The recent phenomenon and popularity of blogs, especially the extent to which they've grown in the past few years, astonishes me. The fact that something that never existed until very recently can provide a lucrative career for people now seems crazy. But that is the world we live in - where new technology is developed every day, and new developments very quickly become obsolete.

I vaguely remember becoming aware of what a blog was sometime when I was in college. A blog was then simply a means of online communication for friends, family or a group of people with similar interests. It was a simple forum for discussion, which until the past year I really had no interest in. But modern-day communication is constantly evolving, which requires everyone - businesses and individuals alike - to not only take notice of the trends but to join them. These days, you can find a blog on just about any topic you're interested in - from sports to politics, education to ice cream. Corporations and political candidates have their own blogs as do college students and retirees. Here at Dittoe PR, every account executive has her own blog for which she writes on a regular basis.

Online news sites have largely replaced print newspapers and magazines. While many people still enjoy picking up a hard copy of their favorite news source to read on a Sunday morning or when they're traveling on an airplane, it is far easier to read news on the computer - especially when so many people are in front of one all day long. Online news sites can still make money by selling advertisements on their web pages. Similarly, bloggers who are able to generate enough traffic to their sites can sell ads as a means of income - supplementary or even full time.

For example, I just read an article this morning in the New York Times on a woman, Heather Armstrong, who runs her own blog for other women - particularly mothers - called "Dooce." Her site has become so wildly popular that she's been able to sell ads to corporate giants like J.C. Penny, Crate & Barrel, Walgreens and Starwood. She's generating enough income through these ads that both she and her husband have since quit their regular jobs to focus on running the blog!

With forms of communication changing so rapidly - not to mention the other technological advancements that are constantly happening in our world - students in college today are likely to have a job in something that didn't exist when they were preparing for their careers. And for the rest of us - we'd better stay up to date with the changes, or we'll be left behind!

Remember Ashlee Simpson's infamous performance on Saturday Night Live?  It was reminiscent of Milli Vanilli's "coming out" only it was her voice on the recording.  Well lightning has struck again... It appears the event planning team for the Beijing Olympics ignored the lesson to be learned from Rob and Fab during the opening ceremony by placing a lip synching young Chinese girl center stage and a not-quite-as-cute girl's voice on the recording.

According to the Associated Press, "A 7-year-old Chinese girl was not good-looking enough for the Olympics opening ceremony, so another girl with a pixie smile lip-synched 'Ode to Motherland,' an official said."

I blogged yesterday about how China was hoping the Olympics, and the opening ceremony especially, would change world views of the highest populated country on the globe.  Now the PR work the Beijing Olympics committee has worked so hard to spread internationally - portraying China as a technological world leader and advanced society - is being seen for exactly what it is.

Lin Miaoke, the little girl the whole world thought was singing, was really just moving her lips to the voice of Yang Peiyi... who, I consider, to be adorable.

Why all this fuss?  Maybe because it's China and it's the Olympics. 

Just last week, news surfaced that the guy in the FreeCreditReport.com commercials (you know, driving the sub-compact car or working in the seafood restaurant) doesn't sing the songs we all have stuck in our heads after seeing one of the commercials.  In fact, he's French Canadian and apparently has quite an accent - BUT he has the look, so he got the part!

It's really not uncommon for actors and actresses to lip synch or even be dubbed over.  For instance, Andie McDowell was in "Four Weddings and a Funeral" but her voice wasn't.  The actress we heard was Glenn Close.  Apparently her voice was perfect for the role but she didn't look the part.

My argument is this: Lin Miaoke is an actress.  The planning committee for the opening ceremonies selected her to be the child who sings "Ode to the Motherland" because she was cute and was seemingly unafraid to be center stage at the largest global event of 2008.  The committee realized that while she looked the part, she did not have a good enough or strong enough voice to sing the part... enter Yang Peiyi, a Chinese girl who could sing leaps and bounds above the other young girl but just didn't have "the look" the planners had in mind.

"'The national interest requires that the girl should have good looks and a good grasp of the song and look good on screen,' Chin [Qigang] said. 'Lin Miaoke was the best in this.  And Yang Peiyi's voice was the most outstanding,'" reported the AP.

