News & Opinion

By Bob Gold, Principal   Zenita Henderson is simply the smartest, most caring, and loving person in any room. She leads from a place of compassion and sensitivity. The SCTE•ISBE/Tuck Executive Leadership Institute Alumni and Cable TV Industry are better because of her own brand of connectivity. Here is “Words to Lift By” a poem for Zenita Henderson.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WN3ntTBtqd0 For more information regarding our service offering in reputation management, special events & trade shows, and owned and paid media please contact us.

Originally published on TRANSMITWelcome to the age of mass disruption, where every industry, especially media and entertainment, is experiencing rapid changes in their business models, technologies and production workflows. Driving this supercharged, superfast evolution is data. And for me, data equals noise as well as insights.   For example, we did general consumer audience research about a streaming feature. Guess what? Nearly 40% of the respondents told us they don’t use a streaming service. But later told us they used Netflix. Oh.   So it’s not just my brain that’s in data overload. I know, I know — its life. And while no one ever said life would be easy, the truth is it seems like it’s never been tougher for company messages to be heard above the noise.   Data has always been around us, between us, connecting us. But we haven’t done a great job of monitoring and gathering data until this era. Domo, for example, who previously claimed 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are generated a day in 2017, now predict that, by 2020, it’s estimated that for every person on earth, 1.7 MB of data will be created every second.   So the real question, IMHO, is not what to do with the data, but how any executive in our space can break through the clutter of it all to tell a meaningful story about how their company leverages technology to unlock opportunities.   In our information-saturated age, business leaders “won’t be heard unless they’re telling stories,” says Nick Morgan, author of Power Cues. Here’s the kicker: It’s more than just a story, if it’s told as a personal experience. That’s why case studies are so powerful.   One year, we pitched an interview with an executive who had no news, but had some strong opinions about the streaming space. He predicted that Netflix would change its model and introduce downloading. A trade reporter and a business reporter snapped at the opportunity to talk to our executive. Best of all, their stories appeared within hours of each other, and that helped take the story global – we had over 10 million views!   Noise.   I know that most CEOs I speak with tell me their growth strategy is comprised of creating a better technology. For them, technology holds the key to unlocking a competitive advantage that will elevate the company to the next level.   Maybe.   An explanation of how your product solves a particular problem doesn’t always make for an engaging presentation. But a story that tells a specific audience why they should care about having this problem solved can capture their hearts and minds.   The human condition is ultimately the most powerful part of any storytelling. I believe the real question is how anyone’s software, services and solutions can be made to stand out and become a truly recognized brand in a highly competitive industry. I’m willing to bet that almost all the readers of Transmit do not work for a monopoly. So how do you make your data and analytics story compelling?   Following are some tips that I believe, if used, will help propel your business forward.   Bob Gold’s 5 Rules To Improve Your Storytelling   Strive to tell your story better, bolder and in a more compelling way. Here’s a short list of the five most basic rules of marketable storytelling: 1. Be able to tell your story ...in the time it takes to ride an elevator. Writers are always looking for good stories…they just don’t have a lot of time. Ask yourself, “How can I boil it down to a compelling single statement?” If you are trying to convince senior leaders to take a risk by supporting your project, convey that most companies are built on taking smart chances. First settle on your ultimate message; then you can figure out the best way to illustrate it. 2. Be direct and straightforward. Get to the heart of why your story matters. Sometimes a simple, one-page fact sheet helps. 3. Try to get beyond the buzzwords. Can you explain what new capabilities are truly unique to you and how they help people do their jobs better or improve quality of the project? 4. Highlight a struggle. A story needs conflict. Is there a competitor that needs to be bested? A market challenge that needs to be overcome? A change-resistant industry that needs to be transformed? Don’t be afraid to suggest the road ahead will be difficult. There may be a tendency not to want to share personal details at work, but anecdotes that illustrate struggle, failure and barriers overcome are what make leaders appear authentic and accessible. Showing your vulnerabilities and humanizing the topic will get more attention. People actually like to be told it’s going to be hard. Smart leaders tell employees, “This is going to be tough. But if we all pull together, we’ll achieve something amazing.” A well-crafted story embedded with that kind of a rallying cry encourages the intended audience to be partners in change, because they want to be part of the journey. 5. A picture is worth more than 1,000 words Graphics, photos, and video are great additions that can enhance any story. They help to quickly summarize or illustrate the issue. If you have stats or historical data to support the story, include them. Be creative and be strategic. Know who your audience is. Storytelling doesn’t have to be a 1,000-word byline or whitepaper. Use video vignettes, a Q&A or an illustration. A quick video interview with people close to the project or initiative is easy to digest and eminently watchable.   When I started in the PR biz – before mobile phones, Internet, 500+ channels on TV and 200 OTT services – UCLA did a study to find out just how many “calls to action” each consumer received in a day. You know a call to action is “turn the dial,” “buy this product,” “watch this show,” “go to this theme park.” Got a number in your mind? What is it? Remember, there was radio, TV, newspapers, magazines, billboards, bus shelters. A lot of places where folks were being asked to do something.   Ok, here’s the answer: 1,500.   Sounds like a lot right? But today we have email, text, apps, online sites, and so much more that we are bombarded with messages everywhere in our lives. And that is NOT counting the cacophony of news of disasters and paranoia created by daily coverage of the goings-on globally. Today it’s exponentially noisier. It’s greater disruption. This is a very, very noisy environment where you must figure out how to grab the attention of the select few executives whose decision could help your company soar. No one makes decisions in a vacuum. That means that executives who are not directly involved in selecting your company are affecting the decision of which company to hire.   Without disruption we wouldn’t have great stories. Of victims, winners and change agents. I have fallen in love with living in disruption because it creates new opportunities to tell more stories. And these stories at the end of the day, really do count. To paraphrase Ronald Reagan: Entertainment Technology is not a bad profession. If you succeed, there are many rewards; if you disgrace yourself, you can always write a book.

