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Clinton Street Roundup – Part One

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We’re all nestled in to our new home at the Cyrk Building. While we’ll miss our lovely neighbors in the Buckman neighborhood, we’re excited to be starting our new life as part of vibrant SE Clinton Street.

In typical AM:PM PR fashion we’ve already busied ourselves trying the various cafes and restaurants in the area. Since we were without a home for over a month, we had ample opportunity to meet as a team at many of these fine establishments to discuss business and taste the food and drink the neighborhood has to offer.

We’ll continue to update the Be My Neighbor section of the website with posts detailing our favorite spots as we discover them. For now, here’s a roundup of our current crushes.

 

K&F Coffee

K & F roasts its own coffee (it’s delicious, by the way) and they offer a pretty impressive variety of baked goods to nibble while you sip your beverage of choice. It was the site of our first offsite meeting and it’s a classic Portland coffeehouse that I’m sure we’ll continue to regularly frequent.

 

Dot's Cafe

Clinton St. staple, Dot’s Cafe, has been around for more than 20 years. It’s one of our favorite lunch spots on a cold winter day due to its signature coziness and velvet-painting-festooned walls. They serve up classic, high quality bar food and stiff drinks, what more could one want?

 

St. Jack Portland

We’re lucky to be just down the block from St. Jack – both the restaurant and the patisserie. The patisserie has drawn us in several times over the last month with its perfectly crafted traditional french pastries like buttery croissants, canelés and macarons. We’ll have to be careful to resist the urge to swing by daily since swimsuit season is just around the corner.

 

Compote Cafe

Compote has been serving the Clinton St. neighborhood delectable breakfast and lunch items made from scratch with wholesome ingredients for over two years. Located just two doors down from our space it will be difficult to resist a daily stop for a homemade treat.

 

Night Light Lounge

What neighborhood would be complete without the perfect after work hang out? Night Light Lounge boasts one of the best happy hours in town (trust me, I’m an expert) and even serves brunch on the weekends. I can foresee many PR 3.0 meetings continuing after hours at this classic SE spot.

Those are among our current favorites. Stay tuned to the Be My Neighbor blog for additions. Are there any places you love that we didn’t mention? If so, please share share with us in the comments section.

90% of the building’s power comes from the solar panels on the roof. The building also uses a geothermal heat pump (GHP). GHPs use the ground as a heat reservoir for high efficiency heating and cooling. The temperature of the earth is the exchange medium instead of the outside temperature.

It’s easy being green

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We like green. We’re Irish. But, now we’re a whole new shade of green – building green.

solar panels portland oregon

90% of the building’s power comes from the solar panels on the roof. The building also uses a geothermal heat pump (GHP). GHPs use the ground as a heat reservoir for high efficiency heating and cooling. The temperature of the earth is the exchange medium instead of the outside temperature.

Passionate about sustainability, our landlords built the Cyrk to be the greenest of green buildings – LEED Platinum.

 

Ipe wood siding

The Ipe wood siding and sunscreens aren’t just reclaimed, they have history. They originally existed as decking in a Northern Californian steam driven sawmill. Before there was a movement to protect the old growth forests and establishing Redwoods State & National Parks, gold miners and lumberjacks walked across the boards in the largest and oldest redwood log mill in the world. This same wood will be used inside AM:PM PR and 7/Apps offices as barn doors to our conference room.

 

 

Green patio

The patio features native plants and reclaims storm-water runoff.

 

 

All of the materials and paint used are non-toxic

All of the materials and paint used are non-toxic and 21% of the construction materials came from recycled sources. During the construction phase 95% of the waste was diverted from landfills.

 

Erin is our own in-house Green Police and we will be trained to respect this building by being good stewards ourselves. Our next project – making our own paper out of our shreds. Not really. That’s too hard. I think we’ll just communicate electronically. Look for your invite to our office warming party on March 15th in your email soon and come check this all out for yourself.

Introducing Mike Phillips, Lion Tamer.

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Mike P AM:PM PR

Mike visiting Bey Mosque in Sarajevo, Bosnia. Legend says if you drink the water, you will have to return someday. He was doing research for a book project.

With the bittersweet news this week that Jake Ten Pas, our beloved Minister of Propaganda, is leaving us, comes one rosy reason to recognize that we have the luck of the Irish.

