On average, each news release garnered 63K views. 

More proof that every company has the potential, doesn’t happen automatically, to be a media company. 

When it comes to applying storytelling techniques to communications and driving popularity, what can we learn from the top 20 listed below?

1. AT&T to Acquire T-Mobile USA from Deutsche Telekom
2. Cyber Monday:  The Season’s Best Deals - No Fighting for Parking. No Waiting in Line.  Just Lean Back, Put Your Feet up and Shop.
3. Statement by Apple’s Board of Directors
4. Statement by Steve Jobs’ Family
5. Adobe Delivers Technical Communication Suite 3
6. Comic Sans Pro Typeface Family Makes its Debut
7. ExxonMobil Announces Three Discoveries in Deepwater Gulf of Mexico
8. HP Confirms Discussions with Autonomy Corporation plc Regarding Possible Business Combination; Makes Other Announcements
9. ExxonMobil Speedpass Customers Can Save 15 Cents Per Gallon
10. The Alliance for Consumer Education Names Senator Herb Kohl Honorary Chair
11. Clear Channel Radio Announces Acquisition of Thumbplay’s Cloud-Based Music Business
12. Letter from Steve Jobs
13. Fisher Investments MarketMinder Re-released
14. Steve Jobs Resigns as CEO of Apple
15. Exxon Mobil Corporation Declares Second Quarter Dividend
16. Heinz® Dip & Squeeze® Ketchup is Available Nationally! Heinz and Chick-fil-A® Invite You to Celebrate with Free FryDay
17. Exxon Mobil Corporation Declares Fourth Quarter Dividend
18. Exxon Mobil Corporation Declares First Quarter Dividend
19. FDA Approves YERVOY^TM (ipilimumab) for the Treatment of Patients with Newly Diagnosed or Previously-Treated Unresectable or Metastatic Melanoma, the Deadliest Form of Skin Cancer
20. Google to Acquire Motorola Mobility

Here’s my take. 

• It helps to be Apple 
• If you’re not Apple, it helps to be Exxon Mobil 
• If i-stuff and oil isn’t your core competency, then being a huge company makes a good Plan C 

Fifteen out of the 20 news releases fell under one of the above descriptions. 

Still, there are a couple storytelling points to glean from this exercise. 

First, tying to a major calendar/industry event can trigger extra attention. 

Look at how Amazon packaged its Cyber Monday headline: 

Cyber Monday:  The Season’s Best Deals - No Fighting for Parking. No Waiting in Line.  Just Lean Back, Put Your Feet up and Shop. 

Very savvy to NOT include Amazon’s name in the headline. 

Second, the word “free” always grabs attention which explains the Heinz Dip & Squeeze Ketchup making the list. 

As an aside, I can’t say I’m fond of the hyperbole in the Heinz release: 

Today, the way Americans eat on-the-go will change forever.

On other hand, I liked the payoff line: 

After 42 years of messing with ketchup packets, people can now eat America’s Favorite Ketchup with ease.

One final comment - 

The same principles of effective media outreach apply to crafting the news release; i.e., push and stretch your story into the industry quadrant.

Note: If you enjoyed this post, the human bot claims you might want to read ”Translating a Technical Invention into a Story that Resonates with the Mainstream Media” and “Too Many Superlatives in Intel’s News Release.”  

It seems like whenever I watch TV or pick up a magazine, I come across a Google ad.

At first, the ads focused on Google+, which makes sense. With so much at stake in social networking and Facebook’s head start, Google wants to accelerate its position.

But it turns out Google’s advertising dollars have been earmarked for other areas.

What I find particularly interesting is Google’s decision to address the issue of privacy through advertising. No doubt, Google’s PR machine has privacy high on its radar. Yet, the company also wants to control how this story is told; hence, the use of advertising.

Here’s one of the print ads (in The Economist) that addresses privacy:

Pretty darn persuasive.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the crisp storytelling and clean language.

OK, saying they use  “tiny crumbs of stored information called cookies” might be stretching the metaphor, but that’s a quibble.

The simplicity of the story carries through when you click on google.com/goodtoknow.

And you can watch the theme repeated in a video that touts, yes, a simpler privacy policy.

