An excerpt from “An Honest Day’s Work,” my new book, which will be published in the fall of 2014. One of my favorite Burson-Marsteller clients was Lloyd’s of London. Lloyd’s was renowned for its willingness to take on all kinds of outsized risks – major catastrophes, environmental disasters, […]
Mark Twain famously said, “There are three kinds of lies. Lies, damned lies and statistics.” I know exactly what he meant. My first job in PR was working for a sole practitioner. His main source of income was an engagement with Grumman Boats and Canoes. Legions of one-time […]
Some years ago, when I was working for a major PR agency, my buddy stuck his head in my office doorway. “Listen,” he said. “I know we were supposed to go to lunch today, but we got a call about a huge new business opportunity. The prospect wants […]
Anyone who has spent a few years in a PR agency can tell you about the client that never should have been. It’s an experience that scars you for life and has caused many a green pea to decamp for business school. When revenue growth slows, and especially […]
If you started your first job in 2013, you have never known life without PowerPoint, the ubiquitous presentation software developed by Apple and later sold to Microsoft. Powerpoint can be an effective supplement to a discussion, but we have all experienced the microtype, over-stuffed slides that gave rise […]
Thanksgiving always reminds me of my second PR agency job. My employer’s office was on Broadway, and the agency had a very cool tradition of hosting a breakfast for clients and staff on Thanksgiving morning. Our fifth floor offices afforded an outstanding view of the Macy’s parade, whose […]
You hear the term “Big Data” a lot these days. It seems to be the answer to almost any question that arises. • How can we predict what our customers will want to buy in six months? • How can I predict the next financial downturn? • Where […]
It doesn’t do to take yourself too seriously in the PR game, although lots of people do. Attend almost any convocation of PR folks and you will hear about the great strides the profession is about to make in being taken more seriously as a management function. The […]
The advent of social media has given rise to a plethora of acronyms that simplify the process of typing on a tiny keyboard. But every now and then I find myself having to Google an acronym because it is just not clear to me. LOL? I get that. […]
As I wrote this post over the Fourth of July holiday, it seemed fitting to recall the words of one of our nation’s Founding Fathers: “It is natural for man to indulge in illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth. For […]
Chris Atkins’ Random PR Thoughts