Passionate Blog

'You've got your hands full' in The Telegraph

LINDA'S blog all about multiple birth children, You've got your hands full is featured in an in-depth piece in The Telegraph today, by Diane Shipley.

As she can bore for England on the subject of blogging, (that's Linda of course, not Diane) it's great to see some recognition. She was also interviewed about twins on Radio Stoke earlier this week, in the wake of the sisters on Big Brother.

It's a shame more depressing and predictable news has taken over where that show is concerned. Suddenly Samanda don't seem so bad. [Carol]

All a twitter over Twitter

WE'VE been delighted by the response to Linda's piece about Twitter in today's Guardian.

Thanks everyone for getting in touch with your kind words. Now she just has to think of some more stuff to write about!

Here's a further report about the micro-blogging tool and how it can help PR be more "quick and dirty" apparently. Nice. [Carol]

Cheryl Baker, David Hasselhoff and more

AS well as our piece in The Sun this week about Rachel and her brush with the law over a shuttlecock, we've also seen some other pieces published.

Today's Guardian includes a latest Technobile piece about the curse of conference calls and DollyMix has an interview with Anna Pickard from Little Red Boat.

Freelance writing tips blog begins

Craig McGinty is a Manchester-based blogger, journalist and absolute star.

Recently, he has been working with Linda on her You've Got Your Hands Full blog. Now the two of them have joined forces in a new online resource for freelance writers.

Freelancewritingtips.com will be updated regularly to include realistic advice on how to succeed as a freelance writer. It will also help promote Linda's book on freelance writing which is due for publication in August 2007.

Got your hands full on the Times blog

Check out our name check on the Alpha Mummy blog yesterday. Our discussion of how us Brits simply love kids...or not ruffled a few feathers, but that's no surprise. For anyone who has been kind enough to link to YGYHF, thank you so much - and please note the link can now be updated to www.gotyourhandsfull.com - to help stop us feeling quite so lonely on Technorati. [Linda]

Corrie Blog unveils top 50 best-loved character list

Latest twins feature and a new blog

This month's edition of the NSPCC's Your Family magazine contains our three-page spread on having twins or triplets. The families interviewed were a joy to deal with. Each had faced their own dramas and the sorts of challenges that are so often par for the course when you have a multiple birth family. There isn't a link available online to the current issue but it's available in all Early Learning Centres! What shone through, despite the inevitable difficulties, especially with babies born so early, was how blessed we all are.

Regional papers' decline: Who's to blame?

Phew. Have just read this about the falling sales of regional newspapers. Picked up on by the esteemed Jeff Jarvis, commenters add their two penneth about the "poor" quality of journalism outside of the big city.

Who could disagree with the following from Greenslade?

"...it’s undeniable that journalism is a labour intensive activity that make a time-and-motion approach to their work wholly inappropriate."

      

So what's a virtual book tour, then?

Graham Holliday makes some interesting points about bloggers being asked to review stuff in a piece for Comment is Free.

(And here's me thinking it was just print journalists who got stuff through the post and did nothing with it, save moan about how rubbish it all was or give it to their mates as birthday presents rush to file an objective review for their chosen publication.)

Now Passionate Media client Gabriella Goddard is embarking on a 'virtual book tour' - which she says is a genuine first in the UK. The 'virtual book tour' is apparently a well-worn marketing tool in other parts of the world but new to these shores.

When I first heard the words 'virtual book tour' I imagined this was something akin to bloggers being sent a copy of Gabriella's book and being asked to write about it - something that Graham illustrates may be as useful as a chocolate teapot. In fact it's something much more ambitious and sophisticated than that.

In her press release, Katie writes that Gabriella will use the "combined innovations" of online messaging, podcasts, blogs and forums to ‘tour’ the country, which she says will mark a new era in book tours and book signings.

The virtual tour, set to start tomorrow, will involve Gabriella engaging in Q&A sessions at pre-arranged times on blogs and forums as well as video blogs on Youtube.com and conducting live web chats on Skype, Typepad, MSN Messenger and Myspace.

Gabriella said: "With more people "social networking" online and buying books over the web, it seemed a logical step to create an online book tour where I can spend more time interacting and engaging with my potential readers, which can be difficult to do at book signings.

"You are also opening yourself up to a much bigger audience at every stop on the tour, one that is international, versus the more traditional methods of book signings and talks which are limited only to those that can make the journey to see you."

Through her virtual book tour, Gabriella, will offer advice and support to anyone facing a challenging situation, whether in their career, relationship or life in general.

Gabriella has various blogs and forums already booked into her schedule, including publisher, Penguin’s own podcast site.

Katy Szita, publicity director at Healthy Penguin said: "Publishers are always looking for innovative ways to promote their books and we know that there is huge scope for reaching a much wider readership online than through print media. When Gabriella Goddard suggested undertaking a ground-breaking virtual book tour we jumped at the chance to get involved."

Since when did a school have a 'brand'?

Sam Oakleigh over at a new PR Forum talks about 'moving' stories to lessen the impact of potentially negative media coverage when things go pear shaped, citing the example of a school with a poor Ofsted report.

Sam, a PR for North Yorkshire County Council reports of his client:

He was a head teacher of a school that had just been slammed by OFSTED and had a rough time of it in the local press. He was worried about the damage to the school brand and asked me how he could stop the story.

“You can’t,” I answered. “You have to move it.”

Sam then details how he saw Max Clifford interviewed on the telly about a possible 'orgy' scenario and how this fits with his plan to 'move' a story about a dodgy Ofsted report.

I don't get it. Our experience of dealing with this very story (the Ofsted report not the orgy) was that we advised our then client to be as honest and open as they could about how they were addressing  criticisms made.When they came out of special measures, they lapped up the deserved positive coverage.

How is that 'moving a story' and what 'brand' does an educational establishment have? Surely what's needed is straight-talking - that the media, staff and parents will understand - not PR jargon about a 'brand' that makes people tut and roll their eyes and wonder what the PRO is talking about?

Anyway, Sam's site All About PR is a relatively new one and I wish him well. [Linda] 

Update: Ian Green at Green Gathering gives an excellent breakdown of expert crisis management. There was a tiny part I disagreed with and his further explanation is here.

Fab photos and new features at Corrie Blog

Just look at this picture. Isn't it great? Look how glamorous Blanche is. I love it. This was the first offering in Fab Photo Friday last week over at Corrie Blog.My editor Flaming Nora, who is a wonderfully knowledgeable Corrie fan, dug it out from her huge collection for the new feature, which was inspired by the lady I call a blogging superstar, Keris Stainton. Other regular slots also now lined up are Yay or Nay Wednesday (thanks Gemma), Monday moan, Gimme Five, and Six Degrees of Separation Corrie style. If you do love The Street, then we hope you'll love Corrie Blog. Oh and in case you are wondering, the bloke in the top right hand corner is called Jerry Booth and was Len's business partner rather than Rita's beau![Linda]