As PR pros we are always careful how we speak to reporters, clients, even our mothers. We choose our words carefully, making sure to provide the most factual yet vivacious descriptions possible. Of course there is a fine line between “emphasis” and “exaggeration,” and it’s a line that exists for photojournalists just as it does for us PR folk.  We can all remember varying cases where edited images have appeared in the media, but one recent occurrence has caused me to question where exactly the line falls for photojournalists.

A recent post on the Toronto Star’s website lays out the situation best, but the short version is an amateur photographer captured an incredible image of the Icelandic volcano in its smoke billowing glory, a truly amazing picture. A local reporter got hold of the picture and before issuing the image to a wire service, he used a technique called tone mapping to boost the contrast in the image, the result being some color shifting and increased color saturation in the image.  In its tweaked state, the image was distributed over the wire, only to be followed by a heavy typeset ADVISORY, which provided the newly discovered original image and an apology for the misleading photo.

As you can see above, the tweaked version looks different than what the photographer originally saw, but we’re not talking about a John Kerry-Jane Fonda composite job or Great Whites chasing helicopters here.  My question is, does this type of tone mapping constitute deception, or did the Icelandic editor simply take a lot of creative license with his visual representation of the scene?

From my own experience tone mapping images, I immediately recognize the technique (especially when keen-eyed photo editors point it out first). So I know that the scene is accurate, but I just can’t trust the colors I’m seeing here. I think it’s this basic understanding of the technique that makes the situation less troublesome to me, but I can see why folks were upset and felt misled, a little.

So, where do you fall along the continuum of this debate? Is it outright fraud or just a troublesome product of modern technology?

By the way, if you live in Iceland, I wouldn’t eat anything grown on that farm for a little while!

Today CNBC posted a countdown of the most anxiety-inducing professions in America, sourced from a CareerCast.com survey. Aside from the outrageous omissions of corporate lawyer and Andy Dick’s personal assistant, it’s a well-reasoned register of vexing vocations. A cursory peek at the subject matter would tempt one to believe the listed jobs are day-in, day-out nightmares that no one would possibly desire. Not so it seems: “a number of the most stressful jobs are considered highly sought-after positions, and workers frequently undergo rigorous and costly training for the chance at one of these careers.”

Here is CareerCast.com’s summary of what makes PR a particularly stressful career and worthy of the number eight slot: “Public relations specialists make speeches and give presentations, often in front of large crowds. Because it is a highly competitive field, specialists must work quickly and creatively to meet deadlines. In addition, some PR officers are required to interact with potentially hostile members of the media.”

While the above responsibilities don’t come without a fair amount of pressure, expectations and artful navigation of occasionally unfriendly human interaction, I think it’s what makes this career fun. Call me crazy, but I suspect the fast pace and inventive, on-the spot thinking might be part of the draw for many of my colleagues. Furthermore, I’m a firm believer that competition breeds creativity in all disciplines.

What do you think? Are you a PR stress junkie or just stressed-out?

One of the great things about life at Matter is that we all respect the work-life balance. We live by our motto that the “results matter,” but within that focus we are understanding if a co-worker has to tend to a child’s doctor’s visit or deal with a personal appointment.

This quest for balance is nothing new. When I was a kid, I saw Ann Romano taking things “one day at a time,” but during the past several months, since the arrival of my second child, I’ve been thinking more and more how to achieve that blessed balance.

Clearly, I’m not alone. About a month ago, the federal government held the White House Forum on Workplace Flexibility with President Obama calling the work-life juggle a series of high-wire acts. The Christian Science Monitor summed up the event reporting, “Although many corporations have embraced a degree of workplace flexibility, some human-resource experts say that workers still face a mismatch between family demands and workplace policies – and that better resolving the conflicts could benefit employers as well as employees.”

Regardless of whatever flexible programs your employer may offer, PR by its nature, like today’s news cycles, rarely allows for true time “off the clock.” With that in mind, I offer some of my PR-inspired tips that help keep own juggle in check:

• Deadlines: Reporters live and breathe by them and so should we. Etch press deadlines in stone on your calendar. But, also try to set some deadlines for home projects, too. (E.g., “I will fold that load of laundry while watching Tori & Dean.”)
• Inverted pyramid: The sheer volume of all of your professional and personal obligations can be paralyzing. Take 60 seconds to decide what absolutely must get done and what can wait a bit. You’ll feel some instant zen.
• Network: PR is all about relationships, right? Well, reach out! There are tons of online resources, for parents especially, to share advice and laughs. Some of my favorites stops are to:
  • Examine thought-provoking topics at The Wall Street Journal’s The Juggle blog
  • Trade ideas with other parents at Nickelodeon’s community “We’re not perfect. We’re parents.”
  • Read other working parent stories at Working Mother Magazine
  • Check out coping strategies at iVillage and eHow
  • Laugh along with Country Fried Mama, a blog written by a former co-worker and good friend of mine
• News announcements: Share great news with your top target – yourself! Remind yourself why you work. Think of a project that turned out well in the office, or of a recent milestone accomplishment by your child (sitting up, riding a bike, graduating) all of which can help keep a smile on your face while you try to make more time in your day.

