Over the past year or so Edelman has occasionally overshadowed its client, Wal-Mart, in the public discussion of PR tactics (the rapid response Bentonville "war room" and blogger outreach were widely distributed stories). Now that the most prominent, high-level Edelman pro on Wal-Mart, Leslie Dach, has switched to the client side I wonder how this changes the dynamics of the account and PR activities. You have to admit that Edelman's work for Wal-Mart has sparked widespread scrutiny - maybe more than it is comfortable with.

Hi Mark. We have not been pushing ourselves forward on Wal-Mart. It is the other side, trying to make a big deal out of a PR firm working for this client and doing so very effectively. And besides, the controversy about Edelman working with bloggers got me on CNN with Jeff Jarvis! Thanks for reading my blog.

Excellent points and our own Pontus Nystrom(Edelman Sweden) said it in an even simpler way: "my job is to get corporates to talk like people".

I enjoyed the FDR reference. I recall being struck by Mario Cuomo and his use of a similar conversational style when he addressed the 1984 Democratic National Covention. In contrast to Kennedy's thunderous 1980 address, Cuomo's low key delivery also proved very powerful.

Regarding corporate bloggers, I think it's similar in some ways to trying to convince some executives, even today, to participate in television news interviews. Assuming they have something to say, some have figured out that instead of taking a beating on a 90 second news segment, they can fill some of that time delivering their own message and actually communicating even much more than that. They're apprehensive because they don't trust the medium, and many never will. Of course, what it really looks like is they don't trust the viewers (their customers).

Blogging takes it a step further because not only are execs uncertain of the medium, but also they're scared to death about what all the messengers will say. As you well know, the conversation is taking place and will continue take place with or without them. The number of people influenced by those conversations is growing every day.

I wonder if FDR were alive today, if he'd be sitting by that fire with his laptop - having another kind of fireside chat.

Leo's comments make me think of something which has been tried in Europe in the last years. Some Members of the European Commission have held online Q&A sessions on their policies concerning Europe, thus tried to make the conversation real with anyone interested in joining through internet.

There are also blogs by politicians holding office, such as http://weblog.jrc.ec.europa.eu/page/wallstrom which is held by the V-P of the Commission. Yet, most of her colleagues would never want to do this - some of them cannot even type on a pc.

One other example is the Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs, who also is now the holding the Presidency of the European Union. Mr Tuomioja has his minimalist blog at http://formin.finland.fi/public/default.aspx?nodeid=34772&contentlan=2&culture=en-US

These are small steps, but slowly, slowly, democracy and politics will return closer to the citizen. If only the citizens were interested - but that's another story.

Richard -- I think your point is well taken. All marketing is a conversation between consumers and, in theory, the product. Whether that marketing is the 'Just do it' Nike ads -- or press releases and articles talking about Ipods in shoes -- the conversation is the point.

I often think that communication professionals spend too much time trying to out do their own mind. Nike's slogan is direct and to the point -- and that is the real truth behind winning in advertising. You don't need to explain 'Just do it' -- it explains itself in numerous ways.

If we can just limit our press releases and pitches to a few words, or a few lines, we might have better luck.

My thought is that a press release is the bait -- yet day after day I see term papers sent out to the media. As PR professionals we need to be as concise as possible -- and provide a conversation rather than a dissertation.

We had one client who insisted that the press kit for Comdex each year was larger than the year before. This size issue is serious and very counterproductive. Thanks for reading my blog

I think the whole concept of "owning" anything runs counter to the philosophy of those with whom you're seeking to engage, but beyond that proviso I like the first two strands of your strategy.

The third is more troublesome because I think some people would question the potential for impartiality from a PR company that is presumably being paid by someone (presumably a larger organsiation) to undertake this role. Or perhaps I've misunderstood that point.

"Passion trumps credentials."???

You're getting sillier and sillier. I could point out some of your other quotes here but after that, what's the point.

- Amanda

It's clear that you've not only embraced the art of conversation in the blogosphere, but also want to extend it across many platforms and bring greater depth and diversity to the table. Our profession sorely needs this level of inclusion and dialogue. Thanks to you and to Saffo.

Richard,

I think that the quotes from Saffo above are spot on and your thoughts on how to shape PR to the new landscape are interesting.

