Comments on: The Nightmare Public Relations Professional and How to Stop Him http://www.techipedia.com/2009/public-relations-spammers/ tamar weinberg is a social media consultant and tech geek at heart Wed, 17 Mar 2010 16:27:19 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Matt Frederick http://www.techipedia.com/2009/public-relations-spammers/#comment-115689 Matt Frederick Fri, 12 Feb 2010 16:12:27 +0000 http://www.techipedia.com/?p=570#comment-115689 Gracias, Greg...i need all the help i can get! Gracias, Greg…i need all the help i can get!

]]> By: Greg Jarboe http://www.techipedia.com/2009/public-relations-spammers/#comment-115677 Greg Jarboe Fri, 12 Feb 2010 15:04:16 +0000 http://www.techipedia.com/?p=570#comment-115677 Matt, if you are as honest with bloggers as you've been in the comments to this post, you shouldn't have any problems. Everyone knows what it feels like to be "scared shitless." So, just call 'em as you see 'em and your supporters will rally behind you. And you don't need a big budget. That's the good news. You do need to spend valuable time though. That's the bad news. But interact with bloggers when business in your mom & pop shop is slow and you'll be able to do both. Matt, if you are as honest with bloggers as you’ve been in the comments to this post, you shouldn’t have any problems. Everyone knows what it feels like to be “scared shitless.” So, just call ‘em as you see ‘em and your supporters will rally behind you. And you don’t need a big budget. That’s the good news. You do need to spend valuable time though. That’s the bad news. But interact with bloggers when business in your mom & pop shop is slow and you’ll be able to do both.

]]> By: Tamar Weinberg http://www.techipedia.com/2009/public-relations-spammers/#comment-115559 Tamar Weinberg Fri, 12 Feb 2010 03:51:12 +0000 http://www.techipedia.com/?p=570#comment-115559 Thank you for stopping by, Matt. :) Thank you for stopping by, Matt. :)

]]> By: Matt Frederick http://www.techipedia.com/2009/public-relations-spammers/#comment-115558 Matt Frederick Fri, 12 Feb 2010 03:48:41 +0000 http://www.techipedia.com/?p=570#comment-115558 Tamar, thank you for your reply, I really do appreciate it. You've got a long-time listener... Tamar, thank you for your reply, I really do appreciate it. You’ve got a long-time listener…

]]> By: Tamar Weinberg http://www.techipedia.com/2009/public-relations-spammers/#comment-115552 Tamar Weinberg Fri, 12 Feb 2010 03:16:06 +0000 http://www.techipedia.com/?p=570#comment-115552 Nothing to be afraid of, Matt! I actually don't mind calling out the PR pros who send me off topic pitches, but when I do so, I'm pretty clear about it. My responses are often along the lines of, "Thanks, but my blog covers social media marketing strategy. Your pitch about animals really doesn't fit my beat." Nothing to be afraid of, Matt!

I actually don’t mind calling out the PR pros who send me off topic pitches, but when I do so, I’m pretty clear about it. My responses are often along the lines of, “Thanks, but my blog covers social media marketing strategy. Your pitch about animals really doesn’t fit my beat.”

]]> By: Matt Frederick http://www.techipedia.com/2009/public-relations-spammers/#comment-115549 Matt Frederick Fri, 12 Feb 2010 03:03:52 +0000 http://www.techipedia.com/?p=570#comment-115549 As a newbie-social-media-blogger-margarita-dude-guy-person, I find myself scared shitless after reading this post. I'm no PR pro or expert on building online communities, but fortunately or unfortunately for me, that's exactly what I'm tasked with doing. Self-employed site owner. Mom & pop. So I post stuff, email, invite, tweet, RT, FF. Sometimes it helps build a following, but often it doesn't. I'm learning. But what I'm also learning is that there exists the same class system within social media as with all media. If I have a huge budget, I have access. If Oprah follows me, so does everyone else. Only problem is that Oprah only follows 19 people. Guess what I'm saying is that if you've built a blogging empire and you have a ton of followers (congratulations, you deserve it...alot of ridiculously hard work and time), then you should, as Oprah, be equipped to handle and respond to millions of useless facsimiles, and off-topic pitches. The way I see it, the larger your following, the larger your responsibility. Welcome to Hollywood. As a newbie-social-media-blogger-margarita-dude-guy-person, I find myself scared shitless after reading this post. I’m no PR pro or expert on building online communities, but fortunately or unfortunately for me, that’s exactly what I’m tasked with doing. Self-employed site owner. Mom & pop. So I post stuff, email, invite, tweet, RT, FF. Sometimes it helps build a following, but often it doesn’t. I’m learning. But what I’m also learning is that there exists the same class system within social media as with all media. If I have a huge budget, I have access. If Oprah follows me, so does everyone else. Only problem is that Oprah only follows 19 people. Guess what I’m saying is that if you’ve built a blogging empire and you have a ton of followers (congratulations, you deserve it…alot of ridiculously hard work and time), then you should, as Oprah, be equipped to handle and respond to millions of useless facsimiles, and off-topic pitches. The way I see it, the larger your following, the larger your responsibility. Welcome to Hollywood.

