If you haven’t, you should read Carmin Gallo’s piece in BusinessWeek about storytelling and brand communication.

There’s a reason that Aesop’s fables are still read.  Why Jesus spoke in parables.

We understand and communication through a narrative, not a collection of data points.

Through story-telling.

This is good advice for everything from spokesperson training to brand strategy to earned media to communicating better at home or with friends.

Speaking of earned media, here’s a test that I ask clients to take.  Go for one week and examine front page stories in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and you local regional newspaper.  Count how many paragraphs you have to go through until you come to the part where the reporter is telling one person’s story that personifies the broader issue.  I bet you don’t have to read very far.

So go ahead.  Tell me your story.

Last week, Brodeur Partners, proudly announced a new European partnershipwith Grant Butler Coomber (GBC Group), a leading independent EMEA-based public relations firm, reflecting the growing importance of true cross-border cooperation that is more than just “dots on the map.”

As clients are increasingly demanding global solutions, cross-Atlantic teams are becoming more common, yet multi-regional campaigns have to overcome more than just time zones.

As a Brit working in New York for many years, the question I get most from PR colleagues on both sides of the Atlantic is “How can you work there, how do you get anything done!” Stereotypes on both sides exist. My American friends seem to think those in London and Europe are in the pub every lunchtime, leave at the stroke of 5pm and are constantly on a “Bank Holiday.” For their part, my British counterparts often discount their American brethren as overenthusiastic, non-creative corporate types that spend all day in meetings. For the record, some of the hardest working PR pros I’ve worked with are London based and some of the most creative have been here in the U.S.

Close-working relationships overcome these stereotypes, yet real differences remain. For example, European broadcast legislation prevents unbalanced branded segments from appearing on commercial stations and is banned completely from the BBC. Controlled media such as matte releases and SMTs do not exist and socialized medicine means the phrase “Ask your doctor about” is unheard of. The biggest complaint I hear from European teams is the U.S. assumption that one tactic and one budget can be applied across the continent. From the other side, UK teams often underestimate the size and diversity of the American media market, where irreverent campaigns have more propensity to backfire and the traditional “PR stunt” is not the vehicle to achieve widespread national coverage.

Despite our differences, as an industry, we are rising to meet clients’ increased demands for global and cross discipline integration. In addition, smart agencies are responding globally to the growth and prevalence of social media which has no geographic borders. This is at the heart of the Brodeur Partners, GBC Group collaboration.

In a social media world where a middle-aged woman from Scotland can go from obscurity to appearing on CNN, “Good Morning America” and “Today Show” in less than a week, and a blog in Germany can spark an article in the New York Times, agencies and clients need to understand the global village.

As PR professionals there is more that unites us then divides us. As I look forward to working with GBC Group, I would like to recognize the great work being carried out on both sides of the Atlantic. So keep up the good work and God Bless America, and God Save The Queen!

Many clients and personal friends just don’t “get” twitter. Are you one of them? Well, it’s important to know that it’s not all “what I’m having for breakfast” or “song of the day” posts. In short, you might be missing valuable opportunities.

The key when it comes to using twitter is that you should visit the homepage very rarely. Use it to sign up, and clean up your followers list from time to time, but other than that, you should use one of the myriad twitter services out there to offer you the full range of twitter interactions necessary for a successful feed.

Why? Because twitter conversations move at an astounding rate, and unless you’re a quickdraw on the refresh button, you may soon realize that you’re barely keeping up, let alone contributing to a conversation. Sarah Silverman star @SteveAgee promoted his new twitter feed through a stunt: He promised to read the names of his first 5,000 followers live on webcam once he reached 5,000… in his underwear. It took minutes to accomplish.

In order to have a successful twitter feed, this kind of speed is essential. Anything from media opportunities to breaking stories is happening right now. If you’re not paying attention, you can easily lose out. The best remedy for this is to find a twitter service that works for your needs. We all have our own personal preferences for our daily dose of technology consumption – BlackBerry vs. Apple or browser vs. desktop applications. Don’t try to fit a square peg through a round hole, but rather find what fits into your daily routine, and use that to tweet.

