I’m not sure if Andrew Mason, the 30-something CEO of three-year old Groupon, cringed when he got the call, but his interview underscores the importance of media training. He may be cringing now. 

The company went public last fall with an $18 billion valuation. It has 10k employees and sells ‘group coupons’ in 46 countries. Here is what I would offer as a “Raving PR Fan” to Mason and his team of corporate communication pro’s.

- Never repeat negative or accusing words, especially if you want your market cap to trend north. “It’s not fair to say it was not an honest revenue figure.” Or “…we’d be more cunning and subtle in evil  ways.”

-Seize the opportunity to tell the reporter what kind of a CEO you are instead of answering a baited question.  When asked “Are you as mature and smart as other CEOs”? Don’t start with: “No, probably not.” 

-Only release a video or image that can add value to your brand. Make sure home videos stay home. I’m not sure how 60 Minutes got (or found) a video of Mason doing yoga in his underwear in front of a Christmas tree.

-Assume that anything written to an employee audience will be made public. At least one in 10,000 will leak it. No matter the urge to communicate to your stakeholders a quiet period is a quiet period when preparing for an IPO. Choose a better answer than describing to Leslie Stahl that your “mouth was taped shut.”

Stick to simple analogies that make your point.  Eluding to a “wolverine whose skin melted off” gave her joy on air when she asked viewers: ”What does that mean?” Stahl made a huge point to her story by not clarifying the comment prior to airing it. As a corporate communicator, I would have tried real hard to clarify for her right after the interview, or even better, convince her this statement added nothing to the story and ask  for it not to be aired.  At that point, all you can do is ask.

-When asked about your personal worth on IPO day, have a respectful (or appreciative) answer. Leslie Stahl asked if Mason knew how much his personal net worth was on IPO day ($1.3 billion). Mason said “I checked once and I felt dirty,” with a smile. Is that a Midwesterner’s answer? Take one for the team and turn the answer into the bigger picture. Attribute an overall stock value to the hard work of your 10,000 employees and to a promising new industry.

In hindsight, maybe it would have been smart to delay a 60 Minutes interview request until the company has 1) turned a profit or until 2) answers to these and other similarly expected interview questions can be better rehearsed?  See: http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/60minutes/main3415.shtml

Dallas Mavericks owner, Mark Cuban, is not exactly a fan of the mix of ’PR Flacks’ and start-ups who hire their firms, as he notes in http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/222524.

I’ve worked with start-up CEOs in their first years of commercialization that have the foresight to do PR.  PR created a name and a sustained brand for them. PR got them Series B-D investments after their initial rounds. PR led them to several potential acquisition suitors. PR made them proud of the venture they started. In fact one medical start-up in Denver I worked with went from $100k in revenue to $6M in two years with PR successes such as appearing on CNNHeadline News and in US News & World Report, and letting its hospital and physician customers speak on its behalf.

Here’s my two cents on Cuban’s sense:

The pubs our clients read are the most relevant to their companies and the industry. Of course we want them to appear in these publications/blogs. Their current and potential investors and customers also read the same ones.  Whether start-up, mid-size or Fortune-ranked companies, teams are lean and mean these days. Our clients already have a “full time+” job with little time to do PR on their own. There’s nothing better than a client telling us their customers sent them notes after reading about them in a pub or when the phone rings to request an RFP because they were highlighted in an article that the lead just read.

Good PR consultants build relationships with reporters/citizen journalists (a.k.a. bloggers). We earn their trust and respect to be able to show them  some cool, innovative things and other angles that they have not yet thought about. And most importantly, they too have “full-time+” jobs.

My philosophy is to ‘unleash’ a prepared CEO or CMO on the media once we guage the media’s interest in a credible storyline. We always assume reporters will use the execs who we work with and the third party sources that we have carefully cultivated for our clients and who know these industries well.  

