Other firms’ suffering has bolstered the public-relations business

Illustration by Claudio Munoz
THE past year or two has tested the idea that all publicity is good publicity, at least when it comes to business. Undeserved bonuses, plunging share prices and government bail-outs, among other ills, have elicited the ire of the media and public—and created a bonanza for public-relations firms. The recession has increased corporate demand for PR, analysts say, and enhanced the industry’s status. “We used to be the tail on the dog,” says Richard Edelman, the boss of Edelman, the world’s biggest independent PR firm. But now, he continues, PR is “the organising principle” behind many business decisions.

According to data from Veronis Suhler Stevenson (VSS), a private-equity firm, spending on public relations in America grew by more than 4% in 2008 and nearly 3% in 2009 to $3.7 billion. That is remarkable when compared with other forms of marketing. Spending on advertising contracted by nearly 3% in 2008 and by 8% in the past year. PR’s position looks even rosier when word-of-mouth marketing, which includes services that PR firms often manage, such as outreach to bloggers, is included. Spending on such things increased by more than 10% in 2009.

Not all PR firms did as well as IPREX, a global consortium whose revenues increased by 14% last year. Many had to shed jobs, and some estimates show the industry’s overall revenues declining, although not nearly as sharply as those of most of the businesses it serves. According to a survey by StevensGouldPincus, a consulting firm for the communications industry, nearly 64% of participating firms saw revenues slide in 2009 and only 23% saw revenues increase, perhaps because businesses put their faith only in the biggest and most established firms.

PR has done well in part because it is often cheaper than mass advertising campaigns. Its impact, in the form of favourable coverage in the media or online, can also be more easily measured. Moreover, PR firms are beginning to encroach on territory that used to be the domain of advertising firms, a sign of their increasing clout. They used chiefly to pitch story ideas to media outlets and try to get their clients mentioned in newspapers. Now they also dream up and orchestrate live events, web launches and the like. “When you look at advertising versus public relations, it’s not going to be those clearly defined silos,” says Christopher Graves, the boss of Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide. “It may be indistinguishable at some point where one ends and the other begins.”

PR has also benefited from the changing media landscape. The withering of many traditional media outlets has left fewer journalists from fewer firms covering business. That makes PR doubly important, both for attracting journalists’ attention, and for helping firms bypass old routes altogether and disseminate news by posting press releases on their websites, for example.

The rise of the internet and social media has given PR a big boost. Many big firms have a presence on social-networking sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, overseen by PR staff. PR firms are increasingly called on to track what consumers are saying about their clients online and to respond directly to any negative commentary. When two employees of Domino’s, a pizza chain, uploaded a video of themselves apparently sticking ingredients for dishes they were preparing up their noses, the firm responded by posting a video of its own online, of a senior executive apologising for the incident.

Blow-dried blogs
That sort of content is proliferating. A PR firm called Ketchum helped IBM start a blog about sustainability, complete with posts written by the technology firm’s executives. It also created cartoons on the subject that it uploaded to YouTube. Edelman recently worked with eBay on the launch of a web-only magazine, “The Inside Source”, which provides articles on shopping and tells readers what is selling well on the online retail giant’s website.

VSS forecasts that spending on PR in America will surpass $8 billion by 2013, with much of the growth coming from online projects such as these. According to Miles Nadal, chief executive of MDC Partners, a media holding company, investment in digital PR accelerated during the recession “and will go forward in perpetuity” because clients became more focused on measuring the impact of their efforts. The internet offers various yardsticks, from traffic to cheerleading websites to numbers of Facebook fans, whereas the number of people who see a conventional advertisement is much harder to gauge.

Perhaps the best indication of PR’s growing importance is the attention it is attracting from regulators. They are worried that PR firms do not make it clear enough that they are behind much seemingly independent commentary on blogs and social networks. In October America’s Federal Trade Commission published new guidelines for bloggers, requiring them to disclose whether they had been paid by companies or received free merchandise. Further regulation is likely. But that will not hamper PR’s growth, says Jim Rutherfurd of VSS. After all, companies that fall foul of the rules will need the help of a PR firm

Monica and Maria Elena Price

Experience Plus!  Bicycle Tours, an ATMS client for one year, celebrated their new office space in Old Town Fort Collins last night, January 11, 2010.  Founded in 1972 by Rick and Paula Price, Experience Plus! is now owned and operated by Price daughters, Monica and Maria Elena.  Monica lives full-time in Italy to operate the business there and Maria Elena runs the US operations from Colorado.

