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Fred Wellman is the founder of ScoutComms, a niche agency in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He specializes in public relations and marketing efforts in support of corporations and nonprofits focused on veteran and military family support, as well as veteran-owned and focused businesses.  In this episode, he explains why he started his own PR agency that focuses n service and why running a B Corp (a mission-driven benefit corporation) can create a competitive edge in attracting top quality clients and employees. He also explains the importance of serving pro bono clients and why we should hire against our weaknesses. As the hardest working man in public relations, Fred Wellman is the James Brown of PR. As the hardest working man in public relations, Fred Wellman is the James Brown of PR. A graduate of West Point and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, he ran for mayor in Georgia, served as an Army Scout and Blackhawk helicopter pilot in Iraq, worked for Generals David Petraeus and Martin Dempsey (later Chairm

Curtis Sparrer, principal at Bospar PR in San Francisco, shares terrific insights on why celebrity interviews are like a high-performance sport. He also explains how to set up really successful media engagements, tips on working with celebrities (he's done award-winning work with George Takei of Star Trek fame), and how to grow trust-based relationships with clients. Working with a celebrity or CEO on successful media engagements: Consider what they can and can’t talk about; do a deep dive with them and their management team about those issues before any media interviews. Before an interview, clarify with the journalist what questions will be asked; ask for a written Q&A beforehand; be clear about ground rules; let them know what you want to focus on. Be clear about anything you’d like the journalist to include in the story. Send a follow-up note with thanks and a reminder of the key point(s) you’d like to have included in the story. If your key message isn’t included in the final version of the s

Josh Elledge built and runs two very successful businesses:  Savings Angel and Up My Influence. He generated more than $6 million dollars in publicity, essentially for free. Josh shares with us how he did it and he lays out the steps we can take right now to build our authority and promote our own businesses in the same way.

Authority Marketing is Michael Greenberg's secret sauce for positioning people and brands. It is the act of positioning someone as an expert in order to bring in more business. As founder and chief strategist at Call for Content, Michael shares his uniquely powerful method of building authority through content and leveraging that for B2B marketing. He also provides a free link to download his Authority Marketing Playbook. Michael's word of wisdom: "Start creating content; just do it."

Amy Sutton, founder of Enjoy PR, takes us on her journey from law to PR. She shares why diversity is key to powerful Public Relations. We also explore the importance of relationships in PR and communications, and how to set expectations in client-agency relationships.   Amy recently published an article on LinkedIn titled “Kill the PR Girl,” in which she challenges the stereotype of “the PR Girl” and why that stereotype hurts both public relations professionals and their agencies, in part because of the reinforcement of glass ceilings. We explore the importance of diversity in public relations planning, specifically how diverse perspectives drive creativity and effective problem-solving.

I'm joined by Jake Eisenberg, president of Reach Digital Group. Jake shares his approach to local marketing and explains how he uses social media to boost lead generation and acquire solid leads. His company specializes in helping local businesses, but his approach works for national brands as well.   Q: Jake, you're president of the Reach Digital Group. How did you get into this business and why did you choose to start your own agency?  Originally, I got started with a mixed martial arts blog that I had in 2009, before MMA really took off. This website was gaining a lot of traffic, and I was generating money through ad revenue, and I saw how to bring new traffic in. I started getting familiar with search engine optimization and started thinking to myself, "What are other ways that I can bring this up?"  As I was going through school, and working, and all these other things, I started working on other projects and I stumbled across doing some e-commerce websites, and I got familiar with doing Google AdWords.

I'd like to share strategic communication and stakeholder engagement lessons from the commandant of the Marine Corps. So to set the stage, in Washington D.C. the Marine Barracks Washington is downtown. If you've ever heard of 8th and I, that's Marine Barracks. It's the oldest post of the Corps. As the oldest post of the Corps, they do something very special every Friday evening during the summer called the evening parade. And according to their website, the parade has become a universal symbol of the professionalism, the discipline, and the Espirit de Corps of the United States Marines. The story of the ceremony reflects the story of Marines serving throughout the world. Whether aboard ship, in foreign embassies, at recruit depots, or in divisions, or in the many positions and places where Marines project their image, the individual marine continually tells the story of the Marine Corps.  So the evening parade, let me paint a picture for you. You pull up and immediately, even though you're on the streets of W

