Valley PR Blog

Len Gutman Says:
December 18th, 2008 at 12:52 pm

I’ve never understood the concept of the embargo and I think PR folks totally overuse them. There are occasions it is warranted, mostly related to publicly-traded companies, but for the most part I err on the side of not releasing something until it’s ready for publication. This is especially true for web media and the 24-hour news cycle.

Also, bloggers are not traditional media and are not held to journalistic standards — never mind that there is no such thing as an embargo (or the term “off the record”). These are just unwritten agreements with no true validity.

Guhmshoo Says:
December 18th, 2008 at 3:30 pm

Fatwa? Come on. Arrington’s actions will have little impact on how the PR industry ultimately does things. Also, his embargo policy gives preferential treatment to some companies (e.g., Microsoft) which just undermines his tough stance in the first place. I leave you with this cartoon: http://bit.ly/r98h

Richard Says:
December 18th, 2008 at 3:48 pm

“PR firms are out of control.”

If you look at the industry – particularly agencies – PR practice is out of control.

Until the late 1980s, the career path was 10 years in the media, mostly a major daily like S.F. Chronicle or Denver Post. Then into corporate.

As Barry Kluger noted on this site, “that is the problem with our industry’s perception, something of which we need to do some…uh…pr. I met a person the other day who went from hostessing to working with a local agency. I don’t blame this person but rather the person who hired her, for not explaining that pr is more than just getting your client in the paper or on location with a local station. one hit wonders don’t go far in creating a brand.”
http://www.valleyprblog.com/advice/going-into-prgive-it-serious-thoughtpuh-leeze

I still blame it on employers. There are 3 tiers of professionals. (1) Those who know what they are doing and have done it for years, going through traditional career path – experts.

(2) Those who take an interest in the field and strive to improve it.

(3) Former interns who got into it for the parties and thanks to employers, they now find themselves making $60,000+, a staff of 20 and no idea what they are doing. Most of these have McMurry on their resume.

Employers seem to disdain hiring from tier 1 or 2, but love hiring #3.

Dave Says:
December 18th, 2008 at 10:23 pm

No one’s mentioned that t-shirt graphic. Awesome, in the right circumstances.

(This comment is under embargo until 08:00 Friday AM)

Dan Wool Says:
December 19th, 2008 at 9:12 am

Agree with Richard.

Agree that bloggers are not reporters.

Disagree with Len’s assumption/assertion that embargoes are for public companies — this would be a violation of SEC (slective) disclosure rules.

Embargoes have a purpose. Exclusives are more effective.

Catherine Says:
December 19th, 2008 at 10:28 am

Um.. I’m sorry, but Richard, that comment was a little extreme. I am a former McMurry intern and know several other former McMurry interns and I can tell you that not one of them is leading a staff of 20 OR making 60K (at least from the last few years). I resent that comment – I have worked very, very hard to get where I am today. I spent my years at ASU doing 6 different internships during which I learned a great deal about the industry from some of the best PR people in the Valley. Perhaps there are a lot of people in my generation who get into this field thinking that it’s all about LA and parties and celebrities, but most of the young people that I know working in this field in the Phoenix area are doing great things and building pretty strong reputations.

I’m curious as to why you would choose to target McMurry in such a negative way. And Dan, I’m surprised that you agree with him.

Jessica Says:
December 19th, 2008 at 11:20 am

Richard, your comment re: McMurry intrigues me. I can’t help but wonder why a seasoned flack like yourself would make such an arrogant comment while simultaneously criticizing your peers for hiring “Tier 3″ employees.

Dan, rather shocked that you’re in agreement.

As a former McMurry intern, I am proud to have them on my resume for many reasons. First and foremost; it was at McMurry that I learned the fundamentals of PR and internal communications. In fact, out of all the places I interned, it was fellow McMurry interns who landed the best jobs out of school and work for some of the most respected PR pros in the Valley and beyond.

Richard, as a “Tier 3″ employee, I’ll have you know I work for a Fortune 500 company, hold multiple leadership positions in the Valley, am alumna of the Cronkite journalism school and worked VERY hard to get to where I am today. I don’t have a staff of 20 and often hesitate to ask our team admin to file my expense reports.

In my professional career, the only parties I’ve attended have been company holiday parties or professional mixers. I assure you those are not the reasons I got into PR.

May I suggest you apprise yourself of current PR trends and realize the field of PR and communications has changed, thus requiring a different kind of work and different type of practioner. This isn’t the PR you practiced 25-some years ago. I think I speak for all of my peers when I say: we wouldn’t choose this profession if we didn’t want to make it better and we wouldn’t still be employed if we weren’t good.

Jessica Hansen Says:
December 19th, 2008 at 5:13 pm

As the Senior Public Relations Account Executive at McMurry and the hiring manager for our PR internship program, I would like to respond to Richard’s comment which calls out McMurry.

I am VERY proud of the McMurry PR interns we have hired and feel very confident about our hiring process and the value of our internship program. In the past three years, we have had seven interns – some with prior internship experience and a strong understanding of PR and others just simply seeking experience in the PR industry, but ALL have had a very strong work ethic and were already excelling in college courses in related fields such as journalism, communication and English. None of our interns “got into it for the parties” – and I can assure you of that because of our diligent resume review process and the fact that I’ve never even interviewed a candidate who gave me the dreaded response of “I’m a people person” or “I like planning parties.”
The PR interns who have joined our team have had varied levels of experience, but they were all extremely dedicated to learning as much as possible about the PR profession. AND, through their hard work and motivation to succeed, they have EARNED positions at some very well-respected organizations right here in the Valley (Wespac Construction, LPI Multimedia Inc., PetSmart Corporate, R&R Partners, ON Semiconductor, Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center), all in PR, internal communications, marketing and editorial positions. Do they manage a staff of 20 and make $60,000+? Maybe not yet, but they will soon!