The fascinating question in my mind these days is whether marketing and PR are becoming obsolete?

Can marketing and PR add enough value elsewhere to compensate for the damage they potentially do by creating a wall between producers/designers/creators and their community/audience/customers?

I would love to hear your thoughts on these big questions.

Eric

"Smart companies feed forward instead of getting feedback"...

Very impressive post on the way forward for the PR industry. Instead of nit-picking Edelman's three-step approach, public relations professionals should work towards earning a place in the board rooms where policies are shaped.

Amanda,

This is Saffo's line, not mine
Here is where I am
Credentials always matter
It is now clear however that self appointed experts with real subject expertise and without a degree from MIT can offer valuable insight Thanks for your note.

LB,

Just a thought here. Maybe we can get you to join session we are planning for pr profs at universities this fall. We have to educate next generation.

EM,

Yes we can add value. We can envisage a new reality such as new push by wal mart on environment. We can catalyze suporters and help to make the new initiative succeed

It's a good point, Richard (although to be fair, the commenter did provide a name - whether you think it's a real one or not is another issue).

It's actually not the first time this has happened either, by the way. There was a similar incident in the UK (that small, insignificant market) a while back that even made it into print.

I'm interested to know how agencies like yours and ours can be sure it's not going to be one of our interns next?

Forget Dell, what about the reputation of summer interns?! I'm glad that Jarvis took the high road and wished Chris the best, but as a peer I can firmly state that Chris atrociously dropped the ball: with respect to PR technique, technical skill (why not leave your snide comment from an Internet café?) and general common sense. But, to praise Chris, this spurred a lot of healthy conversation and can be forever held up to communications interns everywhere as "what NOT to do."

Companies, and agencies, need to realize that their employees that interact with the blogosphere are 'official spokespeople' for the company. Would an agency put a summer intern on 'The Today Show' to talk about a client? Of course not, but they may not have thought twice when they said,'Hey the intern needs a summer project, how about that blog thing?'

Might it also make sense to arrange some sort of event for Jeff Jarvis and other bloggers? While it might not be feasible to fly them out to India, what if they could be given the opportunity to spend a day as a Dell representative? In addition a "favored media" access of an exclusive interview, might it also be worth challenging them to, as it were, walk a mile in somebody else's shoes?

--|PW|--

Richard,

This story identifies the problem with blogs -- and exactly the issue that we discussed in your previous posting regarding Michael Eisner.

In this case, a summer intern's rantings are given virtually the same credibility as an AP reporter.

Within hours of the post, CEOs were emailed, reputations were soured, and even you are now in the mix. All from the whimsical comments of a 20 year old kid.

This is just a 'harmless' example -- but I am sure that Internet Wire (Market Wire) knows how painful it can be if the wrong person has access to the public news domain. Blogs have now enabled that -- and this example should frighten all communications professionals. The keys to the kingdom are available to all.

EC,

I love the Dr Z ads—there should be a pr campaign along side to make it even more real

C Span for companies there is an interesting idea!

Hey Josh,

good to see you in the blogosphere. Keep in touch

A Jarvis commenter cites the concept of "The Strategic Corporal", a near-entry-level employee who can make a real strategic impact -- not the kind you hear about in employee empowerment happytalk, but the kind that reverberates around the world.

Looks like today's businesses could use that concept even more than today's armies.

Hi Richard,

I'm curious on your take of GCI's response?

It seems a bit like "we're kinda sorry, but you know, interns will be interns."

Perhaps GCI is taking a hard look at its policies for the blogosphere, but shouldn't they have been more explicit in how they will handle queries like this in the future?

Hope all is well with you and your Dad.

You say: "First, the comment is personal, not substantive. Jarvis is alleged to not have a life and is called a worm."

I thought the whole promise of the blogosphere was its admitted (and cherished) bias (opposed to MSM's pretend non-bias). Of course the comment is personal. The kid was sifting through spam trying to find a relevant post on his client (we call that blog monitoring, right), probably at 7:30 a.m. before the office opened because the interns are the only ones you can get to do media monitoring before the Senior VPs are out of bed, and all he found about Dell was gripe after gripe from Jeff. He did the intern equivalent of going postal without actually going postal. I'm not saying it's right, but don't pretend it couldn't happen inside of your doors.

