You know how I hate definitive lists...

Well, here's one that I think is a bit over-eager. The writer points out, with apparent glee, that press releases, press kits, faxes, press conferences and trade shows are all "dead" PR tactics.

It's easy to understand her enthusiasm; she's selling expertise in social media and, therefore, relies much on claiming that everything older than right now is, by definition, outdated.

Remember when there was brief moment in time when profits didn't seem to matter? But I digress...

Allow me to share my thoughts on each of the aforementioned "tactics:"

Press Releases - Definitely not dead. In some instances, they are changing. But there is (are?) a whole slew of media folk, top to bottom, who still like to receive their information that way. A press release, by the way, is not a tactic. It's a tool.

Press Kits - If you believe that content has any value, how can you claim "press kits" are dead? What I think she's talking about is "over-produced and over-priced" press kit packaging. Fact of the matter is, people - journalists included - still need wacky information such as company backgrounders, bios, fact sheets, and YES, press releases. Press kits, by the way, aren't tactics. They are also communications tools.

Faxes - A fax machine isn't a tactic. It's a method of communicating. As the first comment to the posting points out, there are still areas of the globe where fax is a relied-upon method of communication.

Press Conferences - I agree here, that for the most part, press conferences aren't worth the time and effort. You really need something big to pull that off successfully.

Trade Shows - From a PR perspective, there are shows that work. Then again, some don't. Again, trade shows aren't really "tactics" but part of a larger strategy. And, I'd stay away from a blanket pronouncement that leveraging trade show presence is a useless (dead) strategy.

Milestones - 100 Days

I've always wondered why presidents seem fixated on their "first 100 days." I don't have an answer why 100 is a magic number, other than the fact that it's a nice, round, somewhat big number.

Why not 30 days? Or 90? That would make sense; it's a quarter - a measure used in business.

When I start working with a new client, I often get asked, "How long until we see results?" My advice never wavers. When it comes to a public relations campaign, you'll know if it's working within the first 60 - 90 days. If, in that time, there's no movement in terms of media interest, you're either (1) doing something wrong or (2) there's just no story.

At all costs, I avoid guaranteeing anything in terms of media coverage. My feeling is that any PR pro who guarantees hits is up to no good. You can have an incredible story, seemingly perfectly timed, with every piece in place, but then something bigger breaks and you're toast.

Just ask President Obama. His 100th day is tomorrow and, in all likelihood it will be overshadowed by swine flu.

Great PR Challenge - Telling your story in the face of tragedy

I use an online backup service called Mozy. Every once in a while, my files are automatically backed up and I don't ever have to think of it. This service was incredibly helpful when I upgraded to a new laptop and had to migrate tons of files.

What does this have to do with PR?

As a Mozy customer, I get the company newsletter, the most recent featured a piece about USAir flight 1549 that landed in the Hudson Rover. The newsletter briefly told the story of two passengers on the flight, one of whom backed up to thumb drives and the other to Mozy.

Both men had been backing up regularly. The difference is Jorgenson backed up online with Mozy, and Wiley backed up his two computers to thumb drives. Jorgensen retrieved his data back from Mozy, but Wiley lost 250 GB of his employer's information. The stories were detailed in USA Today and ComputerWorld.

Knowing how - and when - to tell your story is even more important than actually having a story to tell. Kudos to Mozy on doing it well.

Dire economy? Innovation!

This piece from yesterday's New York Times is certainly heartening. Here is (not are) a handful of souls who, thanks to pink slips, all find themselves accidental entrepreneurs.

It is exactly for these folks - who will be driving the economy in the near future - that we've launched a new web site that helps young companies create their first PR materials. We also take it a step further with the Marketing Communications Starter Kit.

Sure, there's plenty of doom and gloom out there. (The Chinese prime minister just reported that he's worried about the money his country has lent the United States.) But if you look hard enough, you'll see people doing what people do when their backs are up against the wall: getting creative. If nothing else, it will be fun to see the next great thing that comes out of this depression.