How would this campaign play out with earned media?

I’d say not so well.

The simplicity that serves as such an asset in the ad, website and video becomes a liability with journalists. There’s no room to add value in the form of an explanation or context. It’s all already there.

Of course, the issue of privacy brings with it multi-dimensional complexity.

But I think this specific story is probably best communicated in advertising and owned media. 

Note: If you enjoyed this post, the human bot claims you might have a similar experience reading “Storytelling Techniques Behind Google Announcement on Larry Page Named CEO” and “Advertising Gets Narrative.”

Disclosure: We support Google in Asia Pacific. I don’t have any special access or information related to Google’s advertising or how the company communicates on the issue of privacy.

It will be fascinating to see how Tim Cook responds to this first crisis since taking the CEO reins at Apple.

I don’t think today’s expose in the New York Times, “In China, Human Costs Are Built Into an iPad,” will go gently in the night.

Unlike the spike of hoopla around Foxconn (supporting role in this story) the U.S. media will keep the scent of a trail that leads to the iconic Apple.

The bigger question involves the American public. Will they care enough to make noise?

I don’t think bad press will spook Cook.

But if we start seeing demonstrators adding a new design element to the exteriors of Apple stores, I suspect that would get Mr. Cook’s attention.

Reading the 5000-word piece, I was reminded of what Jill Abramson, executive editor of the New York Times, said on Charlie Rose last year when asked to define “fit to print.”

Fit to print is, is it legitimately newsworthy and also is it interesting. Sometimes I’ll pick a front-page story just because I think people will find it interesting …

I’m guessing Abramson didn’t agonize whether the Apple story rated real estate on the front page. Classic storytelling underpins the piece.

A couple final points on the business of storytelling—

For those of us who want the New York Times to become a profitable enterprise, it’s reassuring to know the marketing people and editorial talk to each other. To run the story right after Apple announced earnings – they assumed the company would continue to print money; the record profits of $13.1 billion were a delicious bonus – ensured Michael-Moore-grade contrast.

It’s also worth noting that the New York Times collaborated with the China paper Caixin so the story was published in Chinese as well. Furthermore, a cross section of the posted comments from Chinese readers were translated into English and run in The New York Times.

Pretty darn interesting.

Note: 9to5Mac reported that Tim Cook sent out a company-wide email to counter the story. It makes sense that he would immediately swing into action on the internal communications front.

To put science behind the quest, Holmes engaged Sociagility which measured each global agency’s social media footprint. 

Sociagility uses what it calls the PRINT social media performance measurement methodology. 

The PRINT Index measures five attributes of social media performance - popularity, receptiveness, interaction, network reach and trust - across various social channels. 

Here’s how the data played out.  

“We’re No. 9″ has a nice ring to it, particularly taking into account we’re above mega-shops like Weber Shandwick and Burson. Big - Weber Shandwick’s revenue comes in at $525M and Burson registers at $435M - doesn’t necessarily mean better. 

It also turns out we ranked highest in the popularity score. I hope to find out more about how we took the popularity gold when I talk with Sociagility on January 30 (not that I’m complaining). 

As pleased as I am with the data, I would be remiss if I didn’t repeat our internal mantra - 

Social media is not the prize. 

It’s one of many tools to help clients fortify their online presence.

The holiday celebrating the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. prompted me to dust off the “I Have Dream” speech. 

It’s a revealing exercise to read the text of the speech rather than watch and listen to the speech. 

King was such a gifted orator, you get the feeling he could recite the owner’s manual for a Prius and the audience would be out of their seats with emotion. 

Yet, when you strip the speech down to just the words, the storytelling still offers unmatched verve. 

While the section framed by repeating the words “I Have a Dream” forms the guts of the speech, my favorite passage is the following metaphor: 

In a sense we have come to our nation’s capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. 

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked “insufficient funds.” But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check - a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.

Powerful stuff. 

Words do make a difference.

When it comes to reviewing egg roll cookies, Janice Leung at the South China Morning Post plays rough.

Here’s a breakdown of her narrative on the Wing Wah product:

Don’t get too excited about the retro red and violet tin.

Always good to set expectations from the outset.