Longtime AM:PM PR friend, Mike Phillips will be joining our merry band of characters as we move in to our new space on February 1. He’s been a regular fixture at PR 3.0 gatherings, but he also worked with us at our previous firm. We’ve always hoped to be able to talk him into joining our circus.

Since his internship with the McCormicks five years ago, Mike’s explored the ins and outs of public relations working with regional wineries, restaurants, travel and tourism bureaus, and a national food client.

More recently, Mike’s built a healthy practice in book marketing and publicity through work with several publishing companies. His book marketing specialty work, known as The Neo Com Group, will continue in addition to his AM:PM PR practice.

Mike’s Irish ancestry alone would make him a great match for us. Among his many talents, Mike is an accomplished musician, long leading a local band, the Fenbi International Superstars. His Irish music prowess will add more energy to our annual St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, this year (March 15) celebrating the opening of our new space on SE 20th and Clinton.

Mike will join AM:PM PR in an account manager, client development role we like to call “Lion Tamer.” We look forward to working with him again and know you’ll appreciate his creativity and warm personality as much as we do.

Jake Ten Pas Signing Off

Good night, and good luck from Jake Ten Pas

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 This is Jake Ten Pas, signing off…

We all knew this day would come. Nobody can be a Minister of Propaganda forever. All things considered, I’ve survived longer than most. Come Monday, I take the bittersweet step of leaving my faithful comrades at AM:PM PR for an amazing new position with the Children’s Cancer Association. I’ll take the reins of the nonprofit’s MyMusicRX program, which uses music as therapy for the kids and their families dealing with life-threatening illness.

My Music RX logoAnybody who’s had a close relationship with AM:PM PR knows that we’re as tight as a family, and so you can imagine that it was tough for me to tell Pat and Allison about my decision. Despite the great job offer, it was a hard decision to make. Without AM and PM’s assistance and encouragement over the years, I might never have made the jump from journalism to public relations, and hence never been in a position to apply for this next step in my professional life.

It felt like a breakup, and I’ve never been good at breakups. In fact, as one person observed, I’d rather be broken up with than do the breaking. My own pain I can handle, but somebody else’s? I turn to jelly.

In this regard, I’m doubly fortunate. First, because you couldn’t ask for two more gracious people when it comes to having this kind of conversation. Both Pat and Allison were not only happy for me, but I think proud, as well, that our work together had prepared me for this bold new direction. Second, because, well, this isn’t a breakup. We’re family, and familial feeling doesn’t dissipate, even when stretched by distance. I suspect you’ll continue to see me at the occasional PR 3.0, and you’ll definitely see me at AM:PM PR’s office-warming party for its straight-up space-age new headquarters.

Plus, one of Portland’s best young communicators will be stepping up to fill my shoes. Mike Phillips, who will introduce himself to you tomorrow, is a warm, articulate, passionate PR man, and I expect great things from him as AM:PM PR’s new word slinger. One quick piece of advice, though: Wear shoulder pads, Mike. Alexis has got a mean jab.

children's cancer association logo
To stretch the relationship metaphor just a bit further, my wife made a keen observation in regards to my success in nailing down this new position. You’re always more attractive when you’re in a relationship, she said. It’s because other women can smell the lack of desperation. Similarly, the wonderful job I already had with AM:PM PR couldn’t have hurt my chances with CCA.

I’m ultra jazzed about the opportunity to make a very real difference in the lives of people suffering under the weight of debilitating sickness. That I get to use music, which has gotten me through nearly every rough patch in my own life, and which continues to be my number one inspiration on a daily basis, to do so is pretty much blowing my mind. At the same time, I’m going to miss the incredible clients I’ve worked with here, and the family with whom I’ve shared my work. Here’s to the future, both of AM:PM PR and to all the high-flying trajectories it launches.

The Cyrk

Movin’ on up, to (a new part of) the East Side & Joining The Cyrk

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As much as we’ve loved our time in the Buckman Neighborhood – rubbing shoulders with the mad scientists of Distillery Row, descending like locusts upon local eateries such as Robo Taco and Vivo, and working with neighbors Bremik, Tapalaya, Po’Boy Art and more – it’s the dawn of a new year and a new era for AM:PM PR.

We survived an overinflated panic surrounding a misinterpretation of the Mayan calendar, and we figured why not treat ourselves to a new space. Not to toot our own horns (TOOT!), but it’s a doozie.

