LT Public Relations

What makes a business “good?”  Many would say exceptional customer service and  a superior value, or giving back to the community and being environmentally conscious. Those are great attributes for a company to have, but are commonly touted and often difficult to determine the depth and relevance of those claims. Soon consumers will have a more tangible method of determining the truly “good” companies from the standard.  You may have noticed the increase in national coverage of Benefit Corporations. Locally, the Portland Business Journal has been covering efforts to get a hearing for legislation supporting the legal formation of Benefit Corporations in Oregon.  So what are they? Benefit Corporations (or B Corps), are a new type of corporation. Unlike a traditional corporation that gives priority to financial profit, B Corps actually use the business to address social and environmental issues.

A traditional corporation will typically focus on increasing shareholder profits, sometimes without regard to how that affects other stakeholders and the community. This can lead to unlivable wages for workers or a lack of regard for the environmental impact that the company may be causing, as those costs can otherwise provide profit back to the shareholders. Conversely, B Corps are committed to taking social and environmental interests into account when making business decisions.

According to B Lab, a nonprofit organization that certifies B Corporations, a certified B Corps must meet “rigorous and independent standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency.”  Essentially, when a company becomes certified as a B Corps, that company’s practices have been vetted by a third party, similar to a product being certified as “organic” or “fair trade.”

Public relations and community outreach opportunities for companies with a B Corps status are endless and some companies, like Seventh Generation, have already begun touting their status. Consumers like to spend their money at places that are up front with the contributions they make to the community and if publicizing the new B Corps status is done effectively, it will no doubt drive sales and increase traffic.

LT Public Relations is eager to see which local companies will make the transition. In a place as socially and environmentally conscious as Oregon, we could soon be seeing an influx of the B Corp logo. This new status is truly changing the rules and creating a new model for how businesses can be different. We are standing by to see how the early adopters will use public relations to tell their B Corps story.

I read on an almost daily basis articles online about things PR people do to make reporters crazy. (These articles are second only to the “Is PR still relevant/necessary” topic of discussion) The articles are often culled from an interview with an veteran reporter who’s offering tales of horror about abuse that’s been heaped upon them over several decades by assorted PR professionals. I’m often left with the impression that all reporters receive 100 emails a day and 99 of them come from PR professionals spamming them with useless and irrelevant press releases filled with misspellings and other misdeeds. If those reporters and articles are to be believed, it’s worrisome to say the least. While the transgressions often described by reporters undoubtedly do happen, I can only hope and pray that the stories they share are the exceptions and not the rule. There is no excuse for misspellings, sending irrelevant information, or other such PR crimes. Fortunately, most PR professionals I’ve encountered would be mortified to find themselves guilty of such unprofessional behavior and erroneous mistakes.

But do all of us PR pros really make all journalists crazy? Are all our press releases and phone calls unwelcome? I don’t think so. I’ve worked with hundreds of journalists over the years and most all have been a pleasure to work with and effusive with their thanks when I help them land a story. Below are a few thoughts/suggestions/tips that I hope with help offer some insight into why PR pros do the things we do and how we can better help out our reporter friends:

We want to help you- We really do! One of the most satisfying parts of my job is helping a reporter get their story. It makes the reporter look good, the client look good, and if I’m lucky I look good too. While we’re often required to make you jump through a few hoops or wait longer than you’d prefer, in the end my number one goal is to help you out.

Help us find you- Despite living in the age of information you’d be surprised how difficult it can still be to find the proper media contact at a particular publication. Contacts and beats change constantly. No question that it’s our job to make sure you’re the right contact, but if you’ve been the metro reporter and now you’re the film critic, please have your IT person update it on your website. Not all PR pros subscribe to media data bases and your website is often the first place we’ll go for  research. Many media outlets still don’t list their reporter’s contact or beat information on their websites and phone calls often end up in a confusing phone tree. Why make it hard on us or yourself? Give PR pros a clear and easy path to find you and what you’re interested, or not interested, in covering.