Before COVID-19 accelerated, before the closed beaches, trails and sudden emptiness, I was 40 feet above the ground on Esplanade. You can see the entire ocean from this California porch—it’s the porch of a light blue house, which, according to the locals, is said to emit a kind of holiness. I lift my hand to knock. The door opened. She was something like Christy Turlington, graced by the years. Her eyes, a bright green.Click here to read the full article on Positively Positive.

By Beth Braen, Director Client Services    We are in the biggest crisis most of us – maybe all of us – have experienced in our lifetimes, COVID19, never mind in our professional lives. My advice – do not panic! This is the time to take a breath, review your crisis communications plan and prepare for what is still to come. Whether we like it or not, every one of us is tasked with responding to the ongoing crisis, and how you respond can make the difference between bankroll and bankruptcy. Whether you are on the board of a nonprofit, the marketing manager of a small business or the corporate communications exec at a large corporation, it is not too late to review what you’re already doing and make changes if needed.    So here are my tips which have helped me whether I’m supporting one of our clients in their crisis communications or in my volunteer work on a synagogue board as we’ve developed an approach for keeping our members in the know during a very fluid time. I hope you’ll find they are easily customizable to your situation. In my experience, organizations that take a proactive approach in crisis management and business continuity can often avoid the harmful impact that missteps, layoffs and furloughs, financial restructuring or difficult shifts in business can have on their reputation, financial performance and employee morale.  Staying at the Ready  Good executive leadership and effective decision making are crucial in managing a crisis. Continually reviewing the protocols you have in place is far better than scrambling and becoming reactive. Here are the necessary steps I recommend for a successful crisis communications strategy. If you have not adopted these, now is the time.   Leadership team - be sure the chain of command and communication is clear. A primary crisis team should already be in place and prepared to give strong internal direction and reflect a consensus across the entire executive management front. In fact, no communication should be released before it is approved including social media messages, news releases, interviews, or company blog posts at any level of the organization. A secondary team should also be in place representing each key department and tasked with delivering a targeted response or outreach—especially those on the front line such as sales and customer service. The team should operate from one “command center” in order to ensure immediacy even when based around the globe and in different departments.  Team contacts -- all primary and secondary crisis communications teams’ contact information should be integrated into one list featuring mobile phone numbers, email addresses, approved text messaging apps and usernames – along with directions on how to get through quickly. Many organizations assign a code word.   Timeline – the crisis communications leadership must work together to craft a plan for short-, mid- and long-term steps to ensure consistency of story.   Necessary Steps   Gather the facts – understand the facts behind the crisis and put these in writing as potential message points. Collect all available information, both internally and externally. Review constantly.  Convene the crisis communication team - core team members should be meeting regularly by video conference call and deciding courses of action Since this must be done swiftly and often, the core members should take the lead, and then bring in the rest of the team if additional stressors warrant such action. Be sure to prioritize what is in fact a crisis and assess the potential impact. For example, will the issue hurt your profitability? Will it affect company operations and workflow? Will your reputation be damaged? Were employees, partners or customers harmed?  Managing communication of key messages  Talk with the board & stakeholders - this may have already been done, but the entire board and each of the stakeholder partners needs to be contacted by the CEO immediately. Each call should be one-on-one and ensure the stability of the company and management team. Determine and stick to a plan of regularly scheduled and personal updates throughout the duration of the crisis.  Decide to be the hero, not victim or villain - if you are complete in your briefing, ensure that you are being, now and always, entirely authentic and committed to doing the right thing to avoid being perceived as anything but a hero. Be clear and paint a realistic picture of the swirling challenges and your fresh approach.  