I’ve included a short list of twitter services people here at Brodeur Partners use – and why they use them. We’d love to hear what you’re using and why, so please let us know what works for you in the comments section below!

BlackBerry

Twitterberry is a simple twitter interface for your BlackBerry device. Use your BlackBerry’s browser to go to twitterberry.com, and download the application from there. What Twitterberry may lack in multimedia capabilities, it definitely makes up for in its simplicity and reliability. I have yet to lose a tweet in the ether, and there are not multiple screens to shuffle through. You literally click on the icon and start typing. Couldn’t be simpler.

iPhone

Tweetie is a multimedia powerhouse for twitter users. They’re upgrading the application all the time, but as of right now, you can *very* easily take and send pictures, watch for trending topics, and even track people close to you. And yes… it is available at the app store.

iGoogle

For some of us, iGoogle is the panacea to our daily communications challenges. While we need to track blogs, monitor offline stories, have our calendars handy AND have easy access to email… iGoogle also has a set of varied twitter tools you can integrate into your iGoogle page. TwitterGadget is our favorite due to its simplicity and well-thought-out interface. Once you spend a few minutes looking at what buttons do what in their help section, you will be amazed at how much functionality can fit into such a small space. To begin using twittergadget, click on “add stuff” in the upper right-hand area of your page, and then search for “twittergadget”.

Web Browser

HootSuite is a great option for people who have a web browser always open on their desktop. Plus, for those of us with multiple accounts to manage, hootsuite does a brilliant job of divvying up the screen space and clearly displaying which account you’re posting to. Tweeting to one’s professional account about last night’s beer pong match is – shall we say – generally considered bad form. Use hootsuite to avoid any confusion on that front, though it may require a little more of a time investment to understand than the ones above.

Desktop Application

Tweetdeck is for those people who prefer to have twitter off in its own little home, instead of taking up valuable browser memory. You launch it from your desktop, and … well … it is amazing. A little complicated, but amazing nonetheless. Tweetdeck allows you to group your contacts so that you do not have to read the less-than-interesting posters that can clutter your twitter feed. Know someone who constantly tweets about what they’re having for breakfast, but whom you’re forced to follow for some reason or another? Put them in your “fail” group. Tweetdeck is the one application that offers you so many options on how to structure your twitter experience – it has earned its reputation as the go-to twitter application for many twitter veterans… in as much as you can be a veteran of a service with such a short history.

Text Message

This is how twitter started… as a text messaging platform for RSS Feeds (for the tech-savvy folks out there). If you go here, twitter provides an easy step-by-step guide on how to tweet using a non-smartphone. So, for those folks who are not going to upgrade anytime soon, but still want to contribute to twitter, this is the option for you.

More on twitter to come soon…

Yesterday was interesting. Twitter once again ruled the news agenda of mainstream media (MSM) networks as the world’s editors finally woke up to the fact (where have you been, CNN?) that something enormous, potentially agenda-changing and highly significant was unfolding in Iran.

From the beatings of students in their dormitories (a story that broke on Twitter, with Twitpics of damaged dorms and bruised students) through to the unfolding ‘is it on is it off’ drama of the march on Tehran by the green banner-waving opposition crowd (some estimates had it at 2 million and more), the news was happening on Twitter significantly ahead of coverage on the MSM.

This meant that major outlets such as CNN, ABC, Sky and the BBC were all reduced to referencing Twitter in their coverage. The actual Twitter output was massive, reaching several tweets a second going into the late afternoon, and the feeds started to get confusing with rumours spreading and people tweeting and retweeting new information almost regardless of its source. A colossal number of people used Twitter, blogs and Facebook to follow events in Iran yesterday simply because the traditional media failed so badly in understanding that we care about this news. It was a massive editorial misstep that you could argue was only avoided by the BBC which with its Persian service, was at least trying to stream live from the streets.

