>> socialTNT » how to pitch bloggers

“Chow Down: How to Use Friendfeed for Better PR”

Chris Apollo Lynn — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 21:41:33 +0000

So we’ve held off on posting about Friendfeed for several months. As adoption has slowly increased, we have started to warm up to it. While it may be too soon to ditch Twitter and throw all your efforts into Friendfeed, it can be a great tool to add to your arsenal. Today, socialTNT takes a look at some of the ways Friendfeed can help you build relationships and more effectively reach your target reporters and bloggers.

What is Friendfeed?

Friendfeed is a “social aggregator”
In non-Valley speak: Friendfeed is like the Facebook newsfeed, except it lists all the actions you do across more than 43 sites, including YouTube, Flickr, StumbleUpon, Digg and LinkedIn
Also like Facebook, you can share items directly into your feed.
Most exciting: Every action in the feed becomes a blog post, letting you comment in a conversation thread

Friendfeed for Media Research

To be the good PR person that you are, you do your due diligence by reading all articles and post by your target journos and blogos–if not daily, then before you reach out to them.

With Friendfeed, you can see:

All of their latest posts
What they are reading
Twitter-feed
Pictures of the fam
Videos

Take a look at the page from Chris Nuttall of Financial Times (click to enlarge):

You can stay up-to-date with any of the blogos or journos you follow by adding their feed to your reader. Scroll down to the bottom of the feed and click the RSS Logo:

Get Involved With a Reporter’s/Blogger’s Community

Friendfeed isn’t just a stalking device, it’s a great opportunity for PR peeps to form relationships and have conversations not usually possible.

Become a member of the reporter’s or blogger’s community by:
- Adding thoughtful comments to their items
- Participating in discussions

Check out the screenshot, below, from Robert Scoble’s feed. The red box shows you where to go to comment. Click “more” to link to this item or share it with your feed.

Click on “more comments” (as indicated by the green box, above) to see the full conversation thread related to that action’s comments. Robert even answers comments:

Getting Started with Friendfeed

Sign up for a free account
Add the info from the sites you want to share
Add me
Add some Reporters/Bloggers (a few listed below)
Join “Rooms” or groups based on your interests or your clients’ industry
Share posts, articles, interesting thoughts

Reporters and bloggers on Friendfeed

Just a small sample:

With Friendfeed and Twitter, you have a great non-intrusive way to get to know reporters and bloggers. You also get the chance to join their community and share ideas. Go ahead and give it a shot!

Also, check out the new widgets Friendfeed (like a Blogger Badge, Share This, RSS and others) has recently launched. It also looks like they are trying to speed up RSS. Cool!

Are you using Friendfeed? What has your experience been like? Like/dislike? Let us know in the comments!

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“Gina Responds! And: About Yesterday’s Post”

Chris Apollo Lynn — Sat, 10 May 2008 17:27:52 +0000

Late yesterday, I received the following email from Gina. My reply is further down the page:

Hi Chris,

Thanks for your email. My name and further explanation appears on the
wiki, which anyone can leave a comment on. (You just need to log into
PBwiki to do so.)

Also, as I say on the wiki, I welcome story pitches to tips@lifehacker.com.

Have a good weekend,
Gina

I also received some Tweets and emails saying yesterday’s post/email was a little harsh.

The post was about accountability, communication and education. If someone creates something that could impact people’s pocket books, that person should take responsibility for their actions. Especially if that person is already involved in social media and understands that nature of how it works.

On Gina’s blog and in her books, she helps educate people by offering tips and tricks to do things more effectively. That’s what was so irksome about the situation. She could have easily taken the same amount of time to write an educational post–or really any post at all–and could have positively affected the conversation.

My reply to Gina is below. As always, please feel free to comment.

Hi Gina:

Thanks for your email, and thanks for changing the wiki. I’m 100% for sharing opinions. I also 100% understand your frustration.

From what I can see from your blog, you and I both have the same goal: to help and educate. That is probably why I found your actions so upsetting. Instead of using your talent and skill to help people learn and perhaps prevent the mistake, you chose a negative action. You used your position of power and influence to negatively affect an industry on which you rely. You may say, “I shouldn’t have to educate people on how to do their job,” but you do it daily on your blog.

Check out these posts from Mashable and this one from ReadWriteWeb. By offering tips with best and worst practices, these guys are helping to make it easier for themselves and the PR pros that pitch them. After receiving several really really bad pitches of the course of a few days, I also posted “Luke I Am Your Blogger, How to Pitch From the Dark Side” as a way for me to vent my frustrations. It also allowed me to use my unique role as both blogger and PR pro to help others grow from my experience.

