The San Francisco Chronicle reports Google will invest millions of dollars to neutralize their carbon footprint and drive down the cost of alternative energy. Sustainability is here to stay and this is one more example of companies seeing the value of a social responsibility strategy. 

Success in environmental sustainability will depend on a combination of individual, government and corporate efforts. As a practitioner of Social Responsibility and Sustainability PR, PilmerPR applauds these efforts. Having served on Google CEO Eric Schmidt’s PR team while at Novell, I see his vision in this initiative.  

Does Google’s Green initiative PR value? Absolutely! Will they make a difference? Time will tell. But, they have some brilliant folks over there and a creative environment that spawns revolutionary breakthroughs. I for one would love to help them promote their work in this area.

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BusinessWire recently passed on a note from Google – press release headlines should be kept under 22 words.

Many practices can help you gain headway on this leading search-engine, but there are no guarantees. So keep the headline brief to increase your Google juice.

Here are some recent release headlines for PilmerPR clients – all of them found Google success.

3DVO Launches 3D Modeling Service for Online Retailers

AdvancedMD Joins Physician Organization Market Providing Advanced Solution for Clinical and Financial Operations

Certiport to Enhance Digital Literacy & Scholastic Readiness of College Students

Seastone Chosen as Peanuts Licensee for Gift Card Packaging

PilmerPR always considers Search Engine Optimization (SEO), and we offer services to optimize your news. Here are some other great SEO tips, including using keywords, keeping your news fresh, and publishing press releases on your own website.

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This week I attended a Clean Energy conference in Reno put together by the Geothermal Energy Association. Looking for new investment opportunities and Green clients I received an excellent education to supplement previous events on environmental sustainability. My attitudes from the Green PR perspective influenced what I heard – but, I really am positive about the global movement towards “sustainability”, “social responsibility”, and cleaning up our air, water, and land.  

Global Warming aside, and disregarding the politically charged term “Green” (if you’ve been Gored to death), the reality is we all have a stake in leaving a cleaner planet for our posterity. Iceland is the most obvious Green Public Relations example of a model for the rest of us to follow. 

Driven by economic issues that are just now catching up to the rest of the world, the cost/benefit analysis for 1970 Iceland set that country on a visionary environmental course that leads the world now, just one generation later. Consider what they have accomplished in just 30 years: 

• 100% of electrical needs and 70% of total energy needs are now supplied by clean energy resources.

• The country emits 62% less carbon dioxide per person than the

  U.S., despite using more primary energy per capita.

• Consumers pay just five cents**/kilowatt-hour for electricity.

• Iceland has done away with the need for nearly 650,000 tons of oil per year.

• 89% of homes in

  Iceland are heated by direct geothermal heat.

Given, the country has indigenous geothermal features that enable a 90 megawatt power plant (enough for roughly 90,000 homes). But, U.S. states and other countries may have better access to wind, solar, hydro, biomass, or ocean renewable power sources. Utah will match Iceland’s geothermal power output in the next year or two with help from companies like Raser Technologies.   

A word to investors - Iceland reports $8.2 billion in energy savings from 1970-2000. Their bold moves have attracted three major aluminum plants to the country. This has greatly diversified the county’s dependence on the fishing industry for GNP. Additionally, the country is now able to farm year round with profitable indoor green houses heated by geothermal. 40,000 meters of city streets and parking lots are heated. Cooperation among government, municipalities, power companies, and private industry has made this possible. I think the U.S. can do even better, but we have some work ahead to overcome inertia and competing interests in powerful places, both private and public. 

From the PR standpoint, Iceland has made a place in history like Armstrong on the Moon, or Lindbergh across the Atlantic, or Edison with the light bulb. Which states in the U.S. will lead? Will the U.S. lead or follow in this transition to renewable energy, which in the long term is the most sustainable choice.  What do you think? 

*source: Wall Street Journal      **about half of the U.S. average price

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The PilmerPR team has spent a lot of time learning about social media, which is now an essential new tool for all of us as business and PR professionals.  As we all know, Internet use is off the charts, and taking advantage of this medium is now a basic part of reaching target markets. 