That's show business, baby.

Friday night my friends and I gathered at one of our houses to eat some Chex Mix, queso and candy to watch the opening ceremony for the Summer Olympics in Beijing.  While our attention wasn't 100% focused on the dancing, symbolism and pyrotechnics, we were all impressed at the lengths China went to in efforts to show the world they are now a leader in the 21st century.

I didn't understand a lot of the negative buzz surrounding this summer's games... you know all the talk about the pollution and then of course, the protests.  I guess I was looking at the situation with rose colored glasses on.  After living in Hong Kong for three years, I had formulated my own opinions and thoughts on China and they are just so different from most of my friends'.

That being said, China really entered into this Olympics fighting an uphill battle.  Everything about the Olympics coming out of China needs to be positive... it's as if they are in "damage-control PR mode" without really having a "disaster" to be trying recovering from.

China is working extremely hard to impress the world... to show their culture, people and technology.  They are a world leader, and really have been for a long time but no one has ever noticed.  Their political issues and decisions both nationally and internationally have overshadowed anything else which could be a positive reflection of the country and its people.

This is a really good example for businesses worldwide to take notice of.  A series of questionable decisions, a bad product release or corporate scandal can put a bad taste in your clients' mouths which can last a few hours or maybe a few decades.  As consumers, we all put a lot of faith into the brands we trust.  If tomorrow you wash your clothes with Tide and they are ruined - will you use Tide again?

Now, of course, a bad experience with laundry detergent isn't quite the same as the political dealings of the world's largest communist society but you get the idea!

Overall, I think China's doing a great PR job positioning itself as a world leader and innovative society.  Many people's eyes are being opened for the first time to Chinese culture and what an exciting way to do so!

This morning, I saw a video on Inc. magazine's website talking about "How to choose a PR agency." This was interesting to me, coming from the agency side, to look at what clients must think about in deciding to work with us. So I started thinking about each of the five "tips" given in light of Dittoe PR and our clients.

1.Use references.
Talk to friends and business contacts you know and trust to see what firms they think will be a good fit for your organization. I know we've gotten several of our clients through references and word of mouth. Since we're located in Indianapolis, it's easy for companies here to see our work and for Dittoe to attract the attention of more local clients.

2. Does a PR agency know your business?
Engage the PR agency in dialogue about your industry and business challenges. Ask them how they would likely approach your account. Dittoe works with a wide variety of clients but has particular expertise in the high tech industry. However, after working with several clients in the education industry recently, we've gained a great deal of knowledge about this industry over the past year. Similarly with working with other clients, we're continually learning as much as possible about the marketplace and various industries in order to be able to serve an increasing range of clientelle.

3. Test the chemistry between your company and the agencies that you’re looking at. Who do you think you’ll get along with best and be able to work well with? With any business partnership, it's very important to understand one another and be able to communicate well. Dittoe has a wide range of clients and therefore a wide range of client relationships. Some clients like to talk on the phone with us every day, while others will go days or sometimes even weeks between emails with us. It's our responsibility to understand our clients' needs and cater specifically to them, communicating in the method they prefer.

4. Be a partner. Make sure to let the agency know all the relevant information they might need in order to best tell your story. This is very important to a PR agency. Since what we do is "tell our clients' stories" essentially, it is critical that we have all the necessary information to paint a picture for the media. Clients who withhold information from us are doing themselves a disservice.

5. Define success. Make sure you and the agency have the same goals in mind. It is important for Dittoe to know what our clients expect of us and what will make them happy. That way, we can set our expectations - and help set theirs realistically. All clients usually say they want to be on Oprah, but unfortunately that rarely happens. Landing coverage like Good Morning America, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Times is incredible and we're always so excited when stories like these run for our clients. Also, knowing where a client would most like to be featured is important. Some clients would actually prefer to be included in trade publications - written specifically for people in their industry - instead of national newspapers or magazines written for the general public.

Dittoe PR is very good at what we do, and we know how to achieve media coverage successfully for our clients. Anyone looking for a PR agency who would like national exposure should give us a look!