Known for its classic Chinese pastries such as mooncakes and the flaky wife’s cake, Wing Wah egg rolls are a disappointment.

I don’t know. Your son or daughter getting a C in math a disappointment. A cookie, not so much.

With a colour reminiscent of cardboard, the layers are hard and rolled much too tightly.

Nothing worse than an uptight cookie.

Each bite requires effort, which is not repaid by the taste.

Like the way Ms. Leung brings a sensory dimension to the review.

The sweetness is overwhelming and there is no aroma to speak of.

Lo be it for me to defend Wing Wah, but I’m not looking for smell in my cookies.

It’s also the most expensive of the five. Avoid.

And that’s an order.

Weddings take place in Vegas every day.

Yet, I think I can safely say the Sony wedding at CES between the TV and Internet was a first.

I promised last week to investigate the wedding and report back to you. Conversations with sources led me to Ray Hartjen, senior PR manager at Sony Electronics who teamed with Rob Manfredo to create the wedding.

Ray was gracious enough to share what took place behind the curtain.

Lou: Tell us how the idea behind the wedding came about? Were you trying to come up with an idea that supported Sony’s strength in television and the Internet? Or was it more about bringing fun to the Sony brand?

Ray: Traditionally at CES, we might have the “press dinner,” which is where we take out a group of key media and eat over-priced steaks washed down with over-priced wine, with the objective to further foster relationships. The trouble is, all companies do that.

Lou: Didn’t want to do the same boring stuff.

Ray: Exactly. We wanted to cut through the CES noise. We thought with a bit more budget, we could accomplish the same objectives, but with a bigger group of media, having much more fun, and actually drive a bit of short-term coverage in the process. Plus, we had a story to tell. Sony was the first to bring connected TVs to market. We were the first to bring Google TV to market. After a long courtship with starts and stops, the union between home entertainment and the Internet was ready to settle down. And we wanted to have fun. It’s important to do that every once in a while, right?

Lou: I’m not going to disagree with that last point and become known as the “funless communicator.”

Ray: Good move.

Lou: Obviously, there’s always risk with such a big idea. Was it a challenge to sell your management on the wedding? 

Ray: We heard a bit of skepticism at the beginning. But, at the end of the day, it was about doing something different in an effort to get a different result. We could have done the same ol’ same ol’, but that would have done nothing but got us what it got us last year, and the year before that, and the year … Let’s take a bit of a risk, have a little fun, and do something different. Worst case scenario is we learn what NOT to do next year. 

Lou: I love the narrative that you put together for the wedding. Do you think business communicators need to find more ways to explore storytelling in building their respective company brands?

Ray: Storytelling in always important. There is so much “noise” out there, it’s easy to skip onto the next piece of content. We wanted to stretch ourselves and challenge ourselves to capture the attention and imagination of both the media and their end-user audiences, whether it be readers or viewers. If we can tell better stories, we can capture more attention and actual engagement, thereby significantly raising the odds of conveying our messages in a way that make an impact, with awareness and recall.

Lou: Can you share a vignette from the wedding narrative that was just “too much” and ended up on the cutting-room floor (didn’t make the final version)?

Ray: We thought about having an actual ceremony, with the personifications of home entertainment and the Internet exchanging vows, perhaps under the watchful eyes of an Elvis impersonator. 

Lou: There is something about an Elvis impersonator that says “Vegas.”

Ray: True.

Lou: We both know what happens in Vegas doesn’t necessarily stay in Vegas. Once the bride and groom said “I do,” how did the story play out?

Ray: After a few remarks from executives representing TV, HAV and Sony Entertainment Network, the rest of the night was the reception – lots of fun and games, dancing and product/service demonstrations. We’re hoping not everything stays in Vegas. Being in PR, I’m more than happy to seed stories and drive traffic to our wedding photo album.

Lou: One final question - How did you measure the success of the wedding? I can see almost 7,000 people signed the wedding album. What other metrics did you use?

Ray: Good question. When we first sent out the wedding invitation, we immediately got four well-placed articles in Engadget, Slash Gear, TechnoBuffalo and CE Pro. Some old-school PR pros might say the art of PR is generating news when there isn’t any news. They would call that a success, just by sending out the invitation. Certainly, we’ll measure the social media traffic, not just to the site, but various online mentions and the traffic on Twitter at #sonywedding. Then, subjectively, we look at the relationships we were able to continue to foster with the media, not just with us PR representatives, but with our Sony executives and product team members who were in attendance as well. Those one-to-one conversations build relationships long-term that are beneficial for our business. 

