My Podcast

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All about P.R., e.g., if you are a Federal Contractor. Please call me at 1-800-380-2825 if you have any questions. Hope it was helpful ;-)

----Abbe B.

www.highvizconsulting.com

www.twitter.com/highviz_pr

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FED NEWS RADIO: How to promote your business to federal agencies, prime contractors and more...

Abbe Buck, principal of HighViz Consulting Group/ Abbe Buck Public Affairs, discusses how businesses can better market themselves to federal buyers via trade associations and publications.

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"....and now for something completely different." --MPython

From Business Week:

Securing Government Contracts

One of the biggest challenges for small businesses interested in working with the government is a lack of information on how to get started! Prior to jumping into the government contracting arena, the first thing your small business needs to do is register with the Small Business Administration office serving your local customer base:

• It is critical to register using the right North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes based on the products and/or services that you have to offer to the government.

• You should also apply to become a GSA (General Services Administration) Schedule contractor via the GSA Web site.

Once these primary steps have been completed, your small business should then register with the following premier federal contracting research organizations:

• INPUT is an authority on government business and "provides market intelligence, analysis, consulting, events, and training to help companies develop government business." The ability to use INPUT effectively can be a critical success factor for a small business.

• FedBizOpps.gov can be used to search, monitor, and retrieve "opportunities solicited by the entire federal contracting community." Again, the success of a small business is directly related to using the right keywords while looking for opportunities.

Success for your small business within the government cannot be achieved without strategic teaming partners:

• A key strategy in winning contracts is to register as a small business with larger government contractors.

• Another approach is partnering with other government contractors in areas where your small business lacks expertise but can offer complementary products and/or services.

Finally, physical presence is very important in this business, and a successful small business must set up shop in the backyard of the federal government. An "in your face" strategy will help in the federal contracting race.

Jack Nargundkar, Director of Marketing
Government Solutions Group, Annapolis, Md.

You can also find this information on the Abbe Buck Public Affairs blog

Special Thanks to Bonneville Radio and FedNewsRadio 1500 AM.

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Abbe Buck's HighViz PR Portfolio - and the HighViz PR - Promo Challenge

Q: Who is HighViz Consulting Group? What is High-Viz- Ability?

A: Why, that is my company!

HighViz Consulting Group is a project company. We are a boutique firm, working with select copywriters, media specialists, seasoned marketers and communications strategists. We have a unique way of combining tactical business development along with reults-oriented public relations programs created for our clients, using all types of promotional strategies.

fyi* We have a FREE PR Promo challenge - give us an idea you have - and we will come up with a response and starting "plan of action" within 24 hours! Click here for story.

HighViz = High-Viz - Ability .... yours!

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All the World's a Stage: The Presenter as Actor