Every two years I get really excited in mid-July because I am able to get a new, discounted mobile phone with my service provider (Verizon Wireless).

This year is no different. I have had my eye on the LG Voyager since it came out and I can't wait to trade in my beaten-up Samsung!

The discount is a nice bonus to signing a new two-year agreement with Verizon. It allows me to stay "up-to-date" with new mobile technologies and it feeds the hunger of wanting something new and shiny in my purse.

Unlike my husband, I am not interested in a Blackberry, Treo or iPhone. He's in sales and has to be connected 24/7, so for him it makes sense. I do all of my work either on my desktop or laptop and I never feel "disconnected."

My friends, family, co-workers and clients all know my mobile & office numbers as well as my email address and I feel that is more than sufficient for the work I do. Granted, it would be nice not to have to bring my laptop on day trips to NYC or back home to SC but it's something I don't mind doing. In fact, I like doing it... which is why I want the LG Voyager and not the Blackberry Pearl.

In a world where we are becoming more and more connected through the Internet, mobile devices, social networking, etc... it's nice to "disconnect" for a brief moment and have one electronic device meant to do just one thing: be a telephone.

They finally get it. I've tried to explain to my three best friends from college what the term Public Relations  means and what a Public Relations Practitioner actually does.  I've explained, given examples, had them meet my fellow peers in PRSSA and even brought them to my the PRSSA Relay For Life event(thanks again Ginny!).  As a teacher, nurse, and dietitian none of them have stepped foot in the communication school. 



I knew what my friends were going to be doing in their future careers but their lack of knowledge about my career choice was frustrating for me. Then I started to tell them what I do all day for eight or nine hours a day, and they all seemed interested in all the projects I presented to them. Then one night I asked them, do you really know what I'm talking about?  They told me the truth- "not...really."   

When I told them about my new client Katrina's Children, they began to understand the practice of Public Relations. Katrina's Children is a new documentary featuring nineteen children from different neighborhoods in New Orleans. The film examines the impact of Katrina on their lives and is told ENTIRELY from their point of view.  It is such a powerful documentary, and I encourage everyone to at least check out the trailer of the film.   





 It was a client that hit home to my college friends.  We attended college at The University of Alabama, so our school was canceled for a few days when Katrina made her way up through Mississippi and then upward through Alabama. 

We actually had a pretty sweet 'hurricane party' to make things a little bit better. I never thought I would really experience or come close to experiencing a hurricane due to the fact that I lived in Indiana my whole life- a state with NO BEACH!  This was my first time experiencing a hurricane- or the aftermath of one. We did get released from school for Hurricane Rita- but I played it safe and drove back to Indiana.

Back to the point- thanks to Katrina's Children, my friends from college have finally figured out what I do "in life" as we say.  I work at the best Public Relations firm in Indianapolis, specializing in high tech PR. 

An expert is defined as a person who has special skill or knowledge in some particular field; specialist; authority. Every day I pitch some journalist or blogger on speaking with a client, an expert in mobile technology, networking, social media, 3PL, etc… who can provide a perspective relevant to a story or unique enough to qualify as a story in and of itself.

I suppose I’m expert violist, field hockey player and dog trainer since I do possess special skill and knowledge in each field – but I don’t go around claiming to know everything about any of these skills. I consider myself to be an amateur at everything I am skilled at since I don’t quite have the tenure required to be taken seriously as an expert. 

The people I promote each day are referred to as experts because they know their business better than anyone else, bar none. In many cases, the experts I work with are founders of multiple organizations and all of them have taught me so much about their business and industry.

I’ve come to learn so much about the experts I work with and represent. So much that it’s difficult to present media contacts with all of the reasons why they need to speak with someone in the first place. I wish I could just label my clients as experts with stickers on their Web sites or foreheads, whichever they prefer, letting the world know that they are skilled at what they do, the best in fact.

Unfortunately, we all can’t walk around with signs letting the world know who we are – unless you’re into wearing a nametag for the rest of your life. That’s why PR is so important. As hard as it is to get the attention of the media, when I do it is a major adrenaline rush.