At the beginning of February, we’ll take up residence in the Cyrk Building on southeast 20th and Clinton. For those of you who’ve yet to cast your eyes on this miracle of modern building techniques, feel free to drive by and check it out. It’s a gorgeous space that we’ll share both with our brothers in arms at 7/Apps and our clients EE Northwest. The latter owns the building and was kind enough to approve our tenant application. We’ll try to keep the noise level down.

AM:PM PR joins the Cyrk-us

For those of you who understand how calendars work and are wondering about the omission of a little thing called January, well done. That was a test, and it’s nice to see that you were paying attention. As construction is finished up on our new space, we’ll be going back to our roots.

Just as in the early days of AM:PM, we’ll be a bit like the French Resistance, except with public relations instead of freedom fighting, and minus the Gauloises. We’ll meet at a variety of our favorite coffee shops, restaurants and watering holes, keeping the client work that’s our bread and butter firmly intact. You likely won’t notice much difference unless you meet us face-to-face, in which case the password is “Le Coq Sportif.” Also, feel free to give us suggestions for great coffee shops that can accommodate large groups of mostly serious professionals.

During the next month, we’ll keep you updated on our activities and the construction’s progress via the usual channels: our blog, Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn. We’ll also be getting to know our new neighbors. We’ve already visited St. Jacks, Compote, The Night Light Lounge and more, and look forward to getting to know them and their tasty offerings even better.

When we get moved into the new space, we don’t expect you’ll miss it. We’ll have a hard time not crowing from pride about our new digs, and of course there will be office-warming festivities to attend to. Keep an eye out for something occurring around St. Patrick’s Day.

We’ll also be working on new job titles and a high-flying new concept for the website that will highlight the subtle circus theme of our new digs. Prepare yourself for the greatest communications show on Earth, or at least in Portland. In the meantime, Happy New Year. We hope you’ve got as much to look forward as we do.

 

ICBC booths

Long-time Intel spokesman linking up with AM:PM PR

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As winter begins and the New Year approaches, 2013 is looking like Spring to us. Our new offices are under construction. New clients are coming aboard. And today we confirmed that one of Oregon’s most respected and visible communications professionals plans to affiliate with us early next year.

In an email to his Intel colleagues and friends, Bill MacKenzie, a long-time Intel spokesman announced today that after 15 years as spokesman for Intel in Oregon, the state’s largest private employer, he’ll soon launch his “post-Intel life.”

Before starting his high-visibility job at Intel, Bill spent a decade as a business and politics reporter at The Oregonian. He also held senior positions on the staff of a subcommittee in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Department of Commerce, including service as a foreign affairs officer working with the Department of State on treaty negotiations.

In announcing his future plans, Bill told friends he plans a short break before starting part-time work over the next year for the Encore Fellowship Program and Social Venture Partners Portland. He also plans some non-fiction writing, including journalism.

But what we liked best was reading this: “I’ll also be affiliating with Portland PR firm AM:PM PR to offer PR services such as corporate communications, crisis communications and media relations training.”

We couldn’t be more excited. Allison and I worked with Bill and his team at Intel more than a decade ago, helping with communications about one of Intel’s multi-billion dollar investment announcements. We also facilitated Intel’s former Community Advisory Panel, part of the company’s communications with its neighbors.

He’s been a good friend and a helpful professional colleague ever since.

In his email, Bill reflected on his time at Intel: “I’m proud to have played a part in handling hundreds of critical business issues with the media and in helping to secure public support for $37.5 billion of Strategic Investment Program Agreements that have facilitated billions of dollars of Intel investments in Oregon and generated thousands of high-skill, family-wage jobs. I’m also proud that Intel has consistently been voted Oregon’s most admired tech company and one of the most admired companies across all industries during my tenure.”

Intel has reason to be proud of the contribution Bill has made to Intel’s success in Oregon, and we’re pleased he thinks enough of us to link up with us.

While it seems like Spring to us, Bill is waiting for the real thing before setting off for a long-planned lark: “On May 9, 2013, I’ll embark on a bicycle trip from the edge of the Pacific Ocean to Boston, long an adventure on my bucket list.”

Bill has many more adventures in him, and we look forward to sharing some with him at AM:PM PR.

Don't bury your head in the sand. Be prepared for any scenario.

How To Deal With Bad PR

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– AM:PM PR Guest Post

Sometimes things don’t always go to plan though and you get media attention for all the wrong reasons. Here’s how To deal with bad PR.