The news media on the ground, under-resourced, restricted and rightly fearful in the face of baton-wielding nasties in and out of uniform (Take a look at this chilling image of, I understand, government Basij militia from yesterday afternoon) simply couldn’t keep up with the flow of witnesses on the ground. Some quite organised student groups were using mobiles to text news from the crowd back to Twitterers who stayed online using their dial-up connections and switching proxy servers to keep trying to get the news through. It reminded me a little of Salam Pax, the Iraqi blogger who kept information coming out of Baghdad in the face of the American invasion and Iraqi resistance.

Problems

This stream of information from a confused, dangerous and yet highly important series of events on the ground raises a number of problems. The first of these is provenance. How do you KNOW you’re watching a Twitter feed from a genuine Iranian student and not a hoaxer or, even worse, state-owned instrument of instability. For instance, a foreign intelligence outfit could quite nicely stoke up international concern and damaging coverage by pretending to be a witness – and we’re all credulous enough to take the bait because, let’s face it, we want to see social media beating up the MSM.

So how do we know you’re real?

My own personal test is a website or blog. If the Twitterer links to one of those, you have the chance to have a quick browse and test an established track record and a history of conversation. Another test is personal relationship – if someone with whom I have an established online relationship can vouch for the new contact, then I’ll usually take that as a bona fide contact. And another is longevity - I prefer sources that were online and have a track record before the events in question took place.

Keeping a cool head can be hard in the face of the excitement, but there’s nothing worse than finding yourself accused of blindly repeating BS – or being unhelpful in your attempts to help. For instance, at the height of yesterday’s events, people were retweeting lists of alternative proxies. That was cluttering up the stream and generally getting in the way. If you’re based in North America or Europe and have no Iranian friends, retweeting a proxy server with an #iranelection hashtag is hardly going to add utility to the conversation, for instance.

Some MSM pundits were pointing out that the information on Twitter wasn’t reliable. I thought it was. Following the couple of simple rules above and waiting a little to have news confirmed by multiple sources, I got compelling information and images from on the ground witness sources often hours before the broadcast media.

The other thing I found interesting about yesterday was that the audience was self-selecting. Those of us that cared – because we have Iranian friends, relations, business interests or any other tie to the events in Tehran – could select the information we wanted and decide how we wanted to receive it. We could dip into the story for an update whenever we wanted, dedicating the appropriate measure of time we all wanted to give to updating ourselves. No advertising breaks, no filler stories about Ping Pong the panda and her lovely babies and no celebrity guff about Paris Hilton or the like (you still there CNN?) getting in the way.

Was yesterday a great day for social media? Yes. Was it a worrying day for ‘traditional media’? Without a doubt, yes. Does this mean MSM is dead? I don’t think so. But I do think it’s a very clear signal that we are in a time of immense change and if big business news organisations don’t get it together fast, they’re going to get hit, hard.

People are finding a faster, fresher, more vibrant, immediate and real source of news and information. It’s other people.

——–

Alexander McNabb, Director, Spot On Public Relations, Dubai

The Effie judging for 2009 has been completed and the winners will be announced next week at the big gala event in New York. As a board member and chairman of the Global Effie committee, I got a little peak under the tent. This year’s winners shared something in common with last year’s. Social media and public relations in general were very important parts of the communications mix. In fact, advertising and a number of “traditional” media vehicles were conspicuously absent in the campaigns that produced the most effective sales results. Grassroots, “experiential,” event, and unpaid media will take center stage again this year along with programs that are in support of the last three feet of the purchase decision ( the in-store experience.)

This all bodes well for public relations and for social media in particular. Mobility is the next media that will join center stage and we’ll see a lot more of that outlet in 2010 and beyond. The Effie’s winners are very reliable indicators of what the most savvy marketers are doing. Good news for this side of the marketing mix!

