Archives for April 2013

Sorry Beyoncé, You’re No Bob Geldof

Posted on: 04.26.13 By: admin Posted in: DavidPRBlog

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Can someone please tell me why Beyoncé and Jay-Z went to Cuba?  The first couple of hip-hop traveled there on their anniversary earlier this month and started a classic “political firestorm.”  In my opinion, they gave the Cuban government a huge public relations victory.  As soon as photos of the couple walking the streets of Havana hit the Internet, the U.S. embargo took center stage and put many politicians on their heels.  Reporters, columnists and TV “talking heads” relentlessly questioned why we have the embargo, which is exactly what the Cuban government wants. 

But why did Beyoncé and Jay-Z go?  Why flex their considerable celebrity muscles to support a communist island.  It makes little sense.

If they were trying to use their fame and fortune to help a political cause, why not support a deserving domestic one?  The whole event seems like a misguided stunt, particularly when you compare it to political efforts made in the past by other musicians and celebs. 

Rock stars have a long history of political involvement, going back to support of groups like Amnesty International decades ago.  The first one that I remember was called Band-Aid.  In 1984, some of the biggest names in music gathered in London to record a song to benefit starving children in Ethiopia.  “Do They Know It’s Christmas” was the number one song in the U.K. for five weeks and raised millions of dollars for famine relief.  The project was the brainchild of Bob Geldof, lead singer of a band relatively unknown in the U.S. called the Boomtown Rats.  Geldof parlayed the success of Band-Aid into a huge benefit concert called Live-Aid.  His efforts were recognized with a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize, and he was later knighted.  Now Sir Bob Geldof serves as the de facto model for rock star activism.

Not to be outdone, musicians in America started USA for Africa in 1985 and recorded “We Are the World,” also to fight hunger and homelessness in Africa.  The effort, whether you like the song or not, raised tens of millions of dollars and helped continue to shine a light on an important world issue.

Band-Aid and Live-Aid also spawned Farm-Aid.  Willie Nelson and John Cougar Mellencamp (I get to return the “Cougar” to his name because it’s my blog) spearheaded a concert which raised funds for struggling domestic family farms.  Nelson and Mellencamp then brought family farmers before Congress to testify about the state of family farming in America. Congress subsequently passed the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987 to help save family farms from foreclosure.  Effective stuff.

More recently, U2 lead singer Bono has been called the world’s best-known philanthropic performer and the most politically effective celebrity of all time.  His campaigns for third-world debt relief led to the cancellation of debt for 23 countries, and he regularly meets with world leaders to discuss critical issues like the AIDS pandemic.  Time magazine named him Person of the Year in 2005, and he has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize three times.  Also knighted.  Also impressive activism.

Whether you agree or disagree with Bono’s or John Cougar’s political leanings doesn’t really matter, because at least they used their celebrity capital to accomplish something worthwhile.  Over the years, big stars from the world of music have proven that they can make a difference for important causes.

So again, can someone please tell me why Beyoncé and Jay-Z went to Cuba? 

—John

www.miamipublicrelations.com

Author: John P. David

Lessons From a Tough Week

Posted on: 04.19.13 By: admin Posted in: DavidPRBlog

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My first public relations job was in the Capitol Hill communications office of a U.S. Senator, and I reported to his press secretary, a seasoned former journalist from New York.   As an intern, I mainly answered phones, but I also would regularly proofread news releases.   Right before we distributed a release, the press secretary would always say that we had a good chance for coverage “as long as there isn’t a fire in the garment district.”  Simple translation: A big news event will always scuttle even the best, well-crafted PR message.

On Monday, we had our own version of a fire in the garment district when the bombs exploded at the Boston Marathon.  On Monday morning one of our clients did an interview with a television station in Atlanta.  We had orchestrated the story, hired a guy to be on the ground for us, prepped the client and coordinated the on-camera interview.

Our client did well discussing his lawsuit against a medical center, and we were expecting the story to run that night.  Shortly after our interview rapped, the bombs exploded in Boston, and our story got rightfully bumped – indefinitely.

We did everything right for our client, but there’s nothing you can do when major news breaks.  Years ago, I was working on a project where we were trying to get media coverage for a morning event in Miami, but as we were making follow up calls to TV stations, we learned that fashion designer Gianni Versace had been shot outside his Miami Beach mansion.  This huge news event, the murder and ensuing manhunt, took-over newsrooms in Miami and beyond.  Needless to say, our client’s event wasn’t covered.

While you can’t overcome a story as big as the Boston Marathon bombing, I do have some big picture media relations tips which can be helpful during more typical situations.

