HOW DO YOU PRICE YOUR PR SERVICES?
Category: Jobs, Work, Careers

BY DENIS HILLER, Silicon Valley Publicist

An enthusiastic reader of this blog recently sent me the following message:

2:04 AM - 7 Comments - 10 Kudos - Add Comment

AN ABSOLUT PR NIGHTMARE & HOW TO FIX IT
Category: News and Politics

BY DENIS HILLER, PR Specialist

The ad below was run by Absolut Vodka in Mexico. Not surprisingly, US media found out about it and people are really pissed. No I mean really pissed.



Judging by there non-appology appology, Absolut doesn’t seem to realize how serious of a mistake they’ve made and how much this could hurt their bottom line.

The LA Times conducted on online poll about how readers feel about this ad with 38,000+ responses, 62.5% indicated that they are insulted and plan to Boycott Absolut Vodka. Ouch!


Marketing to Mexicans in a way that offends Americans doesn’t make sense economically. America has significantly more purchasing power and this leaves a really bad taste in people’s mouths. (Worse than vodka’s after taste).

Here’s what I’d do if I were in charge of damage control for Absolut:

The first thing I would do is secure funds to give very significant (and public) donations to several charities:

1) The American History Museum
-To show that Absolut values American history and its current borders.

2) The American Marketing Association
-I would commision a research study in to ethical marketing using Absolut’s recent disaster as a case study

3) Wounded Warrior Disabled Sports Clinics
-A charity that rehabilites disabled veterans.

Next, I would have Absolut’s CEO fly to the US as fast as humanly possible. First stop: A press conference at the National Press Club where the CEO would give a sincere apology. Second stop, the American History Museum. Third stop: a meeting with representatives from various angry groups. With media heavly present at each of these stops.

What would you do if you were in charge of damage control for Absolut?

1:58 AM - 15 Comments - 7 Kudos - Add Comment

RATEMYCOP.COM - GENIUS PUBLICITY MACHINE
Category: News and Politics

BY DENIS HILLER, PR Specialist

I recieved a MySpace message from one of the founders of RateMyCop.com. For your benifit, I’m trying to setup an audio interview.



From a publicity perspective, I fell in love with the website the second I layed my eyes on it. RateMyCop has been featured all over the place including Wired magazine, NPR, and Slashdot. The site’s theme is controversial, and more importantly, it will always have controversial content (ratings of local cops).

Also, the website is a great springboard into important issues: free speech, privacy rights, patriotism, etc. Genius!

1:15 AM - 4 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

5 WAYS TO GET A BLOG POST FEATURED ON MYSPACE
Category: Blogging

BY DENIS HILLER, Public Relations Specialist



A recent blog post of mine was featured as one of the most popular on MySpace. Getting featured can mean more visiblity here on MySpace as well as making some great new connections. Many of you messaged me asking, "how can I get my blog post(s) featured on MySpace?

So without further ado here are 5 ways to get a blog post featured on MySpace:

1) Create controversy
-Give people something to talk about. Take a stand on an issue that your friends/readers care about. My featured blog post, for example, took a strong stand against incompetent fellow PR people, it definitely lead to some great debate in the comments section (as well as being featured on MySpace).

2) Post edgy pictures/movies
-This blog post was featured simply because it includes pics of nearly nude women in their undergarments

3) Make 30,000+ MySpace friends
-A simple blog post titled "I’m Back!!" by American Idol sweetheart Danny Noriega was featured simply because he has lots of friends on MySpace. Many friends means lots of readers, which means a featured post on MySpace.

4) Post about a holiday
-By wishing her readers a Happy Easter, this MySpace user generated lots of reads and comments, as well as getting featured.

5) Blog about getting featured on MySpace
-The jury is still out on 5, but hey, let’s see if this blog post does get featured as one of the most popular on MySpace.

If you have any additional suggestions for getting a blog post featured on MySpace, by all means include them in the comments section!

1:40 AM - 5 Comments - 5 Kudos - Add Comment

HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY
Category: Jobs, Work, Careers

BY DENIS HILLER, Public Relations Specialist

Recently, a potential client inquired about my PR services. After exchanging a few e-mails it became apparent that he was looking for a specific type of experience that I don’t currently have.