The most important thing with PR is asking your clients what business results they want to achieve. And then reverse engineering a PR program around that. Welcome to another episode of Better PR Now. This episode is sponsored by our official transcription partner, transcribeme.com. If you'd like to see an example of their terrific work, check out the "notes" page on the Better PR Now website. For a 25% discount on their services, go to transcribeme.com/betterprnow. Today, we're fortunate to be joined by Curtis Sparrer, principal at Bospar in San Fransisco. Bospar recently won the PR Week Boutique Agency of the Year award. Congratulations and welcome, Curtis. Thanks. Thanks for having me. So, as we jump in, I'd like to find out about how people got into public relations, how they started their career in communication. You graduated from UT Austin with a degree in Radio, Television, and Film. What's happened between graduation and ending up in San Fransisco as a principal at one of the nation's leading agencies

I have a conversation with Jason Anderson, Senior Director of Marketing and Communications at Capital Impact Partners in Washington, DC. This is the first podcast ever recorded in a Wholefoods Supermarket, and I know it's the first podcast recorded in the Wholefoods Supermarket in Pentagon City, Virginia. The reason we're here today is there's a tap takeover by breweries from Richmond, Virginia, and I'm joined by Jason Anderson, somebody I've known for a long time who is a really fantastic communicator. Jason, welcome to the show. Thank you, Mark. So your current position? I am the Senior Director of Communications and Marketing at Capital Impact Partners. Fantastic. Now you've had a really fascinating career. We'll talk about your education, and then you worked for CNN. So tell me about how you got into communications and what drove you towards a communications career to begin with? Yeah. So I grew up in Southern California, and went to Claremont McKenna College where I actually majored in Government and Li

Founder and CEO of EvolveMKD As a business owner, she likes controlling her destiny, who to work with, who to hire, how to invest in the business, and whether to expand. How she fell into a career in public relations, intern boss suggested it. Loves how dynamic working in PR is and how you get to “peek into” and get a behind-the- scenes view of other industries and companies. Likes: You have to continue to learn and grow. You will always be challenged. As technology changes and, how we consume news and media also change, you have to adapt. The importance of balancing the needs of your organization, your clients, and the media. Advice: Early in your career, recommend people get well-rounded, diverse experience, rather than immediately get pigeon-holed (e.g., digital, media, writing press releases, handling budget, developing strategy, etc.). Courses recommended: Take writing classes (e.g., business writing), “If your best-foot- forward includes typos, that’s not good enough.” Accounting (get comfortable with n

Doreen Clark, Director of Public Relations at SmartBug Media, shares some of her secrets to generating great press coverage, coaching executives to communicate more effectively, and the intertwining of PR and Marketing.  Media relations: According to Doreen, public relations is a powerful tool and that we should, “Communicate in a way that is not just beneficial for us, but also for the people we’re reaching out to.” This forms a trifecta of solid media relations that comes together when we understand and communicate: What our audience needs to learn, The information reporters need to know to cover the story, and What we want to deliver for our company or client. She notes that, for media relations professionals, it’s easy to deliver the facts that journalists need. But journalists also need us to offer an opinion, because that helps them craft stories with perspective and emotion. Media training: Doreen has trained a lot of senior executives to be better spokespeople for their organizations. When she provi

Jered Martin discusses OnePitch, which he co-founded with Rebecca “Beck” Bamberger in San Diego.  OnePitch serves as a matchmaker to help journalists and publicists find each other with the right story idea at the right time.  Think of it as eHarmony meets Bumble, but for communication professionals.  OnePitch screens out the vast majority of pitches that are not a good fit for a particular journalist, and delivers only those story ideas that are closely matched with the journalist’s interests.  The journalist can browse pitches anonymously and connect with a publicist when they see a story idea that interests them. According to Jered, “We’re offering a platform that’s relevant, but not invasive.” Jered described the value proposition that OnePitch offers journalists in that the use a categorization process to tailor pitches to journalist’s needs.  “You are going to receive at least one email a day that is going to have only the most relevant things you want to write about.”  He noted that, “The beauty of One

