Know Thy Message

Last night I attended a networking function for entrepreneurs in NYC and had the pleasure of meeting a number of professionals who were selling a variety of interesting products or services. These people ranged from a gentleman who was using online video in what I thought was a novel way to a “relationship manager” who served women who were having difficulty staying in romantic relationships. And while all the people I met were clearly very passionate about what they do, a number of them suffered from the same problem: they didn’t have a clear message.

Though “messaging” is an often overused term in our industry, the value of doing it well can not be overstated. So, what exactly do I mean by “messaging?” In this context, messaging is the core language that we use to describe either what our company does or its primary value to the customer. Larger companies usually have their messaging nailed down but entrepreneurs will often begin selling their products or services before they do so.

One example of the latter was a woman who is selling what she told me was healthy coffee. (I gather it is infused with nutrients that traditional coffee doesn’t have while also containing significantly less caffeine.) However, she then handed me two business cards for her company, each one sporting a completely different message! The first one had a tagline that read “It’s Easy. It’s Simple. It’s Coffee” while the second read “Change Your Coffee, Change Your Life.” Needless to say, I thought the second message was far more powerful than the first. However, that’s a matter of opinion. What can not be debated, however, is that she needs to spend more time thinking about who her customer is, what message would resonate most strongly with this group, and then stick to that message. Once she does, then in my estimation, she will be ready to aggressively promote her business. As things stand now, she risks confusing everyone. Which is why, before beginning any marketing campaign, it’s critical to, as we like to say in the PR world, “know thy message!”

The Power of a Plan - Building a Plan around an Issue (Thought Leadership)

I have a saying, "build a plan, execute a plan and you have a result."

One day someone asked me “what do PR people not do enough of? “

My answer: think. We don't think enough.

People in general are so busy doing and responding to demands/requests that we don't sit back and think about the following:

- What are we trying to accomplish here?

- What is the big news and how can my client play a role in it?

- What are the assets I have to work with?

- What is my plan of attack?

It is so important to sit back and ponder about the key issues of today and determine how can we pro-actively insert our client's voice into those issues.

BOCA recently sat down with Devicescape to ponder - "What is going on in the world that is relevant to Devicescape." Once we mapped it out, we built a plan.

There is a major issue taking place with global carriers right now—Data Capping. AT&T, Sprint, O2 and others are capping their “all you can eat” data plans. Why? Carriers didn’t realize how much rich media people would actually use (nor be created by app developers). In turn, no one knew truly how expensive all this would be.

How does Devicescape fit in?

Devicescape is working with carriers around the world (Deutsche Telekom, The Cloud, Softbank) and device manufacturers (Nintendo, Nokia, RIM) to help solve the data problem. Devicescape is part of the Wireless Broadband Alliance, an organization where global carriers and leading WiFi companies are coming together to discuss bandwidth constraints, 3G offloading and the role of WiFi.

Carriers need to offload the traffic to WiFi. Device manufacturers need to build in WiFi capabilities to all the new devices (smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, digital cameras) enabling them to run on this cheaper, faster network.
Devicescape’s CEO Dave Fraser has something to say and proof to back his opinions. He can add value and insight to stories.

BOCA mapped out a plan and is now delivering against that plan which equals results.

IDG
AT&T, Verizon Join Wi-Fi Roaming Group
Stephen Lawson
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/199413/atandt_verizon_join_wifi_roaming_group.html

Wireless Week
Devicescape Benefits from 3G Congestion
By Maisie Ramsay
http://www.wirelessweek.com/News/2010/06/Technology-Devicescape-Benefits-3G-Congestion-Wireless-Networks/

CNET
AT&T & Verizon Wireless join Wi-Fi interoperability group
Marguerite Reardon
http://news.cnet.com/8301-30686_3-20008476-266.html?tag=rtcol;relnews

Paul Boutin of VentureBeat & NYT - An Informal Interview

Last Friday we were fortunate to have Reporter Paul Boutin join us at the BOCA office. Thank you Paul!!!

Many people know Paul in the tech sector because he is an esteemed reporter with VentureBeat and the NYT. He also has written for Wired, the Wall Street Journal and Valleywag. Additionally, after studying at MIT, he worked there for several years on Project Athena.

What we learned about what Paul is up to these days...

Paul writes at least once a month for the New York Times, and his ultimate goal is to “give the reader what they want” while answering some of the most important technological questions, such as, how does one deal with technology in their own personal lives?

We spoke about the power of Twitter, and how it connects celebrities with their fans, but most importantly, how content on the internet is invaluable, and “the power of the click” is not only dominated by the number of clicks, but the time any person spends looking on a page, and the content that is presented. Lesson we continue to learn - content is King!

As technology continues to progress, we can only hope to see some amazing things on the horizon, and we thank Paul Boutin for taking the time to come out and chat with us!