Rather than beating around the bush, I told him that if that specific type of experience is crucial to his company’s selection of a PR consultant, they should probably go with someone else. While I certainly sold myself and my abilities in our e-mail exchanges, I felt it was important set realistic expectations. 

I’d rather risk losing a client by being honest than disappoint them later by being dishonest.

1:58 AM - 17 Comments - 20 Kudos - Add Comment

RECENT POST FEATURED IN "MOST POPULAR BLOG POSTS" ON MYSPACE LIST

BY DENIS HILLER, PR Specialist

A recent post about incompetent PR people (unforutnately, some do exist) was featured in MySpace’s daily "Most Popular Blog Posts" list.

Here’s a screen shot:



I’m very pleased that there was a lot of intelligent discussion and debate in the comments section of the blog post. The way that new ideas emerge is through discussion and debate.

Thanks for your readership, participation, and support!

5:36 AM - 2 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

WHY GOV ELIOT SPITZER’S LOSS IS HIS CALL GIRL’S PR GAIN
Category: News and Politics

BY DENIS HILLER, PR Specialist

By now, we’ve all heard about New York Governor Eliot Spitzer hiring an elite prostitute at a rate of $1000/hr. Public pressure forced him to step down as Governor.


Disgraced New York Governor Eliot Spitzer

What most people aren’t discussing is that the Governor’s call girl is an aspiring singer named Ashley Alexandra Dupré. Although the media attention she’s getting maybe embarassing, it is a HUGE benifit to her career.

Think about it, how many other aspiring entertainers do you know who have made both the New York Times and the Drudge Report:


Screen Shot: Ashley Alexandra Dupré makes the cover of the Drudge Report

The comments in her MySpace page & blog further illustrate my point that this is a huge career boost of Ashley Alexandra Dupre. Here are a few example comments:

1) "God bless you and may he grant you the strength and courage to ride out this storm in your life. I applaud and admire your honesty!"

2) "you have a lot of wisdom for a 22 year old.... with the ny times article that broke out today, you will need every ounce of it in the days and weeks ahead, darling, so keep your head up"

Please understand that this is a public relations blog and I am not here to make judgement calls about prostitution. Further more, I have 100 times more sympathy for a young girl trying to make it in NYC than for some sleaze-bag Governor.

It will be interesting to see if Ashley Alexandra Dupré’s 15 minutes of publicity turn in to a record deal + years of fame.

9:36 PM - 2 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

APPALLING PR INCOMPETENCE
Category: Web, HTML, Tech

BY DENIS HILLER, Public Relations Specialist



Until recently, I assumed that every PR professional is at least somewhat competent. Now I'm not so sure.

Why? Because a journalist friend of mine, who writes for a UK-based tech publication, went through hell writing a story thanks to some really stupid PR people. In short, she was writing news article about Google censoring search results and needed commentary, so the journalist contacted Google, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and several thought leaders. Across the board, people said they were either "too busy" to provide commentary or they didn't respond at all. The journalist was forced to write the story without any commentary at all!

This is appaling, the whole purpose of public relations is to generate news coverage. A PR person should squirm with delight when news coverage is handed to them on a silver platter. Instead, our colleauges snubbed a respectable journalist.

Don't these incompetent PR people realize that they're putting our profession to shame?

3:19 AM - 18 Comments - 11 Kudos - Add Comment

FACEBOOK ADS ARE MORE EFFECTIVE THAN GOOGLE ADS
Category: Web, HTML, Tech

By Denis Hiller, Silicon Valley Publicist



According to Valleywag, Facebook just recruited Sheryl Sandberg, the person currently heading Google's adwords program, to run and expand Facebook's advertising platform. In short, Facebook's largely unknown online advertising program is going to become a big deal in the next few years.

As many of you use Google ads to promote your business or clients, I thought it would be good to introduce you to Facebook ads and why I have found them to be more effective.

Similarities:

1) Both services offer advertisers online cost per click ads

2) Each service uses a bidding system where advertisers compete over keywords

3) Both services have a low barrier to entry for advertisers, in terms of time and money
-In other words, you can test these services without having to do any graphic design work or investing a lot of money.

Facebook Advantages:

1) Better targeting
-While Google ads can only target based on the search term and zip code, Facebook has a lot more information to work with including: age range, location, school or work place, political views, etc.