What works best for you to help balance your life at home and at work? Share your best suggestions!

I have a confession. I love to talk with strangers. As a child you are told never to talk to (or take candy from) strangers, but now that I’m a grown woman, I have thrown this childhood no-no to the wind.

There is this little burst of giddiness that erupts inside when I can sit and dig deep into the life of a complete stranger who I don’t know from Adam. Perhaps it is my natural inquisition to interview people, but over the years, while traveling on a plane across country or sitting on a patio at a coffee shop, I have had several pleasant conversations that have shaped my life in one way or another. On a recent flight to Phoenix, I was chatting with an older gentleman, and he reminded me of the truth behind this well-known quotation: “There are no original ideas. There are only original people.” What a great reminder, from a perfect stranger. Can you really take advice from strangers? I think so.

In life – and in business – you never know who you are going to meet. Just think about all the people we pass by or sit next to on a daily basis. There are many opportunities to experience a pleasant chat with a stranger. As a PR professional, these experiences can result in new business leads, provide sound advice for current problems or lead to candidates for job openings.

I recently came across an article in Real Simple about a fellow woman – who happens to be a writer – who was equally excited about meeting strangers. In this personal narrative, she tells the story of how she met a stranger on a plane and ended up helping him write a love letter to the woman he was trying to win back. It sounds insane, but this article is a must read, and it might even inspire you to take your nose out of that book next time you’re on a plane.

What’s your best stranger story? Please share – we want to hear about your experience.

Oh, the great flood of 2010. Friends and family from around the country reached out asking if we needed help, if we were evacuating. Over at my house, we didn’t get a drip of water in the basement. At my grandparents’ house it was another story. They live in a raised ranch in Warwick, Rhode Island – just 20 minutes away from me and their first floor was destroyed when the Pawtuxet River flooded and sent more than four feet of water in their house. Once the water receded my family spent the weekend trying to recover whatever personal property we could. It didn’t amount to much but I spent hours taking soaked photos from frames and albums hoping to save them; including a picture of my gramma as a baby.

So what’s this have to do with PR? Well, I found myself thinking about all the photos and memorabilia I have at home, mainly from my college and high school days, that sit in albums and boxes completely vulnerable to Mother Nature’s whim. I really need to digitize and back those memories up….and write a pitch about that.

When I came back to work on Monday after the cleanup, I typed up a quick pitch and shared with my team who reminded me that while I was ready to jump on this opportunity, perhaps I should consider that folks are still recovering and I should be more sensitive. People lost their homes and possessions, roads were destroyed. So I thought on it a bit and decided that while backing up your photos and videos may not be the most important take away from the disaster, it’s important nonetheless and people will want to know about services available to them. (I hope to see that translate into some great coverage very soon.) Days later, my sister, who recently transplanted herself to Southern California, found herself running for a doorway during her first earthquake. That pitch is getting a lot of mileage lately…

Experiences in times of disaster vary from person-to-person and as long as the pitch is written with respect and in the proper context, it’s not only appropriate but it’s out of obligation to our clients that we get the information out there in a timely fashion.

So what do you think? Is there ever an appropriate time or way to “capitalize” on natural disaster? I’d love to hear your stories!

Today’s edition of The Boston Globe features the article “Jobless rate falls, a first since ’07,” It takes a look how the Commonwealth’s jobless rate falling for the first time since 2007. The article highlights Matter as a company that is seeing growth and expansion.

Here is the full text of the article:

The state unemployment rate fell last month for the first time in nearly three years as Massachusetts employers added thousands of jobs, the clearest sign yet that the economic recovery is gaining strength, the state reported yesterday. 

The job gains were broad based, spreading across sectors from retail to technology to financial services, and apparently strong enough to bring down the unemployment rate even as thousands more residents entered the labor market in search of work.

“It is hard to see anything bad in this,’’ Alan Clayton-Matthews, an economics professor at Northeastern University, said of the report.

Massachusetts employers expanded payrolls by 7,600 jobs in March, the largest monthly gain since May 2007, the state Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development reported. The jobless rate slipped to 9.3 percent from 9.5 percent in February, the first decline since April 2007.