 We’re your ally- There is often the misconception that a PR pro will get in the way of access to a desired interviewee. On the contrary, as a PR pro I have far better access than most anyone in the company your desired interview subject resides. Ever try getting a few minutes with the president of your own company? Most places I’ve worked it can take days or weeks to get a meeting time. As a PR pro I can jump you to the head of the line and cut weeks down to days, and days down to hours. I’ve been able to get my interview subjects to cancel meetings, call from their cars, homes, airports, and even vacations to accommodate an interview request.

Please don’t be silent-Want more or less information than you’ve been receiving? Hate it when I call on Wednesdays? Love the follow-up call or hate the follow-up call? Let me know. I know you’re busy but I hate to waste your time just as much as you hate me wasting it.  I’ll promise to do everything I can on my end to make sure I know everything about you and your beat, but I can’t tell you how helpful it is to get a quick note letting me know if something has changed, your preferred method of contact, or just simply if you’re not going to cover a particular story.

I enjoy my role as a facilitator—one who’s eager to let you in and point you in the right direction. I hope these insights offer at least a bit of helpful perspective from the PR side of things.I look forward to helping as many reporters as I can in 2012…and staying on your good lists!

 Association elects Ruth Morton, Casey Boggs, John Kreidel, and Scott Ludwigsen to existing board of directors consisting of Portland’s leading business professionals 

Portland, Ore., January 9, 2012—The Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) Portland, a global association for professionals involved in corporate growth, corporate development and mergers and acquisitions, today announced the elections of Ruth Morton (president), Casey Boggs (VP, marketing), John Kreidel (CXO cultivation and recruitment) and Scott Ludwigsen (CEO exchange, programs). ACG Portland consists of nearly 125 Portland C-level executives of growth-oriented mid-market companies and related service professionals.

“We are pleased to welcome Casey, John and Scott to our board to further support the corporate growth movement in Portland and help our members’ respective businesses flourish,” says Ruth Morton, elected president of ACG Portland. “As Portland businesses grow, ACG Portland provides value to local executives looking to share best practices and insights in this ever-changing corporate environment.”

Ruth Morton, Ph.D.

Morton is owner of an organizational development consulting firm with a wide client base and expertise in business change and transition, executive effectiveness and strategy alignment. Previously Morton was Vice President of a regional healthcare business services company and Director of Organizational Learning for a national hospital management company

Casey Boggs

Boggs is president of LT Public Relations, a progressive communications firm specializing in telling the stories of financial and professional services organizations. Before forming LT Public Relations, Boggs served as director of public relations at AIG. He also previously managed a multitude of Fortune 500 accounts for two of the world’s largest public relations firms, Waggener Edstrom and Weber Shandwick.

John Kreidel

Kreidel is currently CEO of the Tire Factory, a Portland-based tire retailer with more than 200 stores in 14 states, with end-user sales exceeding $300M. Previously, Kreidel spent eight years as president and CEO of is.group—the nation’s leading office products marketing organization.

Scott Ludwigsen

Ludwigsen is president of Language Line Translation Solutions (formally, Lingo Systems), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Language Line Services—the world’s leading provider of language solutions for multilingual communication, including translation, localization, and interpretation. Prior to joining Lingo Systems in 2002, Ludwigsen was vice president and CFO of Woodward & Dickerson Wood Products.

About ACG Portland

Members of ACG Portland are CEOs, CFOs and COOs of mid-market growing corporations, as well as members of the professional services companies that serve them, such as private equity firms, banks, attorneys and accountants. Its Board of Directors are committed to maintaining a balance between corporate and professional service members (3:1 ratio) in the chapter, which currently approximates 125 members.  More information is available at www.acgportland.org.

