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Bad Pitch Blog
DECEMBER 29, 2010
Guest post by Geoff Livingston There''s a new bad pitch that''s taken over the interwebs. Or at least give me a pitch besides same old sad old "Vote For Me Please." Bad Pitch Blog bullshit contests DC Tweeps Fast Company magazine Geoff Livingston Kevin Dugan Pepsi Refresh Everything SXSW It''s called " Vote For Me." It''s an epidemic.
Bad Pitch Blog
DECEMBER 17, 2010
Richard and I were reminded recently of why we continue to write this blog thanks to an email from Bazaarvoice''s Social Media Manager Ian Greenleigh : I just realized I never thanked you for setting in motion what is perhaps the biggest accomplishment of my life: getting my current job. Here’s how it happened, in exec summary form: 1. I happened upon your post about Grant Turck and his Facebook Ad , saved it for later. About a month later, I found myself in desperate need of a stable job.
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Bad Pitch Blog
AUGUST 4, 2010
People sometimes ask us why we out our own on The Bad Pitch Blog. Our traffic logs show that bad pitches get more traffic than our how-to articles. When a pitch is outed, it’s being cached in Google…multiple times…as people pass these stories around like joints at Woodstock. Consider the various outlets that send us pitches, and promote, our content. Here are three recent stories we’ve seen on bad pitches in the last week -- outings that have nothing to do with us.
Bad Pitch Blog
AUGUST 15, 2010
?? weight:bold;">This post has been a long coming. And not a moment too soon. ??Every Every now and then we are fortunate to have dreamy clients – the ones that appreciate the work that you do, listen to hard-earned advice and pay heed to well thought out guidance. And then there are the others: ungrateful customers, depleting you of every ounce of patience, energy and tolerance.
Bad Pitch Blog
OCTOBER 7, 2010
We sometimes highlight bad pitches offline -- in real-life presentations. But it''s just one more way a bad pitch can haunt you. Reporters often joke that, while some pitches may not merit news coverage, some bad pitches win a spot by the water cooler in their point and laugh hall of shame. Bad pitches can live on forever, quite literally in syndication. Kevin Dugan on Bad PR Pitches at #coprsa from Nate Riggs on Vimeo.
Bad Pitch Blog
DECEMBER 9, 2010
In a press release the likes of which the two of us have never quite seen before, it turns out that Peter Shankman, “creator of Shankman.com ,” will be hosting an “exclusive holiday party” for the “movers and shakers of the social media world.” No, we did not make that up. The fact is, Peter , as he likes to be called, is now a “social media socialite.” That''s what a thousand Cosmos in a thousand cities will get you. We will give you a minute to take that in.
Waxing UnLyrical
DECEMBER 23, 2010
Waxing UnLyrical personal, possibly poetic, musings on public relations, media, communication, and everything in between About Shonali MeasurePR: Paywalls, Pitches And Prognoses December 23rd, 2010 Tweet On Wednesday, we held this year’s last #measurePR Twitterchat. In other words, paywalls , how pitching will be affected if these take off, and prognoses for 2011. See for yourself, if you’d care to download the transcript of the final 2010 #measurePR chat.
Waxing UnLyrical
SEPTEMBER 14, 2010
Waxing UnLyrical personal, possibly poetic, musings on public relations, media, communication, and everything in between About Shonali The Problem With PR September 14th, 2010 Tweet You know what the problem with PR is? Publicity, pitching, media relations, yada yada yada are just one part of doing this, i.e. building relationships with the “press&# (whatever that terms means today), but that ignores the usually several other audiences an organization usually has.
Bad Pitch Blog
AUGUST 17, 2010
To be honest, I want Bad Pitch to be more of a community.we When Tory Patrick noted on a recent post that she was undertaking one of our challenges, I asked if she''d be willing to blog about it. learn from each other and we (Richard and Kevin) should do stuff like this more often. Tory rocks. Here''s her post. My Summer Field Trip When Kevin Dugan threw out a challenge here last month, of course I wanted in! It’s time to think outside the box… The post that inspired Kevin. -- Stale.
Bad Pitch Blog
SEPTEMBER 6, 2010
Rob Bresnahan is being outed for bad pitches. After seven pitches, distributed via email marketing software, I can assume that Rob is an Iditarod sled dog. From there, I''ll note that none of the pitches contained anything more than a news release. If you''re using email marketing software to send out news releases and you''re attaching news releases to the email.and NOT including a pitch?
