Go meassure it - the PVR is born
Comparing earned media coverage to advertising - the AVE - is controversial. No research indicates that an article is worth the same amount of money as an ad the same size. It might be worth more, or it might be worth less. But we have been meassuring articles in this business for as long as I've been in it.

The purpose is clear. Are we better than marketing?

KD Paine has taken the task to answer that question with her PR Value Ratio. The purpose of both earned coverage and advertising, she says, is to deliver the key messages of the organization to the target groups. Comparing the cost of this is the issue. And her PRV is the answer.

Read her interesting article Another way to measure PR value right here. It's worth your time.

Update:
As always meassuring PR seems to create debate. Pro: Shel Holz Contra: John Wagner

Worst spin of 2005
Media Orchard just published its top 10 of worst spin 2005...

Why PR beats advertising
This is an interesting view on why PR is ahead of advertising. This could also work as a reminder to all of us in the PR industry. PR is all about convincing somebody - a potential customer, journalist or politician - of something. Information and dialogue is the best tool.

PR or sales - same same
Many Public relations campaigns fail because PR people are afraid to cold call journalists. That is the interesting view in this article PR campaigns often fail by fear or anxiety. Michael Bruxbaum argues that PR people should learn from sales people. We need to pitch better. I tend to agree with him.

A friend of mine once started a small business with absolutely no money at hand. In other words, he could get the word out only through journalists. He wrote a pretty poor press release, send it to every paper, radio and tv station in Denmark. Nothing happened. Then he started calling every journalist he could get a hold of. Two days later he had scored an interview on national radio and quite a lot of nice articles in variuos local papers. All by selling it well on the phone.

A pretty lousy strategy turned into quite a succes. By selling it!

Does a local politician need a website?
A few days ago a journalist from a Danish newspaper asked us that question at PrimeTime. This got us thinking. Is a web site really necessary for a locally elected politician? Should he spend valuable time updating a site that no one ever takes a look at? Or should he go canvassing instead? Or even do what he was elected to do - pass legislation?

The internet is used for gathering information on a subject. If you take a look at most politicians web sites they cover most political areas - briefly. As a voter do you really need to know that a politician is in favour of good schools and great health care. Get me a politician who is not!

If - as a politician - you want your web site to be of value, focus in depth on a few subjects instead, we told the reporter. Gather a lot of information on the subjects. Not just your own views on the matter. Link to other information, and have other sites link to you. This way a voter might stumble on your web site, learn from it, and vote for you.

Is it possible to meassure PR? My great collegue, Rikke Petersen, just wrote an article in Danish daily, Børsen, on that matter. We believe it is and should be done. Read it here (in Danish) Hvad betyder kommunikation på bundlinjen?.

"This is your captain speaking. Some of you might have noticed that due to heavy rain we mised the runway. We'll try again in about 10 minutes." Sådan en melding kan vel få folk med flyskræk til at regne på, hvor megen brændstof sådan en Boing 747 egentlig indeholder. Jeg tænkte nu mere på, om jeg kunne nå mit fly videre fra Bangkok til København. En nat i Bangkok lufthavn virkede på det tidspunkt cirka ligeså attraktivt som Jette Gottlieb på en dårlig dag. Ikke at det var mit alternativ.

"You're not booked on the flight." Den sorthårede thai bag skranken i check in smilede. Jeg var ellers ved check in i god tid til at nå mit fly. Alligevel nåede jeg at bruge Flemmings og mit yndlingsudtryk: "Bloddy fucking hell I am."

Som så mange fedladne vesteuropæiske mænd med måne har indset, er der en ting at falde tilbage på, når alt andet glipper. Thailandske kvinder. Fra et baglokale dukkede en op. Nydeligt klædt i blå blæser med påskriften "Scandinavian" på brystet. Det var hun nu ikke, men hun fandt et ledigt sæde til mig.

Så jeg er hjemme igen.

3000 trappetrin har Flemming og jeg gaaet i dag - saa jeg er klar til LaX traeningen, naar jeg kommer hjem. De 3000 trappetrin var i Blue Mountains 2 timers togtur fra Sydney. Nu, kl./ er 19 lokal tid, er vi tilbage og klar til at gaa ud og spise med nogle venner.

Crikey! Vi var i biffen i gaar og se filmen "The Crockodile Hunter." Og ja, det er rigtigt. Det australske slangekyssende og krokodillewrestlende khakimonster fra Discovery Channel og Animal Planet Steve Irving har lavet en film. Og den har lige haft premiere. Vi var 7 mand i biografen! Mit bud er, at denne film vil slaa Tim og Gordons "Stjerner uden hjerner" af pinden som verdens ringeste film. Hvis den kommer paa video i DK maa i endelig gaa uden om den alle sammen.