All the World's a Stage: The Presenter as Actor  by Abbe Buck  Giving a presentation is very much like acting: you are alone on a stage, you are there to convince people to believe you and your message, and you better know your lines! Communication in daily life parallels stories on stage or screen because it involves a speaker and an audience. A good presentation, like a good movie, relies on clear, powerful, and effective communication. Acting involves the following ingredients which I list here selectively: 1. A strong clear voice and good clear speech 2. Semantics 3. The ability to work off the other person 4. Willpower and bravery in order to reach the audience 5. Common sense Earlier this year, I watched a PBS moderator interviewing well known CEOs. Imagine my surprise when a CEO opened his mouth and out came a high pitched voice that didn't fit my image of the head of a large corporation. Obviously, he was already at the top and he was otherwise very well spoken and didn't need voice lessons for success. My point is that presenters, like actors, should know what they sound like and have themselves filmed, analyzed, directed, and led in any way they can to sound and look good. There are also many voice coaches who specialize on helping people change their voice pitch. Semantics is important because speaking effectively happens when you pick dynamic, active, physical words to make your point. You may be big or small in stature. You may be fifty-six or twenty-three years old. You may be a man or a woman. No matter. It is the physical words that will make your statements be understood and believable. Clear language equals clear thoughts. In the case of the presenter, the other person you need to work off is the audience. Haven't you ever been to a presentation and thought, "What planet is this guy on, how can he speak to us this way, does he think we're really that stupid?" Even if you reference your PowerPoint slides and are holding a laser pointer, you have to be aware of your audience. Are people shifting frequently during your speech, do they exchange glances after many of your points, are they laughing at the right places? I remember giving a talk not too long ago and apparently my choice of stories didn't go over well with that particular audience. At that time, I hadn't pre-planned to have alternative anecdotes, so I hurried through the talk and vowed to be better prepared the next time and to know my audience better. However, I did listen to the audience and was able to cut off the potentially offensive stories. I could have fallen flat on my face instead of just sounding bad (a small consolation). To get up and talk in front of groups, big and small, takes a good amount of will power and lots of bravery; which leads to my last point. To put on a good presentation, you have to have common sense. Some of my clients don't realize and often don't believe that excellent presenters, those people who casually get up and blow people away by their dynamic productions, have in fact spent hours preparing and practicing their performances, frequently helped by trainers from a team such as ours. Common sense tells us that almost no one can spend just an hour or two writing and practicing the delivery of a presentation and sound great. As actors do, presenters must take the time to hone their set of skills to put on a good show and, if you feel that you need to be prodded and prepared to look good, call upon us to work alongside you. Abbe Buck is Principal Consultant of HighViz Consulting Group, a boutique marketing and public relations firm she founded in 1999, which started by specializing in promoting and developing potential opportunities for small, disadvantaged and minority businesses, with a special focus on Native American entities and associations. She can be reached via e-mail at abbebuckpr@aol.com.  [PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION]

SNAPSHOT - HighViz's Abbe Buck

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Edelman 6 AM good teaching Blog for PR people

HighVizPR's getting good PR, dealing with bad PR: a case study approach: I [Love!] Richard Edelman, SEE: EDELMAN PR - WSJ

The link to sister blog Good PR, Bad PR:

HighVizPR's getting good PR, dealing with bad PR: a case study approach: I [Love!] Richard Edelman, SEE: EDELMAN PR - WSJ

How to Hire HighVizPR - Part 1

(About Abbe Buck @ www.highviz.net: I am a PR Rep and PAO. (SEE: (blogs): highvizpr,abbebuckpr, abbebuckpublicaffairs); Twitter). YES, politics + info-tainment are ruling the day; W/ micro-blogging speeding the process of plow and share ten-fold, I share PR POV right here, welcoming all Q & A. To find out more about my line, "GOOGLE" (of course!)/ get in touch. (Still) TOPICAL QUOTE: "We are living in an age of Publicity" -Will Rogers (1924) ~~(Some things just never change!) # # #)

How to Hire HighVizPR - Part 1

HighViz’s step by step guide, or how Marketing + Promotion
= solid PR

1. A publicist gets press coverage (in all types of media) for their clients. Many times an Information Officer or a Business Development Manager may perform many of the same duties as publicists, only they respond passively to inquiries about promotion (they seek corporate function, or sales may be the bottom line). At HighViz, we believe that a true publicist actively seeks an interested audience in almost any venue (from a trade publication to the internet), and is, in effect, selling the image, the “brand” through marketing to the media.

2. The publicist is often the middleman between the high-profile personality or an entrepreneur with a new service or product, and members of the media. The HighViz Publicist usually wants their clients to receive positive acclaim, but many publicists surveyed by our own marketers have noted the old adage that “the only bad publicity is no publicity.” As politicians and captains of industry require a little more specific ‘spin’ on their press-they want to be seen as forward-looking and confident, we have found that a smaller or mid-range company is seeking more permanent exposure in the very same fashion as they continue to grow.

3. Publicists also perform damage control, attempting to counteract any undesirable press coverage the client receives. This position as “last line of defense” is what distinguishes the adequate publicist from the extraordinary one. Good publicists can turn scandal into opportunity and create valuable name-recognition for their clients. At HighViz, we have found that in an uncertain society (the faster things move, the more facts must be checked!) “Relationship Management” is damage control, as we strive to either defend a client, or position them in the most favorable light possible.