Some new data came out recently from the Online Publishers Association, revealing that Internet users are spending 47 percent of their time online reading content, and another 33 percent for communication.  Social media blends both of these activities – offering both original content in the form of blogs or online news sites and a communication vehicle through sites such as MySpace and Facebook. 

Companies are hearing over and over again that social media are integral to a comprehensive marketing and PR campaign.  But while reading this Computerworld story we have to remember to be careful when we use social media sites for marketing or public relations – because not every endeavor will be met enthusiastically by social media users. 

Computerworld reported on the backlash Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has received for creating a “Roommate Style Match” group on Facebook.  Wal-Mart likely created the group to utilize the enormous popularity of Facebook to reach their target customers. 

Unfortunately, some users don’t appreciate being targeted with corporate advertising or public relations when they visit their favorite social media site.  One post on Wal-Mart’s Facebook group said, “Facebook should take the number of negative comments on this page as a note that we don’t support this company for its use of a space for social networking. This space is for people talking to other people. Facebook, get your priorities straight.” 

PR professionals agree, as demonstrated in this PRWeek story.  Social media is a force to be reckoned with, and it should be included in every good campaign.  Just don’t forget to do your research, and truly join the online conversation, instead of trying to force it.

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This past week I attended a joint presentation of UVEF, where I serve on the board, MWCN, and UTC. A panel discussion was held on the Utah Fund of Funds, a unique collaboration of venture capital firms and government resources whose purpose is to put great entrepreneurial ideas in Utah together with the necessary funds and people to make ideas reality.

The Fund invests in venture capital and private equity funds that commit to establishing a working relationship with the Utah Fund of Funds.$100M has been set aside for the effort of which the majority has benefited 23 Utah startups yielding almost a thousand new jobs with an average salary of around $62k – not to shabby. Several other states have a Fund of Funds initiative, some of which have almost two decades of experience under their belts. However, among these states Utah’s Fund of Funds holds the distinction of the highest number of new “deals” funded per year – 15. That’s not bad for a youngster.

Steve Spencer of Utah Tech Spotlight had some interesting thoughts on this event. Brock Blake also speaks highly of UFoF. Panelists at last week’s event included VC stakeholders making deals happen.  Speakers across the board were very high on Utah as a seedbed for new startups. Mark Gorenberg of Hummer Winblad Venture Partners stated emphatically that of all states Utah has the “best potential for technology growth” in the near term.

For those who thought the glory days of Utah’s tech sector had seen better days with the rise and fall of Iomega, WordPerfect, Novell, and others this should provide an attitude adjustment.

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From 1998 until he left for the CEO position with a little no-name company called Google, I served on the Novell PR team under then Novell CEO Eric Schmidt. Well, we all know what he’s done for Google’s “mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.” Although the Schmidt magic did not quite have the same effect on Novell, the company enjoyed great prosperity under this visionary.  

There are a lot of Novell senior executives who made Novell successful “in the day”, but I have to take my hat off to Eric as a finely chiseled company spokesperson. While the PR team sweated out the details of news announcements and events where Novell press gathered in dozens, Eric’s “cool hand Luke” approach with the media exuded confidence and vision. Although most of the media may not have completely understood the bits and bytes, they came away from Eric’s press conferences and briefings with a belief that Novell was going in the right direction under Eric’s leadership.    

Perhaps at the crescendo of his Novell tenure and as a fitting swan song for his departure that year, was the 2001 Novell BrainShare partner/user conference. As the PR team lead over the event, I witnessed the “Schmidt effect” as 150 editors from every continent rallied to our invitation to attend. We delivered more than 400 press briefings in three days and 200 articles appeared around the globe within the first few days after the conference.    

OneNet was his call for the day, which vision I believe currently fuels Google’s success. If you Google “OneNet” you will find more than half a million uses of that term. I’d be interested to know if anyone could make a legitimate claim as Champion of the OneNet vision more than Eric Schmidt. I think you will still find remnants of Eric’s OneNet vision in his current public policy work.  