In addition, revised data showed that employers added 4,000 jobs in February, 2,500 more than first estimated.

The hiring rebound is the latest evidence the state economy is turning the corner, following the worst national recession in nearly 70 years.

On Wednesday, a Federal Reserve survey found that economic conditions were improving in New England as businesses reported rising demand, increasing sales, and even some hiring. Last month, Moody’s Economy.com, a respected forecasting firm in West Chester, Pa., estimated that Massachusetts began a recovery in January, based on its analysis of employment, industrial production, and other data.

“We are very encouraged and hope that this trend will move forward,’’ said Joanne Goldstein, the secretary of labor and workforce development.

Matter Communications Inc., a Newburyport public relations firm, is among the businesses that began to rebound at the end of last year. Its clients, which range from technology firms to consumer products companies, began to spend again, said Scott Signore, Matter’s chief executive, and over the past few months, revenues have grown at double-digit rates compared with the previous year. Now, he said, the firm is looking to expand its workforce of 36 by four positions.

“We’re back on our growth trajectory,’’ said Signore. “We’re going to have the need for additional bodies between now and the end of the year.’’

The rebound in Massachusetts labor markets follows solid job gains nationally, and the US unemployment rate appears to have peaked, holding at 9.7 percent for the past three months, after rising to 10.1 percent in October.

In Massachusetts, key sectors posted gains. Financial services added 1,800 jobs, the first monthly increase since October 2008, when stock and credit markets plunged following the collapse of Wall Street investment firm Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. Professional and business services, which include a variety of technology, scientific, and research firms, added 1,600 jobs. Retailers, in a sign of rebounding consumer spending, added more than 2,000 jobs in March.

Tammy Sullivan, 28, of Roxbury, was out of work for nearly a year after getting laid off from a Dedham restaurant. She applied for retail and customer service jobs at more places than she could count, including a new supermarket at which more than 3,000 people applied for some 200 jobs. But two weeks ago, she was hired to work in the copy center of a Staples store in Dedham.

 “I was so happy,’’ Sullivan said. “I was applying constantly. It was pretty hard.’’

The recovery has a long way to go to repair the damage of the recession. The state still has 155,000 fewer jobs than when the recession began here in March 2008, and more than 300,000 residents remain unemployed. Nationally, the Labor Department reported that first-time claims for jobless benefits rose unexpectedly last week to 484,000 from 460,000 the previous week.

Still, analysts said, the recovery appears to be gaining momentum.

“We’re not looking at spectacular growth, but we’re seeing new jobs being created,’’ said Andre Mayer, senior vice president for research at Associated Industries of Massachusetts. “This is what we needed to see.’’

Meanwhile, competition for skilled workers in fields such as technology appears to be increasing.

VistaPrint NV, the Internet printing services firm that employs more than 500 in Lexington, has hired about 125 workers over the past nine months, said Kevin Murray, director of recruiting. But recently, VistaPrint candidates have begun to get offers from other firms. VistaPrint has responded by hiring recruiters to compete more aggressively for the skilled workers it needs.

“We are not in a war for talent,’’ said Murray. “But it is tightening up.’’

Rachel Yaroschuk, 23, of Needham, who graduated from the University of Maryland last May, spent more than six months looking for a job. “I kept pressing, send, send, send,’’ she said, referring to the countless number of resumes she sent online.

Then, earlier this year, she was hired as a corporate communications associate at Merrimack Pharmaceuticals Inc. in Cambridge.

“I was so excited, I actually jumped up and down,’’ she said. “I felt really fortunate that it was a job that I really wanted.’’

A few weeks ago, I caught the bug which – based on my unscientific and statistically unsound polling of colleagues, clients, friends, and family – seems to have struck most of the country in late March. Sick in bed for the day, with a fever of 102 and a queasy stomach, I picked up a favorite novel: Jane Austen’s Emma.

 
I’ve loved the book since first reading it twenty-five years ago, and over time and multiple readings, I’ve come to more fully appreciate the intelligent and patient study the novel makes of the way people communicate – or don’t – with each other.

 
Today, the alacrity of our communications – which is by turns overwhelming, gratifying, intrusive and astounding – makes it hard to imagine waiting days to learn, for example, when a sister might be coming from London for a visit, or whether a marriage proposal might be accepted.

 
Which made me wonder, through the haze of my fever, whether the immediacy bred by our connectedness makes for more effective communications, or worse? The psychology and social effects of smartphones, Facebook, Twitter, texts, and emails are the subject of many articles, studies and conversations. Do they help or hurt our productivity? Do they help or hurt our professional and personal relationships? Do they help or hurt the practice of good, thoughtful public relations?