After reaching out to someone numerous times over a period of time and receiving no response, no inkling of interest – to get that one phone call or email asking for more information and to speak with the expert is the reason why I come into work every day. That call or email is how I earn my nametag: a Public Relations Account Executive.

Here at Dittoe PR we do many different types of public relations: We do Corporate Public Relations, High Tech PR and Media Relations across the board, but today I've decided to focus on PR for the Planet. I've already blogged about this once, but after recent conversation it seems the time has come for me to do it again.

Even if you're not an environmentalist, a tree hugger or whatever you'd like to call it, things are changing because of Global Warming and it's not for the better.

Here are just a few of the effects that Global Warming is having on our planet, according to National Geographic:

• Arctic ice is rapidly disappearing, and the region may have its first completely ice-free summer by 2040 or earlier. Polar bears and indigenous cultures are already suffering from the sea-ice loss.

• Glaciers and mountain snows are rapidly melting—for example, Montana's Glacier National Park now has only 27 glaciers, versus 150 in 1910.

• Coral reefs, which are highly sensitive to small changes in water temperature, suffered the worst bleaching—or die-off in response to stress—ever recorded in 1998, with some areas seeing bleach rates of 70 percent.

• An upsurge in the amount of extreme weather events, such as wildfires, heat waves, and strong tropical storms, is also attributed in part to climate change by some experts.

Hopefully these facts are enough to turn on that energy-efficient light bulb in your head and inspire you to do something to help the environment.  At a loss for what you can do to help? Here are some ideas:

§     Use less hot water- It takes a lot of energy to heat water. You can use less hot water by washing your clothes in cold or warm water (500 pounds saved per year) instead of hot.
§     Use a clothesline instead of a dryer whenever possible- You can save 700 pounds of carbon dioxide when you air dry your clothes for 6 months out of the year.
§     Reuse your shopping bag-  When shopping, it saves energy and waste to use a reusable bag instead of accepting a disposable one in each shop.
§ Buy locally grown and produced foods- The average meal in the United States travels 1,200 miles from the farm to your plate. Buying locally will save fuel and keep money in your community.
§         Reduce the number of miles you drive by walking, biking, carpooling or taking mass transit wherever possible-  Avoiding just 10 miles of driving every week would eliminate about 500 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions a year!
§         Start a carpool with your coworkers or classmates- Sharing a ride with someone just 2 days a week will reduce your carbon dioxide emissions by 1,590 pounds a year. eRideShare.com runs a free service connecting north american commuters and travelers.
§         Plant a tree-  A single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime. Shade provided by trees can also reduce your air conditioning bill by 10 to 15%.
§         Be sure you’re recycling at home- You can save 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide a year by recycling half of the waste your household generates.

For these, and other tips on how to stop Global Warming, visit: http://globalwarming-facts.info/50-tips.html

 

This past week reaffirmed why I love my job so much. My amazing co-workers surprised me with flowers, a Starbucks gift card, a hilarious birthday card and a lunch out on my birthday. At first, I was down in the dumps about turning 26 but by Saturday I was still celebrating – after a crazy joint-birthday party with fellow 26 year-old Christy Oberley. This was seriously my favorite birthday since 21.

It occurred to me Friday night amidst the dance-offs, singing, jumping on furniture and odd drink concoctions that the people I work with are truly the hardest working, hardest partiers I have ever known. Each member of the Dittoe team, from Chris & Liza to our interns, is outgoing, funny, genuine and more importantly - the best at what they do.

Members of the Dittoe gang are high tech PR specialists, consumer PR experts and… party animals. It's quite a change from the corporate world I spent several years in! Change happens every minute of every day in this office. Clients have new ideas, new products, new services and Dittoe rolls with the changes making sure we can maximize our clients’ news to the very best of our ability.

When Oprah Winfrey’s producer calls Meg Charlebois we all celebrate with a quick dance in the middle of the office. When Good Morning America calls Liza we all scream in excitement [and maybe play a New Kids on the Block song as a tribute]. We truly work together and have fun together. We’re not in competition with each other to see who can get the best coverage – we work together to ensure we ALL get the best coverage for our clients.

