Tag: PRSA

What People Aren’t Telling You About Zappos

Dana PhelpsBlog, Copy Cat, , , , , 14 Comments on What People Aren’t Telling You About Zappos

It’s a More Monday! Maybe you’ve already heard the story, and now here’s a little bit more!

I love the Zappos copy on the box *almost* as much as I love my new handbag.

Abbie Fink and I might be the only women I know who don’t like to go shopping. For me, I think it is the go part that bugs me. Sure, I like to buy things that I really like, but I don’t like to spend the time to go searching or to aimlessly browse. I realize that that makes it a bit of a mystery as to why I’m so late to the Zappos game.

Thanks to Shonali Burke for piquing my interest in Zappos when I met her recently at the PRSA International Conference where she was carrying a very stylish handbag. Shonali admitted that she too had been slow to try the online shopping extravaganza that seems to have a cult-like following. She was quite pleased — and not surprised — with the exceptional service.

Now that I have tried it, sign me up as a satisfied customer. But maybe not for the same reasons that’s resulted in Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, holding the title of media darling for quite some time now (all really great reasons, by the way). You see, I’ve heard so much about how fast it is that unless my new Kate Spade arrived in pizza delivery time, it would be hard to be impressed on that alone.

Oh, and there’s the return policy. I’m confident that if I needed it, it would have been as simple and wonderful as I’ve heard that it is. But try prying the beautiful zebra print handle from my sweaty little paws. Not gonna happen. So, yes, it arrived three days after my order. Yes, I know I can ship it back for free if I want. However, those are not the things that have made me fall handbag over heels in love with Zappos.

It’s the copy! Oh, how I love clever copy, and I don’t understand why people aren’t talking about the (apparently) super smart and creative copywriters at Zappos. Instead of the boring “here’s your shipping confirmation info” email, here’s the one I got from Zappos:

Hello Dana! Your order with Zappos.com has shipped. YAY! We’ve enclosed some tracking information, so you can follow your order to its final destination. It’s almost like being a superspy! Mission Control advises that you take a look at the top-secret information below.

Love that someone took the time to make it just a little more fun. So imagine my excitement when the box arrived, and in addition to my prized new accessory being inside, the outside was accessorized with more cute copy that reinforces one of the company’s brand messages of speedy delivery. Zappos, I was slow to come around, but I hope you’ll have room in your heart for one more fan. xoxox

What’s the best thing you’ve ordered from Zappos and what was your favorite part of the experience?

 

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Interview Tips from Soledad O’Brien

Dana PhelpsBlog, Free Advice, , , 1 Comment on Interview Tips from Soledad O’Brien

I had the pleasure of hearing Soledad O’Brien speak during the opening ceremony of the PRSA International Conference earlier this week in Orlando. In addition to sharing the thought we hear from many journalists about the importance of PR people doing their homework , she shared some advice to keep in mind when media training spokespeople. Soledad said to remember three things:

  1. Authenticity. Yes, as the PR people, it is natural for us to be focused on the message board and the desired outcome. Let’s also remember that our stories and our spokespeople must be sincere and genuine. I’ve seen in media training over the years how sincere but nervous spokespeople can revert to memorizing what seems to be a canned script which does not exude authenticity.
  2. Emotion. Every interesting story involves the display of emotion. Soledad also talked about the energy of an interviewee and how that connects to the emotion and the way the story is portrayed.
  3. Passion. Want to make Soledad (or anyone else) fall in love with your story? Communicate your passion. She said that of these three things, passion is the most important.

This is the first in a new series of posts called Free Advice Friday. If you  have a suggested topic or question you’d like to see addressed here, please leave your idea in the comments section. We also welcome comments on this post! Thank you!

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Myrtle Monday — Postcards from New Friends

Dana PhelpsBlog, Counselors Academy, Inspirational,
Like Myrtle, I love my postcards!

When I gave my presentation, Myrtle Never Threw Away Her Postcards, at the PRSA’s Counselors Academy conference in May, I left the attendees with a homework assignment. I gave them blank Clairemont postcards to be used to write a purpose/mission statement or to send to someone, honoring the lost art of handwritten correspondence.

What a lovely surprise to have two of them returned to me with the most sincere thoughts about Myrtle and my presentation. Thank you, Missy Shorey and Paula Worthington! I also received handwritten notes about Myrtle from my dear friend, Abbie Fink and new friends, Sheryl Barto and Ray Artigue.

What an amazing feeling to get such positive feedback, and I know that Myrtle and all of her friends would be proud that in this digital age, some people still take time to put pen to paper.

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InSpired by Our Clients

Dana PhelpsAwards, Blog, , , , ,
Proud of Clairemont's First InSpire Awards!
 

Last week during the PRSA Counselors Academy conference, I was talking with other agency owners about the nature of our business not allowing much time for celebration of our successes because we rush from one deadline to the next. When I was creating the prosperity plan to launch Clairemont, I put in writing that we would take time to stop and do just that — celebrate our wins. So, despite the fact that Josie has already blogged about Clairemont’s night at the NCPRSA InSpire Awards, I want to recognize the hard work of our team, coupled with that of our incredible clients who share in the honors.

 

I’ve blogged before that an early mark of Clairemont’s success in setting out to effectively blend traditional communications and social media is the fact that all of our ongoing clients do in fact rely on us for this blend. Now, as another mark of accomplishment, our work has been recognized including best in category awards for Integrated Communications with Briar Chapel, Social Media with Thomasville, Websites/Blog with Drexel Heritage and Brochures with Drexel Heritage. Additionally, we received awards for events, community relations and a social media audit — with a grand total of 14 NCPRSA InSpire Awards. Not bad based on Clairemont’s first year in business, and the first time we were eligible to enter!

 

Thanks to our clients for giving us the opportunity to build such amazing programs with them and to the Clairemont team members who worked so diligently on the quality execution of our client strategies and the preparing of our award entries. Cheers!

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When in Rome…or Asheville…

Dana PhelpsBlog, Counselors Academy, Public Relations, , , , 1 Comment on When in Rome…or Asheville…

How long does it take you to unpack your suitcase after a trip? For me, unless I am leaving for another trip in the coming days, it takes… well, much longer than my husband probably prefers.

There it sits…to me it’s an extension to my too-small closet. To my husband, a toe-stumping obstacle that taunts him in dim light. To me, a wonderfully packaged souvenir of the memories of the trip. To him, a grossly mangled mess of clean and dirty clothes in co-existence. In my defense, I’m apparently not the only one. If having a page on Facebook makes it official (or okay?) then check out the Not Unpacking Your Suitcase For Two Weeks After You’ve Been Home page.

So what it really comes down to for me, is closure. Once the suitcase is unpacked, the trip has officially ended. I know I’ve already done a post about last week’s PRSA‘s Counselors Academy conference in Asheville, but until I blog about the Asheville part of it all, I’m not sure I’ll have closure and be ready for the trip to be considered DONE. And if I don’t get that suitcase unpacked before this holiday weekend ends, I’m afraid I might be asked to take it (and myself) somewhere else to stay. So here goes. Continue reading “When in Rome…or Asheville…”

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