Remember, what you say/post can affect people’s pocketbooks. Please think about that and look to find ways to positively impact the conversation.

Thank you,

Chris

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[The above painting is by my favorite guerrilla artist, Banksy. His book says "Copyright is for losers," so I don't think he'll mind if we use it]

“Unsubscribe Lifehacker: My Email to Gina Trapani”

Chris Apollo Lynn — Sat, 10 May 2008 00:52:16 +0000

This morning, the Twitterverse was a flame after Gina Trapani from Lifehacker tweeted a link to a wiki she had created. The wiki, PR Companies Who Spam Bloggers, is a ready-to-paste-into-your-spam-filter list of domains belonging to a good chunk of the tech PR firms out there. Her response, thus far, has been linking back to this blog post from Matt Haughey. [UPDATED: Gina emailed saying she had changed the wiki to include attribution and reasoning. See the email, my response and my reasoning behind this post here.]

In the past, socialTNT has responded with blog posts on how to increase communications (you can find those here and here). Since there is no attribution on the wiki, I had no clue who had created the until someone shared Gina’s original Tweet. Because I found this semi-anonymous approach to be rather old-school in nature, I decided to send her the below email. It may be a little harsh, but the bottom line is that her actions affect the wallets of PR professionals everywhere. If you find my email to be a little agitated, you might prefer Todd Defren’s open letter to Gina or Brian Solis’ post discussing PR “spam.” Also, please feel free to unsubscribe Lifehacker from your RSS feed.

What do you think of Gina’s actions? Or my email? Please share your thoughts.

—————–

Hi Gina:

My name is Chris Lynn. I edit a blog called socialTNT. Our mission here is to create a discussion between PR Pros, Marketers, Bloggers and Journalists on social media and its role in our respective professions. While not as big as Lifehacker, we still receive a nice amount of traffic. I would love to expand socialTNT into something larger, but I don’t have a lot of extra time to invest. You see, I work full-time as a PR professional.

As a PR person in the new media age, I work daily with bloggers and journalists, sometimes through the phone, sometimes through email/twitter/IM. No matter what the medium, I try to devote 100% of myself to the process. I say “try” because we all have bad days, but it’s a job. I’m sure you have at least one post that wasn’t your best, so maybe you can empathize.

After I finish working 9 hour days, I come home and work on the blog. That can mean anything from reading through my feeds to planning the interviews, tweaking layouts, researching emerging tech, or just learning editing software. Then I write about it. I try to stay tuned into trends in media, marketing and PR–like I said, I don’t have a lot of time to write, but I do have a lot of ideas.

With my professional life (both with the blog and at the agency) I operate on these 3 principles:

Accountability and as much Transparency as possible
Communication and Conversation
Education and Peer Development

Your wiki doesn’t do any of the above. [UPDATED: Gina emailed saying she had changed the wiki to include attribution and reasoning.] Sure, you semi-transparently Tweeted the link. Those who stumble upon the wiki won’t know this. By cutting off domains, you stifle conversation. Had you blogged the list, there might have been debate/discussion in the comments. Yes, Twitter is a discussion, but it’s not particularly contiguous, nor is it associated with the list. Finally, your post did nothing along the lines of education. In my eyes, your move was an aggressive one that came from a place of anger instead of looking towards understanding.

In the new media age, information is currency. By limiting the flow of information, you could find yourself bankrupt. Just remember: there’s always another up-and-comer in the wings who might just be a little thirstier than you. Oh, and another thing about the new media age: your audience is fluid. As soon as they find something better, they are quick to change their click.

In true liquid fashion, I’m exercising my right to click by unsubscribing Lifehacker from my RSS feed until the wiki is removed or until you start a more genuine dialog–on my blog or on your own. [UPDATED: Gina emailed saying she had changed the wiki to include attribution and reasoning.] I don’t support negativity. At all.

Just remember that your flippant actions and comments can affect the livelihoods of real people with real families. Please don’t take that lightly.

Best,

Chris

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“3sday’s 3Q’s in 3Min: Mike Rothman, Security Incite”

Chris Apollo Lynn — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 17:01:23 +0000

No time to check out the spring wildflowers in bloom? No problem, today’s “3sdays 3Q’s in 3Min” is just as fresh and colorful.

Every Thursday, socialTNT channels the spirit of citizen journalism by putting bloggers, reporters, PR pro’s or anyone with something to say about social media in front of the camera for a short, three minute interview. In addition to helping PR peeps pitch these individuals more effectively, the videos are meant to encourage dialog between reporters, PR/communications practitioners and marketers on the future of media.

