The big story in sports this week is the Rutgers coach kicking, hitting, throwing balls and screaming at his players. The video was shown to the world this week but the athletic director saw it months ago and the President of the University heard about it months ago. While nearly everyone is now out, short of the President, it begs the question about where is the PR counsel?

Not because they need to “spin” the story, but because a public relations professional would have advised the University to handle this a little differently from the beginning.

For example, if I had seen the video I would have:

• advised the coach to apologize publicly (might have saved his reputation before the fact and possibly his job, though no guarantees)
• released the video from the University rather than from ESPN (take control of your own message)
• highlighted the counseling options available to the student-athletes (what are we going to do to fix this problem)
• and, reinforced that the student athletes don’t have to take that kind of behavior for fear of losing their scholarships (how can we make sure nothing like this happens at our University again)

From Penn State, to Miami, Auburn and Rutgers, it’s clear that public relations professionals at the University level have little power or aren’t even at the table to make real recommendations to leadership. It’s a shame, because responding to media inquiries or putting out a press release, which we know Universities do from a public relations perspective, are just tactics that should be within a bigger strategy.

A strategy that should be developed by trained professionals. Trust is the keystone to success in PR.

It’s time for public relations professionals to speak out and get involved.

We all love sports. We can save it. But we need to be at the table.

Recently, an article focused on making SMU Dallas’ team argues that the new campaign brings together athletics, the school, and the North Texas community, especially as SMU teams make the move into the Big East conference.

Colleges across the country should take note. Schools located in large urban areas have more difficulty because there is more competition for time and attention. But building that bond with the community ensures a long-term loyalty, and of course, sells seats, therefore bringing in increased revenues.

Some tips for branding college sports:

1. Go to where the students are – online. Do not ignore mobile marketing whether it is twitter or mobile texts and make sure your website is smart phone enabled.

2. Build a relationship with the local community. College students are typically rowdy and loud, sometimes putting a gap between them and the local residents in the college town. Make sure the athletic teams give back in a visible way – creating a bond with that community.

3. Don’t forget alumni who might not live in the local area. Include them in marketing messages and channels. They often have more money to spend on college sports and also want to represent their teams, even from afar.

These aren’t rocket science ideas, but just a few things to think about when developing marketing campaigns related to college sports.

Thankfully, I learned this lesson years ago and got my masters in business with an emphasis in marketing research. It was important to me to be able to understand both public relations and marketing – two sides of the same coin. This background and experience has been career changing. Not only because I have more knowledge of the business side, can speak the same language as other senior leaders, but it has made me think and provide counsel from a completely different perspective.

If I had to do it all again, I wouldn’t change a thing. In fact, the six areas highlighted below are key to a successful future in public relations. I hope to see more young PR pros follow this guide and consider an MBA.

Question 2:  What knowledge, skills and abilities are necessary for success in the future?

Respondents emphasized six areas of focus:

1. Expanded business literacy — PR professionals need to have business skills to succeed, but respondents offered differing definitions of what “business skills” means. Having PR/communication KSAs is not enough. The skill set of an effective PR professional must also include business literacy, financial education, international experience and organizational management skills.
2. Writing skills — Many survey respondents said that writing ability within the PR profession is suffering. One-fourth of respondents indicated a need for the ability to write concisely, with many noting that this skill is essential in both online and print media.
3. Technology — Respondents said that the days of  PR professionals relying on the IT department are — or should be — over. One noted, “As print media continues to decline, it’s essential to broaden skills and knowledge to include segments such as SEO strategies and basic HTML coding.”
4. Emotional intelligence — Coupled with many respondents’ strong agreement that qualified and competent PR practitioners should be considered as potential CEO candidates, emotional intelligence emerges as an important quality for leadership beyond the practice.  A survey respondent said, “Interpersonal skills — EQ — listening, customer focus, will be more important than ever.”
5. Social sciences —  This skill set includes knowledge of psychology, sociology, anthropology and philosophy, coupled with the ability to apply them to PR practice. Nearly half of the respondents said that awareness and consideration of the traditions and belief systems of diverse cultures would be more important in 2015 than today.
6. Integrated marketing communications — PR practitioners must understand the ways that advertising, marketing, public relations and investor relations work together, [paired with] the ability to lead or manage those relationships for a client.
   A respondent noted, “Understanding business finance . . . [and] how stakeholder behaviors, driven by perceptions of value, translate into revenue and profits . . . will be critical.”

