Tuesday, August 24, 2010

10 Tips on Arabic Culture For Successful Business in the Middle East

For executives who are looking to build business in the Middle East or professionals looking to move their career or job search to the Arab World, this video gives you a simple overview of Arabic Business Culture in 4 minutes.


Thursday, August 19, 2010

Media Training 101

Why should you have media training?
What will it take to be a successful spokesperson?

All you need to know about media training in under 2 minutes...


Tuesday, August 17, 2010

10 Reasons to Fire the Client

I've wanted to write this article for a long time, but of course didn't want to offend any previous client. Now, thanks to The Bad Pitch Blog, I don't need to. A big thank you to Richard Laermer for listing the ten reasons:

10 - You don't trust them as far as you can throw them!
9 - Everything they demand is in direct contrast to what you know to be right.
8 - Client company is on its way down.
7 - You keep sitting in on meetings with them that are at once pointless and breathless.
6 - You get the creeps when an email from this client crosses your in-box.


5 - You dread their responses to your questions because you know, once again, they aren’t paying attention to you but instead, are following their own agenda.
4 - Getting their bill paid is tougher than the toffee at carnivals.
3 - The client keeps making you think about going into a new profession.


2 - You daydream about working with their competitor(s).


1 - The person paying you is sure that everything they do is fantastic, despite having no notion of what fantastic is. And no vision whatsoever.

Read the full article here.

And if you have more to add, we'd love to hear about them.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Five changes in journalism and what that means to the way smart PR agencies are working

Thanks to our friends at Burrelles Luce for putting the journo insight together. We couldn't agree more... in fact we believe that any good public relations agency worth their salt is changing the way they are working.

1. Long is now shorter. Rand Morrison commented that "Long is shorter than it used to be," at the Bulldog Reporter 2010 Media Relations Summit.

NettResults Takeaway & How Smart PR Agencies are Adapting: Be succinct. Understand your message and be able to share it in a compelling manner with a few key bullet points.

2. Slow is now faster. Stories break on Twitter live as events unfold. Getting a story right is challenged by an increase pressure to get it out.

NettResults Takeaway & How Smart PR Agencies are Adapting: Anticipate journalists' needs and serve as a valuable resource. Maintain an accurate, up-to-date, and comprehensive online newsroom or press center. A quick responses and immediate follow up is essential.

3. There is a need to be more resourceful with resources. Cuts in newsroom operations means that journalists are working longer hours, with heavier workloads and a heightened sense of concern regarding job security.

NettResults Takeaway & How Smart PR Agencies are Adapting: Passing along tips and information that will benefit the journalist (publication and readers), whether or not it is for a specific client, will be appreciated and help to build a strong relationship. Likewise, those who are able to help journalists save time by bringing together multiple resources have a distinct advantage.

4. The brand of a journalist is not always limited to the publication. Many journalists now have Twitter handles, Facebook pages, and personal blogs.

NettResults Takeaway & How Smart PR Agencies are Adapting: There are now numerous opportunities to listen, engage, and build stronger relationships with influential journalists.

5. Competition is more competitive. Social media has also increased the challenge of being the first to break a story or add a new and unique angle.

NettResults Takeaway & How Smart PR Agencies are Adapting: Exclusives are more valuable than ever. When you can't offer an exclusive, consider whether you have a special angle or resource to pitch. What value can you offer the journalist to help him or her provide unique value to readers?

What changes in journalism do you think are shaping killer PR?