LT Public Relations

www.ltpublicrelations.com

930 NW 14th Ave. Suite 280

Portland, OR 97209

pr@ltpublicrelations.com

POSITION AVAILABLE: Public Relations Director and Copywriter

• Full-time position
• 32 hours-a-week to start…Monday-Thursday

DATE NEEDED: As soon as we find the right person.

COMPENSATION: Competitive salary—but will be determined on experience and candidate’s direct match with job description/qualifications.

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY BEFORE SENDING INFORMATION:  If the job description seems to be a fit, please send a tailored e-mail description of your public relations experience, along with a tailored resume to pr@ltpublicrelations.com.

OVERVIEW: LT Public Relations is always looking for the right people with a passion for communications to join its ever-expanding team.  We’re not looking for just anyone—but the right one to grow with us and support our clients.

As we develop tailored PR programs for our clients, we are looking for someone who is diligent in the way they approach each opportunity—including their inquiry for this position.

LT Public Relations is a progressive communications firm specializing in financial institutions (e.g. banks, credit unions) and professional services (e.g. law firms, investment advisory firms).

Based in Portland, Oregon, LT Public Relations utilizes the most relevant and current communications tools—with a hybrid of traditional and new media approaches—to develop and execute strategic public relations initiatives for its clients.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Please note: THIS IS NOT AN ENTRY LEVEL POSITION

Collaboratively lead the day-to-day relationship with select LT Public Relations’ clients

• Possess EXCELLENT writing skills (e.g. copywriting, editing, proofreading)
• Manage relationships for clients with target media, bloggers and other influential mediums
• Strong background and acumen with all social media mediums (e.g. Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, blog)
• Experience in crisis preparation and management
• Able to develop and execute on crisis management strategies
• Ability to manage multiple accounts
• Take leadership role in strategic agency business planning, as well as account staff development
• Proactively craft and place stories, shape broad industry themes and story lines, and negotiate client inclusion in coverage
• Identify broad trends among media and related online communities and translate significance to team and staff and clients
• Identify and cultivate relationships with new and emerging influential mediums
• Provide strategic communications counsel to executive-level clients and serve as a strategic resource and champion to clients
• Manage client relationship and client satisfaction
• Hold regular meetings and maintain regular contact to keep senior-level clients apprised of LT Public Relations’ work progress, address issues that appear and solicit feedback from clients
• Assess PR results against client expectations
• Forecast, propose and track budgets

 QUALIFICATIONS:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree or above in communications, journalism or related field preferred
• 5-7 years experience in PR – in an agency and/or within related financial services field
• A sufficient understanding of the financial industry is preferred
• Established and foster strong relationships with business, industry trade media, online community and place stories.
• Background in PR management, crisis management, and execution experience, including developing plans, client management, launch strategies, product positioning, pitching stories to the media, negotiation, budget responsibility, media training a client, messaging and creative tactical ideas

STILL INTERESTED? Send tailored e-mail and resume to pr@ltpublicrelations.com.  PLEASE…NO PHONE CALLS.  We’ll acknowledge reception of each inquiry received. Thank you!

It’s that time of year again.  NFL playoffs start and the nation eagerly anticipates  Super Bowl 46 (or Super Bowl XLVI — for those of us who only know Roman numerals because of the big game).   Like every year, corporations spend an exorbitant amount of money to advertise during the Super Bowl.  And this year is no exception…NBC sold out Super Bowl advertising spots already.

Once again, LT Public Relations is issuing its yearly Super Bowl Challenge – our public relations firm‘s challenge to any company that chooses to frivolously spend nearly $4 million for one 30 second advertisement during Super Bowl XLVI (that’s nearly $130,000 a second!) to consider  investing that same money on a more cost-effective and more substantiating option…PUBLIC RELATIONS.

