The Public Relations News Portal
Ronn Torossian is the CEO of 5WPR, a NY based PR Agency. He is also author of the best selling PR book “For Immediate Release: Shape Minds, Build Brands, and Deliver Results with Game-Changing Public Relations.” Since founding the PR firm in 2003, the company has won multiple awards and is known for its results-focused orientation. REAL. RESOURCEFUL. RESULTS. Ronn is a finalist for 2013 PR Executive of the Year for the American Business Awards, and a previous semi-finalist for Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year. He is regularly featured in the national media for his insightful commentary on PR & marketing. Follow him on Twitter @rtorossian5wpr
Amid news that Al-Jazeera America plans to hire 700 staffers in the US, open 12 American news bureaus and the hiring of Ali Veshi from CNN, it seems that Al Jazeera is intent on building a major brand for the Arab news network worldwide. Arab influence in the media is indeed increasing.
There were many interesting stories this week in mainstream media about our beloved field of public relations. The New York Times, to your favorite newspaper, communications figures are spotlighted for their PR prowess, or lack thereof. Ronn Torossian discusses potential NYC Mayoral candidacy, among other topics in this Op-Ed.
The world’s largest PR firm, Edelman has recently been hired by the Saudi Arabian government. Their female staff who works on the account won’t need to worry about driving when they go visit their client – Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world which doesn’t permit women drivers. The American State Department says “discrimination against women is a significant problem” in Saudi Arabia. Quite a contrast for an industry where it’s estimated that 75% of the PR industry is women.
As a Jewish-American, and owner of a PR firm, President Obama’s upcoming trip to Israel is much about communications. As we often brief clients prior to major communications endeavors, as one who has previously worked for the Likud Party, Israeli Foreign Ministry, Mayor of Jerusalem, Mayor of Tel Aviv and many other Israeli government officials, wanted to offer some advice to President Obama:
High-profile cases attract a ton of media, and hence crisis PR firms are often at the forefront of highly controversial cases. In the past week there’s been a large amount of media coverage where public relations is seemingly at the center.
A new survey of public relations professionals conducted by Public Relations Global Network, an international network of 44 independent public relations firms has some very interesting findings.
Despite the assertion of a recent ZDNET oped Public Relations professionals will indeed create content. There is no longer a filter for Google News which gives preference to old school media vs. a new school blog – Its all “news.” That goes for The Huffington Post or The Drudge Report, CNBC.com or The Daily Beast.
There is no magic button to touch which allows instant success by utilizing Public Relations. However, here are some concrete and catchy public relations tricks your brand can utilize to succeed with PR.
A long-term high-profile client of 5WPR called me recently. He told me he got engaged for the 1st time and is planning a holiday wedding. He’s never been married – yet was mystified that on Google there’s a new info graph which refers to him as married. He wanted it corrected – so we prepared a notarized letter from him stating he’s never been married, copied the 1st page of his tax returns saying so, and multiple recent news clippings referring to him as a bachelor – and sent it off to Google.
Too many times brands, businesses, services, and organizations forget that their actions act as natural PR. When you make a claim about your business’s value or worth, it has to be real. Nothing speaks more loudly today than what you do and how you do it. That goes for the pizza shop on Main Street, to the CEO of a corporation, to a politician on a soapbox. How do you prove your worth? What’s in it for your customer, your shareholders, or your boss?
