Yesterday’s unexpectedly hectic day is a perfect example of why I love owning my own public relations agency:

·The morning got off to a slow start. At 9 am, I began back to back potential new hire interviews to fill five vacant mid-level positions at this PR firm. Thankfully, 2010 opened with a bang. A number of new client signings has left us short staffed and looking to bring talented PR pros on board.

·After a brief client meeting, I headed to the monthly lunch I host at a client’s midtown restaurant.  Since I have established close contacts in many different industries, I like to bring people together regularly to meet. At this particular occasion, six clients including a high-profile publisher, two attorneys, a real estate developer and a few others joined me in a private dining room to discuss business opportunities.

·Like clock work, a client crisis emerged as I was leaving lunch. The CEO of a $100 million company called me with a serious issue, worried about potential PR backlash. We succeeded in keeping this potentially harmful story out of the media, at least for now.

·Then, I met with a travel client to discuss ongoing strategy and re-cap 2010PR results to date.

As the day wound down, before I turned around it was 8 PM and I handled paperwork, reviewed documents and caught up on necessary tasks such as signing checks, internal management, etc before getting home 10ish…

I always wish more hours would magically appear in a day.

Ronn Torossian

5WPR

I am undoubtedly addicted to my blackberry, but it is a mandatory addiction for anyone who works in the Public Relations industry.  As I often tell clients, there are a million other tasks that need to be attended to simultaneously, making it nearly impossible for me to go two hours without checking email.

For example, if I miss a call from the media or my client misses their interview, “not available for comment” will be printed instead of our commentary. Like it or not, checking emails every few minutes is a necessary evil that prevents such an occurrence in the PR business.

Recent Book Recommendations

It is rare to find a successful Public Relations pro or business person in any industry for that matter who does not read regularly. With this in mind, I want to recommend two great books I have recently read – one focusing on professional development and the other personal development.

· For great business lessons, It’s Not What You Say… It’s What You Do – How Following Through at Every Level Can Make or Break Your Company by bestselling author Laurence Haughton is a must-read.

· For amazing lessons in personal growth and development, Garden of Emuna: A Practical Guide to Life is a book that “once you get your hands it, you won’t know how you ever lived without it.”

http://www.1800eichlers.com/Books-and-Sefarim/Emunah-&-Bitachon—Believe-&-Hope/Garden-of-Emuna-A-Practical-Guide-to-Life/p-388-1931-5230/

Ronn Torossian

5WPR

Kudos to the public relations team at Apple for doing things their way. I read this article over the weekend, which discusses how Apple has closely guarded their message and brand, refusing to open up to the media.

I admire them for playing by their own rules and refusing to succumb to the pressure of outside sources.  Clearly, they realize that the media isn’t always a friend and can easily spin information negatively to create a titillating story that will sell.  Kudos yet again Apple!

Ronn Torossian

5WPR

This article ran in The New York Times over the weekend. It speaks about the MLB rookie camp, which brings together professional baseball’s brightest prospects for three days to prepare them for “life under the lights.” It is a must-read for all CEO’s and company leaders as there is also much non professional athletes can learn from this article – Success requires change and attention.

In today’s tech driven society, any speech or even off-handed discussion can be captured by a camera phone, or recording device, posted online, and then instantly registered on the Public Relations machine known as Google. These simple sound bites that may not have been intended for public viewing can easily be misinterpreted and distributed online where they will live for many years.

Among the lessons to be learned from this article — leaders across the board should be well-trained and prepared to speak publicly.  As a general rule, always ask if you are being recorded when making a public speech, and remember, in the world of PR, people who are paranoid will survive far longer.

Ronn Torossian

5WPR