Waxing UnLyrical
DECEMBER 14, 2010
Waxing UnLyrical personal, possibly poetic, musings on public relations, media, communication, and everything in between About Shonali How To Become A Public Relations Star December 14th, 2010 Tweet Guest post by Mike Doman I recently had the pleasure of sitting on the admissions panel for a PR course. My own ability to listen has given me story ideas , helped when dealing with journalists and been infinitely beneficial in pitch meetings.
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Waxing UnLyrical
DECEMBER 16, 2010
Waxing UnLyrical personal, possibly poetic, musings on public relations, media, communication, and everything in between About Shonali Talking The Social Media Walk December 16th, 2010 Tweet Walking, and talking, and talking, and walking… When I wrote about walking the social talk last week, I had no idea what a terrific discussion it would spur. Talking The Social Media Walk | Waxing UnLyrical | Dr-Net says: December 16, 2010 at 7:20 am [.]
Waxing UnLyrical
NOVEMBER 10, 2010
Waxing UnLyrical personal, possibly poetic, musings on public relations, media, communication, and everything in between About Shonali Ten Reasons PR Pros Should Blog November 10th, 2010 Tweet Last week, Joe Hackman hosted Danny Brown , Gini Dietrich and me on his BlogTalkRadio show, aptly entitled PRapalooza. It helps you understand what a journalist feels like when you start receiving completely off-topic pitches. Pitching bloggers and pitching media ain’t that different.
Bad Pitch Blog
FEBRUARY 3, 2010
We all know that PR folk are not the only ones who send bad pitches! As we are aware, our HR colleagues pitch all day, every day. When they recruit, what are they doing: they''re pitching. When they announce inevitably negative changes to benefits packages, that''s really a pitch. Can you imagine: You pitch aggressively by email and the coveted reporter finally responds…only to find he’s been--what''s that you say?--blocked!!
Bad Pitch Blog
AUGUST 17, 2010
Even the Bad Pitch blog recommends the topic as part of a balanced diet. Should the press release die? Or should it just become a social media press release? Hey, a press release and social media are like peanut butter and chocolate folks. Are you going to pass on a Reese''s?! Um, who cares?! OK, I understand there''s a sh!t
Bad Pitch Blog
OCTOBER 6, 2010
T his pitch is bad enough that we considered breaking the three strikes rule and outing the sender. So if you had to guess what the pitch is about, you''d be safe in assuming Nike was somehow involved. Red herrings aside, "eww, gross" aside, let''s assume this pitch was actually about Nike. Let''s assume it was relevant to my coverage and I was interested in the pitch.
Bad Pitch Blog
JANUARY 31, 2010
Slick’s Twitter Pitch Fit This is the first pitch wherein I can out the author because they pitched me on Twitter in plain, permalinked view of the world. This bad pitch shows a clear lack of understanding of Twitter. As we approach Valentine’s Day, I do not have a heart on for this pitch from @twsprfirm. This confirms the obvious -- it’s a mass pitch. Participate = Pitch If TWS’ claims were legit, they’d follow the Twitter Rule of Thirds.
Bad Pitch Blog
OCTOBER 24, 2010
From their Facebook event description: ** Want to know how to effectively pitch bloggers? Unsure about pitching reporters on Twitter? How can you avoid being "outed" for a bad pitch on the infamous Bad Pitch Blog? Join #pr20chat this Tuesday, when Kevin Dugan ( @prblog ) and Richard Laermer ( @laermer ), the bloggers behind the Bad Pitch Blog, will share their insights on media relations, blogger outreach, pitching and more.
Bad Pitch Blog
MARCH 2, 2010
Social media gives bad pitch recipients an eager audience to witness, with reality-TV like glee, the horror landing in their in boxes on a daily basis. In fact, the tools available to us online now allow us to vent in a variety of ways. Boing-Boing points us to this all too familiar exchange around embargoes. We have a free and powerful production studio available to us online folks. Press send with care. As Guhmshoo , one of our favorite bloggers , reminds us below, Lists are not PR
Bad Pitch Blog
AUGUST 18, 2010
Richard Laermer: PR Eats Its Own: The Worst of 2010 We''re told Chris Anderson will be attending the web''s funeral during SXSW this year, so someone has to out the PR folk. SXSWi is many things, including inspiration, participation and celebration. And then there''s that unseemly underbelly of bullsh!t, t, blathering, broadcasting of self-importance and bad pr. And that''s where we come in. Richard and I have split up to do twice as much damage , uh, justice in Austin this year.