Strike While the Iron’s Hot
While we all have busy schedules and we want to be well-prepared for an interview, I recommend doing an interview as soon as possible.  First, another source may be interviewed before you and help shape the story in a way that makes your opinion less relevant.  Second, the reporter might get enough info for the story from other sources before you even get a chance to talk.  Third, deadlines change and the story might get published before your interview even occurs.  Lastly, a big news event comes along and scotches the opportunity completely.

Get your “Why Now?” Ready
My friend and fellow PR pro Greg Euston and I spent an evening in New York a few years ago talking media relations, and he opined about the challenge of “why now?”  Reporters get pitched interesting stories all day long, so if there isn’t a compelling reason to cover it “now,” then your challenge is magnified.   Why now vs. later?  Why now vs. ever?  You always have to figure out why your story is relevant right now.  A year or so ago, a friend of mine was telling me about a PR issue regarding the cruise industry – the specifics aren’t that important.  When Carnival Cruise Lines had its problems recently, I suggested that now is a good time to bring the issue up again.  Carnival is down and I figured he would have a better chance of getting a sympathetic ear because of it.  Sometimes the “why now” presents itself, well,  later.  The lesson is that you have to be ready to explain to journalists why they should cover your issue now vs. later.

While You See a Chance, Take it
I believe there are very few instances where one should turn down an interview opportunity.  I might get some blowback from other PR people on this one, and I have certainly had crisis situations where you try to deflect more than engage.  However, in most circumstances, if you have a chance to talk to the press, you ought to do it.  Even if you don’t believe you can give any deep insight into an issue, an interview offers a chance to showcase your expertise.  In some instances, you may actually change the story because of your insight.  A reporter might be misinformed and you can educate them.  And even if they don’t use your information, you are branding yourself as a source for a story in the future.

Don’t Sweat What is Out of Your Control
Stories get bumped all the time, and one can’t get upset when a national tragedy takes precedence.  I guess I would feel differently if our Atlanta story was pushed back due to Kim Kardashian’s baby or Lindsay Lohan’s admittance to rehab; but it wasn’t, so I’m not.

Luckily, our Atlanta story did eventually run on Wednesday, so we were pleased.  But quite frankly, the events of this week put a lot of things in perspective.

—John

Author: John P. David

Miami’s No Stranger to Scams

Posted on: 04.12.13 By: admin Posted in: DavidPRBlog

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Two weeks ago, I published a blog post (When “Nigeria” Comes Calling) about my experience with a scam artist who appeared to be a new business prospect but was actually trying to drain my bank account.   I was originally a bit embarrassed about the story because I felt that, while I hadn’t been officially duped, I did get strung-along for a while.  Despite my apprehension, I published the post because it was an interesting tale, and I figured there was a chance I might prevent another person from falling for a similar scam. 

The response to the post was fascinating.  Many people who read my blog knew someone who has been scammed, and I was not the only PR person in Miami to hear from this guy.  I want to share some of my interesting feedback.

One of my readers, a local banker, said that wire fraud cases have been on the rise lately.

Another told me of a physician who got taken for $60,000:  “Somehow an alleged ‘Nigerian Entrepreneur’ contacted him by cell phone and made all sorts of promises about easy money, if he would just send some ‘seed money’ to him.  Well, desperation prevailed over high I.Q.  This doctor ultimately sent six tranches of $10,000 a piece before he spoke to his attorney, who told him to STOP.”

Branding agency owner Michael Gold of Goldforest warned there’s another successful scam out there involving video production in China: “They’ve actually GONE to China to get punked!”

A local insurance industry executive told me that he had “a family friend who fell for the scam about 15 years ago.  He actually flew to Nigeria for a meeting in connection with the representation of an oil company and they held him for a $25,000 ransom.”  He also pointed out that if these scammers used their mental abilities for legitimate business, they would probably be successful.

Honestly, I never imagined the possibility of being “locked-up abroad,” but my aunt did.  She was glad I didn’t get scammed and reminded me that “of course, you know that we would all band together to get you out of a Venezuelan jail.”

Peter Kelley, editor of Life & Health Advisor magazine and a self-described ‘scam-o-phile’ said he was disappointed that I ended my story where I did as he “wanted to know how they would make their next move.”  Peter explained that in the past he has attempted “to engage a number of fallen princes, interior-wonks, disgruntled aides and otherwise plugged-in facilitators to ‘hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars.’”

Kelley would probably enjoy speaking with a Miami attorney I know who has strung one of these guys along. 

He wrote: “I was to collect a large sum of money from a company just blocks away from me.  However, I insisted on first receiving a cashier’s check as a ‘non-refundable review fee’ which the scammer had offered.  I deposited the check, warning my bank that I had concerns.  As suspected, the cashier’s check supposedly from a Canadian bank was a well done fake.  I took some mild pleasure in causing them to spin their wheels, although I had also spun mine.  You should take equal pleasure.  The more they spin their wheels without reward, the better for us.”