The remark from Richard that I have the biggest problem with is the one about McMurry PR interns not having any idea what they are doing – that statement is completely wrong! If you come across any young PR professionals who have “McMurry” on their resume, you’d be lucky to have them on your team and would regret the day you don’t hire them for an outstanding position with your company. They’re all consummate professionals, have earned everything they have accomplished thus far through their own hard work, solid college education, and their strong desire to learn about the PR field and push it to the next level. I have no doubt that the young professionals I have had the pleasure of working with as part of our internship program these past three years are our up-and-coming leaders here in the Valley – If you don’t know their names right now, you will very soon … for all the right reasons!

Angelo Says:
December 19th, 2008 at 7:34 pm

Richard, I think you’re too quick to judge here. Let’s not forget that this is about the misuse –or irrelevance– of the embargo. Have to say I have very high regard for McMurry. I too am on one of those lists, being a tech writer, but I haven’t been spammed by them, even it would have been pretty darn easy for them to do that.

Quotes for the week ending 20 December, 2008 « Says:
December 20th, 2008 at 7:40 am

[...] Hansen, a Phoenix PP professional, responding to a reader comment on my post in ValleyPRBlog about TechCrunch’s fatwa against PR people. Possibly related posts: (automatically [...]

Pat Elliott Says:
December 20th, 2008 at 12:21 pm

Richard, you need to revive your fact checking skills.

My friend and colleage, Jessica Hanson, is a skilled pro who runs a solid internship program and gives back to the entire professional community through IABC and many other activities.

McMurray has been successful through national niche marketing and services development that make the company less vulnerable to the ups and downs of the Arizona economy, and keeps more people employed. Instead of knocking them, we can learn from them.

In a profession that’s undergoing a lot of change and navigating many disruptive technologies, we are all newbies at many things and can learn a lot from each other, no matter what our age or “Tier” status.

Rebecca Armendariz Says:
December 21st, 2008 at 12:46 am

Richard,

Funny… All the former McMurry PR interns I know fit into “Tier 2” of your distorted professional classification system. But, what do I know? I didn’t take the traditional career path and haven’t been doing this for years; therefore, I must know nothing, right?

Wrong. I have worked very hard in my 23 years. Salutatorian of my high school class, I was offered a full scholarship to Arizona State University. I spent five years working at a local non-profit, advancing several times. I graduated Magna Cum Laude from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication and landed a fabulous job with the PR team at one of the top medical centers in the country upon graduation. Oh… I also interned at McMurry.

I am not going to waste my time defending McMurry or myself. I am proud of where I am, and I would not be here without the help and guidance of the people I worked with at McMurry. Jessica Hansen and Emily Barna (McMurry PR) are two PR pros who have taught me quite a lot. Both have what it takes to make it in the industry. On top of that, they have what it takes to teach the future leaders of the industry. I think that Jess put it best, “If you don’t know their names right now, you will very soon … for all the right reasons!”

You do know their names, Mr. Richard (fill in the blank). We have all expressed how very far from “right on” you are with the above comment re: McMurry.

Best,
Becky Armendariz
McMurry PR Intern, Spring 2008

MikeL Says:
January 7th, 2009 at 7:09 pm

This is an interesting article. As someone who’s been quite successful in Internet marketing, the PR side of marketing seems to evade me a bit. Certainly all marketing is about building a relationship, but my success comes with placing my message in a place where those who are highly likely to be interested in my content will automatically discover me. Trying to cram things into people’s inbox only generates resistance -the last thing I need to create a potentially lasting relationship.

With the issue of PR firms inundating media outlets, I agree that it is a form of spam and these people simply need to be enlightened. Like the businesses they represent, and being a business themselves, PR firms are comprised of people who are focused on themselves and their wants and their needs and their desires, instead of first focusing on the needs of those they want to attract …the REAL key to building relationships, business or personal. I’m under the belief that the best marketers aren’t people with degrees in marketing, but degrees in psychology, since marketing is just applied psychology.

PR firms and their respective people could certainly learn to create a demand for themselves where these outlets could find them as opposed to the PR firms trying to constantly cram their message down the throat of these media outlets.

Relationships are more than the superficial “hey, I have an interest in you/your stuff.” They have a LOT to do with respect. People won’t buy from you (literally and figuratively) unless they like you. If you don’t respect someone, they won’t like you and won’t buy from you no matter how great your offer. Arrington’s article SCREAMS this message loud and clear.

I believe many people in PR miss this point. I briefly worked in B2B advertising and my job was to find every business owner who I could convince that my medium would be best for them and how I could get their name in lights. I felt like I was in some MLM: “Talk to everyone you can find.” Naturally, I wasn’t very successful doing that.

While I have no personal experience with McMurry, I have seen some of their work and although much of it is great, it’s clear that some of their work is based on old-school branding techniques of “just get people to remember who you are by hitting them with lots of messages and they’re likely to buy from you. Stay in front of them.” In a world where each of us now receives over 4,000 messages a day, branding is highly over-rated …in an age where countless start-ups you’ve never heard of are literally earning $ Millions overnight using simple positioning techniques.

The caveat in my opinion here is that I don’t have any personal experience in marketing for large corporate business, although I can’t imagine it’s much different -your message is read by 1 individual person and 1 individual person is buying: demonstrate your company/product/service is the better choice among your competition and people will buy from you. It’s positioning over branding. Fundamentally, this isn’t that complicated.

On the other hand, someone who understands and can apply these concepts well certainly isn’t going to settle for a $60K salary babysitting 20 people looking for a paycheck.