4. Publicists don’t only work for the famous. Our clients at HighViz might include a little-known person or industry and we create reasons for them to receive press coverage. In a case where a company desiring publicity is hampered by its “esoteric nature or technical jargon”, such as with an attorney speaking of corporate governance or Information Technology pertaining to a top Government Intelligence agency must be explained, the publicist must translate its positions into easily understandable language without losing its intended message or appeal.

5. THE DAILY GRIND (or a typical day at HighViz Consulting Group): A major part of HighViz’s publicist’s day is spent writing press releases, creating press packets, launching websites and web simulcasts, which have photos and information about the publicized person or company. Publicists spend a lot of time on the phone. As we put in long hours, we actually thrive under hectic conditions, as we must adhere to strict deadlines which coincide with publicity events, as we work with a magazine for the launch of a type of business practice or a new product in comparison to the release of a movie or the publishing of a book. It is HighViz’s Job #1 -- to ensure that we will get the appropriate information to all media (from newspaper to web simulcast) in time for the event they are generating publicity for, such as a record release or automotive sale, or a top-flight seminar. HighViz is always available for comment (even when that comment is “no comment” at all!) In this, we always remain friends with the media, no matter how demanding the desires of both clients and the reporters on whom they depend (and trust us, we love this stuff!)

So do you wonder, at the end of the day, do we go to the hottest parties in town, the ones for our clients at a movie premiere or a seminar, or at the National Press Club, The Omni Shoreham, the Mark Hopkins? (---we do attend, if you ask us to!).


Here is what we do at HighViz…..


Ø Public relations, marketing, and event planning are also conducive to our full-service infrastructure for our clients.

Ø “HighViz is a project company” Public relations, sales, promotion of a new brand, launch marketing, and event planning are also conducive to our full-service infrastructure for our clients.

Ø We firmly believe that an event planner creates events to generate interest in whatever the publicist is promoting.

Ø We also have our marketers study the community to determine how the client is perceived and how its members feel his image could be improved on an ongoing basis.

Ø Advertisers and writers often create the materials used by publicists, to which HighViz is asked to incorporate in much of our marketing, promoting and “publicizing”. As we work in this milieu, we also can determine where and how frequently the company should advertise As Booking agents are responsible for procuring venues for publicity and anticipating the effect the events will have on the client’s image, HighViz will also follow along these lines. . For instance, we believe that our customer may have to weigh the exposure that comes from being a keynote speaker at an association’s convention or corporate event to being a guest on a major talk show, holding their own against the potential friendliness or the hostility of the host!


So, talk to us….so we can talk for you! We’re at 1-800-380-2825


HighViz is a project company:
1600 Tysons Blvd., #1600, McLean, VA 22102
www.highvizpr.com
highvizpr@yahoo.com


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How to Hire HighVizPR - Part 2

Hiring a PR Firm - more than an in-house marketer
Advertisement - What we're hearing from HighVizPR clients and associates:

"Getting your company noticed is becoming rapidly more difficult as consumers are increasingly saturated with brand information. A company such as HighViz, which takes an approach that considers marketing, communications, and public relations is an advantage. ---"Chris David, Founder Venture Street http://www.venturestreet.com/

"I have found highvizpr.com to be the bridge between the demand for quality programs and speakers for companies and corporations by matching the supply of high impact speakers and trainers that HighVizPR can offer."---David K. Aaker, President Aaker and Associates http://www.davidkaaker.com/

"If [HighViz's] Abbe Buck had lived in the fifteenth century, she would have been first to invent the printing press. Her imagination and creativity in approaching her work often translates to an elegant and deployable solution. It just translates into results!"---Charles Wade CMMi Deployment Manager BAE National Security Solutions

"The buck really stops at Abbe's. God broke the mold when he gave us the PR talent that is Abbe Buck. I hope that she never leaves the business because we all need help!"----Marvin Powell, Commissioner The Fairfax County Small Business Commission

Click here for more about "HighViz-Ability"Is PR the new journalism? Read HVPR's daily PR BLOGSHVPR Top Stories

Now, for the PR Topic: Hiring a PR Firm

Here is some information for future reference * - Bookmark this pageHiring a PR Firm - HighVizPR

How can a company or individual know if it needs to hire a public relations firm?There are many factors to weigh when considering if you need to hire outside help to obtain the public relations, media relations, marketing boost, promotional or advertising assistance needed to take your company to the next level.

