. But perhaps even doing that to an extent with your information. I mean one perhaps snooze worthy example is just the small thing of, okay, you have a client that yes, they still want to grow their Facebook page, that's great. But I have found over the last couple of years it's far more effective if I use interesting, informative content than the blah like my page ad. People don't they want. So people want to interact with your information. It's like you say, it's finding them and making sure that we are in front of them and keeping in mind that any given client's audience is in a multitude of different segments at any given time. You've got the casual people, the ready to make a move. People, I don't even know who you are people.

Speaker 2:           And I think it's also important because of all the challenges, more important than ever, this has always been true for PR pros to really take a step back and force their clients to answer the right set of questions. What's my goal with this? I have announcement, and we all know that clients think every announcement is news. A product announcement is not news. That's not something that reporters will be interested in. Product announcement will be interesting if it helps the people who buy your products and services. Yes, they will be interested in new features and new things or people that were looking at you. So potential customers, so who can use that information, your sales team, your customer's teams, and then any outreach that you have to your audience. The media is not always the answer. And PR pros really, I get it. Our clients always see this as this is the thing that's going to change our life. And that's never been true, but it's definitely not true today. I feel like in this day and age, we cannot assume that everybody's on social media. They are not.

Speaker 1:           Right?

Speaker 2:           They really are not including younger generations. This is funny, yesterday I caught 10 minutes of the news. I wanted to see the weather and they were talking about a local trial here and the jury questions and they questioned a juror that was younger and she had not heard about the trial because she doesn't watch or read the news and she's not on social media at all. And they were like, yes, she's not on social media. And they were like the anchor people were shocked.

Speaker 1:           But you know what?

Speaker 2:           Don't think that just because someone is in a demographic that they're on a social media site. Exactly. Facebook too. Facebook usage, I'm sure the daily usage has declined greatly. And if you're targeting people that are making decisions about your product, Facebook is probably not your answer today. It was 10 years ago, but in 2024, it's not the answer. If you already have a nice community there and they do engage with you, definitely you want to nurture that, but you really need to rethink these strategies. The one thing that has consistently over the years been effective and is I believe and underutilized tool is email.

Speaker 1:           I was just thinking that email and even I'm going to say it, direct mail depending where you're, but yeah, I mean your email database, that's your gold mine. Truly, these are the people that I don't care if they want to engage with you, if they hear from you once a year for a special offer depending on what your type of business is or these are the people that have said, yes, I want to hear from you and you own that land, so to speak, and you can really be effective. And

Speaker 2:           Yes, and I mean that means investing in email marketing software. We're not talking about sending emails from your company email account, whether or not a lot of companies still do. We actually want to go to the process because you need to be smart about sending emails. So you don't want to send out an email every day. That's just because people will feel like they're being spammed. You really want to use the analytics, you want to segment your audience types you want to target specifically because you want to really personalize it and tailor it for the members of your audience. So there will people that will gobble up more. There will people that maybe just want to hear from you for certain things. You need to give them options about what they receive. Email marketing software allows you to do that. But when you build a healthy list, you really have such a golden opportunity to really nurture those relationships and really build your audience and you can build community with an email.

Speaker 2:           It's funny because a lot of journalists have turned to Substack and other communities like Substack for that exact same reason. It's very focused, it's very targeted around content and a very specific type of content. It's not the noise of social groups. You really have to opt into this information to receive it and all the content is not free. So keep in mind that there are still ways to reach people today, but you really do need to think about maybe walking away from some of the broader, throw it all on the wall and see what stick strategy and getting down into more niched communities and really refining those processes that still work. And I love email for marketing. I love it. I think we're all missing out on leveraging it for the powerful tool that it remains in 2024.

Speaker 1:           Yeah, I couldn't agree more. And just remembering too, the broader integrated picture of, I forget what the number is these days. Is it 14? 27? How many times does someone have to see something to engage with it, even when asked, oh, so what made you actually contact us? Oh, I saw a billboard. It's like, well, no, we didn't do a billboard, but okay, fair enough. You saw something. So keeping that in mind too. But yeah, I mean these are certainly challenging times and you definitely need to step back and take a look and say, okay, what am I doing? What's working, what isn't? And I would hazard to guess that many of us have clients that are underusing their email marketing tools and they could be using them more to do deeper dives to engage on a deeper level with their base and grow it from there. Because how easy is it to then say, oh my goodness, I got this great piece of information from you, I'm going to forward that to a friend. Boom.

Speaker 2:           Yeah, I see this. The challenges really are an opportunity for PR posts to be more strategic, to really demonstrate the value that they have beyond media relations. And I'm not saying that media relations is dead, it is not. It just different today. And I know lots of public relations consultants who have completely left the profession because media relations and they said it's just too hard. Many of those are not, of course, our members who are well-rounded and very strategic, but I say this for anybody who's out there who really has been just pushing that lever hard because you came out of the traditional agency world and that's what you did. You got hits that it's really time to leverage your full skillset. We believe you have the skills. We know that you do. We know that you know more and you're going to have to really start to counsel your clients a bit differently and really start to make sure that you are forcing them to answer the right questions so that you can develop a strategy that's more robust than just hit, hit, hit, hit, hit.

Speaker 1:           Exactly.

Speaker 2:           That does not.

Speaker 1:           And you know what? The good news that doing this makes us all better at what we do makes the profession better. It will help our clients get better results. And we want to hear from you. What are you thinking these days? What are you experiencing? Tell us@solopro.com and maybe we'll talk about it on a future episode. We'd love to hear some feedback because it's just our brains at the moment. But we do. We so appreciate your time, we appreciate you giving us your ears every week. And please do sign up for the newsletter@soloprpro.com so you know all the goodness that is happening there. And until next time, thanks for listening to that solo life.