2) Different mindset
-People searching Google for information are in a very different mindset from when they use Facebook.

3) Imaging
-Google does not allow image advertising on Google.com, Facebook allows and encourages advertisers to use images in their ads.

1:48 PM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

HOW I LANDED 2 STORIES IN THE BRITISH PRESS OVERNIGHT

BY DENIS HILLER, Publicist



Thanks to out of the box thinking and sacrificing a night of sleep, I landed two news stories in the UK media recently. A full length article in the The Inquirer (a British tech publication) and a few paragraphs in a Web User story. 

Here's a short chronological overview of how I made this happen:

Monday, February 25th

4:00PM: I noticed a story on the Drudge Report about Pakistan blocking YouTube.com.



5:00PM: An idea hit me, what if Pakistanis were using Hotspot Shield, a free software by AnchorFree (my former employer), to get around the YouTube ban? Fyi, Hotspot Shield enables people to get around internet censorship across the globe. I chewed on the idea for an hour while finishing up a project.

6:00PM: A colleague at AnchorFree confirmed that HotspotShield usage in Pakistan had skyrocketed 1300% since the ban began. In short, Pakistanis were using Hotspot Shield to access YouTube!



Since US media was closed until Tuesday and I was eager to get the story out there, decided to pitch the British media. With plenty of time to spare, I enjoyed Sushi and Hookah with a friend.

Tuesday, February 26th

12:30AM,  (8:30AM in the UK): I searched on Google News to find out which publications in the UK had written about the YouTube ban in Pakistan. Of the 60 or stories that popped up about 15 were were orginal pieces (not syndicated by a news agency).



1:00AM, (9AM in the UK): I called and e-mailed all 15 journalists at 10 different publications to find out if they were interested in doing a follow-up story about how Pakistanis are getting around the YouTube ban. I spent several hours tracking down journalists as well as answering their questions.

5:41AM, (1:41PM in the UK): Eureka! The Inquirer published a story. I enjoyed a celebratory cup of tea.

7:00AM (3:00PM in the UK): Double Eureka!! Web User News published a story too. I enjoyed a celebratory nap.

I hope that this write-up helps other publicists and entrepreneurs. If you have similar experiences, be sure to share them in the comments section.

In case you're wondering why I lost sleep for a former employer, five words: I own lots of stock

4:14 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

5 TIPS FOR GETTING MENTIONED IN THE DRUDGE REPORT
Category: Web, HTML, Tech

BY DENIS HILLER, San Francisco PR Consultant



Ever heard of the Drudge Report? In short, it is the most influencial news site in the US. The site mainly links to interesting news stories in the US and beyond. I've attempted 10 times to get Matt Drudge to pick up stories about past clients, I've been successful once (so far). My client asked to remain anonymous, so I can't get in to any detail about the actual story which was linked to by Drudge.

Hope you find these tips helpful!

5 tips for getting mentioned in the Drudge Report:

1) Don't pitch Matt Drudge directly
-The Drudge Report is largely a site that amplifies interesting news stories, your goal is to get a news outlet to write a story that will hopefully catch Drudge's eye.

2) Pitch outlets that Drudge regularly links to
-Certain media outlets get a lot of attention from the Drudge Report. By getting a story about your client in one of these outlets, you're much more likely to get Drudge to at least consider your story for inclusion.

Lately these outlets include: national British newspapers (The Sun, The Daily Mail, etc.), The Wires (Reuters and the AP), insider political sites (Politico, The Hill, etc.), niche entertainment pubs (Variety, TMZ, etc.)

3) Connect your client with a reoccuring Drudge theme
-From what I've noticed Drudge has several ongoing themes: bizarre stories (girl lives in cage for 18 years), illegal immigration, studies and data releases, gay marriage debate, Paris Hilton & Lindsay Lohan, Elections (Election '08, etc), right to privacy (wire tappings, internet censorship, etc.), foreign heads of state that make the news regularly (particularly Hugo Chavez, Vladimir Putin, Nicholas Sarkozy, and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad), and media bias.

Obviously, only do this if there is a natural fit between your client and one of the topics above.

4) Create controversy
-Drudge loves controversy. Whatever you can do create controversy will greatly increase your chances of getting mentioned on the site.