If you aren't completely certain, after debating the pros and cons ask these questions:

Are we getting all the PR we deserve?
Is our competition getting more than their fair share of media coverage?
Would media coverage bring more business to the firm?
Do we have a PR strategy for continuous year round media coverage?
Do we need In House PR - if so, is our in-house "PR person or department" overburdened with "in-house" work like the company newsletter?

First of all, let's define a PR firm: Some people interchange a PR firm with a marketing firm, or marketing agency, or even an ad agency. Basically a public relations firm handles media relations and is the interface between a company and the news media. Some who happen to do business development or act as majordomos, facilitating high-level introductons between corporations and organziations. This falls into the realm of marketing.A public relations firm or publicist will "pitch" the media on a story idea involving a company, invention or author. A good pitch about a story that would interest the people who read, watch or listen to a particular media outlet gets coverage. I want you to place this in mind about YOUR ORGANZIATION. Is there something that is topical that you can speak about week after week that will continue to capture the ATTENTION of the media and the public?- such as "EAS promotes new health product, to enrich lives of thousands of current and future customers", as did "Martha Stewart released from Camp Cupcake." You see, it is all relative here.

Many larger companies rely on in-house staff trained in public relations or marketing while others hire PR consultants or publicists to handle their PR campaigns. While you may not hire in-house, you may want to at least farm out an idea weekly and PUBLISH it somewhere, at least on your website to tie into product launches and promotions.

Joe Nicassio, author of Guerrilla PR Brand Manager, goes into my point even more in depth.Joe says that whether a company should conduct its public relations, marketing or advertising campaigns internally or externally should be determined by these factors (questions):Do you NEED solid, consistent media exposure week after week, or are you satisfied with "occasional" exposure? Do you have the internal staff and expertise to commit the internal resources to your public relations, marketing, advertising efforts?

If you have the internal staff, and they understand Guerrilla PR principles, then there may be no reason to hire an outside agency. Paradoxically, the busier you get, the easier it is to parlay, or "set aside" consistent, important PR activities. Don't get caught in that trap!"Public Relations is a craft that requires Passion," adds Nicassio. "You may need PR, and you may even have the people to conduct your public relations, marketing, advertising campaigns but that's not enough. To be truly effective, your PR campaigns must be conducted with Passionate Consistency."In my opinion, here is a list of reasons why it makes good business sense to hire a public relations firm to market your product or service:PR firms can get you TV and radio coverageA PR firm can get you interviewed on radio and TV.Every day thousands of interviews are conducted on TV and Radio stations across the North America and several hundred are with experts and authors. If your own in house PR person is not trying to get interviewed by the producers of those shows they won't find you because they simply don't have time to look for you amongst the many interesting people clamoring for their attention.PR firms have regular contact with national media outlets

PR firms are in regular contact journalists, editors, writers and producers from top national magazines, newspapers and radio/TV programs.When was the last time you talked to representatives from ABC's 20/20... Prime Time. CNN... People... Good Morning America... Newsweek... Publishers Weekly... Family Circle... Forbes... ABC Radio Network... Time Magazine... Dateline NBC... The View... Oprah's O magazine... Fortune Small Business... Cosmopolitan... Fox News... Good Housekeeping or Newsweek?Probably not lately. And your in-house PR person probably has not either. The reason? Your in-house person has not established the relationships with these media outlets. A PR firm with several clients can pitch one, two or three stories while talking to the same reporter or producer. An in house PR department does not have this synergy which leaves your firm out of the loop.PR firms have multiple resources such as an "experts subscription service" HighVizPR and other top PR firms belong to paid subscription services which provide dozens of leads everyday from media members looking for an expert to comment on a particular story. PR firms present you and your firm as an authority on a particular topic and request an interview. The media will, in nearly every case, mention your firm in the story as it establishes your credibility with the reader.

Your in-house person is not likely to know about this service or perhaps the several thousand dollars a year it costs to get the leads is not cost effective for a firm to buy this service. However a PR firm can spread this cost over several clients and glean the hundreds of daily queries looking for the one that may work for you.PR firms can provide media training.

