Fake Plastic Noodles

Probably old hat by now, but this link was forwarded on to me by one of my colleagues just a moment ago. It involves another “outing” of a PR person. Looks like an e-mail pitch to ValleyWag was sent with all of the tracked changes to ValleyWag. Ooops! The editor (of course) took a screen shot and put it up under a post called “Dear PR Flack, don’t send this draft.”

Personally, I’m not a big fan of outing a person’s name and contact information, and apparently the PR person who sent the pitch isn’t either. She followed up to his post in an incredibly inappropriate e-mail that read,

Take the Great Moments in PR article off your site with my personal information gone, or deal with wrath from my lawyer. If it’s not gone by EOD today, I’m pursuing legal action.

That, of course, was published too.

The bright side is that shortly after ValleyWag’s second posting, a company-wide e-mail from the agency in question was leaked to ValleyWag. The e-mail reiterated what it seems a lot of people need: Blog Pitching 101.

In light of an unfortunate situation that occurred with a blog pitch gone bad, now is a good time to reiterate some best practice guidelines for engaging with bloggers.

• Don’t pitch, talk: Bloggers are for the most part well-versed in PR spin and hyperbole and react poorly to it. Help the writer do a better job.
• “A-List” blogs that consistently receive attention. It’s a better tactic to find someone smaller interested in the “pitch.” A worth story will find its way up.
• Use links.
• Be brief.
• Don’t send attachments.
• Make sure you’re not asking for coverage you’ve already gotten.
• Make sure you’re not asking for coverage someplace that just trashed your client.
• Rushing through outreach efforts - to traditional media or online media - is no excuse for being sloppy. If something doesn’t look right ask for help.

I think it’s important to add one more: ANYTHING you say online can be published for all to see at any time.

Just a little funny bit:  The Daily Mail ran a story yesterday on a book of the most jaw-droppingly offensive adverts from “the time equality forgot.”  Check them out if you need a Thursday laugh to hold you over till the weekend.

Poor MySpace, still trying to usurp the thousands who left for Facebook…

Today, as I signed into my account, I was greeted with this:

It reads,

“Now you and your friends can be updated whenever either of you:

• Adds new photos
• Adds new videos
• Adds new blogs
• Edits their profiles
• Adds new music (bands only)

Besides being grammatically incorrect in the most atrocious way, it ends up making MySpace look like the jealous sibling of a new baby. If MySpace really wants to retain their current users and attract new ones, they have to come up with a more creative strategy than copying their could-be successor.

Come now, let’s think outside the box.

One of the things I’ve been meaning to write about for a while are the recipients of 2007 Wommie Awards. This is the second year for the awards, which are given out at the Womma Summit. Last year, we were fortunate enough to win one for our work with The Canary Project, but this year we lost graciously passed the torch on to some very deserving candidates. Two, in particular, I thought really stood out.

The first from Quicken Loans. I’ll note that the presenter of the project was Clayton (the man) Closson, who used to work at our MS&L Ann Arbor office. He moved on to Quicken to be part of their blog team among other things about a month before I started.

Clayton’s program was a collaboration between Quicken and Yahoo! Answers. As the story goes, Clayton was perusing Yahoo! Answers and saw someone that had a question about mortgages. Being a home loans expert, he stepped in to answer the question. After several months it became evident just how many questions there are on home loans. Clayton’s Answers were picked most often as the best by Yahoo! users giving him and the company instant credibility. The people at Yahoo! Answers took note and offeredQuicken a Yahoo! Answers Knowledge Partner profile, as the Home Loan Guru.

What started out as a nice thing to do turned into an awesome word of mouth campaign. Personally, that’s what I love about it - Quicken didn’t go out there and hit people over the head with adverts that screamed “We’re the experts!!!!”, they reached their target audience in an engaging manner and left the loan decision-making process to the consumer. Through this partnership, Quicken Loans is seen as the authority on home loans and mortgages from a trusted and credible third-party source. Well done!

The second Wommie campaign I want to highlight is Converseon’s Second Chance Trees project. Rob Key, CEO of Converseon, and Paull and Christi’s boss, presented this amazing campaign. Converseon blurred the line between the virtual and physical worlds by incorporating Second Life into what was basically a fundraiser for the reforestation of the world’s rainforests.

Converseon, in collaboration with Plant-It 2020 bought an island on Second Life on which any Second Life user can purchase a virtual endangered tree to plant on the island for 300 lindens (about one U.S. dollar). From there, each tree planted on Second Life plants the same species of tree in a real life rainforest. It took off like gangbusters. People who planted trees on Second Life began sharing them on Flickr, making memorial trees for loved ones and blogging about the program - all with minimal involvement from Converseon itself.