This weekend, the best and brightest of Broadway gathered for The 63rd Annual Tony Awards.   As well as recognizing the season’s great performances and talent, the Tony Awards are a major showcase for the theatre community and a marketing event in its own right.   Even without leveraging a Tony, many shows are trying new tactics to gain our attention and ticket purchasing dollar.  Once, this just used to just include a willing volunteer wearing a board in Times Square.  Today, Broadway marketing is a sophisticated machine with many shows rapidly embracing new and social media to entertaining and creative ends.

For me, the best example is without a doubt is 9 To 5 the musical.  Like the show itself, the official site and social media activities are full of tongue-in-cheek humor which both entertains and informs audiences.  The site is media rich with video introductions from Dolly Parton and performances and promotional appearances from the cast throughout.  Updates also inform fans when the stars of the show will be appearing on TV.

There are masses of content with plenty of wallpaper, audio and video clips and even ringtones freely available by entering designated short codes.   Parts of the site even venture into office politics and corporate responsibility with a section offering tips from the characters on make your office green.  As well as the obligatory links to Facebook and YouTube pages, containing fan and cast pictures and performances, it also contains clever and creative ways to engage and virally motivate audiences.   From customizable, emailable “shoot  your boss games” to amusing “Doll Ecards” that allow you to send tailored audio messages from Dolly to your colleagues, giving them a shout-out, or your boss asking for vacations or raises, this social media campaign will keep you amused 9 to 5.

So I would like to present the first Brodeur Partners Ton(e)  for “Best Use of Social Media in a Broadway Show” to 9 to 5.  If the activities here don’t motive you to see the show, then Allison Janney’s wonderful performance certainly should.

I’ve never been through bankruptcy. And I hope I never have to.

I have, however, had the opportunity to help a few clients who’ve been forced to to visit the bankruptcy court and later reemerge as something — well — something different.  Some took on a whole new identity.  Others dusted off the logo put a bit of polish on it and moved on.  There were as many different strategies as there were clients.

One thing I know.  It’s wasn’t fun.  *(At least for the company … the advisors had a ball … more about that later.)

So it is with an almost macabre fascination that we all watch the venerable General Motors go through this wrenching exercise made all the more horrible by its sheer size and its association with everything American — good and bad.

For GM, the strategy appears to have a heavy dose of “death to the old GM”.  Here’s how the GM CEO put it:

To those of you who have never tried a G.M. vehicle or have tried one and given up on us, we look forward to the chance to win your business and earn back your trust. Give us another chance. The G.M. that many of you knew, the G.M. that, in fact, had let too many of you down is history. Today marks the beginning of what will be a new company, a new G.M. dedicated to building the very best cars and trucks, highly fuel-efficient, world-class quality, green technology development, and with truly outstanding design.

Pretty harsh.  Almost demeaning.  Did he really need to plead?  Did he need to call out the “old GM” just like Cheney called out the “old Europe” as something to be discarded?

What is your advice to General Motors?  Before answering that question I suggest that you read the Ad Age story on “How Would You Pitch the GM Account?”  It is a quick but fascinating read.   My favorite quote is from John Colman, CEO of the Via Group in Portland who, when asked would you be interested in pitching the GM business now, said …

A near-bankrupt client, a low chance of success, crushing global scrutiny with hands-on government oversight every step of the way?  Of course we’d do it.  That much fun should be illegal.

I love our business.

I’m thinking that the “new” General Motors can best redefine and renew its brand through innovative new media strategies.  Their advantage — they already have a strong social media infrastructure, some excellent social media talent, and some comparative advantage in the field.  More about all that later.

And yes.  They need to make good cars as well.  But the fact is that they do (you just have to find them amongst the ‘not-s0-good’ cars).

More about my social media plan for GM in a later post.

Until then, how would you advise GM on its new brand strategy?

Yeah, yeah – we’re all 21st century practitioners of what used to be public relations.  We know our way around the etiquette of the blogosphere, the fine art of hashtagging, the power of embedded video – we’re cool.   But when push comes to shove, and we’re in the thick of a good old media relations push, do we really give social media their due?   If we don’t, we don’t at our peril.