Twice a week for 12 weeks I’d seen them for 90 minutes. If I did not ask now, and they walked out of this room for the final time, I wouldn’t know the answers. Had I conveyed the most important concepts? Did those concepts ‘stick’?  This course was now a part of their past on their quest to find a job. Yikes. If the student has not learned the professor has not taught. My worst fear was months later at a party or a Blue Demon baseball game that one of my students would be asked a foundational PR question that they wouldn’t know the answer to or that they would fumble.

The extra point worked. And it turns out they did learn a thing or two. They talked about the legalities of copyright and ‘fair use;’ how to approach crisis communications; to determine all prospective stakeholders to strengthen a client or organization’s story; and that there is a methodology for applying PR skills to get great results.

What struck me most was the honesty of the majority. One student said he learned he did not want to be a PR major. Good for him. Between their choices of advertising, journalism, marketing and organizational communication, PR was its own animal. Why? Nothing is guaranteed in PR. It’s credible because someone else is speaking on your behalf. PR is all about building and maintaining relationships. It’s about managing issues from the point of advocacy to the point of accommodation. 

I was moved by the other 25+ who said that this class confirmed PR was the field for them. It made them think on their feet and in real time. It would gave them the chance to counsel upper management one day. It taught them to be real and to say that they did not have an answer for a reporter at that moment if they did not have one. They would find the answer.

Last week one of my students was approached by a friend already doing a PR internship. The friend was ‘stuck’ and needed advice. My first-year PR student gave this friend a few good answers. The lightbulb went off. She recognized how much she’d learned about managing PR in the real world.

After practicing for 20 years I am not taking for granted the little stories and finer anecdotes that help those entering the field realize that it is the right one for them.

On the water, the sails are connected to the mast which is connected to the hull that is connected to the tiller and to the hand that steers the boat. That hand is connected to the eyes that are always watching the compass that is connected to the “Windex” at the top of the mast to gauge the wind direction, wind speed and boat speed. Patterns can be anticipated if the weather is checked before leaving the dock. When identifying, building and telling a story, one must connect the dots to make sense, to see opportunities and to leverage them with the most appropriate audiences.  PR pros never miss a chance to tell a good story that could be perceived as elusive by others. We always connect the dots to figure out the best strategy.

Like sailing, in PR you have to be curious and creative to accomplish results.  

When sailing, you wonder what Mother Nature will give you that day. Will it be 2, 12 or 22 knots of wind? Sun or clouds?  Clear air or low visibility?  Hot or cold air? In PR, you hope for a perfect storm of your key messages being conveyed at the best times to the most appropriate audiences that hear or influence your call to action. Will your efforts result in one huge hit in the Wall Street Journal or a subtle story in the local paper? Will it take months or just days to secure interest from an editor or blogger to find your story credible? Even if your intended group doesn’t show up to a speech, a panel discussion or a launch event, digitally capture the core messages and identify ways to send them to this audience electronically and through your social networks. When you are hungry, you are curious. And when you are curious you have creative ideas. Connect the dots of those ideas to create great stories that drive customers, investors, the news media and others to help favorably change your business in the next one to three years.

May you find fair winds, fun seas, and satisfied clients in your journey, mate!

To see the full series and all eight ways PR is like sailing, visit:

4) PR and sailing represent teamwork at its finest.

Most boats over 15’ are best operated, but not required, with a team. Each person, when racing, has his or her role. If you are fortunate the team understands the bigger picture and moves toward the common goals of safety, fun and crossing the finish line first. The PR project or campaign can’t be done alone either. Each part comes together as it develops, executes and measures the results. The boat can go fast because each team member plays a role: time the distance to the start line before the gun goes off; steer in heavy winds; trim sails after tacking; crank sails tighter when needed; and constantly watch for traffic (distractions and obstacles).

5) Managing PR campaigns is like helming a boat.

You may feel at times that you are going slow, if not backwards, in your project.  When the wind is pushing you forward by blowing from behind, it does not mean that you are off course or going to go slower. It simply means that is the direction you must take at that particular moment. Even though the wind is at your back, you still face forward with your sight (strategy) on the course’s finish. Smart sailors look back to predict wind gusts or velocity increases and take advantage of them to propel ahead of the competition. PR pro’s recognize that taking time to build new relationships, to maintain existing ones and to recalibrate a plan is part of the process for achieving results.

