A Good Visit

by Bennie Sham, Internship Program Lead (@beesham)

Yesterday's visit from BYU-Idaho students and faculty was a bit daunting. There were about 25 attendees (give or take a few) and I'll be the first to admit that I still get nervous presenting to a large crowd. But I'm glad we had the opportunity to speak with the students, learn more about what they want to do and give them an overview of life at Fusion. They asked some great questions and SVP Stephen Andrews provided some very comprehensive answers.

Additionally, Account Exec Meghan O'Hara's brainstorming activity was quite a hit. We separated the students into six groups and each group was given a brown paper bag with three very random objects inside. Each team represented a company, whereby they had to somehow relate the objects to one another and pitch us (as faux reporters) a story topic. They did very well and showed some great creativity.

Now we are preparing for the next batch of students coming in for a tour - these from Roger Williams University in Rhode Island. Can't wait!

PR + Real Estate = Same Dilemma, Who Knew?

By Samantha Evans, Intern (@samevans24)

“If you're in the business of public relations, chances are that more than a few clients have said their first choice for story placement is the front page of The New York Times or The Wall Street Journal. And chances are you tried to explain that very few companies get front-page play in these newspapers, let alone any coverage in them at all.”

Newsvetter’s piece Forget about The New York Times successfully describes a client’s goal when first entering and investing in the world of public relations. Of course, they want their product or service to receive coverage in the media. But there’s a catch: the coverage cannot be from just any old publication. They want the top of the top, and of course, in print and they think if they are truly lucky, front page.

As I explained in a previous post Never Forget the Past, during a weekly call, I heard a client ask, “I see all of the hits online, but where am I getting coverage in print?” I listened to Suzanne and Meghan’s response to this question and took a mental note of how to do so in the future. Instead of getting defensive, they explained the many successful hits they have received in the last few months, most of which were online, and that the best placement is not always in The New York Times or The Wall Street Journal. Going further, Newsvetter states, “unless your client is a Fortune 100 company that simply wants exposure just for the sake of it, there are more effective (and realistic) ways to generate new business leads.”

Day after day I have learned about this dilemma. I know how to face this issue head on if it is ever presented to me by a client. I also know that due to plummeting print readership, thanks to online availability of almost every publication as well as social media outlets, print newspapers should no longer be the end all and be all. The same goes for other non-media related professions such as real estate. Even though every study has proven that the majority of house hunters browse for homes online; to this day, realtors continue to place advertisements for houses in newspapers. This is because realtor ads have always been found in print, and as PowerSites describes “Sellers expect to see their homes in the newspaper."

My response to all of this: Give up the goals and expectations of the past because the facts speak for themselves!