I wasn’t the only public relations agency to hear from the Venezuelan oil man.  The principal of a local firm told me they got the call a few months ago: “We thought it sounded legitimate (big budget, alternative energy, tied-in with the governor’s office) but when we were told we had to fly to Venezuela, that put us off, as it did you.”

Much to my surprise, the post caught the attention of more than one journalist.  Peter Kelley, who I mentioned earlier, asked and received my permission to run my story on his outlet’s website.  In addition, Kevin Gale of the South Florida Business Journal liked the new Venezuelan spin on the old “Nigerian” scam and wrote about it in his blog.

Of course, I enjoy the feedback and it’s a fun ego boost, but the best news came last week when a fellow PR person in Miami sent me this message: “I received a call at the office from a man with an accent saying they were calling regarding PR for a project in Venezuela. It came from a blocked number and I remembered your post and hung up immediately.”

Mission accomplished.

—John

www.miamipublicrelations.com

Author: John P. David

The Trouble with Naming Rights

Posted on: 04.05.13 By: admin Posted in: DavidPRBlog

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We can prevent thousands of future public relations problems by implementing one simple rule: Never name something after a living person.

I have been musing about this topic for years but decided to offer up my rule after private prison company Geo Group this week withdrew its $6 million donation to become the name sponsor for Florida Atlantic University’s football stadium in Boca Raton.  Geo Group’s CEO, an FAU alum, made a truly generous offer to have his company’s name grace the stadium.  Problems arose though when some pesky students realized that Geo Group has been tagged with a number of human rights violations at its prisons.  Next came protests, boycotts and petitions, and after a few weeks of fireworks, Geo Group withdrew its donation.  I think the end came shortly after some clever protestors started referring to the stadium, the home of the FAU Owls football team, as “Owlcatraz.” 

Now, we can’t stop private companies from putting their names on facilities; there’s just too much money involved.  American Airlines Arena, Coors Field and Lucas Oil Stadium et al. are here to stay.  But we can stop naming such things after living people.  The risk of negative publicity is too high and the examples of PR disasters are too numerous.  Here are a few, just off the top of my head:

•    In Miami, for a brief period of time in the late 1980s and early 1990s, we had a road called Jose Canseco Street.  At the time, the former big league slugger and current outspoken steroid user was an adored alum of the school located on that street.  Today, not so much.  Once local officials learned Jose was juicing, they unceremoniously took his name off the street sign.

•    Last year, administrators from Penn State University were forced to remove the statue of legendary Coach Joe Paterno due to the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal and cover-up. 

•    In Coral Gables, Florida, officials from the University of Miami removed the name of convicted Ponzi schemer Nevin Shapiro from a campus athlete lounge.  Shapiro, currently doing time, had pledged big bucks to the school.  (UM gave the money back.)

I can go on and on.

Earlier this week, Miami-Dade commissioners decided that the board’s auditor must complete a background check on any “person, organization, place or thing” under consideration for a naming.  It’s a good move.  The Miami Herald reported that the decision comes “on the heels of bad publicity surrounding Banah Sugar… City and county leaders christened a stretch of Southeast 10th Avenue ‘Banah Sweet Way’ in its honor.  Commissioners later found out that the firm’s owner had served prison time for cocaine trafficking. Banah filed for bankruptcy in February.”  Classic.

My rule makes sense.  Certainly if you can’t safely erect a statue in honor of former living legends like Paterno, then everyone else should be persona non-grata.

I know this will be unpopular.  For example, a quarter mile from my house sits Evelyn Greer Park, named after the first mayor of my little village called Pinecrest.  Greer, who is still very much alive, was a fantastic mayor, did a great job getting our village off the ground and helped increase my property value by a goodly sum.  Sadly, under my new PR naming rule, she would lose her park.

Say goodbye to the Bill Clinton Library. 

Also on the chopping block: Peyton Manning Pass, the street in Tennessee named for the famous quarterback. 

I would also suggest removal of Bobby Bowden’s name from the field in Tallahassee bearing his name and [audible gasp] even the statue of Tim Tebow outside the University of Florida’s Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (that name stays because Griffin has passed.)

In the future, we can build statues, name streets and christen ships after great men and women all we want.  We just have to wait until they rest in peace.

This rule will save so many institutions from public relations embarrassment that PR people will recognize it for years to come.  But if they want to name the rule after me, please wait until I’m pushing up the daisies.

—John

www.miamipublicrelations.com

Author: John P. David