Lou: Good stuff. Thanks for sharing the story behind the story.

Ray: No problem.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of doing what was done before.

I particularly liked the way Ray and Rob packaged the worse-case scenario for the wedding, “we learn what NOT to do next year.”

For those visual learners, the wedding album is on Flickr.

We’ve included a few of the photos below.

Big companies also typically take themselves way too seriously.

That’s why it was refreshing to see Sony take a chance and yes, have some fun, holding a wedding in Vegas yesterday between Bravia (Television) and SEN (Internet).

You can find the back stories in the form of a scrapbook.

Naturally, the father of the bride is Al Gore.

I assume the wedding went off without a hitch.

But I plan to dig into this story, find out what really happened in Vegas -it’s a myth that happens in Vegas stays in Vegas - and report back to you.

Stay tuned.

To borrow from the legal profession, I love the “discovery” that comes from this type of work. 

In talking to the executives about branding, Southwest Airlines kept surfacing. 

It’s impressive how Southwest has carved out a distinctive position in the mind of the buyer. 

Observing the brand from afar, it’s easy to come away thinking this was a “no brainer.” Airlines tend to be a homogenous lot. Southwest figured out that having a little fun would deliver differentiation. 

Voila … a great brand. 

But such thinking shortchanges Southwest. 

The safety issue associated with flying makes this a serious business. It took chutzpah on Southwest’s part to make “fun” part of the brand experience. 

It’s also revealing how Southwest’s people create a difference in market perception. Consider this for a minute: Your motivation to fly comes from needing to move from Point A to Point B.   

It’s the plane that does the moving. 

Yet, Southwest has built a brand that reflects its humanity and again showcases its people as a difference-maker. 

You can see one form of brand execution on the Southwest website. 

I suppose it’s an indictment of the airlines industry that “treating you like a person” can be a unique value proposition. 

Look at the visuals. 

Even the pilot is chummy. 

And they’re not overwhelming the viewer with heavy text. 

This page - visuals + words - can be easily consumed in a seconds. Even just a glimpse gives a certain vibe. 

Contrast the Southwest approach with United: 

As much as I believe in the power of the narrative, no one believes this. 

Does United really think any customer or potential customer cares about “leadership in the airline industry?” Plus, we’re not exactly talking a high bar. 

The United story needs to show the company in action, not pontificate about “policies in a clear, consistent, and understandable fashion.” 

Of course, the company’s behavior and actions need to align with the brand promise. 

Otherwise, the storytelling ends up being a house of cards. 

Most experiments involved exploring media-like qualities like books reviews, interviews and reverse-engineering storytelling in the media.

I think it’s fair to say these types of posts added a touch of panache to this corner.

I also learned that crafting a proper Q&A from a wide-ranging interview takes serious time. 

In the future, I plan to stick with the three-question interview. There’s no getting around that these posts require less time.

Sure, the right questions directed to the right person can make for a fresh take (or two). Personally, I thought one of the more interesting reads last year was the Q&A with the king of slang, Jonathon Green, which came out of this format.

I did think about resurrecting the Iron Reporter (patterned after the Iron Chef) which compares two journalists writing a story on the same topic. Again, it’s a matter of making the time for a type of post that can’t be cranked out in an hour.

As for what didn’t work, the Google analytics say there appears to be a correlation between topics that particularly amuse me and less viewership. This is a tough one. It’s not like I know when the amusement meter hits 90. I suppose greater self-awareness would improve my editorial filter.

I’ll try.

One tweak I will be making this year —

I often come across tidbits that aren’t quite enough fodder for a full-blown post. Instead, I’ll collect these and when I have critical mass write what I’m calling a “Grab-bag” post.

And I recognize the “look and feel” of the blog desperately needs help, another action on the 2012 to-do list.

As always, your comments and insights add to the color.

I have this feeling that 2012 will play out as the Year of the Word.

TIME will tell.