December 11, 2009 at 10:22 AM by Cone

During the last few months, we’ve been bombarded by news coverage of purported PR “stunts” conducted by “regular folks” that have resulted in media firestorms. Whether it was the alleged White House party crashers or the Balloon Boy supposedly flying off into the great beyond, news organizations around the globe picked up these stories and ran with them. Although facing potential punishment for their actions, the people involved got what they ultimately wanted – the chance to become famous (or infamous) and a place in the popular culture Hall of Fame.

 

Aside from wondering how these folks actually pulled off their respective forays into the media spotlight, what is truly amazing is how quickly these stories became part of our daily lives. Now that the dust has settled a bit, we have to ask ourselves the burning question, “Why were we and the media so interested?” It seems a big part of the interest has to do with the human drama and eventual back-story tied to each stunt. As these bizarre dramas unfolded, we watched as larger-than-life stories about real people played out in real time, right in front of our eyes.

As a public relations professional, you have to wonder if there is anything to learn from all of this (aside from how far people will go to get their own reality show). It seems the big lesson is that if you surprise the media and media consumers while, at the same time, challenging societal norms (ideally somewhat tastefully and without breaking the law), you have a story that’s going to get an emotional reaction and make a big impact, good or bad. It’s the over-the-top element of surprise and the unexpected that drove these real-life human interest dramas to new heights of sensationalism. In short, they were as entertaining as any reality show or prime-time drama could ever be.

Like any good publicity stunt, it’s the element of surprise that gets the attention. Just don’t try to crash the White House or pretend that one of your family members is floating away in a make-shift balloon. It’s been done.

-- Mark Malinowski, Vice President

Tags: media celebrity PR

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December 10, 2009 at 1:51 PM by Cone

A recent blog post from cell phone analytics start-up Flurry suggested young consumers of Apple’s iPod touch would be future consumers of its iPhone later in life. “Apple is using the iPod touch to build loyalty with pre-teens and teens, even before they have their own phones (think: McDonalds' Happy Meal marketing strategy).” I didn’t get my first cell phone until my seventeenth birthday, and I considered myself to be on the cusp of the technological track. But if the assumptions are true, within the next five years, we will see a lot more tweens and teens using Apple’s high-tech mobile device.

 

Following in Apple’s footsteps, many companies are starting to realize teens are technologically savvier than older consumers. Sites like Mattel’s Everythinggirl.com and MyePets.com have created virtual online worlds that invite younger consumers to participate in interactive environments. And, in 2008, Disney Records, the online home for everything Hannah Montana and Jonas Brothers, led the list of Web video sites, with kids compromising more than 49 percent of its unique visitors.

But what does this increase in tech-literacy among American youth mean for marketers?

Teens are becoming a stronger force in online shopping and purchasing decisions and are extremely desirable marketing targets. In fact, the 2008 Global Habbo Youth Survey found 24 percent of teens are spending more than 15 hours a week online, and of those surveyed, 58 percent have made an online purchase and on average spend $46 per month – 26 percent spend $50 or more per month. Want more good news? Despite clothing, shoes, accessories and music ranking at the top of the list of online purchases, brand familiarity remains the driving force behind nearly 74 percent of all purchasing decisions among teens.

Maybe Flurry’s prediction is right. If younger consumers have purchasing control and if brand loyalty is achieved early in life, as in the case with Apple, perhaps we will begin seeing kids grabbing their lunch, kissing their parents goodbye and checking their Facebook app, all before catching the morning bus to school.

-- Emily Koruda, Fall 2009 Marketing Intern

Tags: tweens research socialmedia mobile teens

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December 4, 2009 at 10:52 AM by Cone

As I worked out at my gym the other day, keeping an eye on the bank of 12 TVs set to different channels, I was a bit taken by what I observed. Were the various stations reporting on the massacre of four police officers in Washington? Sure, a little bit. Was there coverage of retail spending leading up to the holidays, including the critical Black Friday and Cyber Monday milestones? Yes, in small doses. How about the military build-up in Afghanistan? There was a mention or two. But none of these stories were the main focus.

You’re thinking it must be something big, really big, right? Well, no, not really. The story dominating those TV sets was this: Tiger Woods won’t talk to the Florida Highway Patrol and he’s skipping his charity golf tournament this week. Really? Is that really important news – so important that stations were rolling out every analyst and expert they could find to talk about legal implications, image implications, relationship implications?

 

Keep in mind, this is a story that involves a single-car accident with minor injuries and no damage to or crime against other parties – unless you count that poor fire hydrant and tree. Granted, Tiger is one of the most famous people in the world. And, if as first reported, he was seriously injured, this is a pretty big story with some legs. Not to mention this story probably would have gone away by now if Tiger had done what most PR professionals would have counseled: get out in front of the story and address what happened. He didn’t, and we’ve become a celebrity and gossip-obsessed culture. The media believe this is what we want to see. So the story dominates the news.