Review key messages: Solidify high level messages to be delivered repeatedly and clearly and ideally by one key spokesperson.  Methods of communication  Control the message - stick to the facts and to main messages, thus controlling what information is disseminated. This information should be completely factual and forthcoming.   Utilize your social media monitoring - ensure your searches are ready to go and add in any keywords that pertain to the crisis  Respond to media and others - while the media will shape public opinion about how you are responding to the crisis, others may fuel the flames of controversy and need to be personally addressed too. Therefore, it is important to respond to all requests, be sensitive to deadlines and provide all reporters with the same information—in most cases avoid exclusive stories.  Preparation and delivery of key communications  Prepare and distribute necessary news releases, schedule posts on social media and prepare other documents for a press conference. Ensure the spokesperson is briefed and has a clear voice throughout all deliverables. Check for spikes in media coverage and respond when and where appropriate. This includes monitoring your social activity and participating in the conversation.  Reassess the situation and perform a postmortem  Throughout the process, it is helpful to conduct regular debriefings to document what you have learned, who you spoke with and ensure you are being thorough. You will learn where you handled the crisis effectively and where there is room for improvement.     For tips on how to stay relevant with your marketing and public relation initiatives during a crisis such as a pandemic, read our blog, PR and Marketing During Coronavirus: How to Stay Relevant During a Crisis. 

Getting Ready for Furloughs, Financial Restructuring or Bankruptcy Requires Crisis Communications Pros According to the American Bankruptcy Institute, over 1,700 commercial businesses filed for Chapter 11 nationwide in just the past three months.   Business leaders across the nation are navigating unimaginable challenges. As businesses experience “shelter-in-place,” we all contemplate what comes next.   And just as importantly, how can we explain the pains we are undergoing during this time? Survival today may not mean growth. It may just be liquidity.   Staying liquid to wait out this economic storm requires an expertise that may not be in-house. Bankruptcy and Financial Restructuring For many companies, staying solvent requires restructuring. This can take place as easily as creating a new financial plan for right now – cutting expenses, reducing payroll, not paying rent.   But for many, a more formalized stating of a new business plan is needed. One that a court and creditors can accept.   Seeking counsel is the most important way to showcase your leadership. Set the agenda and ask for help. From employees, but also by seeking counsel from lawyers, financial advisors, and communications experts to determine possible options to lessen a company’s financial burden and provide some level of continuance. Crisis Support Whether you and your legal team are steering a firm in the direction of downsizing, restructuring or chapter 11, or worse, Chapter 7 for total liquidation, it is critical to consider partnering with a public relations firm that is expert in handling bankruptcy communications to help maintain the integrity of your brand and reputation.   This form of crisis communications planning and execution is necessary to keep investors, customers, employees, partners and media informed and engaged with your business.   A good bankruptcy communications plan will include developing a collaborative working relationship with the bankruptcy lawyers along with well-crafted key messages for spokespeople and media training executives and employees to communicate with confidence while sharing unfavorable news in order to position the organization for recovery and success.   At Bob Gold & Associates every plan is customized for you and your company. Once the plan is in place (and sometimes simultaneously) we execute a key message strategy to help you maintain and build quality relationships with all stakeholders through a variety of tactics -- from news releases, internal and external communications, investor relations, social media and much more.   Work with those who have walked these mean streets before. We have worked with numerous clients and emerged with very positive outcomes against innumerous obstacles. And in every case – the humanity of the leadership, the caring of the customer and the value of the employee is always communicated.

