DISQUS

For me, this was an odd post. But an interesting juxtaposition of your recent FIR interview.

Before Milan was born, you made the same requests from on stage in Seattle - back then, though, I noted that your blog audience is not the right audience for such companies to reach out to. It's not about you, but your audience.

For example, if I know one of the editor's of a PC magazine is about to have a baby, would I send goods to him or her as the PR person of a baby good's company? No, not at all - not the right readership, not the right audience.

Same goes for your blog.

Congratulations on the impending new addition!

Thank you, Robert, for not including me on this list. Social media is a small, small part of marketing or PR and those that practice it by itself, tend to be in a bubble that will disappear very, very soon.

I always thought that Podtech blew it, in regards to you being on the Edwards plane.

The PR person or firm or whatever Podtech had - yes, I know your new anti-PR screed, and just nod and smile - had a major story, a major coup for Podtech. Here was the first candidate embracing social media (and, if memory serves, this was pre-Obama entering the race).

Nothing - or very little - in the newspapers that reached the audiences that Podtech probably needed to reach.

When Hillary announced her candidacy on YouTube, the major media picked it up and turned it into a bigger social media story. I remember reading the big article from AP, and I thought "wow, Podtech should have been in this article in regards to Edwards."

It all comes full circle, though. If Podtech/you had been in those original stories, the mainstream media might have picked at your videos the second time around, giving press to your FastCompany.tv venture.

See, PR does have value.

That was great.

But, now I feel old that someone didn't know that was the Breeders. :(

This coming from a guy that once said that the success of a social media campaign would be if you got the launch on TechMeme? ;)

Yes, PR firms do. Social media experts do. A lot of people do, because it says that you are hitting mass noise/buzz. Heck, you know PR firms are still using Technorati still for measurement and reach, and the Techmeme leaderboard is a great way to see what's being said.

Plus, I admit that I love that PRN and BW are on the list.

You missed the bigger problem, IMHO - the desire to want to blog. When I was at an agency, my first question was always "do you want to blog, or are you being told to blog?" - and it matters, because the passion will be there if they want to write, and will grow because you can see the passion come through in the writing. If they are just told to blog, it's usually doomed to fail.

If someone blogs to create buzz, it's not going to work. If they are blogging with an agenda, it's sorta missing the point and not going to work.

If you blog to share ideas, people WILL find you and there will be growth and a ROI (which should just be sweat equity, and time).

Which is why I never asked to go to events, I just told them I was going to events for work.

If you ask, you'll get a no. If you tell them, they just figure you know what you are doing and pay for it. And, it always came back to information that was good for clients (if they knew what to do with it).

Can I answer your question with a question?

How is IM interoperability coming along? It's only been in the works how long now?

That's great - I love the site, and think there's so much that can be done with it.

Edelman runs the largest independent PR firm in the world.

I think you're stressing too much over this. :)

And, I think I just flow more than you.

I know what it's like to have the good years and the bad years. 1992-1993 was my time period - a few family deaths, me being sick, me going under the knife, losing friends (not thru death, but drifting apart).

It's also why I'm not a big fan of NYE. Every day is a new start, and something new and exciting.

Have a great 2008, and hope to see you around (I've been AWOL, and so have you).

Well, count the experiment a success. I heard about it at the Geeks Doing Good event, and went to your FB profile.

Unfortunately, probably won't make it over to that area of town. Plus, gotta watch the game tonight.

Glad that you are your brother are doing fine, despite the scariness of a spin-out. That's the one thing I learned in driver's ed that has stuck with me: how to get out of a spin out.

I'm sorry about the car, and hope insurance plays well with you.

What about the moose??

If you stop in AZ, let me know and I'll tell you places to go.

And, nice pimping out your brother. Geez.

Well, at some corporations you do work with the legal teams - but mostly the legal team looking over press releases to make sure that all statements are true and can be defended.

It's why you rarely see a public company calling itself the best, but one of the best - you always have that quantifier.

The other way - not so much, but would save some heart aches at the end of the day.

Huh?

As we all know, there are three sides to every story: side a, side b and the truth.

But, as for the PR game, Sam is losing and losing badly. His "we'll talk in London" to you does not work as it is just to you, not the audience as a whole.

Ha! I got yelled at in NYC at a restaurant for taking photos. There was no sign, but it's the policy there.

Whatever.

I'll miss Seattle Film Works. Will American Greetings send out those rolls of film that can only be processed by them?

It's interesting to see the large groups of online photo sites from the first dotcom era still out there, and what is happening with them now.

Or, the "I've pitched him five time already - and I can follow up once more" lines I hear from "social media" PR people.

Gonna barf.

Thanks for the kind words. Next time I'm in Chicago, come over the office and meet the folks.

And, we'll go get lunch at Japonais ... on Michael. ;)

Whose house is that? I feel bad for the kids that have to rake those leaves.

Oh, who am I kidding. Poor gardeners.

I read it, called him out for it, and began to wonder if he's really just trying to get fired.