This White House Tour brought to you by ...

During the Space Shuttle Program, I often wondered why NASA didn't sell ad space on the boosters and shuttle itself. Like NASCAR. It sure could have generated a lot of money.

I have no doubt, that given the chance Apple or Microsoft would have paid plenty to have their logo on the side of the Space Shuttle.

In these days of "Sequestration" the idea is worth revisiting. The White House has cancelled public tours due to cost cutting brought on my sequestration. Or so they claim.

Donald Trump, among others offered to pick up the tab and open the White House, owned by you and me to ...you and me. The White House said no.

So we ask, why?

The government also warns of delays in opening many of our national parks for the season. The key word being OUR national parks. So why not offer sponsorships? I bet any number of businesses would jump at the chance to sponsor Old Faithful at Yellowstone. Park Rangers could wear sponsor patches on their uniforms just like NASCAR drivers do.

The NFL and NASCAR have made sponsorship an art form. So why not the White House or Old Faithful?

"This tour of the White House is sponsored by Home Depot." Or, "This next eruption of Old Faithful is brought to you in part by Coca-Cola." (Because geysers and things go better with Coke!)

In business it's important to maximize revenue and reduce costs. Government doesn't operate that way. We lose. Over and over again.

That's why we can't tour our White House and might not be able to see Old Faithful this summer. All avoidable.

So what should it be? Sequestration or Sponsorships? I'll take the latter. Government needs to re-think the way it operates. So we again ask, why not sponsorships?

Brian Olson
Owner/Consultant
Conversation Starters Public Relations
"We start the conversation about you"

XXX

Super Bowl week is here. The NFL loves to use Roman Numerals to denote which one it is, this year it's XLV. That's 45 to us regular folks.

I was a field producer at Super Bowl XXX, aka 30, in Phoenix. It was the Steelers vs the Cowboys. (The latter won the game)

I hope everyone of you gets to go to at least one Super Bowl. Words just don't describe the pomp and circumstance surrounding the darn thing. As a field producer my day began at 5am and continued on through the next morning as we provided coverage, satellite services and interviews etc for clients here in the US and also FUJI Television in Japan.

The most fun and absolutely weirdest event is media day. Back then there were about 2500 credentialed media. I hear something like 5000 credentials have been issued this year. The huge majority are not journalist, just celebs and the like. 99% ask the same questions. It's a distraction for the players and not about news. It's all about hype.

Of course there are all the parties, but us poor slobs covering the event don't have time to attend them. We're lucky to even see the game itself.

For me the most memorable moment came before the game. The fly-over was a "Missing Man" formation. One of the pilots was the son of Francis R. (Dick) Scobee, commander of the Space Shuttle Challenger which exploded 25 years ago during launch. USAF Captain Richard Scobee led a flight of four F-16 fighters. As they flew over Sun Devil Stadium, he pulled back on the stick and soared straight upwards to the heavens, honoring his father in the most profound way.

More than a few of us shed more than a few tears.

Like most of you, I'll be watching the game from the comfort of a sofa, remembering I got to attend a Super Bowl but more than happy not to put in a 24 hour day doing so.

Brian Olson
Conversation Starters Public Relations
"We start the conversation about you"

Cutler's a quitter. Heard it on Twitter.

Today at 6am mountain, some 36 hours after the NFC Championship Game, the lead on ESPN Radio's Mike and Mike in the Morning was Jay Cutler. As I sat down to tap this out, the lead on The Dan Patrick Show was...wait for it...Jay Cutler.

There are two reasons why it remains the lead sports story of the day.

1. Show producers decide what's the lead.
2. Twitter apparently has a profound effect on show producers.

We flash back to Sunday when Cutler is pulled from the game with a knee injury. Does it matter he tried to play with the injury in the 3rd Quarter? Nope. Does it matter he's a Type 1 Diabetic? Nope. Does it matter that his coach and teammates support him? Nope.

What matters is that several current and former NFL players called him out on Twitter. During the game. Most of it was along the lines of "They'd have to drag me off the field before I'd quit" variety of Tweet. Cutler's actions on the sideline, or lack thereof contributed to what became a Twitter Firestorm, with Tweets coming in every second.

So at least in the sports world, Cutler remains the lead.

Yesterday on ESPN's Pardon the Interruption, Tony Kornheiser called Twitter a "Plague." Jay Cutler likely agrees.

For better or worse, if you doubt the power of Social Media, (There's a movie about it) you might want to stop doubting and start believing. Does your company or organization have a Social Media Plan in place? If not, why not? It can help you if you're the lead story, whether it's a good story or a bad one.

