Comments on: Pitching – Like Throwing A Stick For A Dog

By: Do The Right Thing. « Cara Mitchell

Do The Right Thing. « Cara Mitchell — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 17:15:38 +0000

[...] about how to pitch, the group projects we’ve done learning the best ways to pitch, and the numerous blog posts I’ve read by PRofessionals about how to pitch depending on who you’re [...]

By: JDEbberly (J D Ebberly)

JDEbberly (J D Ebberly) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 04:47:27 +0000

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Pitching - Like Throwing A Stick For A Dog | Davefleet.com - [link to post]

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By: Weekly Round Up « The Seldom Seen Kid

Weekly Round Up « The Seldom Seen Kid — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 11:45:12 +0000

[...] post by Dave Fleet looking at pitching, using the analogy that it is like throwing a stick for a dog to chase: In an ideal world, you [...]

By: pbadstibner (PBadstibner)

pbadstibner (PBadstibner) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 12:23:52 +0000

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Good though article by @davefleet #followfriday [link to post]

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By: Kneale Mann

Kneale Mann — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 19:27:03 +0000

We may also have too many dogs and too many sticks. We may still need to begin by differentiating from the other fingers. Same thing, different results. @knealemann

By: Jen Zingsheim

Jen Zingsheim — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 18:02:13 +0000

Love the analogy, but it would break down in my household. My dog runs to the stick/toy, picks it up, and then expects me to chase him. Is that maybe more like pitching a blogger?

By: Michael O'Connor Clarke

Michael O'Connor Clarke — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 15:49:40 +0000

Yes – it’s an analogy I keep coming back to in the last couple of weeks, as the discussion about the evolution of PR and the whole idea of pitching continues.

Way back in 2003 I sat on a panel of fellow flacks at what was the first ever big conference focused on the idea of blogging in business. I got shouted down and snarked at for daring to suggest that the entire concept of pitching is fundamentally broken and wrong and that it would surely die as social media rendered communications increasingly transparent. I don’t think I’ve changed my view too much since then.

I wrote a stupidly long analysis/diatribe on the same topic (and replayed the dog simile) here: http://snurl.com/eltj7 (really old piece, so pardon the link rot).

Many other threads are converging right now to help clarify my thinking about this. Stuff from Clay Shirky’s outstanding “thinking the unthinkable” screed, thoughts in Jeff Jarvis’ WWGD book, comments Mathew Ingram made at Third Tuesday this week – I feel I’m approaching a minor epiphany of some sort.

I’m not quite at the point where I can articulate it all fully, but here’s a scrap: while I really like the idea of Brian Solis’ new book (“Putting the Public back in Public Relations”), I think I would have framed the title differently.

It’s not a case of needing to put the public back. Rather, as another old friend of mine once said, we need to put the hips back into Public Relations. We need to be thinking about our role as facilitators of great public relationships.

If you have an actual relationship with someone, then going to them with some story ideas, comments, or news you think they’ll find interesting is never going to be “pitching”. You’re never going to use a “spray and pray” approach for people you have a relationship with.

There’s much more to think about in this. Some of it is actually taking PR back to where it should have been all along. And part of it is evolving the role, purpose and practice of PR in light of what the Net has done to communications.

I feel another McLuhan quote coming on, so I’d better shut up now. I’ll blog some more thoughts once I’ve noodled on this further.

By: JournalistFeed (Tommy)

JournalistFeed (Tommy) — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 14:26:21 +0000

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Interesting: Pitching Like Throwing A Stick For A Dog [link to post] #reporter #press

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