Regardless of your experience most executives need media training. PR firms use media trainers to prep their clients. When you use a PR firm they have access to the best ones in the business. Why do you need one? Just watch the interview talk shows you can tell when an inexperienced executive is being interviewed. A good trainer will show you how to "plug" your company, product or service without sounding like an overbearing salesperson. The training helps you capitalize on every interview and maximize each opportunity to the fullest.A PR firm can get your press release to the top of the heap.

For your story to compete for attention in the "hard news" slot it must be compelling and people need to care about it. "On a tour of the Detroit News a couple of years ago," says Joe Nicassio. "I asked to be taken to the mailroom. There I saw 20 giant four-foot tall mailbags that come into the mailroom every day. All I could think of was how many thousands of press releases were in that pile, and how the odds of any one of them seeing the light of day were not good. If your press release is in that pile, you want your story to get to the top of the heap and a PR firm can improve your odds dramatically." Public relations professionals also have built up contacts in the media, who trust them for story ideas, and will know where to pitch a certain type of story.

As for ongoing fees most firms operate on a monthly retainer basis and a minimum time commitment ranging from a few months to a few years. The level of the fee depends upon the scope of the project. Will it take five people, one person? Is the firm interested in local, state, regional, national or international public relations? Is the firm public or private? If it's public there are more SEC required reports that need filling as well as other government regulations. All of this will affect the rate quoted.So it's best to determine what you want and then work with the firm that has a track record of accomplishments and media placement. Good PR is more than hot air; it requires continuous implementation of a well thought out strategy to get results.

The following checklist is suggested in part by Guerilla Marketing Brand Manager's Joe Nicassio to "size up" any public relations firm you are considering to hire:

Do you get along with the members of the firm? Hiring a PR agency is a collaboration that you can benefit from, month after month, year after year. Quality rapport is an essential ingredient.

Are they realistic, in terms of managing your expectations, or do they promise "pie in the sky"? It's one thing for a PR firm to promise results; it's another thing to promise "specific" results.

Maybe you'd like to get on Oprah Winfrey from the start...so would everyone else. But be prepared to take advantage of several secondary media opportunities before you get to the top tier. Several base hits can score you more runs than going for the grand slam every time.

Is the PR firm creative? Creative PR people will come up with more "angles" to test.

Do they understand how to pitch your story? A progressive PR firm will be effective AND efficient at telling your story -- yielding you more media coverage.

Do they listen to what you say? Let's face it...your PR needs are constantly evolving. Your PR firm should listen and respond to your unique, evolving needs.

Are they using a "hard sell" to get you to sign? A good PR firm is a busy PR firm. They don't need to sell you. Their track record will allow you to decide based on the evidence.

Do they have local, regional, national media contacts? When you go to a great PR firm, they have cultivated several strategic media relationships, over many years of time.

Do they have the contacts to place your story in front of the appropriate media?Did they outline a campaign game plan for you? You can predict the effectiveness of a PR firm by the soundness of their overall strategic approach.

Have you seen samples of their work? Track record comes in the form of Quality of exposure, in addition to the Quantity of exposure.

Do you feel that they will carry out your PR campaign with consistent Passion?Do you should feel comfortable with the fee and the contract? Getting good PR is a process. It requires well thought out plans, implemented with passion, and a focus on results in the form of getting your story told to the world.

So, whether you conduct your public relations efforts from within or whether you hire an outside PR firm, if media exposure is valuable to you and your firm then you must include public relations as an ongoing systematic part of your marketing mix.

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HighViz Consulting Group
Abbe Buck, Principal Consultant, Publicist
Strategic Communications and Public Relations
(703) 753-4100 - 1-800-380-2825
http://www.highvizpr.com/
http://www.highvizconsulting.com/
CHALLENGE US TODAY!
Take our HighViz PR - PROMO CHALLENGE!Just 24 hours to conceptwww.highvizpr.com

PR Portfolio on PR WEB: http://www.prweb.com/firm/prf2741.htm*
Labels: guerilla, high visibility, Marketing. corporations, promotions, Public Relations

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Reputation Management & Damage Control: a primer that remains relevent

Reputation Management & Damage Control: a primer that remains relevent

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Reputation Management & Damage Control
by Abbe Buck, HighVizpr.com

Most people use the internet and the broadcast media in our daily lives. Whether we get our morning news on Yahoo! or not, millions of people watch news, entertainment and other programming 24/7. Many of these same people among us are participating in online public discussion groups and starting their own web logs. This has made the Internet the people's forum - everyone contributes and every opinion counts. It has lead to more of a poltical “vox populi” (Latin for “voice of the people”) than we have seen in decades. This is what the daily newspaper used to do. But now, the news - good or bad, rumor or fact - travels faster on the Internet than any other medium.