Public Relations expert Deb Radman discusses the power of harnessing the four horsemen of public relations: Leadership, Ethics, Intuition, and Courage. She explains why she would advise her younger self to shut up and listen, so she could really understand what’s being said. She contends that there is great power in taking time to think about something before you formulate an answer. We should then leverage the power of persuasion to engage, motivate, and activate.   Because of changes in the media landscape, PR now has “the opportunity to be the primary source of ideas for our companies and our clients as they seek new ways to communicate.” To do this, we have to venture way outside the box we’ve been in for so long, and have the guts and courage to do that.   Deb also is in favor of integration across the communication spectrum. She argues that public relations professionals have “to be strong enough to go to clients with recommendations that transcend specific disciplines; we cannot be afraid to recommend

PR veteran Deb Radman explains the value of non-traditional hires in public relations, the power of intuition, and the necessity of courage. She explains how PR nightmares come from bad decisions. She presented the James C. Bowling Executive-In-Residence Lecture Series in the University of Kentucky’s Department of Integrated Strategic Communication. She also draws on lessons from Harold Burson, Richard Edelman, Betsy Plank, CKPR and the USO.

Interview with “The Measurement Queen” Katie Paine, about the importance of measuring communications and the challenges of linking communication activities to the organization’s bottom line.  Better PR Now provides clarity so business leaders can communicate strategically, which creates competitive advantages for the business by creating favorable conditions that maximize long-term profits, by growing mutually beneficial relationships with the people you most depend on (employees, customers, suppliers), which creates opportunities (leads, sales, business intelligence) and reduces costs (employees, customers, litigation, regulation).  Better PR Now provides communication strategy for executives.

Discussion with Boston University's Dustin Supa on sharing research, and the importance of bringing Public Relations research to the forefront. Better PR Now provides clarity so business leaders can communicate strategically, which creates competitive advantages for the business by creating favorable conditions that maximize long-term profits, by growing mutually beneficial relationships with the people you most depend on (employees, customers, suppliers), which creates opportunities (leads, sales, business intelligence) and reduces costs (employees, customers, litigation, regulation). Better PR Now provides communication strategy for executives.

Mark recaps the public relations lessons, insights, tips, and tricks he learned at Podcast Movement 2016. Better PR Now is a podcast created for communicators, whether in public relations, public affairs, media relations, government relations, strategic communication, marketing, or corporate communications. Every episode delivers great insights, tips, and professional advice from some of the smartest, most experienced people in the field. Mark Phillips talks with top practitioners and cutting edge researchers to find best practices as we explore new ways to hone our communication skills. Learn the secrets to success, the tools they use, and lessons learned. Knowledge for communication and public relations professionals.

Interview with Professor David Dozier (San Diego State University) and Lou Williams (Lou Williams Companies) as they identify what's wrong with Public Relations today, along with four corrective steps to take. Better PR Now is a podcast created for communicators, whether in public relations, public affairs, media relations, government relations, strategic communication, marketing, or corporate communications. Every episode delivers great insights, tips, and professional advice from some of the smartest, most experienced people in the field. Mark Phillips talks with top practitioners and cutting edge researchers to find best practices as we explore new ways to hone our communication skills. Learn the secrets to success, the tools they use, and lessons learned.

Professor Dustin Supa of Boston University’s College of Communication presents findings from a pilot research project that explored “The Dude Deficit” in undergraduate public relations classrooms. Why are so few young men choosing to major in Public Relations, as opposed to related fields like Marketing and Journalism? Dustin’s research points to an explanation and suggests some ways to address this issue. Better PR Now is a podcast created for communicators, whether in public relations, public affairs, media relations, government relations, strategic communication, marketing, or corporate communications. Every episode delivers great insights, tips, and professional advice from some of the smartest, most experienced people in the field. Mark Phillips talks with top professionals and cutting edge researchers to find best practices as we explore new ways to hone our communication skills. Learn the secrets to success, the tools they use, and lessons learned.  

Col. Mike Lawhorn (Army public affairs) explains: The importance of asking “why?” How changing the words you use can have powerful results. Three key questions to guide your work. The importance of reading professionally. The importance of being a team player. How you can help the boss articulate the outcomes they are looking for. Why you should ask these 3 questions: What problem are we trying to solve? Why is this a problem we need to solve? What do you think it will look like when we solve this problem? The power of substituting the word ‘and’ instead of ‘but’ when disagreeing with somebody. Better PR Now is a podcast created for communicators, whether in public relations, public affairs, media relations, government relations, strategic communication, marketing, or corporate communications. Every episode delivers great insights, tips, and professional advice from some of the smartest, most experienced people in the field. Mark Phillips talks with top practitioners and cutting edge researchers to fin