MY NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS

For the year 2010, Resolved:

I will no longer insist on being innovative for clients who merely want the same old thing. (And, hopefully, I will no longer sign clients who want the same old thing.)

I will only give “bonus” hours to those clients who really appreciate them…and me.

I will continue to keep learning and keep thinking and keep discussing, in a constant endeavor to be the best that I can at my craft.

I will keep fighting for the integrity of the profession in which I’ve spent the past 21 years.

I will never stop asking “Why,” or “Why not?”

I will always remember that, in our profession – especially at the beginning of a relationship – listening is more important than talking.

I will always continue pushing for a “seat at the table” for PR professionals. And I will always continue to point out that, had we been given such a seat, some of the incredibly-stupid business mistakes of the past few years might never have occurred.

When I do my 6 a.m. run every morning, I will spend more time listening to the birds and the ducks all around me, instead of thinking.

I will spend more time listening to my daughters – 15 and 21 – and less time lecturing.

During our once-a-month disagreements, I will try harder to understand my wife’s point of view.

I will spend more time thinking about what I have, instead of what I want.

I won’t scream as loud at the TV when our beloved – but mediocre – Florida Panthers hockey team is playing.

I will spend less time watching college football. (OK, that one’s not quite true. Hey, you’ve got to allow me one or two broken resolutions!)

Happy New Year!

Steve Winston
President, WINSTON COMMUNICATIONS
www.winstoncommunications.com
steve@winstoncommunications.com
(954) 575-4089

HOW "EDITOR AND PUBLISHER" CHANGED MY LIFE

“Editor and Publisher” is, apparently, on its death-bed. And that makes me very sad. Because, in a sense, “Editor and Publisher” gave me everything I have…

I was sitting in my high-rise apartment in Hartford, CT. It was a gray, miserable late-winter day, shortly after a record-snowfall had tied the city up for days. And it was shortly after my brother in Philadelphia and I had vowed to get jobs in Florida (which he did within a week or two). As I looked out at the downtown skyline, I thumbed absent-mindedly through the latest edition of “Editor and Publisher.”

Suddenly I came upon a half-page ad…for The National Enquirer. (Yes, I know what you’re thinking.) They were looking for an Editor. The salary was outrageous to a young kid recently out of college - $52,000. And then I saw it. Right below the salary, was the address, “Lantana, FLORIDA.”

I quickly got out my atlas, and saw that Lantana was only about fifty miles north of Miami, where my brother was about to move.

I knew, of course, about the Enquirer’s reputation for sensationalism. But I figured, what the hell; for that salary and that location, I’ll send them a resume.

I did. And then I totally forgot about it. So, when they called a couple of weeks later, it took me a minute to even remember the ad. They wanted to fly me down for an interview.

A week later, I sat in a plane on the runway of Bradley International Airport, in the pre-dawn blackness, and watched the icy sleet pelt my window. A few hours later I walked out of the terminal at Palm Beach International Airport…and into 76 degrees and the bluest sky I’d ever seen.

At the end of the day, the folks at the Enquirer told me they wanted to fly me back here again in a few days, for a two-week getting-to-know-each-other period. And they would pay me at the rate of the advertised Editor's position - $1,000 a week. In addition, they’d take care of all my costs – transportation, food, lodging, etc.

I thought about it for perhaps .0000001 of a second, and then said sure.

When I came back the following week, they were very nice. But, by my very first morning of the two weeks, I had a feeling that the Enquirer and I were not made for each other…$52,000 or not. So, at lunchtime, I stopped in unannounced at the Palm Beach Post, and asked to see the Managing Editor. A month later I was in Florida (for a salary of $12,000).

That was thirty years ago. And that ad in “Editor and Publisher” ended up being responsible for everything I now hold dear in life. My two precious daughters. My first marriage, to their mother. My new wife. My career in journalism and then public relations. Friends who are family. The opportunity to do my 6 a.m. run outside, instead of on a treadmill…every day of the year. (And no more icy sleet when I get in a plane to go somewhere!)

It’s funny how the entire course of a life can turn around in one moment. And, in my case, all because of “Editor and Publisher.”

Steve Winston
President, WINSTON COMMUNICATIONS
www.winstoncommunications.com
steve@winstoncommunications.com
(954) 575-4089

I'M TIRED OF HEARING ABOUT TIGER!

Is anyone else sick of all this?

Is anyone else sick of our perverse – morose! – fascination with the rich and famous? Is anyone else – in a world of hunger and war and poverty and climate change and recession and failing schools – sick of seeing the same name in the headlines for two weeks (until another rich and famous person gets caught in the act)?

Is anyone else sick of wondering whether the media frenzy is fed by the public’s fascination, or whether the public’s fascination is fed by the media frenzy?

And is anyone else in our industry sick of hearing how Tiger Woods can use PR to rehabilitate himself?

That same night that Woods crashed his car, and Elin decided to play golf at 2:45 a.m., thousands of other cheating husbands (and wives) were discovered by their spouses, all across America. That same night, thousands of other couples across America were involved in domestic violence. Thousands of other families were broken apart by the revelations of outsiders. And thousands of other children saw the patterns of their family life snap, but didn’t understand how or why.