Brian Olson
Conversation Starters Public Relations
"We start the conversation about you" (And help you manage that conversation when someone else starts it)

Future Shock-Shock Absorbing

Some years back I had the privilege of meeting the late, great broadcaster Paul Harvey when he spoke at a broadcast journalism industry event. At the beginning of his speech he described the audience as being "Future Shock-Shock Absorbers" for their viewers and listeners. I've never forgotten that well-turned phrase by Mr. Harvey.

It's a term, I think, that equally applies to communications, especially in this rapidly evolving world of social media and why it's important your business have a sound, developed and regularly reviewed communication strategy/plan.

What got me thinking about all this was something I heard yesterday on a sports talk radio show. Eagles QB Michael Vick is the talk (good and bad) of the town for his performance against the Washington Redskins this past Monday. One of the talk show hosts quipped that the PR team for the NFL would have its hands full if the season ended with a Eagles-Steelers Super Bowl, which would of course be billed as a showdown between Ben Roethlisberger and Vick. Both would bring considerable baggage to the game which we don't need to get into here because it's well documented.

The NFL's public relations team is arguably as good as any in the business and they'd do their very best to stay on message and keep the media covering the Superbowl on message. They likely have anticipated such a match-up and are planning for it accordingly. Good luck.

The NFL has well developed policies within its organization, but also knows that they need to quickly adapt to the situation at hand.

Another case study would be the recent incident involving the Carnival Cruise Ship, Splendor. An engine room fire knocked out power, including electricity and passengers had to go without some of the normal luxuries they paid for. Steak and Lobster were replaced by sandwiches. But the original fire was contained, no one was hurt and everyone returned home safely, refunded in full and given another cruise for free. Carnival, to its credit, dealt with a bad situation and did a pretty good job of taking care of its customers and their safety.

But most of the media coverage centered on that passengers were supposedly were fed Spam ferried over, along with other supplies from the nearby aircraft carrier, USS Ronald Reagan. Carnival's PR team did, I think, a darn good job of putting out fair and accurate information but the fixation by most covering the story was the Spam. The story quickly faded from the limelight, but Carnival and Spam went together like peas and carrots for a few days. So despite the best plans and intentions, ultimately the media will cover a story how it decides to. Which is their right. But both the story and the actual fire could have been far worse. Damage control was the rule of the day aboard the ship and in the media. Both fires put out successfully.

I could go on including the BP debacle but the point here is that a well planned and continually reviewed communications plan is important and social media is a great conduit of information when crisis occurs.

A metaphor would be the fire lines that are created in a forest fire. They slow or halt further spread of the fire. But the fire lines aren't created until after the fire starts. Your social media strategy creates a fire line before the fire starts. A future shock-shock absorber when you need it.

So while social media is all about outreach, marketing and brand building; it's also about being there to deal with unexpected situations which can happen to just about any company or organization.

These days, just one disgruntled customer can create a digital fire. As in "Touch my Junk." Having a good plan in place to deal with that kind of fire can prevent it from going viral. It's important to continually monitor what's being said about you on the 'Net. We suggest you set up "listening posts" for key members of your team to listen to what's being said and to quickly and proactively deal with it.

So if you haven't already, check your shock absorbers.

Brian Olson
Conversation Starters LLC
"We start the conversation about you" (And help you deal with any unpleasant conversation)

BEVO Blog: Opening Weekend

It has begun. College football season. Already one surprise with Utah knocking off soon to be not #15 Pittsburgh.

The big match-up comes Monday Night, (Monday Night College Football?) when #3 Boise State plays #10 Virginia Tech. In our weekly pool, which we WON last year, I'm picking Virginia Tech to send Boise back to the blue, blue fields of Idaho. That said, if Boise State were to go undefeated this season they deserve a shot at the national championship.

While the NFL is great, College Football is where it's at. The students, the alumni and of course the teams and traditions are unique in sports. Mascots and marching bands. Wow. It's the happiest time of the year.

We're excited to journey to Austin next weekend for the Texas home opener against Wyoming. 'Q at the Salt Lick, a visit to the Co-op and then the game. HOOK'EM!!

As for this weekend, Rice, it's what's for dinner.

Enjoy the weekend and regardless of your favorite team, cheer them on and cheer them on loud.

And please take time to support Chemo101.com for the Pepsi Refresh Grant. Make a difference!

Brian Olson
Conversation Starters LLC
"We start the conversations about you"