Elon Musk kicked up a Twitter storm last week, essentially saying (among other things) that the media unfairly picks on Tesla because Tesla doesn’t advertise. He went on to infer that the makers of gas guzzlers and fossil fuel companies get more favorable media attention because they pump millions of advertising dollars into the media’s …more
Observing Facebook navigate the onslaught of negative media coverage fueled by the Cambridge Analytics fiasco and Russian operatives using Facebook advertising to advance their cause, I wanted to revisit reputation management and being ready when things don’t go according to plan. Virtually every organization experiences a point in time that feels like a demolition derby. …more
Most of those in the over-50 crowd remember a movie called “Wall Street.” The main character is played by Michael Douglas, and he exclaims what became a famous line back then in describing the attitude of those in finance, “Greed is good.” If Hollywood were to create a movie called “PR Street” with Michael Douglas, …more
I can’t say I’m a fan of procurement. I recognize that every company wants value in its purchases. Yet, procurement’s behavior often reflects a singular mission: secure the cheapest price point possible. I also find that procurement often takes the same approach to selecting PR services as pitting Walmart against Costco in buying soda pop. …more
The four-word stacked headline appeared in the print version of The Wall Street Journal last Wednesday: WPP’s Sorrell Faces Probe The online headline went for the jugular, “WPP Is Looking at CEO Martin Sorrell’s Possible Misuse of Assets and Allegations of Improper Behavior.” Before digging in, let’s get the disclosure out of the way. I …more
Our younger son gets married on Saturday. At a time when everyone looks ahead, I decided to also look backward to the marriage of Marv and Ruth Hoffman. The photo above shows my parents on their wedding day flanked by their moms. Their story is a common one for their generation — their parents arriving …more
The key to branding isn’t just knowing who you are and what you stand for. It also calls for communicating those very qualities to the outside world. Take the Singaporean store in the picture. Is there any question about its value proposition? Closer to home, everyone seems to think there’s a deep lesson in Donald …more
The two agencies pen literally thousands of news releases for their clients each year, many addressing M&A. How tough can it be to apply this expertise to their own announcement? Of course, what the news release states doesn’t necessarily align with reality. As a public service, I’ve addressed the news release distributed over Business Wire …more
One of the top VC firms in Silicon Valley, Sequoia Capital, has a message for its portfolio of startups and the rest of the startup community in Silicon Valley: Stop your bellyaching. Get your butt off the couch and back to working 24/7. If you don’t, startups from China are going to take your lunch …more