One other thing about Eric - As a spokesperson, he listened to his PR staff and was teachable. The best CXO media spokespersons usually are.

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I really relate to the following list so well written by Margie Zable Fisher who runs theprsite.com. CEO’s and Marketing VP’s seeking to bring PR into the boardroom would do well to review this list and understand the implications. Unmet expectations are many times the result of lack of education up front. This list is a good reminder to talk through these issues with a PR professional before investing is public relations. 

1. The client doesn’t understand the publicity process. 2. The scope of work is not detailed and agreed upon by both parties. 3. The client has not been properly trained on how to communicate with the media. 4. The client and the PR person or firm are not a good match. 5. The client has not gotten results quickly enough and ends the relationship too soon. 6. PR people don’t explain the kind of publicity placements a client will most likely receive. 7. Clients don’t realize that what happens after you get the publicity coverage is sometimes more important than the actual placement. 8. Clients refuse to be flexible on their story angles. 9. Clients get upset when the media coverage is not 100% accurate or not the kind of coverage that they wanted. 10. Clients won’t change their schedules for the media.  

Full article: http://theprsite.com/Articles/10ReasonsWhyPREfforts%20MayNotWork.pdf

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This past week I was in Orlando for the Certiport PATHWAYS conference. While Doug Anderson oversaw some lighter moments around the conference, I would mention some thoughts on why this annual event is helping change the world. Certiport CEO David Saedi has a dream of helping millions of people isolated by a global digital skills gap that stops individuals and communities from competing effectively in a work force that demands computer and Internet skills. PATHWAYS brought together leaders from dozens of countries on every continent to address this problem. Champions of Digital Literacy (CDL) were awarded to individuals who are really making a difference in bridging the digital divide in Europe, Asia, North and South America.

Working with the media covering the conference, it was my honor to work with Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley, Phd. As he and Saedi spoke with writer Sheila Riley of Investors Business Daily, I went to school on the history of the Navajo Nation. CDL Ernest Franklin, the brilliant Navajo engineer behind their Web Warriors program shared the legend that is used as a metaphor for the challenges facing today’s isolated Navajo youth. Leveraging satellite Internet access and 110 Chapter Centers the Web Warrior program is starting to ramp up the number of IC³ certified students who become employable contributors to the Navajo Nation.

One of my favorite PATHWAYS experiences was an impromptu discussion with Certiport distributor in South Korea, Young Sam Chung, president of YBMSisa. Sam, as he likes to be called, is old enough to remember the tough lessons learned from his family’s experience as refugees during the Korean Conflict. Since my father served in that war as a Naval officer, Sam and I have much to talk about. He truly reverences the U.S. military men who helped keep the southern half of his country free. With all of the negative talk about the U.S. military presence around the world, I appreciated so much someone who recognizes the sacrifice of the men and women who serve freedom around the world.

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Today I had the privilege of participating in the UVEF “Top 25 Under Five” awards luncheon hosted by Novell. Recognizing the top startups less than five years of age, this event was a potpourri of widely diverse businesses. Governor Hunstman gave videotaped kudos to winners and Sam Penrod of KSL was guest MC. Huntsman gave the small business owners and entrepreneurs in the state much of the credit for creating 100,000+ jobs in Utah over the past couple of years.

 1^st place winner Interbank FX takes one end of the spectrum leveraging eBusiness to go global in a very short time as a foreign exchange online broker with customers in more than 135 countries and trading volume in excess of $30 billion per month. Perhaps at the other end of the spectrum was SkullCandy, a developer of core audio products designed for the snow-and action-sports industries.   

PilmerPR was pleased to receive recognition in this group. I like to think our success is due to a terrifically talented staff of PR and marketing professionals who provide exceptional results for clients. My hats off to them.  My hats off to the entrepreneurs of UVEF. Paul Allen has been very kind to UVEF in his blog going as far to say “I love UVEF”. I share those sentiments as small businesses are the backbone of America. 

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