 

The bottom line is that a story with very little news value or impact on our society is stealing the spotlight from big stories – stories that shed light on real issues, stories that impact us and people we know, stories that people need to hear.

What does this mean for PR practitioners and the clients we represent? Well, it just reinforces the importance of going to the media with something of value to them and their audience. We need to make news. A promotional, look-at-me sales pitch will rarely cut it, especially when we’re competing against the likes of Tiger.

Shouldn’t we expect more? Don’t we deserve more? I say we do. I want to see and read about the news that really matters.

-- Marc Berliner, Director

Tags: media celebrity PR mediarelations

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November 30, 2009 at 3:43 PM by Cone

I spent Thanksgiving weekend at my parents' house and a good part of Friday going through box after box of toys – my task being to “keep what you want and bring it to your own house, because the rest is getting tossed.”

 

While millions of people hit the malls to take advantage of Black Friday sales, I sorted toys and reminiscedabout holidays past and gifts received. One fond memory was the Christmas moment when I unwrapped my Cabbage Patch Kid (Olivia Bebe, according to her adoption certificate). For anyone not a child of the 80s, that doll (complete with Xavier Robert’s own signature) was the hot item to receive – hotter than the Alf doll or Teddy Ruxpin, or more recently, Tamagachi and Tickle Me Elmo.

 

Image Credit: flickr

 

I can remember eavesdropping on all the parents sharing, or bragging, how they were able to acquire this amazingly scarce toy…via office bribes, black market research and getting in line at the store rumored to have a shipment coming in 14 hours in advance. They waited in the dark, in the cold, a cold sandwich for dinner, sleeping bag on the sidewalk. Only five dolls when they rushed the door of the stock room, they elbowed somebody’s grandmother out of the way and only got their doll because the person in front of them fell.

 

But, the purpose of this post is not to shed light on this (crazy?) waste of time, energy and resources, but to look back on a time that came well before the Internet became Santa’s toy shop.

 

Today, however, Black Friday might as well be medieval compared to Cyber Monday (the Monday following Thanksgiving during which online sales reach yearly highs). Diligent workers, refreshed from their long weekend breaks spend the day back in the office not catching up on emails but…you didn’t hear it from me…shopping. In fact, Forrester Research reports online retail is thriving, with 8 percent growth expected this holiday season.

 

Savvy PR pros have embraced new media with gusto, and it is critical that we understand the power that word of mouth from a trusted blogger has on subscribers and a well-designed and frequently updated Facebook fan page has within a social network community. Most recently, we’re seeing the immense growth of personalities and brands on Twitter – making me really eager to learn how Twitter will impact holiday sales this year.

 

Maybe in the future, December 1, 2009,will actually be looked upon as the first “Twitter Tuesday.” This year I’d imagineforward-thinking retailers will certainly welcome Twitter-generated mobs by tweeting their sales and the new shipments of the hottest gadgets in real time. If I were in retail sales, I’d dedicate a good amount of time tweeting about the availability of my product, my sales and the timing of new shipments. I’d think about doing Twitter-specific promotions and rewarding my followers for passing my tweets along to their own network. I’d also reward my online and in-store partners for using Twitter to promote my product.

 

My prediction is that Cyber Monday has paved the way for Twitter Tuesday. It’s fascinating to imagine how different it would have been for my mom and dad to find my coveted Olivia Bebe had their smartphones been capable of accessing real-time tweets from the local toy store. The question is, are we advancing through new ways to communicate, or are we making our day-to-day lives more mercenary and robotic by leveraging these tools? Will my kids ever have the experience of waiting in line or hoping against hope they’ll get that one special item on their wish list or is everything really just one click away?

 

--Lisen Connery Syp, Account Supervisor

Tags: wordofmouth Twitter socialmedia

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November 19, 2009 at 12:10 PM by Cone

The following originally appeared in Cone’s inConetext quarterly newsletter. To read current or past issues, visit our Web site.

 

 

It’s the age-old question for retailers: "How can we break through the clutter and get noticed in a positive way during the busy holiday season?" That was the challenge presented to us more than two years ago by Game Crazy, a national specialty games retailer. To differentiate the brand from other video game retailers and expand its reach beyond "hard-core" gamers, we developed a video game-themed holiday survey that played off a major gift-giver concern – purchasing gifts kids won’t enjoy. We leveraged the increasing interest in video games among "casual gamers" to create a campaign that educated consumers and set up Game Crazy as the brand that would help make them gift-giving heroes during the holidays.

Now in its third year, campaign results continue to grow. USA Today has written about the program three years in a row, and each year dozens of local-market TV segments feature store and district managers talking about the survey and offering purchasing tips for holiday shoppers. The campaign is also covered by video game and retail writers from major-market dailies and blogs. Game Crazy has several large competitors with deep pockets, but the seasonal campaign ensures Game Crazy’s voice is heard during the holidays thanks to proprietary, branded information and practical advice that appeals to media and consumers.”

-- Marc Berliner, Director

Tags: research branding mediarelations clients

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