I have worked for a number of companies that have been very high profile for all the wrong reasons. The worst thing you can do when things go wrong is bury your head in the sand. Also, responding to a question with: “no comment!” makes you sound guilty straight away.

You need to be prepared. Develop a crisis/issues management plan. Think through every possible scenario and develop specific plans, messages and protocols for each. Doing this will make you feel a little more confident when a crisis does happen at 4pm on a Friday and media start calling asking for statements ASAP.

Include protocols for responding to media requests in your plan. Whoever takes calls from reporters should be writing down all the questions so the communications team can craft solid responses.

Often reporters will accept responses/statements via email. If they do, this is the way to go. It eliminates risks of saying too much. If you are asked to call the journalist back then, unless you know the journalist well, don’t go off on a tangent in your discussion. Keep it to the agreed points and don’t add any personal comment or feelings. The old adage about, “nothing being off the record” is very true.

A few more tips when preparing for the worst:

am:pm pr tips

        1. Be truthful and hold your hands up if it is an obvious mistake.
        2. Don’t try and cover things up un-necessarily
        3. Remain calm and definitely don’t get angry
        4. Make statements clear and short
        5. When all has settled down, ask for feedback from the media

 

Doctorate-level marketing brilliance

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Excel is creepy

Disney has topped itself. And everyone else.

Check out http://monstersuniversity.com/edu/ and allow yourself to enjoy this genius level marketing brilliance.

Monsters University won’t premier until next summer, but the Disney Pixar team already has released gems like this to get us all giddy with excitement for the movie – and it’s merchandise.

Somehow I have school pride for this university I’ve never attended. You can even buy school merchandise. Conveniently, they’ve already sold out of the four arm T-shirts. This brilliance allows Disney Pixar to start making money from merchandise eight months before you’ll be able to watch the movie.

My inner child has me going back to this site over and over and clicking on every link. They have thought of everything. They even have a way of humorously jabbing Microsoft on the site in the banner ad about “Excel in the art of Extreme Creepiness.”

Yes, I am going to see this movie. I can hardly wait, and I haven’t even seen the trailer yet.

 

Be cautious with outbursts on your Facebook Business Page

Promoted personal posts just might kill Facebook

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I have long defended Facebook to friends and colleagues as a free service that allows us to connect with far-away family and long lost friends. I’ve also thought that nothing yet created had the potential to truly compete.

Now it seems Facebook can only think of ways to make itself more attractive to analysts rather than its loyal users.

I can accept promoted posts and ads from businesses because the service needs to pay for itself and the ads are really not that intrusive. What I cannot accept is the idea that my Facebook friends can now advertise their posts to me. How strange and useless. I see their posts anyway.

I have no interest in using Facebook anymore (except when I have to for my profession) if personal connections pay to have their posts highlighted. Maybe that’s a bit drastic, but that’s not the service I signed up for. I’m guessing I’m not alone.

For $7 any user can now promote her most recent post. How obnoxious. What will it even look like? Will friends know if a post is paid for? I don’t know, but I’m going to test it by promoting this article. Yes, I’m aware of the irony, but I’ll consider it research. I really hope this option goes the way of many tested features Facebook has gotten rid of.

I did actually read an article by Tech Crunch that shared one compelling use case for this feature. Judge for yourself.

Be cautious with outbursts on your Facebook Business Page

What not to do on your Facebook business page

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Damaging your own reputation through social media – a cautionary tale

A restaurant owner in small town in Washington surely regrets sharing publicly that he pay his utility bill and blaming the local PUD on his woes. The reactions below demonstrate risks of outbursts for managers of a Facebook business page.

What can we we learn from this Facebook business page fail?

  • Don’t post when you’re angry. You’ll regret it later and it just might turn viral.
  • Don’t share your financial issues with customers. You’ll lose respect.
  • Don’t act maliciously. You’ll lose fans quickly.

Your Facebook business page publicly represents your company in a platform that allows all of your customers to engage or witness your engagements. Every comment you make can be shared with thousands in seconds. The impression you make can have a lasting effect. Be cautious and interact in a way that supports the reputation you want to have. If you think what you’re about to post has the potential to be misconstrued or hurt your reputation, run it by a second pair of eyes first.

For more cautionary tales (and some laughs at others’ expense) check out Failbook.