Colorado Farm Bureau Conducts Impromptu Crisis Drill

Shawn Martini at the Colorado Farm Bureau learned the hard way that joking about natural disasters rarely ends well (see former Chicago Bears great Dan Hampton for another recent example). I have no idea what Shawn’s original Tweet was (it has since been deleted), but here is the string of apologies he has offered for it so far:

@RealPRMedia I see that now. My apologies.

@zarchasmpgmr @stevehirschhorn @HKoren @tweet_fail@pookla @wcwestfeldt @5280PRGal @hardcorps80204 My apologies. The joke was in poor taste.

@hardcorps80204 @milesbeyond @mackaymiller @tedrock et. al. My joke abt the #boulderfire was in very poor taste. My sincerest apologies.

@RealPRMedia Thank you for your understanding. I do apologize 4 the comment. Very poor taste on my part. My prayers R w/ everyone affected.

@thegoodhuman Very much agreed. Please accept my sincerest apologies.

Update: Here is Shawn’s original Tweet:

7000 ac. fire in Boulder. sure gonna take lots of Priuses &solar panels 2 make up4 that big ol’ carbon emission

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are Xanterra Parks & Resorts, Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals, Armada Medical Marketing, Aurora Loan Services, Black Hills Corporation, Humane Society of Boulder County, CaridianBCT, Colorado Mortgage Lenders Association, Community College of Aurora, National Wildlife Federation, University of Denver’s Daniels College of Business and Sky Ute Casino (Ignacio).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are the American Water Works Association, CoBank, The Colorado Trust, DaVita, Denver Botanic Gardens, DISH Network, EchoStar, Exempla, Functional Ingredients, International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer, Lincoln Financial Media, National Cattleman’s Beef Association, Skiing Magazine, Thule Organization Solutions, Unified West Corp., VISIT Denver, KSFY-TV (Sioux Falls, S.D.) and Jackson National (Lansing, Mich.).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are Turner PR, VisiTech PR, Aurora Sentinel, Denver Public Schools, Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design, U.S. Dept. of Interior, Verizon, Apache Junction School District (Apache Junction, Ariz.), Ervin & Smith Advertising and Public Relations (Omaha, Neb.), and the State of Wyoming.

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are ASD, Avaya, Butterfly Pavilion, Colorado Lottery, GeoEye, Kempe Foundation, Leprino Foods, Level 3 Communications, OpenArts, Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory, URS, United Health Group, DU’s Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System, American Express (Salt Lake City), Emporia State University (Emporia, Kans.), Los Alamos Monitor (Los Alamos, N.M.), New Mexico Thunderbirds (Rio Rancho, N.M.), and OGE Energy (Oklahoma City, Okla.).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are ASD, Adidas, Beatport, Blue Shield, Colorado Mountain Club, Examiner.com, Gevo, Horizon Bay, Impact Street, Love Hope Strength Foundation, Museum Store Association, Signet Health Corp., Stand for Children, University of Denver, University of Colorado Cancer Center (internship), JBS (Greeley), Larimer Humane Society (Fort Collins), Share Our Strength (Washington, D.C.) and SunPower (San Diego, Calif.).

Twitter Vigilantes

Ahhh, delicious irony. The self-important Jacob Morse is profiled in the New York Times for spending his time “calling out the (grammar mistakes of the) self-important” on Twitter. In the spirit of Mr. Morse’s endeavor, I’m starting a “Name that Tweeter” contest to identify the authors of notable tweets. The first (and likely only) installment:

“Its impossible to eat sopapillas with hiney and not get sticky.”

Identify the author and you win lunch and a free Bawmann Group pen.

UPDATE: 5280 publisher Daniel Brogan correctly identified Andrew Hudson, publisher of the brand new Andrew Hudson’s Jobs List Blog, as the author of the Tweet. Andrew’s Tweet was quickly followed by a second one that read, “Arrrggg. I meant ‘honey,’ not ‘hiney.'”

Connect with Us … No, Wait, Go Away

B.L. Ochman at WhatsNextBlog examined the Web sites of America’s largest companies and found that “it would have taken Nancy Drew to find the company blog, or Facebook page, or Twitter feed, or all of its YouTube videos.” Why? Ochman suspects that companies “fear that they’ll lose control of their brand if too many people know they can have a say,” with Nestle a classic (and recent) example.

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are the American Cheese Society, Aspen Chamber of Commerce, ClearChoice Dental Implant Centers, Covidien, FoodServiceWarehouse.com, Nutrition Business Journal, Quiznos, The White House Project, Cricket Communications (San Diego), Glendive Ranger-Review (Glendive, Mont.), Kiewit Corp. (Omaha, Neb.), Minnesota Timberwolves/Lynx (Minneapolis, Minn.), Smith Micro Software (Aliso Viejo, Calif.), SUPERVALU (Earth City, Mo.), and Weber Shandwick (Minneapolis, Minn.).