Communications professionals should also be part of the planning process. This is important because communications should support those objectives. In too many instances, communications serves itself. How many times have we seen a press release for the sake of releasing a press release? Instead of spinning out wheels developing one-off campaigns that seemingly serve no purpose, it’s our job as communicators to talk about where we are going and how we get there.

The strategic communications plan.

This is how we deliver value and help the business and organizations in which we work achieve their objectives. For more information about developing a strategic communications plan, please give us a call.

Here we’ll lay out three strategies to increase sales and service for auto dealers and other businesses in the industry.

First, don’t discount traditional means of communication. In a world where social media is ubiquitous, don’t forget the power of a handwritten note or phone call. Each day, prospective customers do research on buying new cars or where they can service the car they currently have. That information is often found through website inquiries and real visits to the dealership. But then what? There isn’t always a systematic way that data is then entered into a system and those specific customers followed up with. Even when a sale does happen, what if the salesperson wrote a short handwritten note to the customer and put it in the mail with an old-fashioned stamp. This certainly would separate your business from others that don’t understand the power of customization.

 Second, information is power. Once personal identifying customer information is included in a database or customer relationship management (CRM) tool, use it. Create personalized communications and/or loyalty programs that keep the customer coming back to you. It’s more than twice as expensive to go out and find new customers as it is to build a long-term relationship with the ones you already have. Instead of spending hundreds of thousands or even millions on advertising to reach new customers, why not focus the majority of your efforts on building your relationship with current customers or people who have already expressed interest in your business? To do this means mining data and understanding what customers want and need. What about reminders for service via email, text message, or even through social media channels? What if you knew the twitter handle of a customer and was able to tweet them a link to get a service appointment? These technologies exist, but it takes commitment from the business to understand the information in their CRM (including having up to date and relevant data) and use it effectively.

Data truly is power, and those businesses that understand it enjoy high scores in ratings and increases in business. But that power is only as good as the data included in your CRM. For example, imagine that Customer Joe walked into your dealership and bought a car he had been researching for months on the internet. He knew the exact model, color and style he wanted. You gave him a fair price and he left a happy man. In many dealerships that’s the end of the story. But what if you took this interaction a step further? As you talked to Joe that day he bought the car, you found out that his wife had an SUV but now that the kids were getting older, she is looking to buy a sedan for her next vehicle. And you also know that Joe has two kids, one getting ready to head off for college and the other is 15 about to be 16. Do you see how powerful this relationship could be? By building this relationship and capturing this information in the database, you can find new reasons to reach out to Joe – not just for service, and you should be doing that on a consistent basis – but a new year version of a great 4-door sedan is about to hit the store, now you can reach out to Joe and let him know you have a vehicle his wife might be interested in. Later, you get a small mini-compact 4-cylinder car perfect for a new driver. And that college student might not be able to take a car his first year in college, but by year two, Joe may be looking to get his college age kid a car too. But if this information is never captured, you may lose out on the business. At the very least, you lose out on the power to promote your business and insert your business into Joe’s decision making. Instead, you give all the power to Joe and he has to love your business enough to think of you.

And finally, connect with your community. There are businesses that have been part of their communities for many, many years. They have created jobs and been part of the local economy, yet they haven’t capitalized on this involvement. People like to do business with those they like and trust. It’s a little cliché, but it’s a true statement. Giving back is often thought of as a fluffy and feel-good for businesses. But what many don’t understand is it’s not just the right thing to do, it’s a good business decision. Research over the last decade shows that people are 70% more likely to do business with a company or organization that does good for others. Businesses then need to share this information in an altruistic way with their current and prospective customers. A good way to do so is through social media, including blogs, and newsletters.

While this has been written primarily targeted to the auto industry, the strategies can be tweaked and applied for most businesses. Having an integrated communications strategy in the first place is half the battle. For more information on implementing these communications strategies at your business or to talk about ways your business could grow through the power of information, please contact lahne@mediafrenzycommunications.com.

The survey, conducted in January during the NFL playoff season found 69.9 percent of respondents claim watching football as their favorite event. This compared to more than 12 percent who claimed hockey as their favorite sport to watch. Whether or not the NBA lockout had anything to do with it or not, only 5.2 percent claimed to be basketball fans with nearly 7 percent claiming baseball as their favorite sport. Compare this to the 6.9 percent who aren’t that interested in sports, but would rather spend a night out on the town for date night.

