Doug Haslam

Media Bullseye Article on the NYT ‘PR’ Piece

Doug Haslam — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 12:34:35 +0000

There has been bit of brou-ha-ha in the PR community over the July 5 New York Times "Spinning the Web" article. I have made my opinion known, especially over at Media Bullseye (http://bit.ly/I0CYS). In it, I link to several thoughtful reactions.

To summarize: I thought the Times piece did PR a grave disservice, portraying the kissy-face Rolodex style of PR as the norm. Those of us who practice public relations know that’s not true. I also note that articles like that tend to bring us together more as an industry.

Do you know of an article that accurately captures what PR does? Does it exist?

This message has been sent using the picture and Video service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.versionwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messsages sent to email, Quicktime@ 6.5 or higher is required.

Mobile post sent by DougH using Utterli. Replies. mp3

Summer is Never What it Seems

Doug Haslam — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:58:17 +0000

"Summer is always dead."

Wrong. I spent ten years in the news industry, and now 11 in public relations. Every year, people expect summer to be slow. The weather is nice, people go on vacation, etc.

And every summer we are up to our ears in work.

This is not a statement about the economy and whether or not it’s recovering. It’s a statement about how repeated rebuttal doesn’t phase our ingrained prejudices.

Just look at the dragonfly in this photo. They not only don’t bite our sting us, they eat mosquitos. People who know this still scream and run away. Poor guy.

How’s your summer? Do you expect it to be dead, only to get swamped?

Mobile post sent by DougH using Utterli. Replies. mp3

Pan-Mass Challenge Heroes #14 – C.C. Chapman

Doug Haslam — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 02:36:26 +0000

This is an ongoing series profiling some of the people I believe to be the real heroes of the Pan-Mass Challenge: the sponsors who donate their money to fund cancer research.

I have just $1,400 left to raise as I write this, but I can’t get there without help from more people like these Heroes. Please considering joining them by donating any amount to http://pmc.org/DH0159.

I’m a Happy Digital Dad

Originally uploaded by CC Chapman

C.C. Chapman is a man who is always excited about something. His infectious enthusiasm is not some sort of bogus cheerleading, but a genuine storm of positive energy.

You can see that energy applied to his personal musings at www.cc-chapman.com, but also in his life as a marketer at Managing the Gray, a music lover at Accident Hash, and, best of all, a dad at www.digitaldads.com.

Having known C.C. since the first Podcamp conference in Boston in 2006, the cynical side of me has not been able to put a hate on the relentless positivity– because it’s not fake.

So, no surprise that C.C. is one of the many who have sponsored me in the PMC. More from C.C. himself:

- Why did you sponsor me in the Pan-Mass Challenge?

I always like to support friends in any way I can and I think that the Pan-Mass Challenge is a great fundraiser so it is a win win situation for me.

- How did you first hear about the Pan-Mass Challenge?

I don’t think you can live in New England without being aware of it. I don’t have a clue where I first heard about it, but every year I have friends involved in it.

- Are you giving in the name or memory of someone you know who has had cancer?

My family has been effected by cancer, but because it has happened to more then one person I did not do the donation as a tribute.

- Name one interesting fact or story that makes you unique and interesting

Few people know that I’m a published poet (note: including me. Now I know).

C.C., thank you for sponsoring me. And thank you, everyone who has supported the Pan-Mass Challenge in any way. Please consider joining C.C. Chapman to sponsor my ride and fight cancer: http://pmc.org/DH0159. Please feel free to pass the link to others as well.

Pan-Mass Challenge Training Update– Crack o’ Dawn and the Longest Red Light in the World

Doug Haslam — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 00:52:24 +0000

As I continue to prepare for the Pan-Mass Challenge, a two-day bike ride across Massachusetts, in which all the participants raise money to fight cancer (this link goes to my fundraising page, so thank you if tou sponsor!), all sorts of natural obstacles are thrown in my path. today, for instance, I got in a quick 30-mile ride, interrupted by a flat tiure and one of the most incredible downpours I have ever been caught in.

Somehow, when I arrive back at the ball field where I started, there are baseball and volleyball games, a full swimming pool, and a general lack of acknowledgment of the ridiculous storm that took place a mere 10 miles away. As this has happened twice, I am convinced that there is a little black rain cloud following me around as I ride.

I don’t care, it makes me tough.

Earlier, on June 26, I grabbed some video from an early morning 30-mile ride, in which we encounter the infamous Crack of Dawn club, and we encounter the World’s Longest Red Light- twice.

Pan-Mass Challenge Training June 26, 2009 from Doug Haslam on Vimeo.