If I were to counsel the young intern on how to gain a foothold in the blogosphere and become an opinion maker like Jeff Jarvis, I wouldn't change anything except for telling him to start his own blog and tutoring him a little on grammar.

Chris: "In this case, a summer intern's rantings are given virtually the same credibility as an AP reporter."

And that's the beauty of what we do here, isn't it? Except--OH WAIT!--Jeff and everyone else has a chance to respond instantly in this environment. It's a lot more difficult talk to the subjects of an AP story that's released on the wire.

As David Weinberger has said, the Internet is self-correcting. It also has a long memory. Who's a worm and who's not a worm will be sorted out-- but not until after this message from our sponsors....

Blaming a Summer Intern is a complete cop out (and may not even be the reality of what took place). Management must train and guide people and take full responsibility for the actions of any staff member. In the post on my blog I stated that senior people need to be the ones blogging. I'm sorry this explanation is not sufficient.

AS,

Easy to throw stones. I would hope this would not happen at Edelman but now ensuring our policies are even more clear

First JS thanks for finding hole in our system of posting comments. We check every weekday morning and yours came on friday pm. We will now check each day in morning and evening

As to your main message I respectfully disagree.
Yes blogging is personal but there can be no real advantage in name calling or personal slurs.
I would prefer a passionate and substantive retort to jarvis, not simply a diatribe

David,

I could not agree more. We have to establish rules then train our young practitioners.

Leave the poor kid alone. We'd all be hard pressed to find a total lack of mistakes in our junior years. I'm sure we all have stories.

Jeremy Pepper: "Leave the poor kid alone. We'd all be hard pressed to find a total lack of mistakes in our junior years."

That's not an excuse to leave the poor kid alone. When we made mistakes as kids, if our parents were any good they didn't 'leave us alone'.

If the intern wants to learn from his mistake, he should set up a short 'crisis' blog of his own, and explain his mistake and what he learned from it. He'd almost certainly find himself not only forgiven, but praised. We all love people who've seen the light.

Well, quite a story here...took me a while to track all the events...
What really touches me is the disrespect expressed to a poor customer, trying to get some attention and get his problems solved...Is that too much to ask? Is it being a worm to try to get a satisfactory service when you already had paid for it? and come on...being honest...successful companies depend on this...
I’ve worked too long for world wide companies which seem NOT TO CARE A BIT about customer satisfaction; and I literally had to calm down overwormed-crying customers whom were absolutely right but had to take it the way it was “Company Policy” they told us to say...And I never had to use “Actually...” as much as I used it on those “non-customer-service days”...
So...I think it is great to be able to express yourself, and this blogsphere makes it so possible and quick, but I think that GCI as well as Dell have not taken this issue as seriously as they should have...We all are customers, in one way or another, and we all want and DESERVE respect...
They say (or might be thinking...) “It was nothing but a summer intern’s comment...what is the worst that could happen...) Well, here I am, in Argentina, about to get a couple of NON DELL computers...
Best regards...

Jeneane,

With great power comes great responsibility -- and there is no responsibility over blog comments. The real scary thing within the blog space is the possibility for opinion, or just lies, to be treated as fact. I think this is why Michael Eisner thinks there were eventually only be a few reputable blogs.

Because a blog is virtually anonymous -- I could claim to be Bill Gates and mention a very negative comment about Microsoft. That could send the stock crumbling -- affecting millions of peoples lives. The stock wouldn't fall because of a real reason -- just because of a preceived reason. And imagine if a couple of decent terrorist hackers would infiltrate popular blogs -- similar things could happen.

Blogs are a nice venting place for consumers -- and possibly a place for a conversation between companies and their customers or stakeholders. I honestly think that blogs are only hip now because of the name. When people called them bulletin boards in the 90s -- it was so chic.

As a PR professional, blogs are barely media. IF you are interested in guerilla marketing -- blogs are very powerful. But to somehow christen www.Iamsupermedia.blogspot.com as some legitimate media site really degrades the rest of the media -- and our job to communicate to the media.

Andrew, give me a break. A blog is not the golden ticket for everything, and setting up that crisis blog would be the worst thing in the world.