This week, socialTNT is at the world’s largest security expo, the RSA Conference. While there, we ran into Principal Analyst and Blogger at Security Incite, Mike Rothman. Since Mike is a blogging analyst who was once a VP of Marketing, I was really psyched when he agreed to an interview. In today’s “3Q’s in 3Min,” Mike tells how he likes to get pitched and the value of a blog for brand building.

Mike has been in the security industry for over 15 years. Starting out as an analyst, he spent the mid-90′s as a VP at IT research firm The META Group. After that, Mike served as VP of Marketing at a couple of software firms. In 2006, Mike founded Security Incite, an analyst firm specializing in information security. With the founding of the company, Mike also started blogging. Alongside the bog, Mike has a highly circulated, daily newsletter and just recently started podcasting.

Known for offering a “no bull” take on information security, Mike’s blog aims to create a conversation between buyers, consumers and product manufacturers. He can’t stand product messaging that sets the wrong expectation for buyers, and will write a harsh reality-check, should he cover your product. Mike’s “Security Incite Rants” have pissed off many a CEO, but like any conversation, Mike encourages them to respond in the comments.

To marketers, Mike strongly recommends they jump on board the blog train as a great way to get their voice out and build thought leadership. He also believes in Karma, stating that you get what you give. While many marketers might shudder at the thought of giving away free products, Mike readily offers a free monthly analyst report to his readers. His reasoning: Karma–you have to give to get.

Fun Facts About Mike:

Lives just outside of Atlanta
Mac user
Used to have a column in Network World
Not on Twitter (he thinks that it’s not an important communication channel for his target demo)
Is on LinkedIn

Mike hopes that today’s video will help slow the tide of bad pitches in his Inbox. Watch as he tells us how to pitch a blogger and the best way your spokesperson to respond to a bad post. Also find out why Mike thinks blogging is so important for small businesses.

I like Mike’s take on blogging and the importance of distribution to increase the conversation amongst like-minded individuals. How has blogging changed you or your company’s role in the industry? Has the increased conversation changed your outlook on industry topics?

No time to watch the video at work? Get “3Q’s in 3Min” free from iTunes and watch it on the go!

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“3sday’s 3Q’s in 3 Min: Chris Parandian, MobileDiner.com”

Chris Apollo Lynn — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 01:01:26 +0000

Pardon our radio silence; we’ve been at CTIA Wireless in Las Vegas. (Almost) live from Vegas, it’s “3sdays 3Q’s in 3Min.”

While at CTIA, socialTNT met up with MobileDiner.com‘s Chris Parandian. If you or your client is in the Wireless space, pay attention. In today’s “3Q’s in 3Min,” Chris tells us more why he loves social media and shares his CTIA show faves.

Unless you’ve got the clout of GigaOm or TechCrunch, most bloggers don’t blog full time. Whether full-time or not, most bloggers are pretty passionate in the niche they cover. Chris is no exception.

Offline, Chris works as a mobile policy consultant. Not surprisingly, MobileDiner.com is a forum for consumers and feds to learn about the ins and outs of wireless policy. Don’t let the nichey-ness scare you, Chris also covers mobile startups or innovators that change the ways people connect and communicate. He’s also the founder of the DC-based, new media firm Tin Can Communications, so you’ll also notice posts on social media or marketing and PR.

Chris and I have been following each other on Twitter for sometime. Last month, he also covered news from one of my clients, so it was great to finally meet him in person. Even though both of us were over-stimulated and running on little sleep, we had a great conversation.

In the following video, Chris tells us more about his blog/beat and explains what he likes most about social media. He also drops his best-of-shows at CTIA 2008.

No time to watch the video at work? Get “3Q’s in 3Min” free from iTunes and watch it on the go!

Also, don’t miss a post: Drop socialTNT into your RSS reader [what’s that?]. Better yet, subscribe to socialTNT by email!

[Above photo courtesy of Jeff Pulver]

“3sday’s 3Q’s in 3 Min: Liz Gannes, NewTeeVee”

Chris Apollo Lynn — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 01:00:23 +0000

No Valentine? No problem! Today’s “3sday’s 3Q’s in 3 Min” comes with all the sweet sentiment of a box of chocolates, but without that bad stomach ache afterwards.

This Thursday, socialTNT chats with Liz Gannes, Editor of NewTeeVee. In today’s “3 Q’s in 3 Min” Liz shares best practices for PR pros, and also explores the future of online video now that the writers’ strike is over.