Out of those die hard sports lovers (more than 60% of respondents), more than 50 percent said they live in households earning more than $75,000 a year and 75 percent of these women work full-time. They also aren’t afraid to spend their money on their favorite sport – more than 60 percent  of these die hard sports women spend more than $250 a year on sports compared to just 33 percent of those who actually answered that they liked sports because it’s a great way to hang out with the guys. Overall, 46 percent of respondents said they spend more than $250 a year on sports – a big win for those who want to market to women who enjoy sports.

Where will you find the die hard sports female fan? At home. Nearly 63 percent said they watch their favorite team play at home because they don’t want to be bothered during the game – doesn’t seem like a great way to meet men, then, does it? More than 20 percent take it even a step further and buy season tickets to see their favorite teams play in the flesh. Still, 17 percent of the die hard sports fan claimed to be more social and watch at their favorite sports bar.

These findings support that women do enjoy sports just as much as men – and since football and hockey were the top two sports of respondents – it seems that a physical smash mouth game is even more likely to be a favorite.

“For companies wishing to break into these markets, I think it’s important to understand the female fan and their interests. Many companies just make their product in pink and think it will appeal to women,” said Lahne Mattas, President of Media Frenzy Communications. “Companies need to dig a little deeper and figure out what really makes women tick when it comes to sports. There’s a huge market here that in my opinion still hasn’t quite been tapped.

“From what I can tell online, while there’s now ESPNW, women want to read what men read, not something fluffy and light about their favorite sports. In the survey, women said they turned to NFL.com and their favorite teams websites for news while following sports reporters on twitter and facebook for breaking news,” she adds. “The key is to not treat women differently but to recognize that they like sports just as much as men.”

Where we sometimes don’t agree is how to get there.  They like to see action with a direct result a sale transaction.

Sometimes that happens.

But my goal usually is before the transaction. I want their customers to feel like they are valued and not like just a simple transaction.

My goal is transforming a few of my clients from product-focused to being a truly customer-centric organization. In their business, loyalty is important and because they are big purchases, people really go back to the old adage of “doing business with those we like and trust.”

Companies that do great in Organization Loyalty share some characteristics, for example:

• Use data  - transactional, behavior and preferences – about their customers to create customer-specific insights.
• Create organizational-wide strategies, including segmenting their customers based on existing and potential value (Life-cycle of a customer) based on insights.
• Focus their retail or service offering from the insights: merchandising, pricing, new product or service offerings, operations, marketing and customer experience.
• Align company’s business operations to serve the right customer segments.
• Incorporate customer-based metrics as a measure of performance.

It’s that simple. If employees don’t know where the organization is headed or how their work fits in, how can they possibly be expected to help an organization move forward?

This miscommunication can easily be changed.

• Put it in writing. Let the senior executive meeting vision serve as a strategic framework that everyone in the organization can work from.
• Put it in context. Share the framework, the operating environment that created the vision, and ask employees for feedback.
• Make it relevant. Use feedback and information to help the employee understand what is important, what is expected of them and why.
• Communicate often. Use all channels of employee communication to reinforce the framework. Highlight milestones and efforts to implement the strategy so that it becomes familiar and everyone not only understands their role, but the bigger picture.

PSU failed to follow the basic Tylenol Model for crisis communications – a model that most PR professionals use in situations such as this. In this model, it’s standard to admit what went wrong and communicate the actions that will take place to correct the problem. Instead of 5 days passing before we heard anything from the University, the day that Sandusky was arrested former University President Spanier should have held a press conference. While there were likely legal reasons they did not do this, Spanier could have and should have acknowledged the grand jury report, let the public know that the University was working with the states attorney’s office and law enforcement, and made a promise to change the culture and hold those who have done wrong accountable.  Granted, it would have been difficult to answer questions from the press because of those legal handcuffs, but that would have put the University in the proactive and put their messages out first, giving less time for news media to make up their own answers.

This basic failure in crisis communications ultimately led to the firing of both Spanier and Paterno by the Board.

Since Erickson has been named University president, and since Ketchum has been agency of record for this crisis, the University has been proactive sharing messages, communicating a 5 point promise, and working on changing both perception and the environment that allowed this situation to happen.

In “Linking Crisis Management and Leadership Competencies: The Role of Human Resource Development” authors Lynn Perry Wooten and Erica Hayes James say executives who enable their organization to recover from a crisis exhibit a complex set of competencies in each of the five stages of crisis. Those competencies include:

• Building an environment of trust
• Reforming the organization’s mindset
• Identifying obvious and obscure vulnerabilities of the organization
• Making wise and rapid decisions as well as taking courageous actions
• Learning from crisis to affect change