As for making mistakes, yes, we correct them. That's a private thing in any company, and not laundry to air. Not any other agency, but the one agency involved.

Andrew Denny: "If the intern wants to learn from his mistake, he should set up a short 'crisis' blog of his own, and explain his mistake and what he learned from it. He'd almost certainly find himself not only forgiven, but praised. We all love people who've seen the light."

As a PR intern myself I can respect AD's position on the need for an image cleansing by "Chris," but I would disagree fully. The very fact that we are debating whether "intern" is being used as a scapegoat by GCI means "Chris" has little to worry about. Why bring himself into the industry spotlight? I would suggest changing the subject of your proposal from intern to GCI, for it is the company, whose brand is much more important than Chris', who must explain what IT has learned from ITS mistake...if in fact the culprit was an intern.

A strong training program is very important for interns, who should realize that everything they do reflects back on the team managing an account. I was educated thoroughly on this back in the day when I was an intern at Edelman. I can't imagine having thought, even at that age, that it would be okay to say things like that. You're representing your company when you are doing behind the scenes work.

GCI can't completely blame the intern because someone was supervising and instructing the young man. I can't imagine this happening at Edelman. I had an excellent supervisor who was always available to answer all and any questions I had and give me clear instructions.

Perhaps Edelman should share the secrets of their intern training program with agencies with less established training programs. It's unfortunate that this young man made such a mistake.

RD,

We are inviting professors of PR from 20 colleges in the US to our offices in NYC for two day training in new media for this express purpose.

Hi Richard. Welcome back! You were missed.

I have had the same experience you shared about going to meetings and walking away very disappointed in CEO panels. I've tended to write it off to a lack of preparation and arrogance in believing they need only show up and that should be good enough.

I thought it was interesting that Bob Nardelli has suddenly chosen to "defend" himself and Home Depot in the media. He complains that the good messages are being overshadowed by negative press. You'd think he'd have made the connection by now that there's a direct link between accessibility and tone of coverage. It'll be interesting to see if other CEOs begin following this tactic of Shell and Pfizer. Stakeholders have become far more demanding of CEOs. It's time they step up to the plate.

Perhaps this opening from Sunday's Atlanta Journal-Constitution will interest you:

'This is a company that believes in transparency'

Home Depot Chairman and Chief Executive Bob Nardelli is one of the highest-profile executives in corporate America, yet he has been known to be among the most tight-lipped with the media and the public.

Even as the company's stock price lagged and critics punished Nardelli for his pay package, the retail chief stayed quiet. The silence was perhaps most notable during Home Depot's shareholders meeting in May, where Nardelli --- the only board member in attendance --- refused to take questions from shareholder activists.

But the man is on a new mission these days, opening himself up to Wall Street analysts, stockholders and media alike.

In an unusual and wide-ranging interview last week, Nardelli talked to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution about the company, the controversy and the business strategy for Home Depot --- a message he says has been overshadowed by recent headlines.

The full Q&A is available at www.ajc.com until it goes into the archives on Sunday, the 16th.

Richard:

If (when) the Shell 50-city tour proves to be a huge disaster... will you then consider modifying your sermon? Bottom line: if you don't, the marketplace surely will do it for you.

- Amanda Chapel

(1) What is your opinion on Chrysler's Ask Dr. Z campaign? It seems to go along with the "CEOs just want to be loved" trend, and the me2 trend in the spot where he talks with an "actual" customer and answers user questions on askdrz.com in a Yahoo! Answers style way. Can this approach build more trust? The approach is more interactive and personal, but it still seems like softball.

(2) I remember the awe of watching my first parliamentary session on C-SPAN2 with legislators and politicians (Blair included) in a verbal firefight with stats, facts and witty barbs. Although I am careful not to idealize that political discourse, a great deal is lost by moving away from lively, unpredictable, or even extemporaneous discourse. Too often, over-prepared or ad libed discussions add very little to complex issues.

Here is your problem in a nutshell. You just don't get it.

You want participation from the private sector? Let me connect the dots here. The next time you go to one of these conferences, find out who is blogging in the town you are going to, and invite them.