In December 2006, Liz left her very PR-pitch popular position as writer covering the Web 2.0 beat at GigaOM to edit NewTeeVee, a new media focused blog published by Om Malik’s Giga Omni Media network. If you or your client is a start-up specializing in some aspect of new media–particularly focusing on the convergence with video or broadband–this is the place to be.

When Liz agreed to the interview and gave me a pier number as an address–and then told me to meet her by the docks–I got a little worried; had I sent a bad pitch and was about to get offed? Silicon Valley can be a bit of a mobster state. Plus, Om’s stogie-smoking imagery and all-encompassing media network are pretty mafia-like. Not so, said Liz. They had just moved and didn’t have any markings up yet.

Fun Facts About Liz:

Before moving to Palo Alto, Liz used to live a couple of blocks from me in SF’s hipster-haven Mission district
Graduated from Dartmouth College with a Bachelors in Linguistics
A night person, she wakes up late and then catches up on the daily news by reading a couple hundred RSS feeds
While not opposed to being pitched through Facebook and Twitter, Liz sees those as personal realms — email is best
Liz organizes the NewTeeVee Pier Screenings in SF
Introduced me to my new Video Valentine: blip.tv

Watch as Liz tells us a little more about her beat, names the most influential new media innovation in 2007, and let’s us know what makes a good communications professional.

What was the most influential new media trend in 2007? Or, for PR pros, how do you add value to your reporter relations? Let us know in the comments!

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[The above photo, “Liz Gannes” by joeywan on flickr, used under Creative Commons.]

“3sday’s 3Q’s in 3 Min: Kara Swisher, All Things D, Part 2”

Chris Apollo Lynn — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 20:01:42 +0000

It’s Thursday. I’m up in the sky on a trip to Austin, and you’re reading “3sday’s 3Q’s in 3 Min.”Every Thursday, socialTNT channels the spirit of citizen journalism by putting bloggers, reporters, PR pro’s or anyone with something to say about social media in front of the camera for a short, three minute interview. In addition to helping PR peeps pitch these individuals more effectively, the videos are meant to encourage dialog between reporters, PR/communications practitioners and marketers on the future of media.

This week is part two of our discussion with Kara Swisher from All Things D. Last week, Kara told us why she LOVES blogging. In this week’s “3Q’s in 3Min,” Kara tells TechCrunch’s Michael Arrington how to “Just Say No” to PR pitches, gives her tips on good PR, and explains the art of good video interviews.

A few days ago, PR pros everywhere sighed with relief; a study came out showing that reporters truly need the relationships they have with their public relations contacts. Although she knows a thousand and one ways to say No, Kara does value a good PR professional. For Kara, PR is more than just a one-night stand. It’s a relationship.

Here are Kara’s tips to becoming a good PR pro:

Know what the reporter writes about
Create and build an ongoing relationship
Bring interesting stuff
Be loyal to your client, but address issues and problems in an honest way

Wanna know more? Watch the video. She’ll even throw in a description of her beat.

What are other traits you think a good PR pro should posses?

On All Things D, Kara obsesses on companies/stories as much as she wants. How does blogging change the traditional media flow of information? Do news bloggers convey stronger opinions through their pieces than a traditional outlet? If so, do you consider that a good thing? Love to hear your thoughts.

Don’t miss out: Add us to your RSS reader, or sign up for our email.

Recommended reading

“3Q’s in 3Min with John Markoff, New York Times, Part 1”

“3Q’s in 3Min with John Markoff, New York Times, Part 2”

“How Media Relations Got Its Groove Back”

[The above photo, "Kara Swisher is looking at YOU, yes YOU. You know who you are." by Mark Montiero on flickr, used under Creative Commons.]

“Amazon PR Tries to Dam the River of News; Flood Ensues”

Chris Apollo Lynn — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 07:09:30 +0000

Oh, Amazon, your recommendations know me so well–maybe not so much on the books (I purchased some X-mas presents for my brother one year, now it thinks I like encryption and security)–but music is spot on. I wish your PR department understood blogger relations nearly as accurately.

