Patterson/Bach Communications, Inc.

“Inspire a Generation,” the slogan of the 2012 London Olympics, stirs up more than just athletic motivation. While yes, the Olympics will be swarming with weight-lifting champions and springy gymnasts inspiring young, athletic hopefuls, generations will also find inspiration outside the stadiums. From your soap to your breakfast sandwich, the Olympic rings will begin to infiltrate your every day. In the race for Olympic marketing, how do official sponsors use the event to sell their products? How do they engage consumers? Can your business use the Olympics as a marketing theme – without getting in legal trouble?

This year’s Olympic organizing committee, London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG), pays for the majority of the Olympics through merchandise, broadcasting rights, and, of course, sponsorships. Corporations will shell out millions of dollars to pay for the Olympics in exchange for the rights to splash the London 2012 brand on their products. These companies like Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Visa, and Adidas, can freely use the Olympic logos, as well as phrases associated with the games. As sponsors, they are guaranteed recognition through multiple media channels – whether television, print, or digital media.

These sponsors are paying money most of us simply don’t have available to use in our advertising. But, we can learn from how they use the games to their advantage to engage their audiences. McDonald’s implemented a contest to send families to the 2012 London games by enticing children ages 8-11 and their families to showcase how they spend family mealtime with a short video. Innocent is the official smoothie and juice of the Olympics and will give away tickets to the games through their “Tweet for a Seat” campaign. Followers send a tweet to Innocent telling them who they’d bring with them to the games and why, with the hashtag #tweetforaseat. Engaging consumers by invoking creativity and allowing them to feel like they’re a part of the event is a good way to promote your product.

According to a recent report, there have been over 600 accounts of ambush marketing in correlation with the 2012 Olympics during the past four years. Expected to be the biggest clash between official sponsors and those trying to piggyback, the London Olympics may have more marketing than athletic competition. LOCOG isn’t planning on letting anyone get away with ambush or guerrilla marketing though. “Ambush Police” will be patrolling all advertising and marketing efforts surrounding the games, and those found guilty of unofficial advertisements can pay up to $31,900 in fines. So, what exactly does LOCOG have under their official control? Almost everything. You can be found guilty of ambush marketing for using words like “games,” “gold,” “silver,” and “bronze.” What options does this leave unofficial sponsors this summer?

If your business is a restaurant, bar, or eatery, you’re in luck. LOCOG has provided official posters for you to download to promote that you will be showing the Olympics in your establishment. Though limiting in creativity, it draws in customers who may be looking for a place to gather with friends and family while celebrating the games. LOCOG supports communities commemorating the Olympics and wants people to enjoy themselves during the events. Putting together children’s games and handing out unmarked medals is another great way to get customers in the Olympic spirit without breaking any rules.

Patterson/Bach is already hard at work on the research and branding phases of a complete advertising and public relations campaign for a new attraction in Orlando’s famous tourist district. Our account services include primary research; branding; creative development; media planning and buying; website design and programming; digital media; and public relations for the attraction.

Prepare yourself for an indulgent experience traveling through both the historic and delicious world of… Stay tuned as Patterson/Bach helps the new attraction unveil itself to Orlando and tourists from countries around the world.

CenterState Bank has launched a thorough customer feedback program developed and supported by Patterson/Bach. The localized program ties into CenterState’s “We Believe in You” campaign, highlighting positive relationships built through community banking.

CenterState branches will display feedback forms in custom, localized holders featuring the Bank’s community presidents and feedback mantra, “We Believe in Listening to You.” The feedback form’s goals are to reinforce excellent customer service among team members who receive positive feedback, as well as working to improve areas of the community banking experience. CenterState desires to continue working hard to always make its customers’ banking experiences better.

Contact P/B if your company is in need of a successful and positive customer communication campaign by calling 407-645-1880.

There’s a funny thing about people who make predictions. History continually corrects them!

“This telephone has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communications. The device is inherently of no value to us.”

Western Union internal memo, 1876.

Being in a creative business means keeping an open mind. It means looking at things from different sets of lenses so as not to miss the opportunity that lies before us. Clients pay us for innovative thinking and creative ideas that cut through the clutter. Whether the economy is good or bad we cannot lose sight of this.

“I think there is a world market for maybe five computers.”

Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1943.

What’s important is to keep moving forward. The economy has been bad more than four years, with no predictable end in sight. The pundits on both sides of the political spectrum, economists from every major university, and all the elected officials who can get their hands on a microphone continue to make predictions.

“The concept is interesting and well-formed, but in order to earn better than a ‘C’ the idea must be feasible.”

A Yale University management professor in response to Fred Smith’s paper proposing reliable overnight delivery service. Smith went on to found Federal Express Corp.

