Bad Publicity

Welcome to Bad Publicity!

When the Irish author & dramatist Brendan Behan (1923 - 1964) uttered the above quote, he clearly was unaware of the advent of the Internet and the fact that it was to become the world's most powerful publicity conduit ...

Small Business Publicity Pitfalls and how best to avoid them ...

There's nothing wrong with creating your own publicity plan and taking the action steps to carry it out. But you need to make sure you're not stumbling along the way. Here are five mistakes to avoid when you implement your plan.

These five points were kindly shared by Drew Gerber, creator of PitchRate.com. He says, "We're in the business of telling people what to do - giving them publicity tips and techniques to utilize, which will guide them on their journey toward publicity success. But even more important than advising clients on what to do is teaching them what not to do."

I think that's very generous of him. Most people will make mistakes in a do it yourself campaign. Here are his five mistakes to avoid.

1. Pitching Off Topic: This is common sense, or so it would seem, but you'd be surprised how frequently it occurs. You have to know - inside and out - what you are pitching and who you are pitching it to. Don't pitch your "law of attraction" approach to business performance to a button-down, conservative business journalist.

2. Attachments: Don't send them! Create an online press kit instead. By embedding the link to it in your emailed pitch, you'll be making it easier for the journalist to stay organized, giving them more time to focus on you and your pitch.

3. Waiting: If, after reviewing your online press kit, the journalist contacts you, do not wait a week or even a day to respond. Get on it! They're on a deadline and so are you. Your publicity success depends on a fast response.

4. Your Cell Phone: When it's time for your interview, make sure you call in on a landline. A dropped call or a bad connection can lead to confusion, wasted time, or worse, for you and the person interviewing you. Good crisp connections are key in achieving the publicity results you desire.

5. Self-Promotion: Take a promotional break. When you're being interviewed, remember that the interview is your promotion, so let it do its stuff. There's no need to say, "In my book…" 15 times. Take a backseat to the interview's power of promotion and enjoy the publicity results.

9th February 2010 by Author: Denise O'Berry

Published in Small Business UK

BP buys up oil spill search terms

BP, facing a tidal wave of bad publicity over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, is buying search terms on internet search engines to point users to the company's official public relations crisis page.

Scott Slatin, who runs the New York-based search engine marketing company Rivington, told ABC he estimated BP was paying more than US$10,000 a day to maintain the various search terms.

"They paid to lock themselves into the first position against the oil spill terms, essentially putting a positive message on top of the news," Slatin said.

9th June 2010 by AFP

Check out BP bad publicity quote in the New Zealand Herald