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PR Expert Andy Marken Has Some Advice for Startups and FOSS Projects (Video)
This is a 15 minute video conversation with Andy Marken of Marken Communications, who has been working in technology public relations long enough to know what's what -- and then some. We had a pleasant conversation via Skype, and afterwords he sent along some excellent additional advice about how to handle do-it-yourself tech industry PR.
Andy Marken writes:
We talked about the designer/developer being the best spokesperson for the organization whether you have money or not (to hire someone).
One of the things we have seen, even when working with our own clients, is that we end up interrupting and "guiding" the conversation. The person being interviewed gets so involved in his/her product and they talk on and on about how fantastic it is, how it will change the world, how it has the neatest bells/whistles/ techie crap there is.
Problem is, the interviewer and the audience could give a rats *** about your technology, your expertise, your brilliance in developing the widgit. Tell me what in the heck it will do for ME, why it's good for ME, how it will make MY job easier and more fulfilling.
Clients often look at us as we go down this path saying to themselves we don't really get it and how darned neat, how elegant, how out-n-out beautiful this hummer really is. It is revolutionary and obviously you just don't get it.
We spend a lot of time with folks saying, "Folks don't really give a crap!" People don't buy an iPad because it has 10 gazillion pixels, it has a floating processor that moves ions around and does self-healing magic. Nope (and forget the Apple fanfolks) it is because it lets me watch my movies, play my games, sexily chat with my friends and underlings. It labels me as one of the cool people in the universe and will even stop bullets for me and drive more women into my bed!
Helping technical people step out of their own skin and get people sitting across the table to want, really want, the product -- hardware/software/solution -- is what PR is really all about.
It's not lying. It's interpreting what you're going to do for them... and listening to them so you can shape what the product really does in terms that meet their wants, needs...
And anyone can do that if they think in terms of the person they are talking with and not in their own terms.
We talked about the designer/developer being the best spokesperson for the organization whether you have money or not (to hire someone).
One of the things we have seen, even when working with our own clients, is that we end up interrupting and "guiding" the conversation. The person being interviewed gets so involved in his/her product and they talk on and on about how fantastic it is, how it will change the world, how it has the neatest bells/whistles/ techie crap there is.
Problem is, the interviewer and the audience could give a rats *** about your technology, your expertise, your brilliance in developing the widgit. Tell me what in the heck it will do for ME, why it's good for ME, how it will make MY job easier and more fulfilling.
Clients often look at us as we go down this path saying to themselves we don't really get it and how darned neat, how elegant, how out-n-out beautiful this hummer really is. It is revolutionary and obviously you just don't get it.
We spend a lot of time with folks saying, "Folks don't really give a crap!" People don't buy an iPad because it has 10 gazillion pixels, it has a floating processor that moves ions around and does self-healing magic. Nope (and forget the Apple fanfolks) it is because it lets me watch my movies, play my games, sexily chat with my friends and underlings. It labels me as one of the cool people in the universe and will even stop bullets for me and drive more women into my bed!
Helping technical people step out of their own skin and get people sitting across the table to want, really want, the product -- hardware/software/solution -- is what PR is really all about.
It's not lying. It's interpreting what you're going to do for them... and listening to them so you can shape what the product really does in terms that meet their wants, needs...
And anyone can do that if they think in terms of the person they are talking with and not in their own terms.
"Tell me what in the heck it will do for ME, why it's good for ME, how it will make MY job easier and more fulfilling." Isn't this Sales 101? I was hoping for something a little more clever than common sense.
The man is the living embodiment of Ron Burgundy with the fashion sense of Dr. Steve Brule; except he is not in on the joke.
Is there an html5 version?
I have never heard of the guy. When I googled his name I came up with three kinds of links: links to his (or his company's) websites, links to articles by people who said he is a terrible PR person, and links to articles like this one. After reviewing the available information, I am confused as to why anyone would think he has anything useful to say to slashdot readers.
The truth is that all men having power ought to be mistrusted. James Madison
The Ad before the video was about dealing food at stock exchanges.
That is worse than gassing people.
I don't mean to be rude or ungrateful here, but since when do we care about PR? This isn't HackerNews or Mashable or Venturebeat where a bunch of MBA-wannabe-Mark-Zuckerbergs sit around jerking each other off while we dream up grand ideas that we will put into action as soon as we sucker some "useless coder" to do the actual work for us super cheap.
The most obvious PR lesson in recent history (and one of the more important ones to remember) is: "Don't Be Paul Christoforo"...
further reading Ocean Marketing gets pwned by Penny Arcade
First thing he's got to sell is himself. "Knows what's what and then some" or something like that. Didn't RTFA, so funnily enough I've just walked out of the store. No sale.
He's right. No customer gives a rat's ass about your clever [fill-in-the-blank].
Moreover, they're just going to be pissed if you make them:
1) Change their paradigm. The first response to this is always "F*** you!" AND the horse you rode in on.
2) Change the interface because *you* think there's a better way to do it (Look at the warm, friendly reception Windows 8 is getting if you don't believe me).
3) Make your software overbearing or impolite (hogging processor or memory, refusing to be uninstalled completely, interrupting, or not responding to something the user is doing as if the computer was more important than the human).
The software industry as we know it today was shaped by 20 somethings in the 90s. Most of us are a bit older than that now, and the stupid arrogance that comes with being that age has to go. Mercifully, that seems to be happening slowly but surely.
Please do not read this sig. Thank you.
Some very excellent advice mixed with some possibly bad advice.
Extreme customer service is ultimately a bad business model, for instance. It fosters excessive hand-holding and while it can forge strong relationships, this approach is viable only for high-margin scenarios.
What did this video have to do with FOSS? Was it just put in the title here because of the nature of this site?
I think someone pushed the "publish" button too early on this one. Wait until April 1st to unleash jokes like this.
A lot of points that make good PR are also helpful when faced with a job interview or otherwise advancing your career. Consider yourself as "the product" in the quote below:
Helping technical people step out of their own skin and get people sitting across the table to want, really want, the product -- hardware/software/solution -- is what PR is really all about.
It's not lying. It's interpreting what you're going to do for them... and listening to them so you can shape what the product really does in terms that meet their wants, needs...
A lot of the art of job interviewing is understanding the wants and needs of the interviewer, and presenting yourself as the solution, in terms that the interviewer understands. Once you get hired, establishing and maintaining your reputation involves many of the same PR skills.
I mean, there's a reason we speak of a "Ford Lincoln Mercury Sable", and not a "personal conveyance named after its inventor, an assassinated ruler, a character from Greco-Roman myth and a small furry mammal." Both are true, but. . . .
One of the things we have seen, even when working with our own clients, is that we end up interrupting and "guiding" the conversation.
This is because we know everything. Also, because there are so few PR 'experts' in the world, our advice is like gold. If only our clients weren't such idiots, they could see our brilliance.
"You can justify anything by putting it in quotes, adding a famous name and making it a sig" - Albert Einstein