Sometimes life deals us a terrible blow. It is truly in the worst of times that we come to appreciate not only the great fruit life offers but also the subtleties of normalcy, a simple leisurely coffee, an hour of playtime with your child, or a moment with your spouse that reminds you why you got married in the first place.

“We don’t like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out.”

Decca Recording Co. rejecting the Beatles, 1962.

As we look to the future it’s imperative to not lose sight of the fact that this is only temporary. Economies, countries, and, for that matter, the world operate on timelines and cycles that cannot be seen nor accurately predicted. Just ask the weatherman next time a hurricane is coming to tell exactly where will landfall be.

“640K ought to be enough for any body.”

Bill Gates, 1981.

The economy will eventually come around. Companies large and small will begin to grow again. There will be opportunities for employment, and innovative thinking will be rewarded.

And there is one thing I do know for sure . . .

“This too shall pass.”

King Solomon, The richest man in the world. B.C.

I often forget there is such a thing as “reading for pleasure.” High schoolers stack their lockers and bedside tables with fraying copies of “How to Read Literature like a Professor” and various borrowed “Spark Notes.” Liberal Arts students are dragged through the dusty halls of libraries, falling prey to tactical explanations of AP Style and Robert’s Rules of Order. Once you’ve freed yourself from structured academia, it’s common to fall into a professional routine. When are you supposed to have time to sit down and read for fun?

Luckily, for those of us in the communication sphere of the business world, we can enjoy reading for both pleasure and profession. Inspired by Gini Dietrich’s article, “Reading Fiction Helps Your Career” and Geoff Livingston’s “Nine Books for Communicators,” I decided to put together a short list of reads I think are helpful to those in the PR, marketing, communications, and advertising fields. Whether fiction or nonfiction, these books are both enjoyable and informative.

The Dragonfly Effect – Jennifer Aaker, Andy Smith, Carlye Adler

“The Dragonfly Effect” is a written model that takes concepts from social media, marketing strategy, and consumer psychology to help readers accomplish a solitary, tangible goal. The effect is named after “the only insect that can move swiftly in any direction, and even hover, when its four wings are moving in harmony.” The book flutters around the four “wings” of the model – Focus, Grab Attention, Engage, and Take Action. While the book seems like a straightforward approach to marketing tactics, it wraps the reader into a concept that leads to change – for the better.

The Tipping Point – Malcolm Gladwell

Gladwell’s “The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference” orbits around the thought that ideas, behaviors, products and messages spread through society like viruses. The book selects “three rules of epidemics” or “agents of change” that are visible in all major tipping points of change. If you look beyond the message of the book itself, Gladwell’s writing is a model for communicators. He does a wonderful job connecting with the reader, making you feel aware and eager to learn more.

How to Win Friends and Influence People – Dale Carnegie

Published in 1936, before Twitter, Facebook, and even the Internet itself, Carnegie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People” is a classic self-help manual for business professionals. What I really like about this book is the fact it’s rooted in a personal, face-to-face approach that is truly the best way to go about building a network. People got along just fine without social media for decades, maybe it’s about time we get back to the past and see what an old-fashioned handshake has over a “friend request.”

For Whom the Bell Tolls – Ernest Hemingway

Besides the fact I have an outstanding appreciation for Hemingway’s work, I agree with Geoff Livingston in his recommendation of this novel. While yes, this is a fictional novel, the beauty of having this on my list goes beyond literary content. Hemingway was essentially the first tweeter. His style is short, sweet and to the point, much like the 140-character personality of Twitter’s posts. See what you can learn about fitting so much thought into so little space while engrossing yourself in the story of main character Robert Jordan’s experience as a dynamiter during the Spanish Civil War.

I hope you’ll take the opportunity to grab a cup of coffee, find a comfortable chair and dive into a book that will open your mind to new business concepts and put a smile on your face.

It is feasible to not simply cut costs wherever possible to survive another day, but instead identify ways to reduce costs strategically with long-term vision for building both customer and employee loyalty.  When it becomes an “employee’s market” again, people who have been treated poorly, or have hard feelings over the way their laid-off colleagues were treated, will leave their employers.  And the costs of replacing them will be higher than ever to businesses, as the pool of available workers will be smaller and filled with many who have been unemployed for longer lengths of time.

Additionally, when consumers at all levels are no longer in a position to have to choose based on price alone, they will choose to buy from organizations that have excellent reputations for being socially responsible to their employees, their communities and the environment. In fact, several internationally recognized brands have maintained their market share due in part to consumer loyalty built upon preference for patronizing good corporate citizens.

As with any reputation that has developed in the eyes of the ever-scrutinizing public, organizations cannot waiver on their publicly professed commitments.  Although it’s been said that the American public easily forgives and forgets, is fickle – even naïve and ignorant – when times are good again and a business is ready to hold a press conference about a renewed commitment to a particular cause or start recruiting talented employees again, the public may disprove this theory.