Here is a leading example of this trend, which seems here to stay: As you may have noted in politics, the internet has quelled Dan Rather’s career as CBS News anchor (with the Bush National Guard ‘letter’ that was certainly mis-reported. This was not brought to the forefront by national “network” news, or on cable news networks, or on talk radio, but by “bloggers” (web-loggers, who have developed their own private “VOICE OF THE PEOPLE” websites. If you can read e-mail you can receive their opinion in your in-box, and it can topple an entire news organization when many band together as a United Front. One of the best examples is on americablog.com - anything you read is posted there!

It could happen to you!

Now think of this: a single unhappy customer, misinformed consumer, or disgruntled employee can spark an online and offline reputation disaster for your company. Having a Public Relations firm planning ahead to avert a potential PR disaster for your company before they become "breaking news" is a market savvy approach.

Putting an organizational PR “Battle Plan” in place:

When damaging news, derogatory rumors, or misinformation “catch fire” on the Internet. We advise that you have a communications person on your management team who is well-versed in a range of verticals. It will be this person’s job #1 to find out where the negative mention started, and to be able to counter as a spokesperson any negative statement or written word that has been picked up by media or on the internet. This person must quickly and effectively find every negative mention of your company online and offline, and immediately strike back with a (counter) strategy to safeguard your company or organization.

Damage Control – What should we do?

When a PR crisis erupts, it is important to execute a timely response to derogatory or misleading information about your company. Working closely with top management and communication staff to disseminate the corporate messages, personnel should quickly present your side of the story and direct audiences to favorable sources of information - dampening the flames and exposing the biases of your detractors.

In addition, to an assembled rapid-response team a PR crisis management website that explained a company’s position to the public and presents all favorable evidence, argument, and media coverage is a must have. The address of this website should be distributed to concerned audiences online through news, search engines, and other channels. Your selected PR firm’s job is to make sure that the public also had the opportunity to hear your company's side of the story before negative sentiments can take hold. This can also done with broadcast reporters and talk-show hosts, who “glom” onto any negotiable sentiment because it becomes top news. To respond is a must!

Media contacts and online Monitoring

While marketers and communicators specialists are in contact with the top media outlets, broadcast and print, your PR firm should also has an Online Monitoring team sweeping the Internet constantly, looking for any and all mentions of your company or organization. Concerned management must stay informed about the perceptions of their brand and the opinions of their customers, employees, and professional analysts online and in print.


» Abbe Buck, Publicist, abbe@highviz.net


HighViz Consulting Group


T 1-800-380-2825
Description: A PR specialist in the fields of promotion


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A Blog post: Gotta agree with UK: greatest act of reinvention / PR - it's Madonna, hands-down!

Gotta agree with UK: greatest act of reinvention / PR - it's Madonna, hands-down!

London Telegraph: Madonna's millions from Hard Candy ads. By Chris Hastings, Arts and Media Editor
Last Updated: 2:02am BST 31/03/2008

She might be just months away from her 50th birthday, but Madonna is proving she's still the ultimate Material Girl when it comes to making money from her music.
The singer, who is the most successful female recording artist in history, has earned millions with her new album Hard Candy - even though it does not go on sale until next month.