By Roxanne Leone, Director Marketing and Communications There are now more than 141,000 cases of the coronavirus across the United States and every business has to do their part to help flatten the curve.     In this difficult time of uncertainty, its critical that you explore new ways of doing business and step up your marketing and PR game to meet customer needs. Even during a pandemic, the phrase still rings true - out of sight is out of mind.    How can your businesses stay relevant?   Expand resources on your website: in addition to Zoom making video conferencing free for K-12 schools in the US, they also expanded their resource section of their website with live demos, webinars, videos and blogs—something many of us can deliver on while working remote.  Offer free or discounted services/products: Headspace launched complimentary meditations titled Weathering the storm and free access to Headspace Plus for all US healthcare professionals working in public health setting. Review your current and upcoming promotions and see where it makes sense to adjust your timelines to meet today’s needs.  Convert F2F events to digital experiences: if you cancelled or postponed an event provide a channel for exhibitors to share product info and demos, announcements, and deliver educational content to people while virtual.  Introduce a new podcast or podcast series: Interactive TV Today is producing a new series of live and on-demand video and audio podcasts that will explore how the advanced/interactive TV industry is responding to the COVID-19 epidemic. This is a great time to invest in podcast production which is more affordable than you might think. Read the Sweet Fish Media blog for support on how to start your own podcast for your B2B brand.  Step up your social media game: create webinars from existing content marketing materials and invest time in producing regular video’s so your audiences remain educated and engaged. Shareable content is in demand and storytelling will help others understand how you can help solve their challenges.  As an organization doing business in the U.S., continue placing emphasis on the safety of your employees, customers and partners and keep all of them educated and informed. If you haven’t flushed out your organizations key messaging for your various audiences, please check out some crisis management tips here.    Also, keep in mind that in these troubling times it’s not just about your organization. Volunteerism is at an all-time low. For example, Feed America secures and distributes 4.3 billion meals each year through food pantries and meal programs throughout the U.S. Use the search feature on their website to find your local food bank. If feasible, gather your team to support the community. 

By Roxanne Leone, Director Marketing and Public Relations Hundreds of communications, marketing and digital professionals gathered at the PR News Crisis and Measurement Summit 2020 in downtown Miami just 4 weeks ago not fully anticipating where we would be today with COVID-19.     With the virus spreading across the globe, every PR and marketing professional must be wearing their “crisis communicator” hat – expert or not – yet 37 percent of companies surveyed by PRNEWS and CS&A International have never conducted a crisis exercise to prepare their teams.    On the flip side, over 62 percent of organizations do have crisis communications plans filed away that quite possibly have never been updated. The time is now…to dust it off, adapt and refresh your plan to ensure you are communicating with your employees, stakeholders, partners and customers during this time of uncertainty.  Pull together a crisis team  If you haven’t already done so, rally your primary crisis team to provide internal direction and reflect a consensus across all executives. This team should craft a plan for short-, mid- and long-term steps to ensure consistency of messaging. In addition, midsized to large organizations should put a secondary team in place to represent each department, such as legal, compliance, human resources, IT and others to keep them informed every step of the way.  Determine key messages  Determine what you are doing and going to do from a corporate point of view and how you want it communicated. Are you addressing outrage or fear? Are you talking about cleanliness and safety? Are you reducing hours of operation? Are there any new avenues for reaching customer service and technical support staff? Document messages for each applicable audience and secure consensus among all teams not to falter execution across the board.    If you have any bad news to share whatsoever, do it once, so it doesn’t trickle out slowly and you can focus your efforts on the good, proactive things you are doing.  Select methods of communication  Consider the best ways to communicate with your various audiences. Think about your website, social media platforms, intranet, email or a combination. If your role is in marketing or promotional PR, you should consider fine-tuning your media relations approaches and a short holding statement might be preferable. If the media reaches out to you, it’s important to respond to all requests, to be sensitive to deadlines, stick to the facts and to provide all reporters with the same information.    For more information on how to manage, plan and communicate during a corporate crisis, read our blog It is Not Too Late: Review Your Crisis Communication Plan Now and download these HubSpot templates for guidance, Crisis Communication and Management Templates .    If you need one on one assistance, Bob Gold & Associates will get you off and running quickly, whether that means dusting off that old crisis communications plan or creating a new crisis management strategy. As one of Clutch’s top 2020 crisis communications firms in the Los Angeles area, you can count on us. 

