magriebler
- 360 comments
- 340 likes given
- 392 likes received
Marketer with a splash of PR, dabbler in social media, travel fiend, crazed by sloppy thinking, in hot pursuit of new ideas. Can't ever put a good book down.
@katskrieger @RebeccaTodd I think Louis is one of the most highly evolved humans I know. He should not be eaten by lions. I can make other recommendations in that area.
What I love about the whole "to sell is human" concept is that even when sales isn't a line item in our job descriptions, it's a mindset that indispensible for success, whatever our calling in life. We have to sell ourselves in a job interview. We have to sell our ideas to our bosses and our colleagues. David Mamet said it best: "Always be closing! " Because there's always a deal in the offing that can move us to the next stage in our careers.
While I am personally creeped out by the idea of an open video session (I like my office, although the door is always open), what's great about this conversation is the reminder that there are so many ways to stay in touch while working virtually. Phone. Text. Email. Skype. Google. I'm not in a virtual office environment right now, but I have been in the past. I figured out what communication tactic worked best for each staff person and that's what we did. As a team, we met regularly via conference calls (no video).
Isn't it nice that we can customize the way we work with our colleagues, just as we can customize the way we reach out to our audiences? I love it. We truly are free to work anywhere these days. What happened at Yahoo is a failure of management and I wish we were talking about that, instead of blaming the staff.
@PattiRoseKnight1 What a nice distinction. Part of listening is also showing that you're engaged so the speaker doesn't have to wonder whether you're really paying attention or not.
@ginidietrich @ElissaFreeman I love that phrase: This isn't the Gini show. It's not the Marianne show either. (More's the pity -- HA.) But it's only by shutting up that we really help team members grow into their strengths, build confidence, show their smarts and ultimately become better contributors to the overall mission. Sounds like a pretty good reason to bite our tongues.
@JackVincent You're really on target with this. Being intentional about listening gives you the information you need to tailor your pitch to the individual prospect. You're not making assumptions about what they need. It turns a sales call into a partnership.
I almost forgot! Happy birthday, Lindsay!
I enjoy a good sports analogy. So when you think about pitching and baseball, you realize that a successful pitcher can not only visualize his target (home plate) but knows his audience (in this case, the batter). He literally designs his pitch for the person standing in front of him. He wants the guy to whiff, of course and a PR professional would prefer a home run, but the concept is the same.
So whether you're aiming for a blogger or a batter, you need to have a clear target in mind and customize your delivery for each individual. Otherwise, it's not really a pitch at all. It's a hot mess.
@ginidietrich @magriebler Oh yeah.
Your boyfriend. is. brilliant.
So lovely to meet you, Elissa. I love how you spell your name. And I love that you work hard at taking care of yourself . Way to inspire the rest of us!
To this outstanding list (including the insightful comments) I would add: Learn to quantify your work so that you can always demonstrate your potential impact on the bottom line (or the organization's mission, if you're on the nonprofit side as I am). That means taking the time to set achievable goals and measurable outcomes for everything you do. There have been many great Spin Sucks posts on this topic, so I won't reinvent the wheel. But too often PR is overlooked because senior management thinks it doesn't make a dent in the strategic plan. Show them HOW and WHY it does.
@Erin F. @Shonali I've always loved the phrase: Perfect is the enemy of the good. If we try to avoid the mess, we might stay neat and tidy but we won't be creative. And sometimes, in the messiness, we are able to mine something truly precious and unique.
@lauraclick Laura, I think you perfectly captured the fine line in this issue. In a corporate setting, too much "me" can definitely interfere with the "we" of the larger mission (and can make you look like less than a team player).
We all wanted Armstrong to be clean because his life was such a great story and we're hard-wired to need great stories. So you're exactly right when you say this is bigger than professional cycling. Many of us know cancer survivors and their friends and families who hadn't ridden a bike since grammar school but wore that Livestrong bracelet because of the hope it gave them. What a sad, sad mess this is.
Watching the interview with my PR hat on, it was clear that he'd been coached to say the right words. But you can't coach or manufacture genuine emotion and that was sorely lacking. He just wants to be able to compete again and he's willing to do anything to make that happen, including lie through his teeth and genuflect before Oprah. The only time he looked uncomfortable was talking about his kids. But not when he talked about trying to destroy people's lives when they spoke the truth. At that point the interview was scarier than any horror movie.
@samfiorella Looks like you're doing just fine. :-)
Hi Sam! Lovely to meet you. Welcome to the #FF Roast here on Spin Sucks. From what I can tell, everyone does survive.
@bradmarley @RebeccaTodd Your secret is safe with us.
@bradmarley LOVE it. A great analogy.
@RebeccaTodd It is impractical. FB seems almost like an obligation lately, although I do go through phases of pretending like it doesn't exist. (You and I have to meet IRL some day, missy.)