How hard is that? Steve Rubel can probably crank out a hundred in Aspen with phone numbers and zip codes if you are concerned with taxi fare.

It is MY opinion that your whole industry is dying, despite all of your re-engineering efforts, as I can tear your carefully crafted PR campaign a new one with a single posting. I am not alone here.

Your current efforts at revitalizing PR are laughable as you are trying to convince CEO's to look at the Big picture by dragging every remotely connectable event, that you can make any sort of tenuous relationship, to the client of the day, to continue the "I brought the idea to the table, so now you have to support me", welfare program.

Through the magic of the Internet I will make my case and hoist you by your own petard.
You said above:
"A skeptical public demands direct contact with those in power so that hard queries can be posed. Business delegates this responsibility at its own peril."
This is the part you got right, as there are millions of us "privates" who can reach out and touch you.

Where you pulled the lever and hung yourself is the very next sentence:

"That is why the 50-city tour around the US by the top executives of Shell Oil (an Edelman client), who will conduct town halls for regular people as well as opinion leader meetings, makes so much sense."

You are still 'managing' the message, when you should get the hell out of the way and sit in the back of the room.

One final thought.

If you need to 'manage' these events, are you really sure you want these folks as clients?

As Wayne Gretzky said, you miss 100% of the shots you don't take.

I wonder, Richard, if you think that many corporate leaders would be capable of thriving in a wider context. Certainly my experience in Davos suggests that there is a minority of CEOs who are truly engaged with the broader issues.

That's why the John Brownes and Louis Schweitzers of the world are so exceptional in a Davos or Fortune Brainstorm context. Many of their peers aren't particularly interested and certainly have not given key issues much thought.

Frankly, it doesn't surprise me that CEOs were the most uninspired speakers. They have lost their rock-star staus and are in full defensive mode. With Enron still stinging, the defeat is complete.

Take Home Depot's recent shareholder meeting (I have linked to my post about it in the URL). Bob Nardelli stonewalled investors to try to avoid the compensation issue. It was an ugly scene.

Other CEOs, beyond being out-of-touch, as you suggest, have lost their appetite for taking risks. I wonder if they can lead and foster a new ethical risk-taking culture? It seems a tall order.

Richard,
Great post that hits close to home. After spending about six years managing communications for one of the world's top CEOs, I joined a prominent PA/PR firm and built an offering focused on helping CEOs and their communications teams better focus on their constituencies. The CEO job today is about connections -- with employees, customers, shareholders, communities, alumni, the media, environmentalists, and the list goes on. CEOs must understand those constituencies and be able to communicate with them effectively. But after nearly a year of marketing our offering, we ultimately had to pull the plug. We had a couple wins, and nearly universal acknowledgement that the offering was compelling, but few customers. The potential clients just didn't feel any sense of urgency about such a proactive, strategic program. Alan Murray has a great piece in the Wall Street Journal today that compares the reputations of Jeff Immelt and Bob Nardelli -- two CEOs whose companies have performed similarly for their shareholders but their different approaches have made Immelt a star and Nardelli a pariah. It's no longer just about operations and finance. In a world where corporations are global and touch nearly every interest and issue, their leaders must be visible, engaged, open and effective. Or pay the price.

Lance,

great to hear from you

I believe that the ability to speak effectively in a public forum is developed over time

We are not allowing CEOs to play in the minor leagues before graduating to the majors

They need to play the game externally, to make a few errors without huge consequence, so they are prepared

I do think the capability has been allowed to go fallow

Alan,

I appreciate your sentiments---disagree but that’s baseball

Let’s be clear—we are not doing this work for Shell, so I am not being self serving.

As for us getting out of the way, that is the point initially made by David Weinberger

Just let us speak to the corporations

It won’t work

There needs to be somebody suggesting opportunities and themes and cooperation with NGOs

I am not saying PR firms should do message triangles and speaking points

We should get our clients to be more forthcoming and direct for sure

Nor do I want Pr firms to be telling half truths and spinning

So let’s agree to disagree respectfully

JM,

You are absolutely right on the Murray piece. We are lucky enough to work with GE on Eco-Imagination

Richard,

A credit to you and yours. GE has had great success in the green space over the past couple years. Gary Sheffer and his team are a pleasure to work with.

John