Material girl: Madonna is the most marketing savvy musician in the world
She has signed lucrative contracts with major companies including Vodafone, Unilever and Fuji, which will use her music to sell products from hairspray to mobile ­phones. The deals, which involve more than half the tracks on the album, have not only earned the London-based mother of three a not-so-small fortune, they will ensure her album receives free global publicity ahead of its release.
Madonna's deal with Vodafone means the network's customers will be able to listen to seven tracks one week before the album's worldwide release on April 28. It is the first time an artist has launched an album on a mobile phone.
Her new single, 4 Minutes, which features Justin Timberlake, is already being used in a commercial for Unilever's Sunsilk hair care range. The advertisement, which premiered during the American football Super Bowl, is set to go global next month. It includes more than a dozen images of her at different stages of her career. The track will also feature in Timberlake's film Get Smart.
Madonna has also licensed Miles Away, expected to be the album's second single, as the theme for a drama called Change on Japan's Fuji TV.
In a move that is likely to infuriate some fans, the eagerly awaited video for 4 Minutes, with Madonna and Timberlake, will make its debut online rather than on MTV.
John Reid, the president of Warner Music Europe and vice-chairman of Warner Music International, Madonna's label, said: "It's not about upfront payments, it's about selling the product. She is a very smart businesswoman who wants to sell a lot of albums.
"These companies want their customers to know about their links with Madonna. They are going to promote the deals and her music online and in extensive television, radio and press adverts."
He added: "If it all goes to plan then there is no reason why other acts shouldn't strike similar deals."
Madonna is not the first artist to make her work available to advertisers, but past commercials have tended to feature songs only after they have been released.
Claire Beale, the editor of Campaign, the advertising industry's trade paper said: "These deals prove that Madonna is the most marketing-savvy musician in the world. She's a case study of what great marketing is.
"Using advertisements to promote a new single in advance of its release is very shrewd indeed."
Stuart Clarke, the talent editor of Music Week, said: "When you first hear about 4 Minutes being used for a Sunsilk campaign you think 'how tacky'. You then see the advert and you realise what a brilliant idea it is.
"It is as much an advert for her and her music as it is for the product she is supposed to be selling. No one else could get away with that."
The song 4 Minutes has already entered the UK charts at number seven on downloads alone. It is expected to enter the top five today, even though the video still has not been seen and the record has yet to released.
Gennaro Castalodo, a spokesman for HMV, said: "Madonna knows it's not just about reaching her own fans, who are going to buy the record anyway."




You go, material girl

A blast from my recent past -- my on a promo video for highviz in 2005

A blast from my recent past -- my on a promo video for highviz in 2005

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http://abbebuckpr.blogspot.com/2005_07_03_archive.html






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From the HighVizPR blog: Part 2: Media, Social Media and MORE uncertainty --with a certain film clip

From the HighVizPR blog: Part 2: Media, Social Media and MORE uncertainty --with a certain film clip

HighVizPR + Promotion = the new journalism. Politics = Show Biz! News is entertainment?: Part 2: Media, Social Media and MORE uncertainty --with a certain film clip

Posted by HighViz PR at 6:29 AM comments Links to this pdost

oh, BTW: linked-in works, if you are niche-oriented. More on this topic later - ab pr

HighViz Consulting introduces 24/7 PR - PROMO Challenge (SM) - boutique firm challenges new clients offer of new promo concept within one business day

HighViz Consulting introduces 24/7 PR - PROMO Challenge (SM) - boutique firm challenges new clients offer of new promo concept within one business day

HighViz Consulting Group introduces 24/7 “PR PROMO CHALLENGE”(SM), unique offer of new business concept for companies who need text with on-demand exposure

HighViz establishes “PR On-Demand” Program - Boutique firm challenges new clients to allow HighVizPR team work on innovative concepts within 24 hour period

Haymarket, VA, January 14, 2009: HighViz Consulting Group, (HighViz), www.highviz.net , a project company serving Information Technology, legal, non-profit and associations and organizations working within federal agencies, is announcing its “PR PROMO CHALLENGE”. This unique offer provides the opportunity for promising on-demand companies and organizations to kick off a value-based trial PR campaign with a senior-level Public Relations Practitioner. This includes working out the beginning concept phase to a starting campaign for each potential client.

In addition, HighViz is offering to consult with those who are interested in taking the “Challenge”, taking the customer step by step through case studies of public relations concepts. “This is how to put high visibility to a business entity’s greatest advantage” Abbe Buck, HighViz’s Principal Consultant and Lead Publicist explains, “By learning what has worked for others who have successfully used public relations promotion techniques, the business who must promote to grow will have a running start in future, innivative, viral PR planning.”