I’ve been thinking about this recently as we work on the kickoff of the 25th year of the American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life.  It’s been an incredible learning experience for all of us at Brodeur Partners.  We’ve learned that Relay is nothing less than a social network against cancer with more than 3.5 million members in over 5,000 communities and 21 countries, including one in every 100 Americans.  Over the past quarter century, Relay For Life has raised more than $3 billion to fight cancer, making it the largest nonprofit fundraising effort in the world.

Needless to say, numbers like these give us good fodder for pitching, and we put together a gorgeous media list, color-coded, with tabs galore.  Of course, once you put all your ducks in a row, you start the real work of pitching.  And as we’ve done that, we’ve become acutely aware that the way into the national media we’re targeting is through the blogs.   It’s not rocket science – these are the parts of the publications that are looking for real-time stories, for extensions to their core content, for ways to link to their communities.  A great example of the blog traction we’ve gotten comes from Self Magazine, where the Relay story was a great fit in the niche of “doing well while doing something good for yourself.”

Whether it’s a “hit” or a “blit,” it’s great coverage for a great cause.

Social media and the tools that enable conversation and citizen journalism are a good thing.  And even if it were not, it is a genie that will never go back into the tiny traditional media bottle.  But it remains a much more power tool for mischief than it is for brand building.  Take a look at a couple of things that happened this week.

First there was the phenomenon of the wolf t-shirt.  This unquestionably ugly artifact was Amazon’s best seller.  Why?  Because some very smart folks had some fun in gaming the Amazon system.

Then there was the anti-Starbucks campaign.  They combined a very smart strategy — identifying and drafting on Starbucks twitter campaign — with some very easy to execute and social media friendly tactics to turn Starbucks’ branding campaign into a billboard for anti-Starbucks protest.

So it will be interesting to see how the Obama Administration fares.  They’re putting a lot of political eggs into the social media basket.  Many credit their online savvy for their winning election.  And they get kudos for their recent revamping of the Federal government’s online face.

But if pranksters can play havoc with brands like Amazon.com and Starbucks, is it just time before they turn their eyes on the new social media savvy government?

John Wilke died last Friday. You may remember him as one of the best investigative business journalists of the past two decades – a Wall Street Journal veteran and, as the heartfelt tributes of his colleagues show, a true character. I remember him as all of that, but also the blonde-maned, post-hippie guy I grew up with in White Plains, New York.

They must have been putting something in the water in those days, because our little city nurtured some truly great newspapermen in a remarkably short period of time: John; David Sanger of The New York Times; Keith Schneider, a former Times environmental reporter and current blogger and environmental activist. Indeed, Keith’s heartfelt tribute to Wilke, as he was universally known, has made me think a lot about words, the reporters who love them, and the troubled industry in which they persevere.

I realize that John, Keith and others came of age in a golden age that, in retrospect, was perhaps traditional journalism’s last gasp. They were Watergate boys, who believed that, even if you didn’t look like Robert Redford, you might use the power of words for no less a purpose than to bring down a corrupt presidency. John remained a newspaperman his entire career, but how ironic that he died just as it appeared that the Boston Globe (of which he was also an alum) might go under – the latest in a string of spectacularly tragic newspaper closings.

The romance of the word, even amidst channel chaos, digital diversity and citizen scoops, also came home to me as I read the Sunday Times, and a triumphant ode to the unlikely victory of Mine That Bird in the Kentucky Derby. There’s nothing that says you can’t write this in a blog, but is there anything quite like reading it in newsprint?

“Sometimes this game brings you to tears. Sometimes it feels right to be wrong. And always it is better than O.K. when the tears streaming down your face are caused by a man in a black cowboy hat and an almost handlebar mustache, a Cajun jockey with more horse than book sense and a scrawny $9,500 gelding.”

Please don’t think I’m a Luddite. I’m a huge fan of the new journalism, and the role of social media in transforming both how we get our news and how we change the world. But, just as I’ve had to come to terms with an old friend dying too young, I find myself having to come to terms with what increasingly looks like the end of an era.