 
The urgency (and with the exception of crisis communications, I would qualify it as false) presented by immediate communications has the dual effect of making us sharper and making us more distracted. It’s not always easy to remember what the intended outcome of a PR program is, when Hootsuite, Outlook, Facebook, IM (and the iPhone or Blackberry next to the laptop) are all popping with new streams of information, new opportunities to tell a different story to a new audience, or dash off a response to a competitor.

 
And those engagements are really, truly important. But our most important job as PR professionals is to communicate thoughtfully the truest and best stories about our clients to the right people, at the right time. Sometimes we can do it instantly, in 140 characters; sometimes we can do it in a great Q&A with a major business publication, and sometimes the only way to have the story be heard is to wait, and tell it at a time when the audience it’s aimed at is willing to hear it. Timing matters, and there’s no reason we should let the ability to communicate instantaneously be the reason for doing it.

 
In our lives, where it seems everyone is sharing everything right now, we need to remember that sharing the right things remains the only way to have an impact that makes a real difference. Just because we are able to say something immediately doesn’t make it the right thing – and if it isn’t the right thing, then it may be better left unsaid.

Of course, in personal matters, sometimes saying (or hearing) anything straight away is the right thing. Which is why, on that sick day a few weeks ago, the only other thing besides my well-worn copy of Emma to make me laugh were the real-time, right now messages coming to me on my iPhone.

Thrilled to say that the Matter Communications team in Providence, RI is settled into its new offices!  We didn’t move far (we’re even keeping the same suite number), but we did go from 1,620 sq. ft. to 2,800 and we’re using the space a lot more efficiently than we did previously.  We’ve got a sweet view of the Providence Capitol dome (and I-95, but you can’t have it all) and on a beautiful day in Rhode Island (like today), plenty of sunshine!

Come visit us if you are in the Providence area!

Jeff Lavery is either working really hard or desperately trying to ignore the camera. Sorry, Jeff, you should have run like the rest of ‘em.

Not too shabby, eh?

Our snazzy new digs.

According to The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of public relations specialists is expected to increase 24 percent during the 2008-18 decade, much more rapidly than the average for all other occupations. Don’t believe me? Try entering graphic designer, teacher, lawyer, or pharmacist into the online Occupational Outlook Handbook.

If you share the belief that mid-80s music videos can best depict an industry’s feelings toward government statistics, I also invite you to check out Ragan’s PR Junkie blog on this very subject.

Hiring and expansion have certainly been the latest trends at Matter. With a new influx of candidates — resumes and writing samples in-hand — stepping into our offices to potentially join our team, I’ve been frequently thinking about prepping for and executing an interview — whether readying a client, journalist or yourself. While job-seeking and media briefings might not seem innately entwined, I believe some best practices are shared.

Here are a few things to consider for your next big face-to-face:

1. Research the company: learn as much as you can beforehand — know the agency’s (or company’s) products, services, clients, management, culture, dress code and anything else that comes to mind.

2. Know your audience: seems obvious and easy enough for a media contact or client, but this bit of preparation is equally important before you meet an agency exec. Almost any PR pro is on Twitter, LinkedIn or a company blog — so use these platforms to demonstrate your ability to dig and do research from the jump (and, of course, show your work by sharing feedback, observations and questions).

3. Listen and adapt: be sensitive to the style of the interviewer. Pay attention to details of dress and decor that often lend advantageous hints to help you tailor your presentation.

4. Always follow up: this is a major part of both effective PR and landing a job. If you go dark after an interview with the press or with an agency rep, it’s not too likely that you’ll hear anything back — don’t shy away from touching base afterward.

Thoughtful preparation months in advance. Planning phone calls with the client. Carefully crafted press releases and pitches. Emails filled with logistics. No matter how much preparation – whether it’s for a two hour media event, two day media tour or week long trade show – events always seems to come down to the last minute. Events are a crucial part of what we do in the PR industry and a great way to raise our client’s profile in a big way. But even the best planned events have their way of bringing on the stress and down-to-the-wire rush.

What last minute tidbit of information can we use to drum up extra media hype? What last minute media briefing can we secure? What last minute details do we need to confirm? It’s these questions that fill our minds leading up to events, causing that extra little layer of stress, but also the thrill of being in the PR industry.

The added pressure that events bring to execute perfectly and secure those unconfirmed briefings at the eleventh-hour is what makes them so exciting, and preparation so important. Because while we are tying up all those last minute loose-ends, the preparation and planning you started weeks or months ago is what carries you through.

It’s those last minute details that made the event – and got clients the results they desired – but only because all your preparation and hard work well before the last minute put everything else perfectly in place.

What do you find challenging or rewarding about events?