By Roxanne Leone, Director Marketing & Communications The Interview Interviews are the basic tool of gathering news and insights.  Journalists must rely on spokespeople like you for newsworthy information and insights. A news interview, regardless of how casual it may be, is much like a formal negotiation, during which the journalist represents the public and your responses or comments are directed through the journalist to the public.    The journalist wants a compelling story, on his terms to meet the needs of his readers. The journalist isn’t interested in anything but news. Your role is to think like a journalist and control the interview - keeping answers short, factual and personable.   Preparing for an Interview Do your homework. It is challenging to remember everything about various activities within the company when you’re under pressure during the interview.  Homework may include a refresh on key messages, statistical data as well as recent reading articles authored by the journalist. Anticipate Q and A’s. Your knowledge of your organization, strategies and products or services is important but the publicity you get isn’t always about your solution but about general insights, trends or a preexisting news story. Prepare a set of objectives. Rather than simply responding to questions, your most important assignment in the interview must be to ensure that the things you want to communicate through the journalist are focused and captured during the interview. What to do When you Meet with Journalists There are several things you should do when you are introduced to a journalist. Consider these tips: From the beginning, you should steer the journalist in the direction of your objectives and keep track of your key messages during the interview. Since you are more educated about your business than he is, he will gladly listen for informal guidance about the nature of the story. If you’re led in another direction, utilize these transition phrases to get back on topic. Attempt to gain some common ground on a personal basis with the journalist. Continue to utilize your personality and share stories to help build credibility and come across as a thought leader. Journalists are skeptical people looking for an emotional response. If there is emotion around a certain response, they will grade that higher than the responses which are unemotional.  Positive emotion may be a tremendous force in winning interviews. Winning the Interview You are not at the journalist’s mercy.  All you must do is execute your game plan. Place your most important points at the beginning of each response where they will be clear and isolated. Journalists want colorful language, not dry technological jargon. The more informal, the better.  If an answer must be technical to be accurate, provide an appropriate analogy.  The most important point is to listen carefully. You must understand the question before you begin to answer it. If you need additional time to craft your response, repeat the question.   According to a PR News Media Training Guidebook, they reiterate the importance of newsworthiness. If you feel your story is newsworthy ensure it will influence the masses, be interesting and contain unique or never-been-done before components. For the latest PR News Guidebook click here, it not only provides tips for interview preparation but offers information on journalist relations, crisis management, influencer relations, social media and more!   For additional guidance on media interviews or the importance of media training, review our blog, “Did I Say THAT? Three Reasons Why Executives Need Media Training.”

Over the years, we’ve learned that if we focus on client satisfaction, we’re golden. In any partnership, the most important consideration is our customer’s happiness.    That’s why we continue to refine our knowledge of best practices for corporate communications, event management, and online reputation management firms. We’ve maintained a strong focus on the latest trends in crisis communication as well.   It’s no surprise that we’ve been recognized by Clutch, a B2B directory resource site, as a leader in those same categories!     Our public relations services have been rated according to Clutch’s data-backed methodology. They analyzed our market presence, specialized services, and, most importantly, verified client reviews. Using the results of this research, they determined that we’re a leader in our industry.   Looking at our reviews on the ratings and reviews platform, it’s no surprise that we’ve achieved this award. Our nine reviews average out to a stellar 4.9 rating out of 5 possible stars!   “Clutch has been a great partner for our agency - and a primary source of referrals to us.” — CEO, Bob Gold & Associates   All of our reviews give us exceptional ratings for the quality of our services, our ability to meet deadlines, and our value for cost. We also received high ratings on the client’s willingness to refer our services to others.     This award reminds us why we’re named Bob Gold & Associates, instead of Bob Silver and Associates. Our founder, Bob Gold, has a last name that exemplifies our high standards.   We’ll never be satisfied with positive recognition. Instead, it inspires us to continue striving to reach higher levels of customer satisfaction. If you’ve been searching for public relations assistance, we’d love to chat! We’ll help you tell the story your audience has been waiting to hear.