Fundraising Update: Due to the strong response from my friends, I made my June fundraising goal, based on the percentage of the goal raised last year. Now, there is only $1,400 left to raise, with the PMC a mere four weeks away (August 1-2). Please join my team of sponsors at: http://pmc.org/DH0159

Obsession with Numbers is OK

Doug Haslam — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:29:34 +0000

Mobile post sent by DougH using Utterli. Replies. mp3

Between cycling, fundraising for the Pan-Mass Challenge, and generally being on the social networks, I’m pretty comfortable with numbers. By that I mean setting goals, asking for more, getting as much as possible.

In social media, there is a lot of backlash against “quantity.” “Quality” is first, right? But you don’t get quality without some quantity, and you need to pan a lot of dirt to make sure you get some gold.

Numbers make goals, even if it’s not all 100% clean in the quantity:

More Twitter followers means more good followers (yes, you have to do a little work to search and filter)
More miles means getting in better shape to ride (you have to ride all of them, not just the “good” ones- -whatever that means to you)
More fundraising appeals means more funds raised (by the way, you can support me in the Pan-Mass challenge at http://pmc.org/DH0159)
More business cards collected at a live event means more good contacts made (you will get better at it as you do it more)

Finding quality is hard work. Don’t take this as an excuse to spam and scam, but don’t be afraid of going after numbers.

Pan-Mass Challenge Heroes #13: Larry Lawfer

Doug Haslam — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 01:35:12 +0000

This is an ongoing series profiling some of the people I believe to be the real heroes of the Pan-Mass Challenge: the sponsors who donate their money to fund cancer research.

I have just $1,800 left to raise, but I can’t get there without help from more people like these Heroes. Please considering joining them by donating any amount to http://pmc.org/DH0159.

I have known Larry Lawfer, Founder and President of YourStorys (www.yourstorys.com) for over three years in the “new media” space. More than most, he has represented the bridge from the quality and professionalism standards of old media to the mass (as in the masses) publishing and distribution of media in this new age of inexpensive, easy-to-get tools.

In other words, “new media” doesn’t mean the sacrifice of standards, and Larry’s media work has carried the standards, um, standard. More on PMC sponsorship from Larry himself:

I sponsor people, and you in particular, because of your passion to help, your willingness to sacrifice your time and energy, and the underlying
desire to give back to those who give.

I have been sponsoring people since the PMC’s inception, one reason why I
couldn’t jump on board last year. Yes I hear over and over from you, and
over again. This is what we marketing people do, right? (Note: OK, I can be persistent sometimes)

I actually have donated in the name of a close friend’s mother. She was an
absolutely wonderful woman who fought to the end. Ride well, my friend.

Larry, thank you for sponsoring me. And thank you, everyone who has supported the Pan-Mass Challenge in any way. Please consider joining Larry to sponsor my ride and fight cancer: http://pmc.org/DH0159. Please feel free to pass the link to others as well.

Social Media Top 5: Social CRM Paparazzi, Leaning on Young PR Pros, and Fighting the Elements

Doug Haslam — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 21:34:53 +0000

Rockstars of Social CRM- in Pictures!:

I blogged about my side impressions from this event early in the week, but Warren Sukernik put together these entertaining slides that give the perspective of someone who joined the event via Webinar:

Rockstars of Social CRM

View more documents from Warren Sukernek.

Are We Setting Up Young PR pros for Failure?
I have wondered aloud– with help of some PR professors about the state of PR education in colleges, and whether students are getting the education in newer communication methods– the answer, I think, is that there has been a lot of progress between now and a few years ago. David Mullen, in his article, takes a different tack; he wonders if young PR pros are being tagged as “social media experts” due to their Gen-Y credentials, and being given the keys to social media programs. Is this really happening? I don;t for example, feel that we do that at SHIFT communications, where I work. Are they being given the experienced management and strategic support they need to help their teams succeed? David seems pessimistic. I’d like to hear more.

*UPDATE* Karen Russell, who teaches PR at the University of Georgia, weighed in with her take.

…And a Partridge in a Pear Tree(?):
While self-brainstorming this week (ok, that sounds wrong somehow), I searched on the phrase “elements of a social media program.” The results I got made me chuckle. They included:

Five Essential Elements
Six Successful Elements
Seven Critical Elements
Forty Key Elements
Oh- and Ten tips

There is no shortage of advice, is there?

Something in the Air:
I happened upon friend Colin Browning of New Marketing Labs at a Tweetup (Twitter meetup) during the Enterprise 2.0 conference here in Boston, and he corralled me for this Friday Funnies video now up at his Constructing Social blog. I think I did a good job keeping my composure.