Bad Pitch Blog
JANUARY 28, 2010
In a world of instant comm and ever-shrinking inner circles, a PR person who cries wolf with a few off-mark pitches is blackballed in a real hurry. There’s nothing the media dislikes more than vapor (a non-story), so don’t pitch it. If you’re dabbling in handheld technology, say, and you pitch Ken Li, our favorite well-known gadgetry journalist, on every software upgrade, he’s going to learn very rapidly not to take seriously any pitch you send his way.
Bad Pitch Blog
JANUARY 16, 2010
Here''s a good pitch of a different breed. Impressed by his approach, I offered Grant a guest post on The Bad Pitch Blog. One to Grow On The Bad Pitch Blog will give Grant one tip for his search. Follow us on Twitter Kevin Dugan Richard Laermer Bad Pitch Blog Checking into Facebook a few days ago, I noticed the ad above. So here is his post.
Waxing UnLyrical
OCTOBER 6, 2010
Waxing UnLyrical personal, possibly poetic, musings on public relations, media, communication, and everything in between About Shonali Let Your Freak Flag Fly October 6th, 2010 Tweet This is a guest post by Narciso Tovar This past week, I gave a presentation to the Dallas IREM group about the importance of giving social media a second look.
Bad Pitch Blog
FEBRUARY 28, 2010
I''ve been remiss and spent the majority of February thinking about the business of PR, wondering about pitches bad and good (*mostly bad*) and haven''t written a darn thing in this box. I''ve gotten so many letters pitching interviews mistakenly - and they ARE mistakes - sent to me "as cofounder of the Bad Pitch Blog," that I''ve started to wonder if ANYONE in our industry ever takes a second look at who they''re sending anything to. A Bad Pitch.
Bad Pitch Blog
MARCH 7, 2010
Take the pitch we received from our friend Wendy at the Philly Inquirer ; it was one letter Kevin and I received in a crowded week of people saying "Help us rid the world of awful letters." But as Wendy cheerfully pointed out to the pitcher: "Using Hitler in a pitch is the equivalent of tossing a live hand grenade into a crowded room, and that rarely is there an acceptable reason to do so." Sometimes, the work is done for us.
Bad Pitch Blog
MARCH 19, 2010
Maybe it''s because opening day is right around the corner, but this Bad Pitch seems timely. Our latest pitch falls into the "too much automation may make you efficient, but not effective" zone. Off Target: Chris started pitching me in December of 2009. Automatronic: He didn''t stop because he doesn''t follow up with actual replies to the INFO at BLINDS CHALET email address sending the pitches. Not clicking for fear I''ll start getting bad pitches from Drapes Chalet.
Bad Pitch Blog
JULY 14, 2010
It''s smart and clearly it was a good pitch. But this was a second wave vs. a first wave pitch. This clearly had a role in the pitch''s success. Disclaimer: Over the years I''ve worked with a few of the folks that made this pitch happen. But I had no knowledge of this pitch until the article ran and have had nothing to do with Lytle''s support effort
Bad Pitch Blog
NOVEMBER 1, 2010
And it''s even easier to do in 2010 thanks to things like social media. In the past, I''ve noted how media relations folks can learn a thing or two from political campaigns. Seven years later there''s still truth to this post. The approach to messaging, and changing it via instant feedback, is smart. But this year, when more is being spent on political advertising than was spent in the 2008 presidential elections, I''ve also witnessed what not to do.
Bad Pitch Blog
NOVEMBER 9, 2010
We personally loathe anyone that holds up social media, a web site, gadget or latest shiny new flavor of the month and becomes an "everything person." ** EVERYTHING : You know the type: they''re blinded by the shiny new and confuse that for evangelical fire in their eyes. They want you to know how "Flash in the Peter Pan" is going to change the world and as you read this? Pete 2.0
Bad Pitch Blog
OCTOBER 21, 2010
Social media is changing the skill sets needed to succeed. That said I think writing is more important than ever. From long form to short form, from using text speak to fitting something into 140 characters -- the better you can communicate, the more successful you will be. This applies to any career. We''ve foisted writing links on you before. So we''ve been reticent to merely repeat our favorites or force the issue with an endless number of link-laden lists you''ll check out once if ever.