Take the time now to revisit your organization’s mission, vision and core values statements to ensure you’re operating, even in the toughest of economies, in a manner in which you’ll be proud to remember.  Hopefully, this reflection and reprioritizing of commitments to include internal communications, employee relations and corporate social responsibility (CSR) will allow your organization to maintain current, valuable employees and customers through turbulent times and into the future.

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I often hear people refer to public relations (PR) professionals as “spin doctors,” meaning they ‘spin’ or manipulate information to persuade public opinion for or against something or someone. It’s also a common misconception that PR pros always have an agenda and are rarely truthful. Therefore, journalists, and the public in general, are weary of trusting PR practitioners.

In reality, the role and responsibility of PR professionals is to guide an organization or individual to make ethical decisions and attempt two-way communication to develop and maintain mutually beneficial relationships with each key public. PR pros are actually accountable for all of our actions and decisions made for our organization(s) and ourselves. PR pros strive to practice public relations in an ethical manner, following the Public Relations Society of America’s Code of Ethics. PRSA, the industry’s overseeing association, can revoke practitioners’ memberships if a professional does not adhere to its Code of Ethics. Although a PR pro may practice PR without being a PRSA member, membership is important and one of a list of credentials people should look for when choosing a PR counselor.

PR professionals have specific education and experience to strategically manage many communications challenges. Most PR pros have studied and graduated with a degree in public relations from communication colleges across the U.S. It’s important to remember that these professionals have been taught the appropriate way to communicate a message to a diverse list of target audiences, as well as how and when the message should be delivered.

As professionals, we endeavor to educate the public about PRSA’s fundamental values, including, “…advocacy, honesty, loyalty, professional development, and objectivity…”  Helping people understand the many disciplines within public relations (i.e., charitable giving, community relations, and employee communications, to name a few), and see us as communication facilitators, not barriers, contributes to increased trust and respect for our industry.

Patterson/Bach’s public relations team believes in encouraging organizations to establish and maintain a comprehensive public relations program. Many times, our team receives only one request from an organization or business in regard to what it wants to achieve through a public relations campaign: proactive media relations.

While we understand the importance and value of media relations, it’s also our job to educate clients on other public relations disciplines, including, crisis communications, community relations, internal relations, and social media, among others.

As public relations counselors, we have a responsibility to inform clients of all available resources when we develop and implement a comprehensive public relations program tailored to help achieve an organization’s goals and objectives.

With so much emphasis on media relations, it’s easy to forget the positive impact of having (or the consequences of not having) a comprehensive public relations program in place, so we’ve decided to take this opportunity to remind you of a few key benefits:

• Research key publics’ (customers, members, employees, media, etc.) current perceptions using metric-based measurement tools to ensure overall objectives are met and strategies are supported
• Develop key messages and talking points to share with stakeholders to ensure consistent inbound/outbound communication touchpoints
• Engage and influence key publics to change misconceptions and build trust
• Position organization as a community and industry leader
• Provide ongoing environmental scanning for proactive issues management to uphold an organization’s reputation during a crisis

Now, more than ever, organizations should consider implementing a comprehensive public relations program that prioritizes key initiatives to consistently meet the needs of internal and external publics, ultimately strengthening the core business and producing long-lasting results.

So, you think the economy is making times tough…  Have you considered what a crisis would do to your organization?  In better times, we’re so busy keeping up with in-your-face daily demands that we rarely think proactively about planning for the unexpected.  I relate crisis communications planning to insurance; you may not need it, and let’s hope that you don’t, but when you do, it’s invaluable.  Many organizations are experiencing a slow-down in daily operations during this challenging economic climate.  Why not use the small amount of extra time you now have to commit to a complete communications audit and development of a crisis plan?  Some of you may be thinking, “I already pay enough to our attorneys, let them handle it.”  Allow me to suggest to you now that he or she will only be valuable behind the scenes of a crisis.  Do not make the mistake others have made of having your attorney be your spokesperson or even the words behind the face of your organization.  This is an area where an experienced public relations counselor really shines.  We’re able to step away from the “business side” of the situation, see the entire picture, and determine how the crisis may affect every one of your publics, then create channels of communication that speak to each of them.  Different audiences have specific concerns during a crisis, and they need to be heard and responded to appropriately.  Public relations can provide 1) a thorough review of what processes you already have in place, 2) recommendations for what should be modified or newly created, 3) ongoing environmental scanning to identify pain points early, and 4) proactive issues management, so that a problem doesn’t become a crisis.  Don’t take this quiet time for granted, engage a public relations professional today to get you prepared for the worst, while helping your organization strive to be the best.