This evening, Read/Write Web posted an account of their trials and tribulations of dealing with Amazon’s PR. Here’s what happened:

A week ago, Amazon approaches RWW with a draft of the release under embargo until November 15.
RWW writes post covering Amazon’s news up after 12 AM EST.
RWW woke up next day to see emails from Amazon at 11:59 PM EST–one minute before release time–saying the news was on hold.
More emails from Amazon saying news was not true and was under embargo.
RWW and Amazon PR in discussion throughout the day with Amazon requesting post be taken down.
RWW says they will change the post if Amazon sends statement.
Amazon sends statement written in first person for the blogger to post. Check it out:

“Since the publication of this post, an Amazon spokesperson contacted me to clarify that no announcement was made in regards to support for Open Social. The Amazon spokesperson went on to say that Social network developers have been using the Amazon Associates Web Service to merchandise Amazon products (and earn Associates commissions) for some time. She indicated that Amazon would continue to provide developers with tools that allow them to choose the platform that makes the most sense for them regardless of the Social networking site they are building on. She pointed out…”

RWW blogger Marshall Kirkpatrick (appropriately) reacts with the follow disgust:

I cannot believe they’d send me text written in the first person and expect me to post it under my own name! Not to mention the really uptight language they’ve got that puppet named Marshall using!

Ok, so what went wrong here? Is it really a case of bad blogger relations? Let’s break it down and see what we can learn.

Here are my Amazon Recommendations:

Drafts should never go out. If they absolutely must, then follow-up with the final when it’s available. If you aren’t sure you want it to go out, don’t send it out.
The news cycle has changed–and not just with bloggers. Even traditional pubs will post news online before the print version hits. You can’t pull news by sending an email at 11:59PM and expect compliance. I believe most people will respect an extended embargo, if you make a reasonable effort at timely notification.
Come clean. You made a mistake. It happens. Maybe some miscommunication happened btwn biz dev and marketing or it’s just not ready. Whatever, send a statement or, better yet, post a human comment on the “offending” blog. Don’t hound the blogger to take it off.
(Most important): DONT WRITE A STATEMENT IN THE BLOGGERS VOICE FOR THEM TO POST. Sorry for shouting, but, seriously, you just don’t get it. That assumes SOOO much. And you know what happens when you assume? You make an ass out of u and Jeff Bezos. PR pros should never ever ever tell someone what to write, especially not a blogger!

So, yeah, Amazon will probably cancel my Prime account and I may end up with a horse head in my next order, but if it helps people understand good public relations, then it’s worth it!

Anyone else have any other advice to give to Amazon or aspiring PR folks? Have you ever had to pull news? How did you execute that task and how did it turn out? Love to hear your thoughts.

“How Media Relations Got Its Groove Back”

Chris Apollo Lynn — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 20:22:28 +0000

Bummed about recent media relations lovers’ spats? As with Mr X and Ms Y from the break-up email, sometimes the relationship between reporters and PR flacks can be on-again off-again. In any healthy relationship, communication is the key. You have to listen to your partner, try to get to know them, prove you have listened and then show them you care.

Here are a few pointers on how to get your blogger groove back:

How often does your wife get upset if you forget your first date? Bloggers/reporters care about that, too. Did you meet them at a MediaBistro or a Lunch 2.0 party? Follow-up and stay in touch, but stay respectful and professional.
KNOW YOUR BLOGGER. Know what they cover. Look them up on Facebook. Get an RSS feed and eye it throughout the day. Seriously. You wouldn’t (or maybe shouldn’t) book reservations at an Indian place if you knew your spouse’s stomach couldn’t handle curry, so don’t send a video game pitch to a network security blogger.
You don’t tell your partner you love them just on Valentine’s Day. Maintain your relationship, not just when you have news. It also doesn’t mean just through email. You can respond thoughtfully on their posts and participate in the discussion.
Wow, a teddy bear that says “I love you!” So cliche. Don’t just send a blogger a press release. The best way to get heard is to remain clear and concise. Fluff-free writing and bulleted summaries serve that purpose best. Better yet: blog it!
Like making a date, you have to be clear on embargoes: When and what time?
Sometimes when your lover is ready to go, they are ready to go and you have to jump in bed at moment’s notice. Since blogs and online news run on a different cycle, you have to be available for quick follow-ups or briefings.
Ok, so maybe you can’t find Mr/Ms Right. There are plenty of fish in the sea. Don’t limit yourself to Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie. Look at tier two and tier three bloggers. Maybe their beat is more closely related to your product or pitch.

Traditionally, PR professionals would build relationships with reporters: meet for coffee, have the occasional social phone call, send thank you notes, etc. Today, we don’t have to have those offline, real world relations to build reporter rapport. With the advent of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn we can see casual sides, share interests (music, movies, hobbies), and engage in thoughtful conversation. But, you still have to do your homework.

We are all learning this together. Hopefully, too many witches won’t have to be burned before we get it right.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

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