You simply cannot work with a better group of people or with more amazing professionals. So, here’s to being 26 and working at Dittoe Public Relations – may we have many more celebrations!

My kind-hearted boss thought he would be nice to his staff and bring three colossal bags of mini candy bars to work. The rest of the staff thought that this was a very nice gesture, but for a person like me this is equal to giving a crack addict a bag a crack and a glass pipe.

 

Eight Twix bars later, I wake up from my sugar coma and tell my co-workers about my minor accomplishment. They were completely flabbergasted. They could not believe that I had managed to eat that many mini candy bars in such a short amount of time.

 

Really? This is not that big of a deal. Plenty of people can eat this many mini candy bars. After all, they are mini. These people are acting like I should be the next Kobayashi.

 

To prove my normalcy I looked at the serving size on one of the evil colossal bags of chocolate crack and read that a normal serving size is five candy bars. Ha! This means that I only ingested 1.6 times the normal serving.

 

Things are not always quite what they seem. This is a lesson that can be applied to all avenues of life, especially the world public relations. Journalists referred to as business reporters may seem like good contacts as you are pitching a new high tech client, but you may find out that they only really cover the coal mining business in eastern Kentucky. Suddenly, they do not fit the mold of a good contact anymore.

 

It takes a little bit of research, just like I had to research the caloric composition of my chocolate crack, to ensure that you are pitching the right people. Just because an editor’s name is Tracy Smith, you should never be so bold as to assume that Ms. is the correct prefix.

 

 

In this job, I am trying to spread the word about my clients and help them get exposure on a local, national and even international level. 

I am the little bird in reporters, writers, editors, producers and bloggers ears.  I'm informing them of something they don't know.  They might know about a technology, a company or an individual -- but the whole reason why I'm writing or calling them is to tell them something newsworthy.  It's up to them to decide if the story I'm telling is something they want to run with.  I'm just the messenger.

Spreading the word isn't as easy as it appears.  I try very hard to tell my clients' stories to the appropriate media contacts, but sometimes I, undoubtedly, reach the wrong person.  In the instances where I'm redirected, I'm extremely appreciative and apologetic.  By no means do I want to aggravate anyone in the media -- after all, it's my job to communicate with them every day.  Why would I ever intentionally jeopardize that relationship?

Ever heard the saying, "Don't hate the player, hate the game?"  I don't think I've said that since college, but it comes to mind today.  I am a player in the game of public relations.  I know it might sound corny, but it's true.  I work with CEOs, directors of marketing, company presidents and founders, lawyers and other PR professionals long before I ever involve the media, and once that communication begins there's no telling who I'm directed to.  To quote presidential hopeful, Senator Hillary Clinton, "It takes a village!"

Lately there seems to be a lot of buzz in various blogs and e-newsletters about PR professionals "spamming" editors and contacting media with incorrect information or inappropriate messages (i.e. Calling a journalist "Bob" when his name is "Rob" or pitching a sports writer on an entertainment story).  While I'm sure this happens frequently, I'd like to speak up for the PR pros who try their very hardest to avoid this stigma the media has placed on us.

Do I spam?  It seems this term gets thrown around quite a bit these days.  The definition of spam is the use of mailing lists to blanket groups or private e-mail boxes with unsolicited messages of a promotional nature. 

Do I use mailing lists?  No.  I also don't email to "lists" -- each contact gets a personalized email from me.  I do create media lists based off of research either I or someone else at Dittoe has recently done.  I also double check online to see if a reporter is still on a particular beat and if the contact has written something related to my story in the past.  I want to make sure I understand what he or she is looking for when it comes to content. 

Are my emails unsolicited?  This is what I struggle with.  Initially, no one asks to receive a pitch via email or telephone call from me.  So in that respect, my contact is unsolicited.  However, doesn't a journalist, blogger or producer who has provided an email address or phone number to the public automatically opt-in to be contacted?  Otherwise, how would they ever find out about new companies, products, services or rising business, sports, philanthropic and political figures?  After all, they can always "opt-out."