BOCA - Facebook Fan Page

We were blogging regularly and the universal BOCA (we) promise to get back in the rhythm. That said, we continue to update our Facebook Fan page with everything from our great successes with Shipwire - the Export Vision 2010 - thought leadership initiative to the soft launch of Marketfish...case studies coming soon.

When we don't have an update - please just visit Facebook and you can learn about all the great activity taking place at BOCA.

Media Relations 101

While I might be the “founder” of BOCA Communications, I am also an account coordinator, expert researcher, media pitcher, writer and of course a strategist. This week I am a focused researcher and media relations expert.

The few things about media relations that people can never forget is that 1) it takes time due to thoughtful research and 2) smart targeting – you don’t want your PR person pitching the wrong reporter or the wrong angle to an outlet. Regardless of sophisticated, web based media tools like Cision (previously Media Map / Bacons), media relations comes down to knowing your outlet, knowing the reporters and picking up the phone.

So – what is my net/net here – research your targets, target correctly and pick up the phone with thoughtful, meaningful content.

GenArts Showcased at the Nab Show in Las Vegas

We were very excited when our client GenArts, Inc. announced yesterday that it will exhibit at the 2010 NAB Show, held in the big city lights of Las Vegas. GenArts will showcase a number of its cutting edge product demonstrations, including GenArts Sapphire™ 5 for Adobe After Effects and GenArts Monsters GT™ for After Effects. GenArts will also be available at NAB to discuss GenArts Sapphire™ for Autodesk Smoke on Mac, a highly anticipated release among the visual effects community.

This year, booth No. SL2607 will be the home to GenArts’ captivating demonstrations and long-awaited product sneak peeks. Monsters GT for After Effects and Sapphire 5 for After Effects will have their exciting debut at this year’s show, and sneak peeks of the two products will showcase new unique effects, and productivity and creativity enhancements that are all hallmarks of the GenArts brand.

NAB 2010 has also been chosen to be the venue to reveal details about the much-anticipated Sapphire for Autodesk Smoke on the Mac. See real-life examples of how GenArts products have impacted the feature-film industry. See demonstrations of the company’s use of GenArts products on Terminator Salvation, Transformers, and Best Visual Effects Oscar nominee Star Trek. GenArts is a sponsor at a number of events as well, including Filmapalooza, where free trial licenses of Sapphire will be available. Hope to see you at the 2010 NAB Show at the Las Vegas Convention Center April 12-15.

Trust Building Using Crisis Communication

It is quite obvious that company is in trouble when you look at its website and see all the digital distress signals. Check out these sites of recently troubled or confused enterprises, including Maclaren, Toyota, Playtex, and Tylenol for examples of these distress signals.

When you look at its Web site, Toyota, which recalled millions of cars for their faulty accelerator pedals in January, seems to be going into a apology spring sale frenzy. The plan appears to be to express less chagrin than gratitude and largess. “Toyota wants to thank you with our biggest offers ever,” reads the home page. To the left of that declaration is an equally thrilling-seeming banner, this one red states why they are thanking you: “Recall Information: Get the Latest Updates Here.” Check out last months Toyota Trust Communications BOCA blog for more of their crisis communication. I think they should have followed Tylenols "gold standard" and been alittle less sorry and a little more transparent.

Johnson & Johnson is well known for its profound corporate recovery, in the way it finessed a comeback after the 1982 Chicago Tylenol murders. The Tylenol Web site projects absolute self-assurance on in spite of January recalls of Tylenol and other of its medicines (Rolaids, Motrin, Benadryl) after complaints of a moldy smell. A big red button on the home page points a finger at “Important Recall News” and links to a matter-of-fact press release and to a handy way to tell if you’re holding a recalled Tylenol product. Though it lacks the distracting ebullience of the Toyota site, Tylenol plays its setbacks similarly, positioning recalls as though they were all in a day’s work for a scrupulous company that manufactures a lot of important products.

Seven people died in 1982 after taking Tylenol capsules, which had been tampered with and contaminated with cyanide. According to Effective Crisis Management, Tylenol’s market share quickly went from 37 percent to only seven percent. Johnson & Johnson faced a huge challenge. Not only did the company have to manage the crisis communication of just Tylenol, but also of the entire company’s reputation. J&J recalled approximately 31 million bottles of Tylenol from across the country and stopped all advertising.

Some say J&J set a standard for crisis communication when they “assumed responsibility by ensuring public safety first and recalled all of their capsules from the market,” despite the fact that the bottles were tampered with after reaching the shelves. Tylenol was reintroduced into the market with triple-seal tamper-resistant packaging, offered coupons for the products, created a new discounted pricing program, new advertising campaign and gave more than 2,250 presentations to the medical community. According to Managing Crises Before They Happen (Mitroff, 2001), J&J actually increased their credibility during the crisis because of the candidness of the executives. Notre Dame expert Professor Patrick Murphy said J&J set a “gold standard” in regards to business ethics as well because J&J was proactive and transparent.