Why, then, this morbid fascination with the rich and famous in our society – especially when they screw up? Is it because, as some say, the common man (or woman) takes a secret thrill in seeing famous people brought down? Is it a class-hatred thing? Are we all just voyeurs? Or are we interested out of some sense of justice…because the Tiger Woods’ and the Eliot Spitzers and the A-Rods and the Mark Sanfords and the John Edwards’ of the world bit off more than they could (or should) chew? Or is it because the media doesn’t tell us about those thousands of other people caught cheating by their spouses every day?

I’ve seen Tiger’s house (the one in South Florida, anyway). His wife is beautiful. His daughter is precious. Why, when someone reaches his status in life, does it never seem to be enough? And why do we obsess over it?

Right now, his life is ruined. And he may never be able to put the private side of it back together.

But he needn’t worry all that much about the public side. He needn’t worry about whether effective public relations can rehabilitate his image. He needn’t worry about whether people will buy the products he’ll still be endorsing after the smoke clears. He needn’t worry that people will no longer want to see him play golf.

Because, as sure as I’m writing this and you’re reading it, within a couple of weeks, another celebrity will get caught…at something. Then we’ll obsess over that person. And Tiger will eventually become a distant memory.

I’m sick of hearing about Tiger!!

TRUST

Do any of us really trust anyone else, professionally, anymore?

I’m not really sure we understand the meaning of the word “trust” anymore…and that includes me. I don’t really trust a staffer or a contractor to put the same effort into a project that I would. I don’t trust what I read in the papers or hear on TV anymore…because so much of what I read or hear is being distilled through the often-partisan lens of the person saying it. I don’t trust celebrity spokespeople, for obvious reasons.

I don’t trust politicians (putting me - I trust - in the great majority). I don’t trust advertising. I don’t trust many PR campaigns.

We’ve become so used to not trusting that we’ve become almost deaf to how much a part of our daily lives – and our professional lives – it is.

It wasn’t always that way, of course. (And let’s face it…these days, a little healthy skepticism can’t hurt!) Have we all become hired mercenaries, paid pitchmen (and women) for messages we don’t really believe?

I work with a client who exemplifies “trust” – because she couldn’t do her life’s work without it.

Lisa Kristine is a San Francisco photographer whose stunning portraits of native people around the world have won her a slew of honors. She roams the world with a backpack and a camera. And with her simple, unadorned portraits of native people who live in “off-the-map” places, she’s able to touch people all over the world.

But, to photograph these people – many of whom have never before seen a camera – she needs to establish trust. She meets them on their terms, not hers. She takes as much time as they need to feel comfortable with this white woman with blonde hair and a strange-looking contraption that she points at them. She gets them to trust her…to trust her motives, to trust her work.

Her photographs go straight into the souls of her subjects, portraying them in an incredible human dignity. And it’s not only her photographs that are stunning in their beauty and in their simplicity and in their integrity – it’s the subjects in them, as well.

How wonderful that must be…to trust the human beings with whom you work. And to gain their trust.

I can’t help thinking that somehow, somewhere, there must be some kind of lesson in this for us.

Steve Winston
President, WINSTON COMMUNICATIONS
(954) 575-4089
steve@winstoncommunications.com
www.winstoncommunications.com

"WHY AREN'T WE DOING THIS?"

Some years back, I had a client who would always have a folder for me – stuffed with papers – each time I came to his office.

Invariably, the papers were marketing or PR campaigns done by other companies. And on every one of them were the scribbled words: “Why aren’t we doing this?”

Several times, I tried to explain to him that there were numerous reasons we weren’t doing this…among them:

* Just because that particular medium or campaign was appropriate for some other companies, didn’t necessarily mean it was appropriate for his company.

* Because the way you distinguish yourself – in both PR and marketing – is not to do what everyone else is doing. Quite often, I’ve found, it’s to do the opposite of what everyone else is doing.

* Because if you echo the same line as everyone else, your own voice will get lost in the crowd.

* Because you have to develop – and continually reinforce – your own specific message, and your own USP.

* And, lastly, because I – the expert whom you hired as your PR counsel – didn’t believe those particular media or strategies were best for your company.

I found it offensive to be asked, “Why aren’t we doing this?”

I tried explaining it to him on two or three different occasions. And then, rather than explain any more, I fired him. My explanation was simple: I only worked with clients who wanted original thinking, rather than just to follow the crowd.

That was about eleven years ago. And, recently, I fired another client who asked the same question. My reasoning was a bit different this time, though.

He would send me e-mails almost every day – sometimes several a day – with info about some company or campaign, and then the question: “Why aren’t we doing this?”

So – in the spirit of experimentation, and keeping an open mind – I started doing this, in addition to implementing the strategies that I had first proposed (and that he had agreed on).

Lo and behold, after about a month, he asked why his invoices were so high. I explained to him that, in addition to the strategies he and I had originally agreed upon, he was always asking me to pursue this. And that, as a professional with over twenty years of successful public relations experience…I actually expected to be paid for the work I did.

