tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post1277076997526683175..comments2024-03-28T22:15:17.067-05:00Comments on Every goddamn day: 03/29/24: Great Moments in Public Relations #1Neil Steinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11468057838260476480noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-49701902383112397382017-10-24T22:10:43.519-05:002017-10-24T22:10:43.519-05:00Now I have to go back and look at it. I remember o...Now I have to go back and look at it. I remember only the faintest glimmer of the dinner, and then some kind of fall-out, disapproval. I'll post it here Thursday and people can discuss. Seven years.Neil Steinberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11468057838260476480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-730051316818695332017-10-24T16:43:25.484-05:002017-10-24T16:43:25.484-05:00Yes. "Hugo's Companions." 2010. &quo...Yes. "Hugo's Companions." 2010. "Bet you haven't a clue, but it's elementary to them." <br /><br />I located a yellowed copy in my file, and in rereading found it rather good. Captured the spirit of the occasion and the essence of the Sherlockian thing. Can't imagine why it caused a fuss, although it survives in the institutional memory of the group as something of a takedown.<br /><br />TomTomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09641357239788323783noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-14040241667591721642017-10-24T16:17:35.361-05:002017-10-24T16:17:35.361-05:00You're cracking me up, Sandy! That's a gre...You're cracking me up, Sandy! That's a great idea.Tony Galatihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11944671504245191140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-30946149855127406552017-10-24T15:37:54.102-05:002017-10-24T15:37:54.102-05:00Tom: What group was that? Not the Sherlock Holmesi...Tom: What group was that? Not the Sherlock Holmesians? Neil Steinberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11468057838260476480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-19801611541299888842017-10-24T12:25:31.975-05:002017-10-24T12:25:31.975-05:00Or better yet, send back a form letter:
"Dea...Or better yet, send back a form letter:<br /><br />"Dear (blank space underlined),<br /><br />Thanks for taking the time to tell me about your (blank space underlined).<br /><br />I'll get back to you some time in the near future.<br /><br />Sincerely yours, <br />(Your name as spelled in the email, or a blank space underlined)<br />SandyKnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-27043298258873563312017-10-24T12:07:13.633-05:002017-10-24T12:07:13.633-05:00Hard to believe PR firms could be so off-putting w...Hard to believe PR firms could be so off-putting with their carelessness and insulting form-letter correspondence. Have you ever responded to any of these with a clever (and hopefully helpful) bit of advice?SandyKnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-53555665044316592112017-10-24T11:53:51.446-05:002017-10-24T11:53:51.446-05:00I often thought of starting a business called &quo...I often thought of starting a business called "Your Name Here". <br /><br />I figure I would never have to buy office supplies, what with an endless supply of samples.<br /><br />All I need now is a product, a business plan, office space, a staff, a water cooler, a lobbyist, and start up capital. <br /><br />But I've got pens, calendars, and note pads. <br /><br />I'm almost there.Dennis Fisherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03936110563379328219noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-72171428985570676092017-10-24T11:30:43.101-05:002017-10-24T11:30:43.101-05:00I missed that column. Hope to catch it second tim...I missed that column. Hope to catch it second time around.<br /><br />Johntatehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10088632798195131329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-7987190319284087442017-10-24T10:57:29.624-05:002017-10-24T10:57:29.624-05:00A hazard for the PR man is that his boss is apt to...A hazard for the PR man is that his boss is apt to confused free publicity with advertising and can be disappointed if sales points aren't covered just as he would like. I belonged to a club with failing membership, due, some thought to a deficit of favorable publicity (or any publicity). So I invited Neil to attend a meeting and must have spelled his name right because he showed up. The resulting column was an accurate account of the proceedings, including, unfortunately, some of the more ridiculous aspects. Warts and all, but not unfair. Or unkind. However, some members thought they had been ill done to, and, while nothing was said, I did earn a share of the blame in some minds.<br /><br />As a practical matter, the column did attract some attention, and possibly a new member. <br /><br />TomTomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09641357239788323783noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-35667181701264826912017-10-24T10:57:02.741-05:002017-10-24T10:57:02.741-05:00Actual email I received last week...
Hey{
!First...Actual email I received last week...<br /><br />Hey{<br /> !First Name},<br /> <br />Sorry for being so persistent, I would just like you a chance to bring more value to the table and give your clients a new opportunity for a new revenue channel.<br /> Genehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05805289693205180574noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3972382144120426476.post-31135928449194968222017-10-24T09:43:18.887-05:002017-10-24T09:43:18.887-05:00When I was in jobs where I got lots of PR calls, I...When I was in jobs where I got lots of PR calls, I didn't mind when people didn't know everything (or even much of anything) about the magazine I wrote for. They were trade journals after all, and those tend to be pretty obscure.<br /><br />But I did mind when they didn't seem to know anything about the people or product they were supposed to be representing. I remember getting a call from some sweet-sounding young woman:<br /><br />"We'd like to tell you about the first juice packaged in 100% plastic!"<br /><br />Me (after a pause): "Miss, I don't want to sharpshoot you, but fruit juice has been packaged in plastic bottles for years."<br /><br />Her: "Oh. Well, that's what it says on the press release."<br /><br />We went back and forth for a while, and I finally realized what she meant: It was the first 100% juice product packaged in a <i>one-piece</i> plastic bottle. (If anyone cares, the equipment that does this is called a blow-fill-seal machine.)Bitter Scribehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04645909858616987997noreply@blogger.com