Media Relations & SEO PR Blog

Quick note to point everyone in the direction of a new blog I launched for a client this week.  It was put together quickly, so it’s not my prettiest effort.  I would have rather had the blog on the client’s web server, but given the urgency that wasn’t possible, so I used the great Wordpress.com site.

The client is Save Our Shelters, a Richmond, VA-based animal rights organization.  They’re in the middle of a rescue effort involving a feral cat colony that’s been living behind a local television station for a number of years.  The station manager’s decisions are a textbook example of what NOT to do in public relations.  You can read about the story here.

Visit the Save Our Shelters Blog for regular updates from the scene of the Trap, Neuter and Return operation at WRLH.  We’ve had a great response to the blog, even though it’s only been operating for a few days.  I’m also in the middle of a media relations project to push SOS’s part in the rescue effort.  One radio interview is already posted at the blog, and another will be posted later today.

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I just came across an interesting post on CBS’ Couric & Co. blog from producer Scott Conroy.  Conroy was coming out of his apartment building just minutes after the fatal crane collapse in New York City last week.  As soon as he figured out what was going on, he grabbed a digital video recorder, expecting to get some of the first video.  He didn’t.  Here’s what he found when he got to the scene:

There were already dozens of journalists—mostly the kind who don’t receive paychecks for their work—wielding home movie cameras, tape recorders and cell phones. Being first on the scene of breaking news seems almost impossible now, unless, of course you are the news.

One local resident handed me a videotape he had shot from his nearby window less than five minutes after the collapse. Even though the tape was filled with home video of a family vacation, he was willing to give it up to a stranger in the hopes that CBS News might use the few moments of video he shot. In the YouTube era, it seems that almost everyone wants to help document our times.

I got out of the news media business in 2000, right before social media or “citizen media” (whatever you want to call it) stuff blew up.  Conroy’s experience certainly begs the question — will the media ever be the first on the scene of “breaking news” again?

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Blogger relations is like media relations … except with blogs. Seems obvious, right? Instead of working to get media coverage, you’re working to get mentions on blogs. I had the opportunity to watch up close this week how a “hit” from a blog can be more valuable than a hit from a mainstream print publication, and thought I’d share.

PerezHilton.com is a wildly popular celebrity gossip blog that recently started posting about what it calls “worthwhile causes” every week or so. My client, Fight SMA, is an international organization working to find a cure for Spinal Muscular Atrophy, the leading genetic killer of children under two. On Monday, May 26, taking an email suggestion from a public affairs person at the organization, Perez Hilton decided to include Fight SMA on its worthwhile causes list. They (he?) posted a link to the fightsma.org website, a description of the disease, a call to donate, and a YouTube video about a child and family dealing with the disease.

Here’s a look at what the one blog mention did for Fight SMA:

• At the time that Perez posted about Fight SMA, the video had less than 1,000 YouTube views. As I’m posting this, a few days after the PerezHilton.com mention, the video has about 30,000 views.
• On Monday, the number of visitors to the site was higher than the average weekend or holiday (Monday was a U.S. holiday) by a factor of eight or nine.
• According to the person at Fight SMA in charge of donations, they’ve definitely seen an uptick in people giving money.

Could a single mention in a mainstream print publication have gotten these results? I think it’s unlikely. The reason for this is twofold. First, the video posted on PerezHilton.com was extremely powerful. I’m pretty proud of it because I assisted with the editing of the piece. Several commenters on Perez’s site said they were moved to tears. It’s difficult to get that kind of reaction from mere still pictures or words.

The second reason this blog hit did more for Fight SMA than a print hit would have is the ability to immediately act to learn more. If you’re reading a magazine story that mentions a website, you have to get up and go to your computer to visit the site. Even worse, if you’re not near your computer you have to REMEMBER to check it out later! If you’re reading a blog post, however, you simply click a link … and you’re there.

This is a remarkable illustration of the power of blogger relations, and why it’s a strategy that shouldn’t be ignored when trying to promote your organization or yourself. Additionally, it shows that if you dig a little bit you can at times find very unconventional places to try to get your mentions. Who would have thought a celebrity gossip site would talk about a neuromuscular disease?