HOW THE 24/7 PR-PROMO CHALLENGE WORKS

What is the HighViz PR Promo Challenge?

HighViz asks to have those who would like to consider hiring us to put them to the test by asking the team to come up with ideas for their businesses within a business day's time. Abbe Buck also notes, "If HighViz can come up with a starter road map toward a promotional campaign and a strategy for marketing traction, we will do all that we can to earn [our] customer's business. As WWII and adopted HVPR mascot Rosie the Riveter says "WE CAN DO IT!" --and we already have."

Past Performance: Buck cites work that has been done for clients in this fashion for the ASSYST, USO of Metropolitian Washington, Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, Information Experts, Molen Enterprises IT, Lani Silver, (author), David Aaker Motivational Speaker, BoardBoost, Sarbanes Oxley Seminars, and more.

HighVizPR’s 24/7 PR – PROMO Challenge works with an on-demand concept used within Fortune 500 companies such as IBM. HVPR asks that a form is completed on their website. Once the form is completed, HighViz will contact the marketing management who made the PR Challenge request. At this point, HighViz will do an assessment of the PR campaign needs of the organization, (normally a $1500 value). After the evaluation is completed, it will be presented to the organization, with suggestions, and a suggested “BRAND” or “CONCEPT” to put to use WITHIN ONE BUSINESS DAY (24 HOURS)

“In starting out with our current clients, the 24/7 "PR PROMO CHALLENGE” has worked well because as we thrive on deadlines, we can also share in the customer’s sense of urgency to bring their ideas to fruition and their services “to market” , HighViz's Buck says. "We want to be ‘challenged’ by our customers to go the extra mile. We need these challenges! In an information-packed society, every business, from a 'mom and pop' to a major corporation, must have the opportunity to show who they are, what they provide, why they are in business. It is our job to help them showcase their best attributes.”

To take the 24/7 PR PROMO CHALLENGE, visit the HighViz site www.highviz.net and fill in the ________blank form, or e-mail highviz@highviz.net 

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About HighViz Consulting Group
Short for "High Visibility", boutique PR and marketing firm HighViz Consulting Group, specializes in raising awareness for companies and organizations. The firm's services include media relations, communications, crisis management, business development, and related marketing services. The company specializes in serving information technology companies and government agencies.

HighViz is a communications and public relations firm dedicated to generating creative and effective communications programs for associations, federal agencies, technology, business and consumer companies nationwide. Since 1999, Since HighViz has provided exclusively senior-level strategic counsel and execution of public relations programs that clearly and consistently deliver return on investment. Our selective client roster has included government agencies, associations, and private, entrepreneurial companies such as Greenberg Traurig, LLP, Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, Connection Concepts, Inc., BoardBoost, Aaker and Associates, Information Experts, Stellent, Starbase, DSA, Kerrigan Media, EZ Certify, Inc., IBM, and the United Services Organization. Our expertise varies from enterprise software including online collaboration to entertainment and association communications.

Media Contact: Abbe Buck, Principal Consultant, 1-800-380-2825

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What is a Unit Publicist?

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Abbe Buck, Unit Publicist (scroll down)

Unit Publicist

Member of the publicity department who works on location during the production of a movie. Duties includes working with the residents of the location where the film is being made, as well as setting up press visits and electronic press kit interviews. In addition, the unit publicist assembles the biographical materials and notes about the making of the movie that are later turned into the movie press kit. Unit publicists are itinerant -- they move from production to production and are on the production payroll. They report to the filmmakers and, if the film has a releasing studio, they also report to the publicity directors. Once principal photography is over, the unit publicist moves on to another job. Abbe Buck is a publicist with HighViz. She knows what to do.

Actor UNIT Publicist

Actor - (googled)
Once principal photography is over, the unit publicist moves on to another job. Abbe Buck is a publicist with HighViz. She knows what to do. ...www.wdv.com/CellWorld/Roles/ - 119k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this

(not sure who put this up on line, must have been because of my work for Glenn Ford family --gotta do this!)

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The Abbe Buck PR Podcast for Auburn University

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click here.

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