Our PR tactics at Dittoe are very simple but have proved to be extremely effective for our clients.  We don't want to anger anyone who could help us, and we definitely want to treat everyone with the same amount of respect we would want to receive.  If someone asks me to never email them again, I won't -- and I'll pass the word onto my colleagues as well.  

On behalf of all hardworking, honest public relations executives everywhere... I ask journalists and bloggers to hate the game, not the player.  Some of us are very genuine and don't deserve to be lumped into the category of "spammers" that we sometimes end up in.  PR people need journalists and journalists need us -- can't we all just get along?

Valentine's Day is just around the corner. Personally, I don't understand why everyone makes such a big deal out of it. Rather than spending a bunch of money, I recommend doing something more thoughtful and creative for your friends or the one you love. Try thinking outside of the box, like a true public relations professional. Here’s my suggestion. It’s great for the last minute shopper too!

There’s a new web site that lets you send personal phone messages to your loved one in a way that’s cheaper than chocolates and more imaginative than flowers.
 
This year all you have to do is go online to SnappyGreetings.com, select a greeting and register to send out a personal Valentine’s message to your sweetie’s cell phone.  At the site, you can record a personal phone message for your significant other that’s coupled with a voice recording from your choice of celebrity voices, including Borat, Elvis and Bill Clinton.  There are a number of celebrity recordings to choose from, some are silly, some are sweet….and others are downright naughty! I like the naughty ones.

Hehehehehehehehehehe.

What’s cool about the technology behind Snappy Greetings is that it’s another cool way that a business is enlisting the help of Indianapolis-based Vontoo.

Go to SnappyGreetings.com today to send your lover a Valentine they’ll never forget.

CES 2008 is over... While I'm glad to be home and not standing on the show floor for hours on end, I can't help but feel a little bit sad that the four day event has come to a close.

Here at Dittoe, we begin planning for CES before fall and spend most of the holiday months setting appointments with journalists and bloggers so our clients will get the best coverage possible at the show.  In a word, this show is HUGE.

With the expo so spread out and with so many exhibitors participating, it is virtually impossible for interested tech junkies, journalists and bloggers to check out every electronic gadget or high tech company they want to see.

To be able to bring journalists and bloggers to a booth, even if it's located outside of the LVCC, is not an easy task -- which is why Dittoe PR is not just your average firm. 

While other firms are riding the coverage wave from CES today, we're moving forward with plans to keep the momentum going throughout 2008.  There's no break.  There's always more stories for local, national and/or international coverage.  There's work to be done.

"Oh, there's no place like home for the holidays..."  That's why I'm heading south for Christmas.  It's time to hangout with the fam and enjoy some warmer weather.

I love being from South Carolina.  Nothing's better than driving around Indiana and seeing various vehicles with their palmetto and moon stickers they no doubt bought on their last family vacation to Hilton Head, Charleston or Myrtle Beach.  I have one too... but it's not from my last vacation.  I'm from SC.  I don't vacation there -- I grew up there.

If you think about it, South Carolina really has an amazing PR plan in place.  The palmetto and moon (also known as our state flag) is one of the most recognizable symbols in the U.S., and our slogan is located on every license plate: Beautiful Places, Smiling Faces. 

PR is so much more than promoting a product or person... it can promote places so when a family living in Indianapolis, IN begins planning their summer vacation they think instantly of SC because they "heard" it was beautiful.

Ultimatley this is what I want to achieve for my clients.  When someone is looking for an electronic gadget to simplify their home networking issues, I want them to think of Corinex.  When a chamber of commerce wants an easier way to track membership and financial information, I want them to think of WebLink International.

My goal for all of my clients is simple.  I want them to be widely accepted as the experts in their industry.  I want great coverage for them.  I want them to succeed.

So as you finish your Christmas shopping this weekend, picture me driving down I-75 in my Mazda with the palmetto and moon on the back.  I'll be  promoting SC through five states with the stereo blaring Christmas carols the whole way [no doubt annoying my husband to no end], just in an effort to be home for the holidays.