Bad Pitch Blog
JUNE 3, 2010
Sometimes the client will want us to pitch a follow up story.essentially an extension of the first article. But there is a reason to contact the journalist that unintentionally made your life "interesting." ** It puts you on the journalist''s radar for the next story. ** It gives you an opportunity to pitch a different story. ** Depending on how the first article transpired, it allows you to get insight into why your client was not included in the first article.
Waxing UnLyrical
NOVEMBER 30, 2010
Waxing UnLyrical personal, possibly poetic, musings on public relations, media, communication, and everything in between About Shonali How to Start a University Blog November 30th, 2010 Tweet Guest post by Shanan Sorochynski, and also part of the Blogging for Grasshoppers series Since our university launched its first official blog , the question I keep hearing is: how did you do it?
Bad Pitch Blog
APRIL 22, 2010
Malcolm McLaren passed away several days ago and as you may know he invented punk. As a guy who is a punk follower from way back when , I followed his career avidly. But I think MM''s greatest invention was Sex Pistols which, if you think about it or take a listen, was a band that wasn''t great musically yet was so raw that if you got a whiff of it you needed to have more. Quickly.
Bad Pitch Blog
JUNE 9, 2010
But even if you''re pitching your client''s case study you may only get a single mention. Some great comments on the previous post compelled me to create this follow-up post. Anon : Any advice on what to tell [the client] when they come to you with the article and say "well, why weren''t we in this?"
Bad Pitch Blog
FEBRUARY 1, 2010
The Bad Pitch Blog was contacted by an anonymous source who is calling out another arrogant brand – Ralph Lauren. Based on the way Ralph Lauren’s PR peeps are handling media relations, it looks like they could use an ego check. -- Subject: Ralph Lauren Fall 2010 Fashion Show From: "PRL-FashionShow" To: More than 50 members of the fourth estate Date: Mon, February 01, 2010 6:11 pm Hello, Thank you for your interest in attending the Ralph Lauren Collection Fall 2010 Fashion show.
Bad Pitch Blog
APRIL 6, 2010
Bad Pitch Blog consumer appeal end of mass production product differentiators Richard Laermer A true capitalist will tell you the definition of business is someone out there waiting to steal your customers. If you’re a big company, it may be the little guy you go “feh” to who seems content picking up scraps from your table but really has a far bigger appetite.
Bad Pitch Blog
JULY 6, 2010
Fast forward to 2010. Summer. Consider the opportunity. Holidays. Vacations (fwiw, Laermer is in Tel Aviv. In two weeks, I head out much closer to home). Nice weather (alongside hellish weather). It''s the perfect storm for slacking--or for a little creativity. This post excerpt inspires me: Stale. One thing that I never want to be. We all have a tendency to learn up to a point, we get comfortable and keep chugging along rarely investing in our ongoing education.
Bad Pitch Blog
APRIL 12, 2010
We received the following words of wisdom from The University of Washington''s Director of News & Information, Bob Roseth: "I’ve always said that boilerplate is fine if you’re from Purdue; anywhere else it’s just empty words." OK, that read''s a bit out of context without the link to a news release in which the boilerplate is longer than the (soft) news. It''s longer by nearly 100 words with a 261-word boilerplate shouting over a 169-word news release.
Bad Pitch Blog
JUNE 17, 2010
Got another "pitch" sent via an email marketing platform. A quick rant. I won''t go off on the tangent explaining why I so loathe this approach with every fiber of my being multiplied by infinity with the intensity of a thousand suns -- on a stick. But I will share with you a DISCLAIMER that was at the top of this particular piece of spam: This press release was sent through the Vocus PR platform.
Bad Pitch Blog
DECEMBER 29, 2009
As the Bad Pitch blog heads into its 5th year of existence, we’re jazzed about 2010. Here are three ways to suck less in 2010. Pledge to Make a Mistake: Promising yourself you''ll f-up in 2010 comes with two benefits. Then you’ll only have one list to ignore in 2010. If these missteps were connected to annual events, create calendar items for 2010 to make sure history doesn''t repeat itself.
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