I had to eat my words a little bit, because I am not a fan of Second Life, but I think the SCT project works where others have failed for several reasons:

• Even though you have to buy something to participate, the campaign is not trying to “sell” you anything (notice a trend here?)
• Philanthropy always goes a long way with the general public
• People who aren’t on Second Life can still understand, identify and be likely to pass on the information to others
• It was a Second Life campaign that was in no way limited to Second Life (something that resonates with me, especially)

There were two other winners: Affinitive for their American Skiing Company: MyA41.com Passholder Community and Fanscape for their campaign, “Clear Channel NEW! Populating Site with Musicians” Feel free to check those out as well!

Congratulations to everyone! And watch out for next year. We’re reclaiming the prize in ‘08.

In what is the best news of the week (so far), it was announced that Facebook is FINALLY getting rid of the “is” on their status updates, meaning that I can finally tell all of my old high school and college classmates I haven’t talked to in 5+ years exactly what I’m doing in present OR past tense.

Joke as I might, it actually was one of the more annoying qualities of Facebook. I can’t even imagine how annoying it would be if I didn’t speak English. So with that, I mimic Katherine Hannaford by saying “Melanie Seasons is… glad that Facebook is abolishing ‘is’ from status updates.” The only thing left to do is leave my favourite Facebook group. Ya done well, kids.

Wow, has the blogosphere been quiet since Thanksgiving! Either the tryptophan has put us Yanks to sleep or everyone is exhausted from shopping their hearts out on Black Friday. I, for one, didn’t step foot in a store, but I did buy a new iPod (on sale, mind you) from the online Apple store. Merry Christmas, Melanie!

In any case, I am back from spending several lovely days in the great Michigan woods with my family. Finally rested, I think I can get back to blogging and bring you this weekend’s mash-up.

1. Is Santa too fat?

In the seemingly unending stories about how UK children are hovering on the line of obesity (or toppling over it, as some would argue), a mall in England has ordered its Santa to slim down. Bluewater Shopping Centre is running a Santa boot camp to help Father Christmas lose a few for the holidays. The manager quipped, “We want to make sure Santa is fit so he can deliver all the presents.”

Isn’t this taking it a bit far? i understand the message that they’re trying to convey, but what child ever says “Gee wiz, I can’t wait to grow up and look fat like Santa Claus!”

via FitSugar

2. Boost your Wifi MacGyver-style

Are you one of the unlucky souls who just can’t seem to get a strong enough signal off of your wireless router? A how-to video from Metacafe says that all you need is half a Coke can and a hole punch to solve your problem. The end result makes your router look like a mini satellite dish.

Metacafe via Apartment Therapy: Home Tech

3. “I’m sure your kids are ok”

A blog that I’m officially in love with, The Leaky Brain, recently cross-posted a missed connection that she put up on Seattle’s Craig’s List. I’m posting it in full, because it’s brilliant and I’m not sure all of you would click through to her page (even though you should).

@ 7-Eleven ON SATURDAY

---

Reply to: leaky brain
Date: 2007-11-12, 3:31AM PSTYou were a frazzled mother who asked me to look after your kids so you could go inside the convenience store and get some milk and food. I didn’t want to agree, but I felt really bad, so I said yes. I shouldn’t have because I didn’t like your kids. Frankly, they were all unattractive. How come there were so many of them too? One of them was clinging to my leg, begging me for something to eat. I didn’t know there were any gypsies in Seattle, and the whole thing grossed me out.So, listen, when my ride came to pick me up, I didn’t have any choice but to take your disgusting kids with me because I looked inside the store, and I didn’t see you. I put them in the backseat, and gave each one of them a Xanax. That quieted them down a bit, but one still insisted on singing happy-sounding songs, so I put some super minty chapstick under his eyes, and that seemed to make him shut those lids tight. I was glad too because your kids were looking kind of haggard; clearly they needed sleep.Anyhow, I drove them to a really pretty place. It was some sort of old quarry pit, and it was filled with muddy water. There were lots of rocks around, and I thought they could play and have a good time. I mean, how cool? No lifeguards or adults to boss them around. Once the Xanax wore off, the oldest-looking one thought it would be fun to swing from some power cables that were hanging down from these big posts. It looked fun with all those sparks shooting everywhere. They sure seemed happy, especially when some coyotes came out of nowhere to play with your dirty kids, but I was running late for a massage appointment, so I had to leave them there. I’m sure your kids are ok. I wish I could tell you exactly where I left them, but honestly I just wasn’t paying that much attention. I gave the smallest one a half-eaten Power Bar I had in my car. She wanted the beef jerky and butterfingers I had stashed in my glove compartment, but I told her absolutely not. I hope you find your dirty kids.

• Location: SEATTLE, WA.
• it’s NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

PostingID: 476264764

Happy Thanksgiving!

In just a few short hours I’m off to my grandmother’s house for that crazy American holiday where we eat turkey in honor of thanks, the end of the harvest season and 38 pilgrims who gathered for dinner 385 years ago. My grandma does not have Internet, so I’ll be out of commission until Saturday. In the meantime, feel free to peruse these Thanksgiving-themed posts from Mental Floss.

