Business means being there 24/7

During spring break, I had hoped to take time off—no such luck!

A magazine called to ask if the client would accept an award, which meant  narratives for the application, coordination with the ME and….

Another magazine lost our photos and needed them urgently.  

A client couldn’t get us info, as hoped, but the releases still had to go out. 

So, I told myself I’d take off tomorrow—as I kept working.

When I joked about trying to have a vacation, friends said I should "...just go" or we "...shouldn’t spoil our clients”.

It was obvious they’d never run a business.

In reality, it’s rare for anyone to work 9-5 today; everyone is working 24/7—even on vacation. 

For more information on public relations and media, contact Dell Richards Publicity at www.dellrichards.com. 

Why media prefer working with PR pros

People often ask why the media prefer working with PR people rather than the public.

When they work with PR people work, editors and producers know they’ll only get relevant information. 

They won’t have to waste time with details they don’t need or want.

If the media don't like an idea, although a PR person may give a few more details hoping to change the media’s mind, a pro would never argue.

Since the media usually uses AP Style—the PR person will send releases in that format so it can be dropped into stories verbatim.

If the media make a mistake—which journalists often do because the pressure is so fast and furious—PR people understand; they’ve often come up through the ranks and know what it’s like. 

If the gist of a story is right, a PR pro usually won’t nitpick details.

If they care about having clients as a “source”, PR people probably won’t ask for a retraction or correction, but be grateful for the time the media spent telling the client’s story.

And, if they are good at what they do, the PR pro will make sure the client understands how lucky they are to have the “free advertising” that’s called “coverage”.   

For more information, visit Dell Richards Publicity at www.dellrichards.com.  

 

Branding continuity creates a powerful tool

          Twitter recently added a large masthead.

          As a result of working with that, we started to play with the images used in our branding.

          We ended up pulling the logo out of the inset and uploaded one of the website photos to our Facebook page. 

          We also uploaded that photo to the profile for LinkedIn and other social media.

          This small change gave the brand a huge lift emotionally.  

          We often tweak our brand to keep up with social media changes and to make it better.

          Because it is so important, every business should have a document that spells out all details of the graphic art used for the brand. 

          That means the PMS color for every part of the logo and masthead, including the background color.

          Lay-out choices, font, font colors and sizes—including print choices such as card stock and color—also need to be part of the guidelines.  

          Branding continuity helps create a recognizable and powerful image that is essential in today's world.   

          For more information, visit our website: www.dellrichards.com.  

What psychopaths and CEOs have in common

Kevin Dutton’s new book, “The Wisdom of Psychopaths” says that being fearless, focused and ruthless are tailor-made traits for success in the modern world.

Besides the above, the University of Oxford research psychologist from lays out habits of psychopaths that can help anyone in business:

Don’t procrastinate, don’t second-guess yourself, don’t look back and don’t blame yourself when things go wrong.

The Top 10 professions for psychopaths are not only CEOs, but lawyers, surgeons, journalists and clergy, among others.

Dutton writes that psychopaths have a gamut of traits that make them more—or less—successful, depending on the career they choose—or are thrust into by circumstance.

The difference between CEOs and criminals is that the latter are more impulsive and violent.

They also have a harder time delaying gratification and come from less educated backgrounds.

So if you want to be successful in business, acting like a psychopath at least some of the time might not be a bad idea.

For more information, contact Dell Richards Publicity at (916) 455-4790 or visit our website at www.dellrichards.com.