Experience Plus! offers wonderful cycling tours in Italy and other points in Europe and in South America.  You can check out all their tours at www.experienceplus.com, including a culinary tour of Provence!

All of us at ATMS congratulate this fine company for their many accomplishments and look forward to working with them for many years into the future!

Salute!

Returning to Ushuaia we visited spectacular Ainsworth Bay and the Marinelli Glacier, Pia Glacier and a colony of Elephant Sea Lions, a rookery of Kelp Gulls and one of Comorants.

The Expedition Leaders for Cruceros Australis bring these spectacular sights to life and make things lively for the 120 passengers.

We celebrated New Year’s Eve by cruising the Avenue of the Glaciers. The Captain toasted the New Year at midnight while guests danced the night away in the Sky Lounge.

Walking to the tip of Cape Horn early on January 1 was inspiring. Hiking Waluai Island was our last disembarkment before docking in Ushuaia January 2 just in time to catch our flights back home.

These fabulous expedition cruises are offered by Cruceros Australis. 3,4 and 7-night cruises are available at www.australis.com

National Geographic Adventure Novemeber issue

The November issue of National Geographic Adventure Magazine’s Cover Story is “25 Best New Trips of 2010″ ATMS clients featured are:

Biosphere Expeditions
Wildland Adventures
Discover France
ROWAdventures
Active New Zealand

Be sure to check out the magazine to plan your next trip – on newsstands now!

Denver's Race for the Cure

ATMS founder Nancy Harrison celebrated 10 years as a breast cancer survivor Sunday, October 4 at the Denver Race for the Cure.  Partners Jim Steiner and Bobbi Engle joined with Nancy and her family.  It was a beautiful day to share this milestone.  Family from as far away as Orlando came for the week-end.

Race for the Cure ATMS Team

Jim Steiner

Pike Place Market

Jim and I spent part of the week in Seattle last week – Jim’s first visit! We had lunch with Tim Jacox of American Safari Cruises; checked out ExOfficio, then had a wonderful dinner on the Beach with my buddy Jake Haupert of Evergreen Escapes. We were joined by Jake’s partner Dan Moore for a terrific laid-back seafood and martini meal. Thanks guys – you’re the best!
The following day we had met with Shannon Stowell with the Adventure Travel Trade Association and then had lunch with the “Wild Gang” at Wildland Adventures. Great food, good to meet everyone and learn about the new branding strategies Wildland is developing.
Jim and I spent the morning walking around the waterfront and visiting Pike Place Market. We purchased fresh halibut, chili ristras and gifts for the family back home; had a great breakfast and photographed each other in front of the totem pole in the park.

Pike Place MarketPike Place Market

I drove nearly 65 miles up Hwy 14 following the river all the way; stopping to photograph aspen trees and an old cabin. Arriving at the trailhead, I stepped to teh bacak of my van to get my gear together when a huge bull moose passed directly in front of my vehicle, moving on west as he grazes on drying grasses. I quickly grabbed my camera and got a farily good shot.
I proceeded up the mile-long trail which is a 7% grade so I stopped often to catch my breath and look at the changing colors. About 30 minutes in, I spotted a young bull moose just ahead on the side of the trail. I stopped to wait for him to pass and took more photos. Again another 200 yards away I saw another young-looking bull moose with a fully formed yet small rack. After waiting a full 15 minutes for him to move, I decided to turn back. I was totally alone on the trail in the middle of a moose convention. They were obviously utilizing this area that morning and I didn’t want to disturb them.
I drove back down the canyon and fished the river instead, enjoying a beautiful fall day in Colorado

Zimmerman Lake Trailhead

Mary Carwile, a breast cancer survivor, author and motivational speaker will share her experiences; Peggy Mann, a singer-songwriter from Grand Lake will provide inspiration through music in a private house concert. DiAnn Butler, owner of Destinations West mountain lodging will provide accommodations and meals.

This retreat is led by Amanda Prada and will include meditation and visualization practice, light yoga sessions, gentle serenity walks and small discussion group activities.
The agenda has been arranged to allow time for relaxation, reflection and ‘just breathing’. The beautiful mountain destination of Grand Lake provides the venue for the retreats.

An extra feature is the opportunity to record memoirs or thoughts in the private recording studio of host Peggy Mann.

The retreats can be a given as a gift to survivors by family members or friends. Groups of girlfriends and co-survivors are also invited to participate. For more information or reservations, please see: www.mtnlodging.com or call 1-800-545-WEST.