He grumbled a sort-of acceptance. Then, a week later, he e-mailed me that, unless we could lower his costs, he might not be able to afford PR counsel any more. So I e-mailed him back – “You’re fired!”

Simply put, the money wasn’t worth the aggravation.

My moral of the story(ies)?

Beware any client who says “Why aren’t we doing this?”

Steve Winston
President, WINSTON COMMUNICATIONS
(954) 575-4089
www.winstoncommunications.com
steve@winstoncommunications.com

THE NEWEST THREAT TO PR

Last night, I was researching various newspapers, in preparation for a release I was about to issue for one of my clients.

For one thing, I was researching who’s still there. I was researching who writes what (very important after the constant layoffs at newspapers). I was also looking at what they’ve written recently, so I could sound educated when I contacted them. I was looking at their bosses…Editors, Managing Editors, and so on. And I was also studying the general tone of the papers’ recent coverage, to discern their priorities, and those of their readers.

And then it hit me. Are we going to be able to do that next year? Next month?

What happens if newspapers – and magazines – actually do start charging for online content, instead of just talking about charging for online content? I haven’t read anything, yet, about how this will affect public relations practitioners. But it seems to me the effect could be like a tsunami.

I’m particularly concerned with independent practitioners, who are becoming an ever-more vital part of the PR workforce. These people may not have the resources to subscribe to comprehensive media databases (which may or may not provide all the information I’m able to gather by simply going to a paper’s website). And they may not have the resources to pay for online subscriptions to hundreds of newspapers and magazines.

On a larger scale, however, all the talk about (and possible movement toward) pay-for-content models affects all of us in this industry, from the solo practitioner to the large agency, as well as corporate PR departments. It’s already tough enough to connect with many journalists, because they’re now doing the jobs of two – and sometimes three – people. Putting another wall between us will only make the job harder.

Let’s remember, too, that this is hardly a one-way street. Many journalists – often, because they are doing the jobs of two people – depend on PR pros for a lot of their ideas. By inserting a barrier between PR pros and journalists, pay-for-content will only make the journalist’s job even harder than it’s already become – because it may shut them off from some good sources of ideas.

Look, no one’s saying that the current media models shouldn’t change. They must change, because they’re obviously unsustainable the way they are now. What I am saying, however, is that those of us in this industry had better start tossing around some ideas as to how this is all going to play out. And how we’re going to be able to perform some aspects of our jobs when it does change.

I’ve been reading a lot of talk about whether people will be able to – or want to – pay to subscribe to their newspapers or magazines online. But I haven’t read anything about how PR people are going to afford to pay if pay-for-content becomes standard.

And it’s something I think we should be talking about - before it happens.

Steve Winston
President, WINSTON COMMUNICATIONS
(954) 575-4089
steve@winstoncommunications.com
www.winstoncommunications.com

WHO'S MINDING THE STORE?

We all know who the villains are in the economic meltdown of the past few years, right? In most peoples’ eyes, banks, insurance companies, and other financial institutions. (Forget, for a minute, the inability of many American corporations to think long-term, their desire to “cut overhead” at any cost, their often-false claims, etc.)

Right or wrong, most of us pretty much agree that, to a large extent, financial institutions are the villains. You’d think that these institutions, excoriated in the media and in the public discourse, would be very carefully resurrecting their reputations now, wouldn’t you? And after the public relations fiasco these institutions have faced, you’d think that they’d solicit – and heed - the counsel of their best public relations and reputation-management folks, right?

Maybe at some financial companies. But not, apparently, at Bank of America. Because – surprise! surprise! – here’s a financial company that’s burning its reputation bridges again.

Here in Florida, 452 people have lodged complaints with the State Attorney General’s office about Bank of America, relating to mis-information, stalled promises, or revocations of home-loan modifications that had been promised by the bank. Some of the complaints say that the homeowners have been trying for months to get through to B of A, in an attempt to hold onto their homes (which would also, of course, spare the bank the task of foreclosing on them, and then having to become a home-seller itself). Others are complaining that they came to a deal with the bank for a loan modification – not only verbally, but on paper – but that now the bank refuses to honor it.

The mess is receiving a lot of media coverage in Florida…a state that has been devastated by the housing meltdown. (Last year, I sold my home in South Florida. After a full year on the market, I felt lucky to have gotten half of what it had been worth just two years earlier.)

Other lenders have received complaints, as well, of course. But none of the volume of complaints against any of them comes close to the number, proportionally, against Bank of America.

I’m not taking sides here; I’m sure, in the minds of B of A executives, they have good reasons for the things that have happened. But, in an age when news spreads like a wildfire virally – and when the financial sector takes the blame for what has happened in our country – how could they have let this happen? Why haven’t they responded to these complaints in a timely manner? Why, if indeed it is true, are they changing the terms of the modifications after they have already been agreed upon? And why aren’t they bending over backwards to satisfy this relatively small group of customers (B of A has 82,000 home loans in Florida)?

Who’s minding the PR store?

Steve Winston
President, WINSTON COMMUNICATIONS
(954) 575-4089
steve@winstoncommunications.com
www.winstoncommunications.com