I conducted a storytelling workshop at UC Berkeley last month that had a fresh wrinkle. A chunk of time was devoted to applying the concepts of storytelling to one’s personal branding, specifically the resume and LinkedIn profile. Several questions zeroed in on the “Skills & Endorsements” real estate in LinkedIn. While I’m an advocate for …more
Our campaigns increasingly pay homage to search and online presence. Regardless of the organization, the target audience at some point conducts due diligence online. Which means bringing digital skills to the table in building a client’s online profile. I recently shared a case study from our China team in which WeChat anchored a campaign. And …more
I’ve always thought the Thomas Friedman line should read, “The world is flat … except in China.” Many U.S. Internet and media companies have entered the China market with dreamy aspirations only to find Kafka-esque obstacles at every turn. Watching the latest social media company take the leap, LinkedIn, should make for good TV in …more
Every publication has embraced social media. For proof, look no further than the “cutting-edge” journalism of Tactical Knives which connects with readers through Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Pinterest (knives on Pinterest is a story for another time). But here’s the question I posed to our crack research team: Do publications operate their social channels in …more
As best as I can piece the data together, the three largest news release distribution services (PR Newswire, BusinessWire and Marketwire) sent out roughly 642,000 news releases in 2013. If you’re keeping score, that’s about 1,759 news releases per day. Too much of a good thing becomes a bad thing. You can quote me on …more
Who cares if Warren Buffett is still getting the hang of this Twitter thing? The man knows how to apply storytelling techniques to business communications (heard he’s a pretty good investor too). There’s no better example of Buffett’s storytelling acuity than his annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders that came out over the weekend. The …more
Regardless of your politics, no president has brought out the humanity of the Oval Office like President Obama. How much comes from President Obama himself as opposed to his advisers? The question misses the point. He gets it or he wouldn’t sign off. As exhibit A, take a look at the statement from President Obama …more
The intelligence community devotes massive amounts of time in trying to decode information from the bad guys as well as advancing their own encryption technology. The communications business – and specifically the client/agency relationship – has its own code. With the help of the worst mathematician in the world – that would be me – …more
No blogger, including me, wants to toil in obscurity. Those of us who work under the marketing umbrella adhere to this twist on the “Field of Dreams” adage, “If you build it, people won’t necessarily come.” It’s now time for an update with a fresh wrinkle: Specifically, many RELEVANT people still won’t come. When it …more
