Category Archives: Public Relations

George Hood’s Guinness World Record in the Plank Propels Post-Event PR Push

It’s been almost a week since he did it, and I’m still stunned by George Hood’s latest Guinness World Record. In a blog post just over two weeks ago, I noted Inside Edge PR’s efforts on George’s behalf, as he was about to make his bid to break the record (50 minutes, 11 seconds) for an […]

Encore: George Hood Vies For Guinness World Record–This Time in the Plank

George Hood is at it again. More than a quarter-century after he first set a Guinness World Record in the realm of self-inflicted physical pain (OK, let’s call it ultra-endurance), he’ll be going after another mark. This time, instead of jumping rope for more than 13 hours (as in 1986) or riding a spin cycle for more than […]

Mancini’s Promotion Exceeds Expectations, Raises $1,800 for Hephzibah

Exceeding expectations has a nice ring to it, especially when it means going from “good” to “great” rather than “bad” to “worse.” And so it is with the 11-11-11 promotion at Mancini’s Pizza Pasta Cafe in Oak Park, Illinois that I wrote about two weeks ago. Instead of raising, oh, maybe $1,111 for the Hephzibah […]

Positively Weary Of the Annoyingly Premature Appositive

Over the past few weeks, I have met with a pair of prospective clients. Both are excellent companies, national in scope and doing some outstanding, innovative work that fill major needs in the market. Alas, both have news releases that suffer from the same ailment that beset countless others with white-noise writers at the helm: […]

Mancini’s Sets Stage for 11-11-11 Event

It’s the 315th day of 2011, though you probably know it more as November 11, 2011 or–even better–as 11-11-11. As an unabashed numbers nut, I’ve had today’s date marked on my mental calendar for many moons now. And months ago, here in Oak Park, I started urging Al Mancini, a longtime friend and owner of Mancini’s […]

Alliance of Creative Professionals Takes Shape

What constitutes a creative professional? What value does a creative content producer actually offer the world? Earlier this year, those questions were gnawing at Jon Schickedanz, a sales and business development professional. A creative talent in his own right, largely in the music field, Schickedanz resolved to come up with a resounding answer to those […]

TEDx Midwest 2011: Illustrated, Illustrious Inspiration in Under 3 Minutes

Yesterday, I was thoroughly excited to attend the first day of the TEDx Midwest conference at the Oriental Theatre in Chicago. And today, I’m headed back for a full slate of speakers who will deliver not only information but inspiration from their varied experiences and points of expertise. The big-name speaker yesterday was actor and Six […]

Going From `What’ to `Why’: Give People A Reason to Like Your Facebook Page

“Visit and “like” our page!” So declare countless businesses, organizations and causes all over this fair Facebook-land. They’ve all got the “what” down pat. What’s glaringly absent is the “why.” Why should I like your page? What’s in it for me? As you ask someone to like this, that or the other thing, then, be […]

A Lesson From Steve Jobs’ Legacy: PAVE The Way to Powerful Communication

The death of Steve Jobs this week has prompted an increased use of the word “legacy” in tributes far and wide. Steve Jobs, during the early days of Apple. But it’s vital that we recognize everyone is building a legacy–and everyone has a distinctive story to share. What is effective in developing public relations angles is […]

A Figure for Math Change: `The Human Calculator’ Makes Numbers Count

Have you heard of The Human Calculator? If not, you can find him at, aptly enough, www.humancalculator.com. His actual name, the one that he was born with nearly 48 years ago, is Scott Flansburg. Two weeks ago, he buzzed through Chicago, speaking to nine schools as part of his work as an ambassador for Mathletics. Among other […]