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Greetings!
 Wow!
While Providence played successful host to the first round of the NCAA tourney this week, I had a chance to see Villanova University (my wife's alma mater) do what I'm always pressing for here at New Harbor - combine brilliant execution AND first-rate customer service, all in one place. It was impressive. First, Villanova made the best possible use of social media and the web all weekend, including live streaming video of the game and a dynamic Facebook page. This made it easy for the audience to receive and share up-to-the-second information about their team.
Second, the low-key pre-game reception for alums and their families on Saturday nailed all the simple little details that so often get overlooked, or get nickel-and-dimed to death (unwisely) by budget considerations. One example: they provided three indoor hoops for the kids, so they didn't get bored and bother their parents. Everything else - good food, two open bars - made the party a real success.
OK, so it didn't end well for the Wildcat hoopsters. But the school posted a big win in one other important area - making potential donors feel good about their school.
Best,
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Good for You, Bad for Us
...And That's OK With Us
|  We have a long list of crisis communications successes here at New Harbor - situations where we've worked hard and smart to minimize harm, and turn a potentially damaging story around as quickly as possible. That's the good news. Here's the bad news: we rarely get a chance to highlight those successes. Why? Because respecting our clients' privacy prevents us from talking about problems and challenges they have faced; and second, we've usually done such a good job defusing the crisis that no one would know, or remember, what we were talking about anyway. However, while we can't talk about our successes, we can offer some expert advice, laid out in this blog entry about how to handle one of the early key steps in most crises - the call from a reporter. And while we're on the subject of crises, one last thing: We have a presentation that highlights five things that every business and organization can do right now to prepare for a crisis. If you think it might be of interest to your clients or the members of your group, contact me and we'll talk about making it part of your next meeting. |
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Unleash Your Inner Expert
Establishing OSHEAN as a "Go-To" News Source
| One thing I've noticed in my PR career - and before that, politics - is that everybody is certain that they are an expert in ... PR and politics. But on a serious note, being recognized as an expert is a great way to raise your profile and reinforce the value you bring to customers and clients. Last month we highlighted Jackie Tracy, President of the R.I. Society of CPAs, who was quoted in Woman's Day as an expert on little-known tax breaks.
Another good recent example is our client OSHEAN, a 10-year-old nonprofit coalition that provides internet, technology and broadband services for its members, including universities, colleges, hospitals and government agencies.
 OSHEAN had received little attention for its behind-the-scenes work ... until four months ago when they hired us to raise their profile as they applied for federal stimulus money.
Since then the work OSHEAN is doing with its member organizations (like coordinating swine flu vaccinations, initiating statewide mobile computer labs for libraries and working to wire a submarine fiber optic cable to Block Island) has received a great deal of media attention.
That elevated profile paid off even further when OSHEAN's President George Loftus was tapped for expert commentary and analysis on the new national FCC Broadband Plan.
Bottom line: Tapping into the true experts in your company can pay real dividends. Their insight can give you an enormous advantage in the marketplace.
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Nice Ink!
| - One of the great unsung local success stories, the 5th largest auto importer in North America, is on Twitter! Follow along here.
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