6) Like sailing, PR efforts are intertwined with many forces to achieve success.

There are many people and organizations that influence a campaign, a message or a quote to the news media.  There are also many variables that influence a day of sailing. To sail well, you must consider the weather, the tides, and the traffic on the water, the equipment’s reliability, the boat’s condition, and your team’s skills. In PR, stakeholders like employees, news media, investors, partners, vendors, and the community are at play.  Every time you pitch a story, Tweet, Facebook post, or speak publicly to tell your story, you must consider the nuances of all stakeholders.  What are their needs? Why do they care? Why will they do as a result of your message?

To see the full series and all eight ways PR is like sailing, visit:

A PR person’s day can be planned with great predictability but each hour, let alone each day, can bring twists, turns and interview requests that become opportunities not to be missed. Whatever Mother Nature may throw your way during a 2-3 hour sail, be prepared. We have not figured out how to control the weather, or every aspect of our day as a PR pro, but we are certainly smart enough to choose wisely where to turn the boat by determining the best tacks (tactics) and gibes (strategy) depending on where we want to go.

2) “In PR you pray and in advertising you pay.”

When you want to get from point A to point B in a sailboat, you pray that on that particular day, during that particular hour the wind is in your favor to sail the fastest and most efficient to get where you need to be and in the time that you need to get there.  You can’t pay the weather gods to turn the breeze on and in our favored direction. Use these elements to your advantage. Calculate creativity.  You don’t have to ‘pay to play’ as an advertiser would.  In PR and in sailing, Mother Nature takes you there. When your story is credible, you make the most of the ride.

3) In PR, like sailing, keep the ‘ship’ steady and the team moving in the right direction.  

When sailing and facing directly into the wind, you go nowhere. It’s called “irons.”  Irons is good when you want to take a break and eat a sandwich. It is bad when you need to be somewhere or make something happen, which is the often the case for PR folks. When running an agency or managing a client’s needs, the wind, and other  forces, need to be on your side to keep your ship running smoothly.  Consider the PR vehicles that carry your important messages to the most influential audiences. The “keel”, or the part underneath the boat that is not always visible, keeps you from sliding sideways. Who is your behind-the-scenes keel that keeps you upright in turbulent times?  The heavy weight, or “ballast,” keeps the boat steady and moving in the most efficient direction. Who is your heavy weight?  The anchor keeps you grounded.  Who is your anchor? Thank these people daily.

To see the full series and eight ways, visit:

I suppose I have earned a right to share experiences from my time on the front lines. Now as an entrepreneur and adjunct professor, I am jazzed to learn from the newcomers in our field and the self-starters of social media technology. When I landed in PR, intranets were the hottest thing. And the Internet was Al Gore’s dream. I started with an internship at Universal Studios while at Rollins College and then scored my first job as a community relations coordinator for Tropicana. I flashed forward to corporate communications director roles for medical technology start-ups, then Abbott Labs’ corporate marketing team, and a two-year stint in consulting. I finally found a sweet spot when I started The Ballast Group in 2006.

All of these PR jaunts have left me raving about our profession and how we see the forest through the trees. We hold the proof of why entrepreneurial ventures, mid-cap companies, consulting firms, Fortune 500 brands and nonprofit organizations seek PR counsel to help shape their messages, develop their stories and measure the impact so that we find and refine ways tell those stories again.

This blog is designed to entertain and to dialogue about current situations and new trends. It is also intended to share strategies and instigate ideas. Let’s laugh at the “OMG and WTF moments and how we turn mix-ups into magic” as one of my colleagues says.

Convey what we do best. Ask: why do we do it? How do we do it? And who do we do it for? Jump in. Tell your stories. Comment. Connect the dots. Let’s reinforce why, ON MOST DAYS, we are generally Raving PR Fans.