Clients Say the Darndest Things

Now that Mad Men is returning, I began to revisit some of my favorite quotes from seasons past.  For those of us that work at an agency - where client service is an obsession, not just a profession - you can't help yourself.  Which made me think back to the more memorable quotes I've heard from those I've had the privilege of working with on the client side over time.  No worries, the names and faces have been deleted to protect the innocent.  It's not always the person saying it versus the message that resonates over time, as we all know.

"Customers are the Crutch that All Bad Agencies Use as an Excuse as To Why They Can't Get Coverage."  While there is some truth to the statement, you don't always need a customer or the voice of the customer to tell your story.  To secure interest and generate coverage, it doesn't hurt, especially when you are hoping to convince anyone that a trend is real, or that what you are saying is happening in actual real world environments versus conceptually.  But, the lesson learned from this for me - and my colleagues that were fortunate enough to work on this specific account - was that you always need to be think outside the box, and look for ways to generate interest without relying on someone else to help you tell the story.

"Messing About on Twitter is No Social Strategy."  Again, there is more than a modicum of truth in this, however, not participating and engaging in a meaningful and authentic manner, is worse than not participating at all.  True, this should be done across all social channels and networks, however, don't lose sight of those networks where your key audiences participate - Twitter or otherwise.  Plus, for those of us that love Twitter (and yes I just tweeted that and this blog post) it's a great source of invaluable information, not just a broadcast channel.  

"Even a Blind Squirrel Finds a Nut Once in a While!" While this quote came about in a conversation related to a customer trend - apparently one customer leveraging technology in a specific way isn't always a true trend, but perhaps good fortune - it does hold some significant truth.  And, speaks most to the element of timing.  Good luck and success for a particular campaign, event, outreach initiative can be related to timing, and sometimes that timing can be responsive versus planned - just ask those brands behind the succesful Super Bowl 47 Blackout scenario.  As we all know, while there are specific moments in time that will merit the most consideration, in the real-time world of converging content channels, it's usually when you least expect something, or plan for it, that goodness comes.   

"It's Going to Be a Great Day."  Not all quotes were reminders on what not to do, or philosophical musings on PR.  This one comes from one of the biggest influences on me personally as a PR professional, and human being.  No matter how hard you think it may get, you determine the course of your day.  When this client passed a few years back, it was hard not to remember this particular quote as being one of his most lasting.  So, while the PR profession may continue to be rated as one of the most stressful, and there always seems to be one crisis or another, there are few professions better. 

What's Going on With Our Heroes?

No surprise.  Like I am sure is happening in many companies today, the conversation is hot and heavy around Lance Armstrong’s interview this evening with Oprah Winfrey and the brewing controversy around Manti Te’o’s fictional/non-fictional girlfriend.  Like most companies, opinions, humor and fascination abound at LPP. Which led to this blog.

“What’s going on with our 'heroes'?" 

I still fondly remember the summer of 1998, when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa were chasing the heralded Roger Maris home run record.  While both ended up breaking the record, neither now look likely to get into the Hall of Fame.

Equally mesmerizing, is how someone can come back from cancer and not only just finish the
Tour de France, but win it not once, twice, or three times but seven times, and all in a row.  Regardless if Armstrong was doping, that accomplishment is as much a team effort as an individual one and team tactics still play a large role in cycling.

Of course, if everyone, including Team US Postal/Discovery/UCI Pro Team and Team Radio Shack were doping then it’s a relatively level playing field. That’s not to say it was okay and would have been fine had Armstrong not been caught, but like many, my impression of Lance is significantly different than it was a few years ago when I was screaming at the TV when he finished ahead of his challengers each July. 

But, the point is always, who do you believe, and is it time to stop looking for heroes in all the wrong places? 

It’s not just about sports; it starts as early as childhood. Remember Pee Wee Herman (hugely talented) or more recently Kevin Clash (the guy so tightly associated with Elmo all these years) to name a few?

Beyond the pedestal on which we want our heroes to stand, what’s the lesson from a PR perspective or better yet, what is going on with journalism that helps prop and maintain many of these images? Sure, I’m not naïve enough to believe we don’t need heroes to sell newspapers, magazines and online content. However, I ran across the following story on Time World, focused on higher education in the UK. 

Apparently the first version of the story was “too harsh” and had to be amended. Check out how many times. Thanks to the Twittersphere for shedding some light on this, as that was the first time I'd heard of it.

The rise of social, or as many are coining it, real-time media is reshaping perceptions not just about our heroes and short bursts of news, but in how we look at long-term and sustainable communications efforts. I, for one, hope that our need to tell stories that are interesting and compelling, actually has more than a few shreds of fact in them - and, in turn, helps educate us on current events.  What seems to be missing at this point in time, is whether or not a story is real to begin with, and that leaves us questioning more than just who our heroes are.

What do you think?