If the company spends that same $4 million on a whole year of public relations, we guarantee the company will yield significantly more positive buzz about its product, service, or overall brand than that one $4 million Super Bowl commercial.   What’s more, we challenge the gutsy company to cut its Super Bowl ad in half ($2 million) or a quarter ($1 million), and LT Public Relations’ efforts will still outperform the costly Super Bowl ad in terms of positive impact and ROI.

Give us 12 months and we will SHOCK and AWE our way into the company’s target audience’s hearts.  Just as important, we will clearly measure the impact of our PR efforts and the resources spent to achieve the marketing/business objectives set forth. . . and will successfully deliver on the goods.

Up for the challenge? Contact us @ pr@ltpublicrelations.com, #LTPR or 503-477-9215.

SIDE NOTE: We do applaud the yearly Doritos Super Bowl Commercials (Crash the Super Bowl campaign) and the grass roots efforts to get their customers involved.

LT Public Relations often comes across some very talented advertising, marketing, branding and social media agencies. Most have exemplified how truly remarkable and valuable they are to the clients and markets they serve by being innovative, powerful and effective in broadcasting messages.

Our biggest (and maybe only) beef with these respective agencies is that some claim to offer public relations services.  Although we appreciate that they may have some PR skills and services, we feel the discipline of public relations should be separate from our agency cousins.

Why?

By nature, advertising, social media and branding agencies are predominately in the business of extolling their clients products and services through more “marketing” messaging and methods–with the intent to capture attention.  Although genuine, this approach is more of a direct sell to the target audience and lacks credibility–as the message is from the perspective and voice of the company (not the target audience).

Public relations, on the other hand, is a business story-telling and perception management discipline that attempts to attract outside-the-company influencers (e.g. public, media, government, constituents, etc.) to tell the story of the company.  PR messaging in much more informative, factual and less-marketing than advertising, branding, and the like, and adds a layer of credibility since the third-party advocates are spreading the word (i.e. word of mouth).

As it wouldn’t make sense for a public relations firm to develop and disseminate advertising campaigns, the same is true for related marketing agencies to not perform PR services. If an advertising agency performed the public relations function, the message would likely come-out disingenuous and inappropriate.

Final thought…Although PR and its related agencies should work together to ensure a united message is told for a company, the disciplines should be completely divided to ensure authenticity in messaging and intent.

Now that the dust has settled from Bank Transfer Day and credit unions are basking in the glow of unprecedented new member numbers, the industry is faced with the question of “now what?”  Unfortunately for credit unions, Bank Transfer Day doesn’t occur every Saturday. The next movement, Balance Transfer Day, encourages consumers to transfer credit card balances to local credit unions but doesn’t appear to have the same type of public and media support.  As a result, credit unions need to identify methods to keep the spotlight on them and keep member growth momentum going.

According to the Credit Union National Association (CUNA), the nation’s largest credit union advocacy group, credit unions added 40,000 new members on Nov. 5 and 650,000 new members during the month leading up to Bank Transfer Day. Locally, Portland-area credit unions reported growth on November 5 and the weeks leading up to it.

Can credit unions expect these numbers to stay consistent? Probably not. While the big banks have backed down on the proposed fee changes that spurred the Transfer Day movement, some customers who were on the fence about switching to a credit union will likely now stay with their bank to avoid the anticipated hassle of switching. 

The key to sustaining the growth at credit unions is going to be education and outreach – for new members and potential members. Even with all of the media coverage surrounding Transfer Day, there’s still a good portion of the population that doesn’t have a clue as to what a credit union is and how they can become a member. As for the thousands of new members, credit unions should be shouting from the rooftops about the services that they provide to prevent their new members from keeping their Visa and mortgage at the bank and only transferring their checking account to the credit union. Additionally, they should be working to provide an easy and user-friendly account opening process online. The thought of switching from a bank seems time-consuming and stressful to most people. Why not make it quick, easy and available online and through mobile applications?  Credit unions should also be promoting their shared branching and ATM accessibility. One of the biggest hurdles to joining a credit is the misconception that they are not easily accessible, but with over 6,700 shared branch locations and 28,000 credit union ATM’s available to members throughout the country, it shouldn’t still be an issue.

As the Transfer Day coverage subsides, big banks will still have budgets that allow for professionally produced commercials and print ads in every paper, but there’s no reason credit unions can’t continue to take a grassroots approach to educating members and potential members about their efforts to better the community. If the Transfer Day and the recent Occupy movements taught us anything, it’s that people truly care about the financial health of their community on the local level. Credit unions were based on a cooperative notion and are driven by the philosophy of “people helping people.” They have quietly been improving their communities for years through volunteer projects, food drives and fundraising and giving efforts.

Now is the time to take to the blogs, Facebook posts, Twitter updates and community events and work to spread the message of the credit union difference for both the community and for the local economy.  The momentum has been started for credit unions, and with the right education and outreach plan, credit unions can keep it going well beyond November 5.

 There’s no better time than an election year, particularly a presidential election year, for PR professionals to learn and refine their skills. I’m not referring to PR professionals who are working for candidates, but instead the rest of us in the industry who get to watch the candidates in action. It’s during election time you’ll never see a greater sampling of PR opportunities lost and won, crisis communications in full effect, awe inspiring media meltdowns, or the just plain bizarre. Christine O’Donnel’s “I’m not a witch” anyone?

In many ways it’s a great opportunity for the PR industry to raise its awareness and remind the rest of the world just how important our profession is to those in the public arena.  Of course, our industry will undoubtedly take the blame for many of those disasters too.

Over the next year we’re going to witness countless examples of public relations in full effect. Take notice. There are many lessons to be learned that can be applied to our everyday PR jobs. It will particularly be interesting to see the affect of social media on another major election.  Who will embrace it and who will (unwisely) ignore it? Already we have seen a baffling and great example of a viral video for presidential candidate Herman Cain— Take a look here.. Now regardless of your particular political affiliation, this begs the basic PR questions: Is the message presented clear and concise? Does it speak to your target audience? Does the video best represent your brand?  Is it compelling? Unique? Will people feel inspired and want to share it with others?  Even the most astute political pundits have been left baffled by the video’s message and what to make of the cigarette smoke and Cain’s creepy slow smile at the end.  But I assure you this is really just the first shot across the bow for our 2012 election. We’ll see many, many more examples from awkward debate responses to reputation destroying tweets.

Again, this is a great time for us to watch and learn for free. The political world is very, very tricky to successfully navigate and I give full credit to the PR pros whose job it is to advise their candidates and deal with the inevitable repercussions. For the rest of us, it’s a master class in public relations. And in this day and age many might argue that good PR is what wins elections more than any other deciding factor. Class is in session. Sit back, enjoy, and don’t forget to take notes!

Last Sunday’s (Oct. 15) Oregonian published the front page “opinion” article, “Whatever Oregon’s trying to communicate, it’s costing you millions.”

We encourage our blog readers to thoroughly read this article and share your perspective.  From LT Public Relations‘ perspective, the story took a myopic and biased stance on the topic of how the government is spending resources to communicate and champion causes.

From the opening paragraph, the Oregonian‘s reporters, Michelle Cole and Ryan Kost,  immediately set the tone by negatively insinuating the state is frivolously (and without remorse) spending tax payer’s money on advertising, marketing and public relations to champion causes (e.g. job creation, state lottery, etc.), while not using those valuable resources on other state necessities (e.g. highways, schools, etc.)–Opening paragraph from Oregonian article: Oregon is cutting programs that serve poor families, threatening to close highway rest stops and laying off teachers, yet state government spent millions of dollars last year on public relations, advertising, outreach and marketing campaigns.)

Although we do not have a dog in this fight (LT PR does not represent any Oregon state entities), we do feel the need to voice our general opposition towards the Oregonian‘s apparent defamation to our profession, business practices and the value professionals and firms like ours offer clients.