2009 PR Salaries Down; Tiger Fatigue; Social Media Tips

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are Webb PR, Acme Manufacturing, Brewer’s Association, Charter Communications, Denver Water, Evergreen Newspapers, Hitachi Consulting, Lockton Corp., Newmont Mining, The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (New York City), Archer Daniels Midland Company (Decatur, Ill.), and Maker’s Mark (Loretto, Ky.).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are Weise Communications, Boulder County, Colorado Health Foundation, Colorado Public Radio, Department of Veterans Affairs, ICF, National Cattleman’s Beef Association, NREL, University Physicians, International Society for Prevention of Child Abuse, FAA (Washington, D.C.), United States Agency for International Development (Washington, D.C.), Urban Land Institute (Washington, D.C.) and World Vision (Port-au-Prince, Haiti).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are Vladimir Jones, Allstate, Quiznos, The Winsor Group, American Heart Association, City of Centennial, ClearChoice Dental Implants Center, Metro Denver Dental Society, Lockton Group, Colorado Workers for Innovative and New Solutions (Colorado WINS), The Spa Buzz, Colorado State University (Fort Collins), Georgia Pacific (Muskogee, Okla.) and Terraso (Mesa, Ariz.).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are Vladimir Jones, Malenke | Barnhart, RTD, The Winsor Group, AANAC, American Income Life Insurance Company, Checkers Industrial Safety Products, Dalbey Education Institute, Grand Tetons National Bank, U.S. Olympic Committee (Colorado Springs), City of Scottsdale (Ariz.), and the MPAA (Washington, D.C.).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are Barnhart Communications, the 18th Judicial District DA’s Office, Goodwill Industries, Janus, North American Riding for the Handicapped, Vail Cascade Resort and Spa, Colorado State University (Pueblo), Natural Resources Conservation Service (Lincoln, Neb.), DBC PR+New Media (Washington, D.C.) and General Motors (Thousand Oaks, Calif.).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are University of Denver, Investment Management Consultants Association, Vail Resorts, 9News, GTRI, Robert Half International, Teletech, URS, Rocky Mountain Health Plans (Grand Junction), Montrose County, Colorado State University School of Global Environmental Sustainability (Fort Collins), American Lung Association (Washington, D.C.), Forest City Corp. (Cleveland, Ohio), Sandia National Labs (Albuquerque, N.M.), Tru Value (Chicago, Ill.), Union Pacific Corp. (Omaha, Neb.) and Walsh Construction (Chicago, Ill.),

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are Crocs, Upromise Investments, The Colorado Health Foundation, Home Instead Senior Care, Hunter Douglas Window Fashions, Pinnacol Assurance, SEIU, Professional Bull Riders (Colorado Springs), Cabela’s (Sidney, Neb.), GolinHarris (Washington, D.C.), High Plains Journal (Dodge City, Kans.), Interweave Press (Loveland), Intuit (Mountain View, Calif.) and St. Louis Metro (St. Louis, Mo.).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are the Colorado Center on Law and Policy, Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce, CH2MHill, Colorado Statesman, Denver Options, Department Of Agriculture (Forest Service), Douglas County Libraries, Gardner Edgerton School District, Interweave Press (Loveland), Jeppesen, Swisslog, The Kempe Foundation, Waste Management,  American Cancer Society (Durango), City of Phoenix, Ariz., and AAA (Washington, D.C.).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are CSG|PR, The Farm Credit System, Karsh\Hagan, Cherry Creek Shopping Center, Sandy Puc’ Portrait Design, CH2MHill, Hunter Douglas, Child Health Corp of America (Shawnee Mission, Kans.), Midstream Energy (Salt Lake City), Valley of the Sun United Way (Phoenix) and Cargill Meat Solutions (Wichita, Neb.).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are 5280 Magazine, The Children’s Hospital, Texas de Brazil, Rocky Mountain PBS, Kiewit Building Group, MMG Mardiks, Grace Dickerson, One Earth Foundation/Colorado & Santa Fe Real Estate Company, Care and Share (Pueblo), Columbia College, Fire and Police Pension Association, Lexis Nexis, State Bar of Arizona and the UN Foundation (Washington D.C.).

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are 104 West, The Children’s Hospital, Correctional Healthcare Companies, City of Commerce City, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, American Print Media, Department of Veterans Affairs, City and County of Denver Clerk and Recorder’s Office, Jeffco, ProBuild, Teletech, Fort Collins Coloradoan, U.S. Department of the Interior, Vectra Bank and CNN.

Ef Rodriguez Moves from JW to Turner

Denver social media guru Ef “Pug of War” Rodriguez has made the move from JohnstonWells back to Turner Public Relations, where he got his PR start and where he will lead the travel/tourism/outdoor agency’s social media efforts.

JohnstonWells President and CEO GG Johnston said her firm is tapping Elizabeth Jumel to lead its social media practice. “After careful consideration, we decided that Elizabeth’s 11 years of experience and her insight into the right mix of social media and traditional media are exactly what our clients need right now,” Johnston said.

Denver PR Jobs

Among those hiring this week are the National Endowment for Financial Education, CaridianBCT, Children’s Hospital, JANUS, Make-A-Wish Foundation of Colorado, Navarro Research and Engineering, The Broomfield Enterprise, KKTV (Colorado Springs), KOAA-TV (Colorado Springs), Black Hills Energy (Pueblo) and Festivals, DC Ltd. (Washington, D.C.).

