May 07
31
Mesh 2007: Richard Edelman
Stuart MacDonald speaks with Global CEO of Edelman Public Relations Richard Edelman on the topic of The Future of Public Relations.
Once again, sorry for the rushed notes, but wanted to blog the content as much as possible without filtering. I may try to put some perspective on it later or might just leave it as is…
Note: Quotes may be paraphrased.
Definition of PR – “Telling a story well, but the story must be true. Not spin, not black arts – that is malpractice.”
Why is rep so bad? – “PR has gotten conflated with politics. What is acceptable in politics is not acceptable elsewhere.”
Is this the best of times or worst for PR? – Best, we are in a grey area, who’s turf is social media ad or PR. PR used to be tail on the dog – get us a story. Now we are at the table at start of idea or driving the idea. Communications used to talk to the consumer, now we speak to stakeholders across the spectrum. Advertising is effective, but narrow spectrum.
Creating Trust and Credibility – Edelman Trust Barometer “person like myself” is most trusted person – phenomenon in last couple of years. Reflects a lack of trust in traditional institutions. Dialogue of people is an entirely new axis on communications spectrum. Too much control – no credibility. too much credibility – no control.
Dove Campaign – Works on both axes – good traditional communications, social cause, and then exploiting in traditional media. Real issue, allowed to be in the conversation and let go.
Is Mainstream media coverage the goal? – Not in some cases, mentions a Pharma client where Edelman built a community of 100k for MS sufferers and caregivers.
In 24/7 discussion world how do you define success and how do you make money? – Ad equivalency is not adequete. The power of free media is so much more than paid media.
Who is doing it right and wrong – Walmart Issue was covered thoroughly in two blog posts on 6 AM blog (1 and 2 I think) we educated our staff on quality and transparency. We will miss the opportunity if we go back to spin and artifice.
Traditional media has ground rules. What are ground rules for non-professionals – PR people need to have a higher standard than before because we are sending information directly to the audience without a filter. Explaining sources of information.
Ghostblogging – it’s a little dicey. Persuade the client to do a brainstorm, but needs to be a real voice. I think ghostblogging is bad.
Is PR and advertising blurring – Definitely. both communications approaches are valid, but depends upon the type of product and is there news? If news – PR leads. If not – advertising leads.
How do you incorporate learnings – Centralize it in Me2 Revolution and then disseminate around the company
PR budgets going up – Total consumption of media is rising, but the mix is shifting. It is not the drop in investigative journalism causing it. Bloggers are taking up that role like Mike Arrington. Different set of people doing it not that it is being done less.
PR is harder now. Need to speak to more people and you cannot be a salesperson. Listening, learing and acknowledging. Move away from Willy Loman – call 100 journalists and tick them off the list.
Corporate Social Responsibility in the C-level they are not measured – Trust barometer has company going up. In China companies are very trusted. Business must take on the big issues and be transparent about its motive. Focus initially on employee communications (inside out). Shell Paradox of Transparency – we used to keep it to ourselves until we launched, now we make the case publically – make concessions if necessary and keep moving forward.
Walmart caused what changes in policies and implementation of Social Media – 2700 people in Edelman, knee jerk reaction would be to have a few people should be doing Social – I think everyone should be doing it. We need to have standardization. We now have a 24 hotline for Social Media. Oriented towards experimentation, not control.
What happens when you lose control of the conversation – Judgement issues. Chevy Tahoe benefitted from not locking down – need to have tolerance. Need to think ahead. Once you are in the soup, let it cool off.
Quality vs. Quantity dance – virtuous circle we must charge more, pay staff better and say we can do more to clients. The horizontal access is ours to participate in. We should be charging fees commensurate with the importance of the task. You need to have a baseline of credibility before you can advertise that credibility.
When would you not recommend social media – PETA is an unreconcilable NGO for someone like KFC. Need to say here is our process, we are listening. To leave it alone is to let the other side control the convesation.
The race to be first, what about when the story is wrong – When you find it, you must be an activist in getting it corrected, you cannot wait for the traditional news cycle. Challenge and be aggressive.
Share success on convincing c-level – modest success in getting CEOs to blog, some can’t write and are afraid. CEO of Pitney-Bowes blogging on healthcare issues. Not sure that most CEOs will change.
Anti-smoking – Edelman gives $500 to any employee who quits smoking.
Mid-level may the best place to start (Scoble) – Let the mid-levels talk.
The word spin, has no place in our company. Term originates in politics. It is the single thing that is most undermining in our business. I don’t want to be spinner.
Has the ad/pr blurring – increased flameups between companies. We are independant (not a networked agency), therefore no enforced boundaries.
Three things that people should do – 1. make your stories visual 2. Don’t be defeated by setbacks – if you are not falling you are not learning to ski 3. Don’t let clients tell you this is your box – channel and platform neutral.
[tags]mesh, Richard Edelman, Edelman, social media, transparency, Stuart MacDonald [/tags]