A few points to highlight:

• The article did not take a balanced approach by offering the viewpoint of the state as to why it’s important to hire professional advertising/PR firms (as opposed to simply using in-house support)
• The article inadequately and confusingly grouped advertising, marketing, branding and public relations as the same service–which are all unique in their offerings and approach
• Almost nothing is written about the importance of creating awareness of the social programs mentioned in the article–just snarky comments and jabs about the costs
• The article unjustifiably insinuates that the resources spent promoting these deserving programs should have been spent on the poor.  Although most would not disagree, most know the state doesn’t work that way.  In reality, the allocation of available resources is very complicated and political
• Why pick on just marketing, advertising, PR and the like?  If the article was aiming to call out professional communicators, advertising, etc. Why not a less biased article (or series of articles) on government waste?
• The article erroneously makes accusations and assumptions (e.g. “Lottery dollars help help brew jobs in Astoria,” it says in a stylized beer can next to a man stacking cans of beer. The message is clear: When you gamble, you’re making the economy stronger.).  We don’t think that’s the intended message.

Final note, the Oregonian‘s journalistic duties is to report the news–not to opine on the injustice of a particular matter without taking a balanced approach.  Save the personal views for the Opinion section of the newspaper.

Enough said.  Now back to making our world a better communicative place to live.

While recently spending the evening with my soon-to-be eight year old goddaughter, I asked her what she wanted for her birthday. Without skipping a beat she answered, “you can get me an iPad.” I stared at her thinking she would laugh and realize what an absurd request she had made, but she didn’t. After explaining to her that I didn’t even have an iPad, and that there was no way she was getting one from me, I asked her why on Earth she would actually need an iPad?. “Oh, there’s so much it can be used for,” she replied deadpan. Right then, I realized the true power of Mac marketing. “But you’re eight. Are you planning to do spreadsheets and case studies for work?” I asked.  “Um no, I would play Words with Friends and watch movies on it,” she replied.  

 I went on to explain that an eight year old didn’t need a $500 birthday gift and that once upon a time, way back in the 80s, we actually played with human friends – as in face-to-face, when we wanted to play a game. While explaining this, I realized that I had become old and was now exactly like the adults that used to tell the “back in the day…” stories.

Since having the iPad conversation with my goddaughter, I ran across the findings from a survey by BlogHer.com and the Parenting Group on how Gen X and Gen Y moms are influencing their children with technology. The results  weren’t surprising to me. Obviously someone has to be buying and advocating the use of the technology, and I’ve been to plenty of coffee dates with friends when the iPhone is pulled out and used as an instant babysitter. According to the research, the sweet spot of technology use for kids is around 11 for mobile phones, 16 for smartphones, four for laptops, and five for digital cameras. Twenty-five percent of moms let their kids use their mobile phone by age two— I’m surprised that statistic isn’t even higher. 

I’ve thought a lot about kids and technology and how entertainment, games and the concept of “fun” has changed over the past 20 years and I suppose it really isn’t fair to say that this generation’s toys are different than those of the past. Our Teddy Ruxpin (a scary talking bear for those too young to remember) could be viewed as her Nintendo DS. Our My Little Ponies could be seen as her My FurReal Friends. The difference, in my opinion, is that these new toys interact with the user far more than my toys did.  I would actually build houses and stables for my ponies in the yard with real human friends, instead of sitting in an air conditioned house staring at a screen. I have to wonder if the new generation of toys are contributing to the seeming lack of social skills (particularly conflict resolution) and the rise in social anxiety disorders in kids and teens.  

The tricky part for the future will be balancing the two—technology with real imaginative play that helps in building social skills. Technology certainly has enhanced our lives and made it easier, but we can’t forget to go outside and to talk and play with other people face-to-face.

I still haven’t decided on the perfect gift for an eight year old, but it’s safe to say it won’t be an iPad. Not at least for this year.