Girl Dies While Tweeting:
No, it’s “Girl Dies While Using an Electrical Appliance in the Bathtub.” I’m sure there are plenty of things we can blame Twitter (or Facebook, or blogs) for. This isn’t one of them.

Pan-Mass Challenge Fundraising and Training Update

Doug Haslam — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 01:45:04 +0000

I have been keeping up (mostly) with my Pan-Mass Challenge training, but have been a bit slow in editing videos (you’re welcome). The reason? I got a new Flip Ultra HD, which will result in much clearer photos, but also necessitated new editing software.

This short bit from an early morning ride shows my fascination with the HD format, as well as my struggles with the new editing program- I’ll get a little better at it.

Pan-Mass Challenge Training June 11 (in HD!) from Doug Haslam on Vimeo.

Meanwhile, fundraising for the Pan-Mass challenge continues. We are a little more than halfway to my goal of $4,200 raised, but I can;t do it without your help. Will you join me in fighting cancer as I take a 2-day ride across Massachusetts August 1-2? Please sponsor me at http://pmc.org/DH0159.

Thank you! Doug

Pan-Mass Challenge Heroes #12: Adam Cohen

Doug Haslam — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:52:56 +0000

This is an ongoing series profiling some of the people I believe to be the real heroes of the Pan-Mass Challenge: the sponsors who donate their money to fund cancer research.

I have just $2,000 left to raise, but I can’t get there without help from more people like these Heroes. Please considering joining them by donating any amount to http://pmc.org/DH0159.

Adam Cohen (blog: http://adamhcohen.com ) is one of those members of the Boston social media scene who doesn’t merely show up, he contributes. He always has something to add, and he has organized a few meetups (or “Tweetups”) of his own. As one of my PMC sponsors, he does not limit his contributions to ideas and energy. I’ll let him speak for himself the rest of the way:

- Why did you sponsor me in the Pan-Mass Challenge?

I know folks who have done this ride in the past, and am familiar with the organization as a result. It’s a great cause and requires hard work – I sponsored Doug because he has been a great resource building community in the Boston area and sharing his thoughts and encouragement in social media. I thought this was an easy way to thank him for his own giving to the community.

- How did you first hear about the Pan-Mass Challenge?

I first heard of it through a client about 7 years ago, who rode for his son who had passed away.

- Are you giving in the name or memory of someone you know who has had cancer?

My grandmother, Shirley Platt, passed away from complications originating from cancer about 9 years ago, a few months before my oldest son was born. She was a 30+ year cancer survivor though – and an inspiration in many other ways. This cause hits home.

- Name one interesting fact or story that makes you unique and interesting.

The summer after I graduated from college, I went across the country with 2 friends over six weeks. We stole a cement lawn gnome and took it with us, taking pictures with us and the gnome everywhere we went. To this day I’m still waiting for the royalty checks from Travelocity.com. (Note: you may have to wait in line)

Speaking of photo pranks, Adam has been the subject of a Flickr meme ever since I discovered his name tag stuck to the floor at an event and took a photo of it. Here’s the latest:

Adam, thank you for sponsoring me. And thank you, everyone who has supported the Pan-Mass Challenge in any way. Please consider joining Adam to sponsor my ride and fight cancer: http://pmc.org/DH0159. Please feel free to pass the link to others as well.

Photo credit: Jared Goralnick via Flickr.

Getting Impatient with Social Media

Doug Haslam — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 13:34:33 +0000

I attended Radian6’s "Social Media Rockstars" Social CRM (Customer Relationship Management) event last night, and confirmed one thing:

I am getting impatient.

I’m impatient for social media tools and strategies to be considered- intuitively- part of the whole company fabric, rather than some special new thing.

I’m impatient for social media-themed events to get more practical in integrating the concerns of the people who supposedly don’t "get it."

I’m impatient to see the tables turned- to go to events run by people outside of the social media "cliques" (populated by friends & colleagues whom I love dearly by the way) and discuss social media in the enterprise there.

I know this stuff is happening. I just need to capture it for myself. I sometimes feel the social media groups have talked themselves out and we need to widen the circle- to dive more deeply.

Anyone else getting impatient?

UPDATE: It’s worth mentioning that I had a short talk with Eric Schwartzman at the Social CRM event, in which he described the hungry, active, members of the U.S. government and military branches and NGOs, who perhaps are the organizations that are the most curious (about social media) organizations out there. Ironic? Maybe

Mobile post sent by DougH using Utterli. Replies. mp3