I respect people who can keep the scent of the trail. Fellow storytelling evangelist Brad Marley approached me back in April 2019 to answer a handful of questions on my second-favorite topic. The plot took some twists and turns (naturally), but I answered Brad’s questions a couple of months ago. For those who don’t subscribe …more
John Steinbeck’s letter to Marilyn Monroe in 1955 has been making the rounds on social media. And you thought Steinbeck’s writing prowess was on full display in “The Grapes of Wrath” or perhaps “Of Mice and Men.” It turns out that Mr. Steinbeck saved his best for a letter that tin cups for Ms. Monroe’s …more
The battle between New England and Los Angeles in the 2019 Super Bowl didn’t exactly turn out to be a humdinger (old-school adjective fits the style of play). I found the ads to be a letdown as well. Maybe it was an unrealistic expectation, but I was hoping to watch 60 seconds of storytelling that …more
Nothing says storytelling like the “F” word. Point to a movie or book or TV show that captivates, and I’ll show you failure. I’m currently watching “Better Call Saul.” The man goes from untangling drug lords from their legal difficulties to shaping dough at Cinnabon, the classic story arc with the requisite failure. . …more
I consider myself more of a writer than a talker (though my mom might disagree). Still, I appreciate organizations periodically hoisting me up to a speaking pulpit to scrutinize and evangelize the wonders of storytelling in business. Such will be the case on April 18 when I’ll take on the topic of “Life, Liberty and …more
Communication professionals can learn a ton about storytelling from our advertising brothers. When you’re shelling out $4 million and change to create a single ad, it has a way of tuning one’s senses, a dynamic that typically doesn’t exist when PR crafts a pitch or writes a news release. With this in mind, I wanted …more
The Agency will celebrate its 30-year anniversary on Sept. 15 with a party. There’s nothing like a milestone to prompt reflections. Yes, 30 years is a long time. At the 10,000-foot level, I view the Agency’s lifecycle from a U.S. perspective in three phases: . . Naturally, our lifecycle takes the form of the classic …more
Most PR consultancies implement some type of PR program for themselves. Few PR consultancies embrace advertising as part of their outbound arsenal to raise awareness and build their brands. In our quest to punch above our weight when it comes to the world order of PR companies, we believe advertising has place in the mix. …more
Judging from the comment in my post, “Can Storytelling Differentiate a PR Agency,” and an email that arrived shortly after (more on this in a minute), I appear to have gotten the attention of the National Storytelling Network. They’re not pleased with me. In my defense, I have come clean on numerous occasions making the …more