Interview with Deirdre Breakenridge, Author of “Putting the Public Back in Public Relations”

Metzger’s Doyle Albee has an interview with author Deirdre Breakenridge, who with Brian Solis wrote Putting the Public Back in Public Relations: How Social Media is Reinventing the Aging Business of PR. Here is an excerpt of that interview (you can read the entire interview on Metzger’s “Media in the Millennium” blog):

Doyle Albee: What one common PR practice would you like to see stopped immediately?
Deirdre Breakenridge: For too long, public relations professionals have been accepting corporate broadcast messages that are pushed from the top down.  We’ve also contributed to taking these messages and crafting news releases riddled with hype, spin and industry jargon that doesn’t make sense to anyone except for the executives who approved them.
There’s a much better approach; it’s a bottom up strategy that consists of listening to customers and other stakeholders in their web communities and then providing the story and information that is customized to their needs.  Today, PR professionals must help brands to see that they can have direct conversations with their customers, if and only if they stay away from the meaningless broadcast messages.  Brands must focus on helping people to gather, share and organize information to make informed purchases.  I would like to see PR professionals put the public back in public relations and that means abandoning a broadcast message mentality and truly taking a one-on-one approach that lets you listen and engage with people to build a strong relationship.
DA: What positive practice do you see many practitioners still doing too little of?
DB: There are PR professionals who are solely relying on Internet and social media communications rather than picking up the telephone to talk to the media or other important influencers.  Technology makes it so easy to forget about the human voice connection.  However, it’s critical to take all of the digital connections and turn the virtual into physical reality.  After all, the best outcome of social networking is a meeting with a blogger or influencer, whether it’s on the telephone or in person.
Human interaction will always be the most important means to truly build a relationship, which takes time and commitment.  Sure, a lot of progress can be made via the Internet.  For example, Brian Solis and I wrote our entire book without ever meeting in person.  There was a lot of email and IM back and forth as well as social networking.  But, the bottom line… when we met in person that’s when the relationship grew and reached new heights.  Today, Brian and I are on the telephone, at conferences presenting together and working both online and offline to promote our book.
So, as practitioners, although we have to keep up with our Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn status updates, it’s imperative that we move these interactions forward.  Pick up the phone or meet in person; that’s the point where the friendship is validated and it becomes even stronger.

Doyle Albee: What one common PR practice would you like to see stopped immediately?

Deirdre Breakenridge: For too long, public relations professionals have been accepting corporate broadcast messages that are pushed from the top down.  We’ve also contributed to taking these messages and crafting news releases riddled with hype, spin and industry jargon that doesn’t make sense to anyone except for the executives who approved them.

There’s a much better approach; it’s a bottom up strategy that consists of listening to customers and other stakeholders in their web communities and then providing the story and information that is customized to their needs.  Today, PR professionals must help brands to see that they can have direct conversations with their customers, if and only if they stay away from the meaningless broadcast messages.  Brands must focus on helping people to gather, share and organize information to make informed purchases.  I would like to see PR professionals put the public back in public relations and that means abandoning a broadcast message mentality and truly taking a one-on-one approach that lets you listen and engage with people to build a strong relationship.

DA: What positive practice do you see many practitioners still doing too little of?

DB: There are PR professionals who are solely relying on Internet and social media communications rather than picking up the telephone to talk to the media or other important influencers.  Technology makes it so easy to forget about the human voice connection.  However, it’s critical to take all of the digital connections and turn the virtual into physical reality.  After all, the best outcome of social networking is a meeting with a blogger or influencer, whether it’s on the telephone or in person.

Human interaction will always be the most important means to truly build a relationship, which takes time and commitment.  Sure, a lot of progress can be made via the Internet.  For example, Brian Solis and I wrote our entire book without ever meeting in person.  There was a lot of email and IM back and forth as well as social networking.  But, the bottom line… when we met in person that’s when the relationship grew and reached new heights.  Today, Brian and I are on the telephone, at conferences presenting together and working both online and offline to promote our book.

So, as practitioners, although we have to keep up with our Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn status updates, it’s imperative that we move these interactions forward.  Pick up the phone or meet in person; that’s the point where the friendship is validated and it becomes even stronger.

Politics and Twitter

I keep reading media articles that position politicians such as U.S. Rep. Jared Polis as technology-friendly leaders who use social media to connect with constituents, and I have to shake my head. Rep. Polis has 2,439 Twitter followers, and he has followed a grand total of 59 of them back. To Rep. Polis, Twitter appears to be just another bullhorn through which he can spread what he wants constituents to hear. And he isn’t alone:

The power of social media is in creating relationships – or at least engaging conversations – with people who matter to you (and to whom you matter). Of the major elected officials in Colorado, only one at least makes an effort to create the appearance he uses social media to listen to constituents:

And, surprisingly, a significant number of high-profile Colorado politicians aren’t even using Twitter yet:

  • U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet
  • U.S. Rep. Diana Degette
  • U.S. Rep. Betsy Markey
  • U.S. Rep. John Salazar
  • U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn
  • State Sen. Brandon Shaffer
  • Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper