GBSM’s Steve Silvers argues that although social media “isn’t actually selling anything but itself” right now, you cannot afford to ignore it.
Month: May 2009
Denver Client Wins
- Pivot Communication won Memphis-based Correctional Counseling as a client. Correctional Counseling provides a wide range of treatment and training programs for offenders involved in the correctional system.
- Traction Communications added sun and sport performance eyewear company Native to its client roster.
GBSM Seeks Associate
GBSM is in the market for an associate to support the firm’s public affairs and public outreach work. Send your resume/etc. to Raleigh Decker. No phone calls. Details are here: GBSM Associate_Public Affairs – 52009.
Turner PR Appoints VP
Turner PR has hired Aliza Rothman as vice president of the travel/hospitality and real estate team in Denver. Rothman previously was Vice President of Ogilvy Public Relations in Denver and Vice President at Robinson Lerer & Montgomery in New York City.
Denver PR Jobs
Among those hiring this week are Children’s Hospital, Jeppesen, LiveWell Colorado, Sony Online Entertainment, the Sopris Sun (Carbondale), and Starz.
Bjorkman Unlikely to Start New Career as Money Manager
Could someone please explain to me how former KWGN/Channel 2 anchor Ernie Bjorkman can make the rounds on national media talking about his financial struggles after losing his anchor job? Today it was the Oprah Winfey show. The guy made $250,000 a year and within five months of being out of work he has to borrow $1,000 from a friend to cover his car payment. Seriously?
KMGH Declines to Renew Steve Saunders’ Contract
KMGH/Channel 7 won’t renew longtime Denver news reporter and anchor Steve Saunders’ contract, and his last day will be Aug. 15. Saunders, the son of former Rocky Mountain News media critic Dusty Saunders and the widower of Emmy-award-winning Denver television news producer Pam Saunders, spent the past decade at KMGH, and was at KWGN/Channel 2 for eight years prior to that. Joanne Ostrow at the Denver Post has the details.
Dovetail Picks Up DBJ Philanthropy Award
Congratulations to Dovetail Solutions, which recently won the Denver Business Journal’s Small Business Partners in Philanthropy award.
Sterling-Rice Group Hires Account Director
Brand strategy and marketing communications firm Sterling-Rice Group has hired Jill Holmstrom as account director. Holmstrom previously was with Karsh/Hagan.
Noodles & Company Names New VP of Marketing
CLS client Noodles & Company has hired Dan Fogarty as vice president of marketing. Fogarty’s responsibilities will include overseeing all marketing, advertising, public relations and brand development.
Catfight Alert: Denver Egotist vs. Chipotle
The advertising gurus behind the Denver Egotist have had enough of Chipotle’s new “Low Roller” marketing campaign, and they are fighting back with a new Web site: Cheapotle.com.
It Worked for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Denver’s second major daily could be the Los Angeles Times of Denver, if the Denver No Guts can beat the L.A. Lakers.
What’s in a Name?
Maybe the Denver Post should have splurged and brought over a Rocky copyeditor or two …
Denver Losing City’s Best TV Business Reporter
9News business reporter/anchor Gregg Moss is leaving the station to take the Chief Marketing and Communications Officer position at Alem International Management. Mosss has been at 9News for most of the past decade. The station also announced that reporter Carrie McClure will not return when she takes maternity leave in June. Joanne Ostrow at the Denver Post has all the details.
Denver Agency Wins
- JohnstonWells landed law firm Faegre & Benson as a client.
- Pushkin Public Relations added the Medical Group Management Association as a client.
- Weise Communications announced the Eating Disorder Center of Denver (EDC-D), Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers (RMCC), St. Louis University Hospital and SALT Electric as clients.
Denver PR Jobs
Among those hiring this week are the Nurse-Family Partnership, Boulder County Commissioners, New West Physicians, South Suburban Parks & Recreation, Bethany College (Lindsborg, Kansas) and AmerenUE (St. Louis).
Colorado Springs ABC Reporter Shocked to Find that Businesses Contribute to Politicians Who Can Help Them
And in the process, political reporter Marshall Zelinger of Colorado Springs’ ABC affiliate gives a shout-out to Linhart PR’s Russ “Ratso” Rizzo.
They Could Call it ‘Shine’; That Name isn’t Being Used
Several of the more prominent backers of the ill-fated InDenver Times have stepped forward with a new, more streamlined approach: The Rocky Mountain Independent. Designed as a “daily online news magazine,” the Rocky Mountain Independent is backed by former Rocky Mountain News journalists, including Steve Foster, Cindy House, David Milstead and John B. Moore. Michael Roberts at Westword has the details (and so does Ed Sealover at the Denver Business Journal).
JW Selects DMCLF as 2009 Pro Bono Project
JohnstonWells has selected the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation as its 2009 pro bono recipient.
Linhart Names VP
Linhart PR has appointed Kelly Womer as vice president. Womer joins Linhart from her own Chicago-based independent consultancy, where she worked with clients such as McDonald’s and Aviva. Prior to forming her own consultancy, she was a principal in the Chicago office of Carmichael Lynch Spong.
Catfight Alert: BusinessWire vs. PitchEngine
Is BusinessWire blocking its clients from including links to PitchEngine in press releases it distributes? PitchEngine says yes, but BusinessWire isn’t saying anything. Right now, it appears individual BW employees are enforcing the rules at their discretion, so we’ll see where the official BW corporate policy lands.
Denver Post Publisher Floats ‘Pay-to-Read’ Web Strategy
Fresh off the success of InDenver Times, MediaNews CEO and Denver Post publisher William Dean Singleton told his employees that the company “cannot continue to give all of our content away for free,” and that the company will stop offering free online access to its 53 daily newspapers and will instead develop an online subscription model. Mark Harden at the Denver Business Journal has the details.
ColoradoBiz: ‘What Job Seekers Can Learn from PR Pros’
Denver PR consultant Steve Koenigsberg is featured in this month’s ColoradoBiz in an article that examines “what job seekers can learn from PR pros.”
Denver PR Jobs
Among those hiring this week are Scream, University of Denver, Fentress Architects, Jefferson County and Teletech.
Catfight Alert
Metzger’s Doyle Albee vs. HWH PR’s Lois Whitman. And if Doyle isn’t careful on May 19, Catfight II will be Doyle Albee vs. Lois Whitman’s attorney.
UPDATE: Techcrunch has picked up the catfight, and I’m glad to see that it is obvious to neutral observers who is on the right side of this catfight.
Twitter Fail: The 8 Worst Brands at Using Twitter
Revolut!on Magazine compiles the list and the reasons:
- Amazon.com
- Hewlett-Packard
- eBay
- McDonald’s
- Pepsi
- Vodafone
- EasyJet
- Gucci
(Hat tip to The Denver Egotist)
CLS, Linhart, JohnstonWells Lead 2009 PRSA ‘Gold Pick’ Awards
The tables have been cleared, the floors vacuumed, the rented tuxedos returned, Elaine Ellis has posted bail and LoDo’s has agreed not to press charges, which can mean only one thing – The 2009 PRSA Colorado ‘Gold Pick” Awards ceremony is officially over. PRSA Colorado has posted the winners from Thursday’s event, and the Denver PR Blog has once again used a proprietary and highly sophisticated formula (two points for a gold, one point for a silver) to determine which agencies fared best:
1. Carmichael Lynch Spong (13 points) – Three gold, seven silver
2. Linhart PR (9 points) – Three gold, three silver
3. JohnstonWells (8 points) – One grand gold, two gold, two silver
3. Pure Brand (8 points) – Three gold, two silver
5. GroundFloor Media (7 points) – Two gold, three silver
6. Philosophy (6 points) – One grand gold, two gold
7. Xstatic (4 points) – One gold, two silver
8. 104 West Partners (2 points) – One gold
8. GolinHarris (2 points) – One gold
8. MGA Communications (2 points) – One gold
8. Room 214 (2 points) – One gold
8. SSA (2 points) – One gold
8. Cohn Marketing (2 points) – Two silver
14. Dressel-Martin MediaWorks (1 point) – One silver
Also, congratulations to the big award winners: Comcast’s Scott Binder and Goodwill’s Tim Welker (Business Persons of the Year), Denver Art Museum’s Ashley Pritchard (Rookie of the Year), Aurora Organic Dairy’s Sonja Tuitele (PR Person of the Year), First Data’s Cara Taylor (Chapter Service Award), Don Kirchoffner & Associates’ Don Kirchoffner (Swede Johnson Lifetime Achievement Award), and Morris Animal Hospital (Nonprofit Award).
Webb Lands Several New Accounts
If you run into Pete Webb this weekend, make sure he buys the drinks. The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) has re-upped Webb PR’s three-year contract to promote CDOT’s anti-drunk driving and seat belt use campaigns, and the agency also nabbed several new accounts, including Colorado Department of Human Services, Jacobs Entertainment (owners of the Lodge and Gilpin Hotel Casinos in Black Hawk), Nobel Energy and Eagle County Ambulance.
Metzger Names CFO
Metzger Associates has promoted Sarah Engle to Chief Financial Officer. Engle, who is a CPA, has worked for Metzger as its controller since 2004.
104 West Picks Up Three Hermes Awards
104 West Partners won two Platinum and one Gold Hermes Creative Awards for its work on behalf of BitGravity, The March of Dimes Colorado Chapter and MX Logic. The Hermes Creative Awards recognizes outstanding work in the industry while promoting the philanthropic nature of marketing and communication professionals.
VOCA Sponsoring Women’s Foundation Fundraiser
VOCA PR is sponsoring The Women’s Foundation of Colorado and the Empowerment Council’s “Fill the Purse Summer Cocktail Party” to increase awareness of girls’ dropout rate in Colorado and raise money to provide sustained funding for the Foundation’s work with girls and critical research and education efforts. The details are:
WFCO Fill the Purse Summer Cocktail Party
Tuesday, May 19 from 5 – 7 pm
Parallel 17 (1600 E 17th Ave., Denver)
Tickets are $30
RSVP at www.fillthepurse.org by May 15
New Denver Ad Club Hosts ‘Connect 2009’
The New Denver Ad Club invites students and entry-level job seekers to connect with Denver’s top marketing industry professionals at Connect 2009.
The economy might be in a funk right now, but the Denver talent market is not. Fresh, new ideas and the exuberant energy of youth abound. Our community of experienced, well-seasoned marketing professionals will offer themselves up to guide, advise and mentor students for an afternoon. Or perhaps a future job, if the chemistry is right. The details are:
The New Denver Ad Club Connect 2009
Friday, May 15, 2009, 3:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Johnson & Wales University
7150 Montview Blvd, Denver
College of Business Foyer
Who should attend
Second semester juniors and graduating seniors looking at careers in marketing, advertising, interactive, graphic design, public relations, account management and planning, media and related fields. Also, agencies and clients looking to help mentor these students with the potential of internships, entry-level jobs or simple advice and guidance.
Denver Rates Highly for New College Grads
Denver has been named the eighth-best city for new college graduates, although Indianapolis, Philadelphia, Cincinnati and Cleveland all rank higher than Denver, so clearly the methodology is out of whack.
Denver Agency Wins
- 104 West Partners won New York-based Daily Makeover, a leader in interactive media and virtual reality try-on technology.
- Pivot Communication was selected as agency of record for Castle Country Assisted Living, a nonprofit organization based in Castle Rock and Parker.
Denver Metro Chamber Event Examines Media’s ‘Changing Face’
GBSM’s Steve Silvers, JohnstonWells’ GG Johnston and Denver Post Business Editor Steve McMillan are panelists at the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce’s “Gold Program” event titled “Old Media. New Media. The Extraordinarily Changing Face of the Information Age” (I’m betting that neither Steve nor GG were responsible for naming the event). Anyway, the details are:
Thursday, May 28
11:30 am – 1:00 pm
Denver Metro Chamber
1445 Market Street, 5th Floor
www.denverchamber.org/goldprogram
Linhart Named SABRE Finalist
Congratulations to Linhart PR, which was named a finalist for a SABRE award for its work with Red Robin.
Webb Takes Colorado Legislators to Task
In today’s Denver Post, Pete Webb’s Pete Webb takes the Colorado legislature to task for the “disparaging … caustic and sarcastic” manner legislators treat citizens and businesspeople who testify.
Denver PR Jobs
Among those hiring this week are the Colorado Health Foundation, Dumb Friends League, DEX, Group Publishing, ITT, One Beacon Insurance, Reed Business Information, St. Mary’s Hospital (Grand Junction) and TaxSalelists.com.
Webb PR Hires Three
Pete Webb PR hired Sarah Oehler as an account manager, and Jody Gavin and Portia Berrey as account coordinators. Oehler joins Webb from SNO Public Relations, Gavin from The Hoffman Agency, and Berrey from Univision.
Denver Public Relations Blog 