I wish this blog had a News of the Weird category.
You know BlogHer, right? It’s a huge community for what my Papa would probably describe as “lady bloggers,” with a web presence, an ad network for female-written blogs, and huge, popular, and influencial conferences every year (full disclosure: my personal blog is a member of the BlogHer ad network, and I love it).
So, 1) this conference in Chicago is women-centered. 2) It has a LOT of attendees, quite a few of them very influential in the blog world (and beyond…!). And 3) As at any big conference, there are a lot of companies who want to schmooze you.
Now, the BlogHer conference is about as baby-friendly as a conference on this Earth could be. Female bloggers often have children, ya know? And so, you are not going to beLIEVE(!) what Nikon did!
Looking for another good PR tip? I know I may late to the game, but a friend just told me about Peter Shankman’s site HARO.
HARO (an acronym for Help A Reporter Out) is a site that publishes by email (and Twitter when “urgent”) requests from reporters for expert advice. You receive one to two emails a day with a dozen or so requests; typically, at least one or two of the requests are for “green” experts or products.
“I am working on a few different pieces for “beach week” and am looking for kids sandals, bathing suits and hats that are eco-friendly — Made of organic or eco-friendly materials–recycled etc. Please put HARO-Beach-(Your Product) in the subject line.”
Requests also indicate whether you will be treated as an anonymous source and give a deadline.
As a green leader or entrepreneur, the day begs the question, what will you be doing?
In a mad public relations world that anchors on events as a tangible “touch point” in lieu of diving into the messier (and harder to track or control) world of ‘awareness’, Earth Day is one of many symbols (i.e. polar bears) we use when speaking to some of the starker and concrete practices of the planet’s ecological anxieties.
We all know young people have a handle on the Internet like no other demographic. My generation grew up playing computer games, had PC literacy classes in elementary school, and secretly hijacked the internet for music pirating before we were teens. We have an intuitive sense of the web – its uses, its limitations, and its future.
The nation’s young people are now harnessing that power for climate action, and we’re beating coal’s dirty PR in ways that have industry front groups shaking.
The coal industry’s American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity has poured millions of dollars into online advertising to convince Americans that “clean coal” is the solution to global warming, and it’s planning a $20 million online push this year. But type “clean coal” into Google, and up pop progressive climate blogs, spoofs and news articles.
In my own search for “clean coal,” eight out of the top 10 organic results were web sites that completely debunked the idea – only Wikipedia and an AP news article held both “sides” up. Not a single site in the top 10 was a pro-clean-coal industry page. Industry front group have had to buy their way onto Google’s front page, thanks in large part to young bloggers.
Every single word counts when it comes to marketing. How you package your brand with words and images has a strong influence on how people perceive your company.
But before I dive into which words can work for your product or service, always keep in mind that your company’s credibility is the first priority. Otherwise, it will affect how receptive people are to your words and any attempts to ‘pull the wool’, so to speak, over a target market’s eyes can backfire.
Big coal’s presence throughout this long election season as a major sponsor of the presidential debates stands in striking opposition to the absence of any substantive political discussions about climate change in the debates themselves. And now Sierra Club is pushing back.
The Democratic National Convention Denver Host committee has released a statement clarifying an earlier position about the requirements for the food service at the August convention. After receiving lots of unwanted attention, officials now say the requirements are only “guidelines.”
Kudos to my colleagues who go the extra mile to design seminars I’d wake up at the ungodly hour of 5:37 AM to sit and listen to in half-wake awe, Americano in hand.
Seminars that go by blockbuster titles - as least for green entrepreneurs - such as “How to manage carbon risk” have authentic learning value.
In our over-wired world, live events are a luxury, an hour or three to feel how much we really love context and contact, not just stoic information glaring out at us from a screen when we’re learning complex stuff - like international carbon trading markets.
More to the point, events are becoming an even more attractive “pull” medium than ever. And, the savvy, green entrepreneur should know how to harness the reputation and client lead potentials of a well-orchestrated event - an eco-friendly supplied event, that is.
As a blogger and freelance journalist, I receive several to many press releases a day, promoting all sorts of products, web sites and events. As a marketing consultant, I write press releases for my clients and struggle with the time and energy that goes into creating something which, well… often isn’t read.
Press releases are nearly useless. They typically start with a tremendous amount of top-spin, they contain pat-on-the-back phrases and meaningless quotes…
Press releases are created by committees, edited by lawyers, and then sent out at great expense through Businesswire or PRnewswire to reach the digital and physical trash bins of tens of thousands of journalists.
There have been several articles on Public Relations blogs recently about the difficulty of promoting green businesses. In our current climate, thousands of organizations, big and small are trying to go, or appear to go green. Hundred’s of websites are devoted to the eco movement; the mainstream media loves a green product story…and they have many from which to choose.
I wish this blog had a News of the Weird category.