]]> By: Greg Jarboe http://www.techipedia.com/2009/public-relations-spammers/#comment-115437 Greg Jarboe Thu, 11 Feb 2010 20:45:46 +0000 http://www.techipedia.com/?p=570#comment-115437 Amber, let me give Radian6 a shoutout, too. As for clients that just want "results" and don't care how many bloggers you piss off to get them, that's not a small percentage -- unfortunately. It's a bi-product of compensation schemes that reward quarterly performance. So, the hardest job is often counseling clients in competitive markets that good community behavior will be rewarded ... eventually. Many are not patient enough to wait that long. Sometimes, we have to resign an account that doesn't want to understand communication -- which is incredibly hard to do in a recession. Amber, let me give Radian6 a shoutout, too. As for clients that just want “results” and don’t care how many bloggers you piss off to get them, that’s not a small percentage — unfortunately. It’s a bi-product of compensation schemes that reward quarterly performance. So, the hardest job is often counseling clients in competitive markets that good community behavior will be rewarded … eventually. Many are not patient enough to wait that long. Sometimes, we have to resign an account that doesn’t want to understand communication — which is incredibly hard to do in a recession.

]]> By: Tamar Weinberg http://www.techipedia.com/2009/public-relations-spammers/#comment-115416 Tamar Weinberg Thu, 11 Feb 2010 18:43:32 +0000 http://www.techipedia.com/?p=570#comment-115416 Amen, Barb. And you're handling it wonderfully :) Amen, Barb. And you’re handling it wonderfully :)

]]> By: Barb Chamberlain http://www.techipedia.com/2009/public-relations-spammers/#comment-115415 Barb Chamberlain Thu, 11 Feb 2010 18:41:50 +0000 http://www.techipedia.com/?p=570#comment-115415 I think I'm throwing up a little in my mouth at the second email that PR person sent. Seriously?! Who would ever, ever SCOLD another adult? If he's been doing this for 35 years, then he's been doing really bad PR for over three decades. Of course, he already signaled that when he described the book as "perhaps one of the most important self-help books ever written." Get a grip, man. Hyperbole/superlatives=toss that pitch no matter what. This is the kind of crap that gives PR a bad name. If I get a no thanks from a writer--any writer, in any medium--it's a chance to ask about other stories they may be working on for which I might have a source or an angle if it feels as if we do have a chance of working together. It's not an excuse to give them a spanking. @BarbChamberlain I think I’m throwing up a little in my mouth at the second email that PR person sent. Seriously?! Who would ever, ever SCOLD another adult?

If he’s been doing this for 35 years, then he’s been doing really bad PR for over three decades. Of course, he already signaled that when he described the book as “perhaps one of the most important self-help books ever written.” Get a grip, man. Hyperbole/superlatives=toss that pitch no matter what. This is the kind of crap that gives PR a bad name.

If I get a no thanks from a writer–any writer, in any medium–it’s a chance to ask about other stories they may be working on for which I might have a source or an angle if it feels as if we do have a chance of working together. It’s not an excuse to give them a spanking.

@BarbChamberlain

]]> By: Blogging Etiquette in the Face of a PR Pitch: What Miss Blogging Manners Would Do » Techipedia | Tamar Weinberg http://www.techipedia.com/2009/public-relations-spammers/#comment-115071 Blogging Etiquette in the Face of a PR Pitch: What Miss Blogging Manners Would Do » Techipedia | Tamar Weinberg Wed, 10 Feb 2010 13:58:28 +0000 http://www.techipedia.com/?p=570#comment-115071 [...] not always the people doing blogger outreach who don’t get it right. Public relations representatives sometimes actually do a great job sending targeted pitches to the [...] [...] not always the people doing blogger outreach who don’t get it right. Public relations representatives sometimes actually do a great job sending targeted pitches to the [...]

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