• Weird facts about Thanksgiving staples: pumpkin pie, yams & sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce
• Manly ways to prepare turkey
• What the pilgrims really did on Thanksgiving
• The lesser known uses of a turkey carcass
  
• A squeamish vegetarian’s worst nightmare
• Everything you’ve never needed know about the turkey
• How to drink your Turkey Day meal. (And might I add: Ewww.)
  

Pic via Comix Connection

One of the most brilliant blogs I’ve had the fortune of coming across. A user-submitted mash-up of signs and notes that use quotation marks “correctly.” The best so far? The Thanksgiving-themed post from this past Saturday:

via Hollywood Flakes (I should disclose that Hollywood is an awesome blogger with whom I have worked on several client campaigns. Just so you know…)

One of the sessions that I was most looking forward to at last week’s Womma conference was “International: WOMM Around the Globe.” The panel, led by Dave Balter of BzzAgent, included three international WOM experts - Thomas Reemer of Berlin LLC, Steve Barton of WOM UK and Renan Tavukcuoglu of FikriMühim (Turkey) and one very global American: Jonathan Carson of Nielson Buzz Metrics.

Unlike many of the sessions at Womma, this one turned into a real discussion instead of just a sales pitch. We touched on cultural differences, the impact of China on WOM, how to sell WOM abroad and most importantly (to me anyway) - the influence of American WOM practices on the rest of the world.

Now this is where it gets interesting:
Most of the audience agreed that the rest of the world was anywhere from 18 months to three years behind the US and most agreed that they have a lot to learn from the Americans, but from there it split. About half of the audience said that they want to take after Americans or use the American model for their own practices. But when panel moderator, Balter, asked that half if they would like to see Americans actually come over and show them the ropes, only two people raised their hands. The panel member from Germany was especially skeptical. “That’s very dangerous territory,” he said. Ouch.

I walked out of the room feeling dejected. I am an American - an outgoing one at that. And here I am, with all these plans, wide-eyed and State-side, not even knowing if I’m going to be accepted or wanted once I move. I have had a little bit of encouragement along the way, though: According to TWL, I’m an American, but “a nice one.” Gee thanks, but doesn’t that, even in jest, imply that rest of my countrymen are awful?

Dangerous territory, indeed.

As usual, it comes down to stereotypes. I sat in a room full of international attendees who came to the States to learn about American WOM practices and yet, were ready to judge Americans as unfit to advise on WOMM elsewhere. Sure, cultural elements come into play, but it seems to me that the age-old fear of the overbearing American “taking over” is at play. So riddle me this: If someone is going to judge me and my business practices simply because I’m American, doesn’t that make that person just as shortsighted as the stereotypical Americans he or she is trying to avoid?

Any thoughts are appreciated.

Yesterday I was working from home with a cold and a minor case of exhaustion. Today I am full-on-barely out of bed sick sickity sick sick. I’ve slept 19 of the last 36 hours, my bedroom floor is littered with tissues and I haven’t used my voice in nearly 16 hours. Thank goodness my form of blogging on the weekend takes very little effort. So here is a mash-up for the ill.

1. 10 Ways Never to Get Sick Again

Or as I will call them “10 BS Ways Never to Get Sick Again Because I Do 8 Out of 10 of Them”

• See a Chiropractor (I don’t get it)
• Laugh hard (check)
• Scatter your workouts (check)
• Sleep at least seven hours a night (check)
• See an acupuncturist (Again, I don’t get it)
• Meditate (check)
• Perform cardiovascular exercise at least four times a week (check)
• Stretch (check)
• Eat organic food (check)
• Be wary of medications (check)

via FitSugar
photo via Ferhat Bingol

2. How to best keep two workspaces between multiple computers.

Comes in handy when working away from the office. Tips include:

• Synch your bookmarks
• Keep your calendars up-to-date
• Make sure there is consistency in your e-mail programs (unless you use Lotus Notes webmail, in which case you’re SOL)
• Consolidate essential files
• Use large-capacity flash drives to transfer files

Most are fairly obvious, but it’s always nice to have a reminder here and there.

via Lifehacker

3. Who is Sick?

Obviously the best way to avoid illness is to avoid contagious germ machines in airplanes, shopping malls and restaurants, but how do you know where they are hiding? Who is Sick? is a Google map interface of sick people in your neighborhood and their symptoms. You can report yourself or someone else. So far, I’m the only person reported in Ann Arbor who is tired, has a runny nose and a sore throat. You’ve been warned.

via Boing Boing

4. Toilet Tunes

If you happen to have the kind of illness that requires you to be hunched over the toilet for long periods of time (and thank goodness I do not), perhaps you might want to invest in Toilet Tunes, a small device that plays “soothing” music while the lid is up. It’s supposed to mask the rather unpleasant sounds that are sometimes accompanied by toilet behaviour. You can choose from jazz, Latin guitar, modern techno/jazz or nature sounds such as rain, ocean waves or mountain stream. It’s also been pointed out that Toilet Tunes can be used as a reminder for men to put the lid down, effectively soothing wives and girlfriends as well.

via OhGizomo! via Random Good Stuff