To view the video that everyone is talking about, please visit FightSMA.org (as I’m typing this, the video is on the front page of the site), or view it on YouTube.

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Not really related to media relations or SEO PR, but I just noticed that Google has added street level viewing of my town in Virginia. Must be a very new thing because I use Google Maps fairly frequently and it wasn’t there last time I looked. Their photography stops within view of the entrance to my neighborhood. For example, I can see the grocery store that’s near my house. It’s interesting and kind of creepy all at the same time.

I did see that the gas at the station near my house cost $2.54 per gallon when they shot their photos.

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I’m flabbergasted.

I just realized a post on this blog jumped up to PR 7 in the latest Google Pagerank update! I was playing with the Smart PageRank Tool tonight, which allows you to check the pagerank of your inbound links (great tool for looking at the effectiveness of your link-building strategy) and entered in a couple of my sites and client sites. One post from this blog showed up in a couple of searches, and it jumped out at me like it was in red blinking letters. My Review of Online News Release Distribution Services, which is easily the most read post on this blog, has a pagerank higher than the front page of the blog or the front page of my public relations business!

Crazy … and very cool. I feel powerful ;)

UPDATED: I just found another post on this site that is ALSO PR 7. My Review of Online RSS Feed Generators post has also reached this lofty height. I’m thinking this trend could potentially be an indicator of what kind of content Google is favoring. It’s also proof positive that unique content is the way to strengthen your site’s standing with the search engines!

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For those who watch these things, it appears Google has done another pagerank update. I noticed today that the front page of this blog went up to PR6, which is quite exciting really. The EndGame PR front page and Startup BizCast front page each stayed at PR5. A client website, FightSMA.org, went from PR4 to PR5. All in all, I’m happy with the update.

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Still think social media is a fad that will fade away, much like the pet rock or parachute pants?  Think again.  According to one study, social media is rapidly reaching mainstream status.

Read more at Podcasting News.

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I just happened upon a great blog post that charts the Top 5 Corporate Podcast Mistakes to Avoid. It’s a rather old post, but the issues are valid even a couple of years later. Producing a corporate podcast is an incredible way to brand yourself and/or your business as an expert and at the same time create unique compelling content for your business website, but if you do it halfway or incorrectly then you’re just wasting your time and money.

The mistakes mentioned in the blog post include: Farming the podcast out to the computer nerd or marketing nerd in your organization, not hiring a podcast production consultant, not committing to the strategy, and not promoting your show.

For more details, head over to the Small Business Radio blog.

PS - I’ve been talking a lot about podcasting lately … I know. It’s something I’ve been working on, so it’s been on my mind. I’ll branch back out again soon … I promise! :)

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Big announcement today. EndGame PR Podcast Production is changing its name. Henceforth, the business podcast production service from EndGame Public Relations, LLC will be called BizPodz. The name change comes for two reasons. The first is that the old moniker was too long. I wanted to reflect that the podcast production service was part of a PR firm, and it accomplished that goal, but beyond that it was just too hard to remember.

The second reason for the name change is that I wanted the name to show what the service actually “does”. BizPodz Podcast Production specializes in working with organizations of all types — profits, nonprofits, and even government entities — to create quality podcasts and other audio productions.

For more information on the service, check out the home of BizPodz on the EndGame PR website. To view a news release about this announcement, go to the EndGame PR News page.

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I had the pleasure recently of working with my wife! She’s an active member of our local Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) chapter, and is working to organize the 2008 Virginia PR Awards. The theme this year is “Let’s Get Connected”, which encourages members to learn about social media.

One of the things they decided to do was create a podcast with tips for entering the competition. It not only provides information for members, but also is a great demonstration of the technology and techniques used in podcasting. My wife, Jennifer, did the voicework, and I produced it through EndGame PR Podcast Production. It turned out quite well! If you’re a PR pro, even if you’re not in Virginia, there might be some useful tips in there for you. It’s also a good example of how EndGame PR Podcast Production can work to create an original “one off” program.

Give a listen in the podcast player below, or head straight to the PRSA Richmond page to download the audio file.

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