1) I’ve worked with many, many very smart engineers, some of them geniuses in their own right, but, they couldn’t write a cohesive sentence if they tried.
Bottom-line: can you develop succinct and grammatically-correct positioning statements for your company and products that are optimized for the search engines?

2) Once you take the PR function under your wing, are you able to devote resources to it, every day? This is our full-time job, we take it very seriously.
Bottom-line: PR requires a sustained effort; it’s not a part time deal.

3) Are you able to think of creative ways to promote your company and products, and research trends to make a valid pitch?
Bottom-line: on a daily basis, we research trends in the market, what your competitors are doing and saying and how we can fit your company and products into the conversation.

4) Do you have the time, money and resources to find the bloggers and reporters that have covered your competitors in the past and establish a relationship with them?
Bottom-line: although there are tools available (I use MyMediaInfo) to research appropriate media contacts that anyone can use, do you have hours to spend on research to find these folks? And, do you have the resources to actually build an ongoing relationship with them?

This list could be longer. Perhaps I’ll write a Part Deux, but what you should take away from this post is that PR is a critical component of your company’s marketing function. There are many moving parts and these parts move fast. We are trained professionals who can write, communicate, develop your entire PR and social media strategy and more. So before you take on PR ask yourself whether you really want to wear this hat too.

Bottom line: Get out there! Don’t wait to jump into the social media waters. If you haven’t by now you’re really dragging your feet even if your marketing team has told you this is a requirement not a luxury, right? Twitter and the blogosphere are just one more way to improve and expand customer touchpoints, and this will undoubtedly make your brand shine. Don’t look at it as more marketing you can’t afford, look at it as your safeguard that your marketing and branding efforts don’t fail.

So as a public relations practitioner who’s trying to put bread on the table during what we call “The Great Recession” should you still do what’s right? My answer is YES. Next to our mad PR skills, including strategy development and guidance, content creation and undying love of launch campaigns, our reputation and credibility are our most important attributes. Apparently some PR folks, and agencies alike, have forgotten that we have a code of ethics to abide by. The Code is put forth by our professional organization, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA): http://www.prsa.org/AboutPRSA/Ethics/.

Why are these ethical guidelines so important? Because if we don’t have a professional baseline of what’s right and what isn’t our entire profession will lose the credibility we’ve fought so hard to build over decades. And without credibility and respect, I don’t believe the PR profession will endure the test of time. It’s that critical. If you haven’t looked at the Code of Ethics since you were a junior in college, it might be worthwhile to take a look; the following are clear violations and may indelibly tarnish your image:
Pay-for-play journalism – PR people should not be paid for writing any articles or blog posts that promote a product or company. In fact, one question that should be addressed is should PR professionals moonlight as “journalists” at all? The very profession of PR is based on promoting a person, product or company, so how credible is an article that has a byline of Public Relations Consultant? Not so much is the answer.
Anonymous Internet posting, “flogs” and viral marketing – This is all about transparency. Remember that agency that got busted late last summer for posting fake iPhone/iPod game reviews on iTunes? This is not okay people! You cannot simply pretend to be a user and post reviews if you are being paid to do so. You may be making truckloads of cash by conning companies into being your clients, but you are hurting yourself and our profession in the process.

I encourage you to read the Code of Ethics and honestly ask yourself if you or your employer are guilty of any of the violations. Don’t let making a buck compromise your ethical obligations as a PR professional. It could affect your career aspirations in the long run and will come back to haunt you. And why would any company put their brand and reputation in your hands if you’re not credible? It doesn’t cost anything to do the right thing but undoing the damage of shifty PR practices is costly for all of us.

There have been many blogs that have tossed this idea around, pardon the perhaps not so original thought, but I’d like to throw my hat in the ring on this one. It’s not just Twitter that has changed PR, it’s just one of many forces driving the industry to change. Change is inevitable; what was mighty and “hot” 40 years ago is not today (GM, ducktails, poodle skirts are just a few examples). The media industry has changed, newspapers are dwindling and therefore, so are journalists. When social networking became all the rage some years back, and YouTube as well, it was only a matter of time when user-generated content also became the Big Man On Campus. Social media is one more form of communication that allows us as PR professionals to reach multiple audiences with specific, appropriate messaging, that’s all really.  If journalists refuse to pick up the phone, or read their email, what’s left?  PR will not be going away, it will evolve and still be the most effective “bang for your marketing buck.”

If you’d like to learn more about how Twitter can be a powerful PR tool for your business, please contact me.  Follow me on Twitter: @Lscribner

My first blog, ever!  How exciting for me, maybe not so much for you. This first one might not be earth shattering, but it may be thought provoking just the same. Everyone talks about how the public relations profession is changing and a lot of people write on it. But how many are really instrumental in the change? If you’re still just reading and writing about it, you may be too late. And soon you might just be selling kettle corn at your local street fair because PR is really changing. PR and marketing is just a ecosystem, which is affected by many other forces, such as the economy. The economy, and the Internet, are quickly shaping the media world. There are less publications, less outlets so to speak, and there are even less journalists and bloggers out there to develop content for these “outlets.” While this might be a good opportunity for contributed content from our clients, this is not so good for the old ways of media pitching. Let me provide a real world example. Today I was pitching a leading telecom trade publication.  That may sound simple, however, I emailed the reporter at least six times, made just as many calls, and made contact with the reporter on Twitter as well.  I did walk away with an interview, but the process, the old way of pitching the media is going the way of the Yugo. At this rate, we PR folk will not be able to reach the media at all, we are just flinging emails into a cyberspace black hole really. The bottom line is this: PR is changing, jump on the bandwagon now. If you don’t evolve, you will disappear. Focus on building solid relationships with your media contacts, this will help you rise to the top of the cup, just like foam on a yummy vanilla latte. Act now, or start heating up your popcorn wagon.

I’d like to hear your thoughts, how have you changed the way you’ve been executing your PR strategies and how is this translating into success for you and your clients?