Did the White House Blow its Crisis Communications Plan?

By Joyce Newman, The Newman Group, Inc. — Leave a comment (1)
Crisis communications at the White House

Setting off a crisis

This hasn’t been a fun couple of weeks for President Obama. Republicans and even members of his own party are gunning for him over the IRS, AP phone records and Benghazi debacles.

Starting with the IRS, several mid-level career IRS employees in the Cincinnati office targeted conservative sounding groups like the Tea Party for extra scrutiny when considering their applications for tax-exempt status.

Apparently, their instructions for screening these requests weren’t clear – at least that’s the IRS’s defense. …Read more…

Crisis Communications Training, Crisis Media Training

What to Look for in Hiring a Celebrity or Subject Matter Spokesperson

By Deb Durham — Leave a comment (0)

An interview with Deb Durham, President of SPOKESPERSONS PLUS NETWORK®

What do you look for in a spokesperson?

Whether you seek a subject matter expert or a celebrity spokesperson, credibility is the #1 quality to look for. You only want a spokesperson who can authentically get behind your brand’s messaging and has the credentials that support it.

post1 For example, my company secured Anna Post, Emily Post’s great-great granddaughter and an etiquette expert in her own right, for Intel’s Mobile Etiquette campaign.

Anna is 30-something, has the perfect background, and in addition to the media activities booked by Intel’s PR folks, Anna was able to incorporate Intel’s messaging into interviews she was doing on her own to promote the recently launched the 18th Edition of Emily Post’s Etiquette, of which she is co-author.

Secondly, make sure that the spokesperson has not …Read more…

Business Presentation Skills, Celebrity Media Training, Executive Media Training, Executive Presentation Skills, Media Interview Coaching, Media Relations Training, Personal Charisma, Presentation Skills Training, Speakers Bureau Training

How to Introduce the Speaker Without it Sounding Like an Obituary

By Joyce Newman, The Newman Group, Inc. — Leave a comment (0)

“Now, without further ado…” Does that trite introduction make your eyes glaze over if you aren’t already half asleep from listening to a preview of the speaker’s obituary?Isolated angel character with halo and wings

On and on and on. The host endlessly reads every word of a biography submitted by the speaker or his PR Department.

Or, the introducer has done her due diligence, researching articles and books the speaker has written, his degrees, and every job he’s every held. Then she rolls them all up into an endless introduction that could easily double as the speaker’s obituary.

If you’re the speaker, …Read more…

Business Presentation Skills, Presentation Skills Training, Speakers Bureau Training

Persuade the Audience to Your Point of View by Solving Their Problems

By Joyce Newman, The Newman Group, Inc. — Leave a comment (2)

Every presentation you ever deliver is designed to persuade the audience to accept your point of view. Can you think of any other reason to make a presentation?

NGAudienceNot to nitpick, but a speech is not a presentation. A speech is a lecture by an authority, such as a researcher delivering the results of a 10-year study of a new drug to a medical association. It’s educational.

Taking that example a step further, a presentation of those results to the FDA would be …Read more…

Business Presentation Skills, Executive Presentation Skills, Personal Charisma, Presentation Skills Training
 
  Older Entries »