5) Read the Drudge Report
-The Drudge Report is an ever evolving creature, visiting the site reguarly is the best way to understand it. You may discover additional opportunities that I have not mentioned.

4:45 AM - 7 Comments - 8 Kudos - Add Comment

BUILDING MY OWN PUBLIC RELATIONS PRACTICE
Category: Jobs, Work, Careers

BY DENIS HILLER, Silicon Valley Publicist

Recently, I chose to leave Uloop (a company that I founded), in order to build a public relations practice. This was a difficult decision as I devoted a year of my life to building Uloop from scratch. Having said that, my role with Uloop was 10% PR, 70% marketing, and 20% administrative. I yearned for 100% PR and that simply was not realistic at Uloop, so I left them (in good hands) to work in PR full-time.

Hopefully, PR consulting will be a fruitful and exciting endeavor.

4:23 AM - 4 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

I’M ORGANIZING A MIXER!
Category: Parties and Nightlife

BY DENIS HILLER, Silicon Valley Publicist

The excellent dialogue that we've had on this blog has inspired me to organize a mixer for PR people, journalists, and entrepreneurs. LinkTV has generously offered their unique office space in San Francisco. I was connected with LinkTV thanks to Sylvia Paull, a Silicon Valley Public Relations Icon.



The event will most likely be held on a Thursday evening in May. Other than that, there is a lot that is to be determined! I'm considering calling the event PR TALK: A mixer for newsmakers. Good title? Bad title? Have experience organizing mixers, be sure to include any tips in the comments section.

2:56 PM - 9 Comments - 7 Kudos - Add Comment

DARFUR SET TO DOMINATE SUMMER OLYMPICS
Category: Sports

BY DENIS HILLER, Silicon Valley Publicist

By now you've probably heard about the genocide in Darfur. What you may not have heard is how intertwined it is becoming with the 2008 olympics in Beijing, China.

Yesterday, Steven Spielberg pulled out of the Olympics out of protest to the genocide, specifically he feels that China is not doing enough to stop it. The emerging super-power, happens to buy more oil from Sudan than any other country in the world. That's potentially a lot of leverage.

This is a big win for anti-genocide advocates and the beginning of a huge PR nightmare for China.


                                   

Earlier today, I attended a Darfur-awareness event at Stanford University. The organizers of the event encouraged members of the audience to demonstrate on April 9th in San Francisco. Why? Because on that day, the Olympic torch will be coming to the city. San Francisco is the only city in the United States where the torch will be coming to.

In short, celebrities, athletes, and grassroots activists will continue to pressure China to help put an end to the genocide in Darfur.

If you were a PR strategist for the anti-genocide in Darfur movement, how would you proceed in order to continue the momentum? Conversly, if you were a publicist for the Chinese Olympic Committee, how would you control the damage (assuming that China has no intention to change its Darfur policies)?

2:34 AM - 3 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

HOW DO YOU DRESS?
Category: Fashion, Style, Shopping

BY DENIS HILLER, Silicon Valley Publicist

Public relations at its core is a battle over perception.  I've been hesitant to write this blog post because the way a publicist dresses does not reflect their skills. However, the way we are perceived by the media (and clients) directly impacts our effectiveness as PR people.

My intention is not to make fellow PR people self-conscious, but rather to encourage publicists to be purposeful in the way they dress.



What's your goal?

Above is a picture of me. Although it was taken at a party, this is how I typically dress for work. Silicon Valley is a very casual place so that's actually semi-dressy for where I live. My goal in dressing for work is to embrace the fact that I am on the younger side by sporting a trendy professional look.

Which look do you sport?

From what I've seen, publicists tend to sport one of 2 looks:

1) The Chameleon

Chameleons are masters of blending in. Publicists in the music industry tend to be really good at this, many of them dress exactly like the artists they represent.





2) The Peacock

Peacocks know how to turn heads. Do you have a friend who is constantly getting complimented on her outfits? Chances are that it's not an accident, most people like your friend take the extra time to find clothing that is unique and looks damn good on them. The key to being a successful peacock is to stand out in a way where you are attracting positive attention.



What others think about this topic? Do you have any tips? Am I right on or putting too much emphasis on publicist fashion?

1:00 AM - 7 Comments - 14 Kudos - Add Comment