Vancouver PR Agency





We didn’t have a blog post yesterday as we were preparing for a webinar about Google+, delivered by Chris Brogan (an AHA favourite). From all accounts, Chris spent a huge amount of time (reportedly upwards of 250 hours) going through Google+ and he shared his insights, tips and hints. We’re excited to bring these to life on our end and continue learning from thought leaders to help our clients with their Google+ objectives.



There are quite a few articles out right now about the battle between Google+ and Facebook. I have listed a few below for you to review. One of the best insights comes from Brogan – in this article on Forbes.com.



His quote: “First off, if you’re immediately thinking, ‘The LAST thing I need is to figure out yet another social network,’ you’re totally right. This is the last thing you need. However, if you were fortunate enough to be a CMO back in 2007, and you said that about the transition from MySpace to Facebook, then you know what happened to people who didn’t surf the new wave instead of riding the one that petered out.”



Ragan.com has an infographic comparison of Facebook and Google +.



Searchengineland.com has an interesting piece: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly.



Reditonline.com asks Is Google+, Is It For Business Or Just Consumers?



What do you think of Google + so far?

Share this article:
Read more





I have spent more than half my life surrounded by journalists – either working as a reporter for Maclean’s or in public relations. I love TV news, magazines, newspapers and the online world of news and information. One of the challenges I have (and so does my family) is that when I go on vacation, I want to watch the local news shows to see how they do things, see what they find newsworthy and find out what they are all about. Sometimes that can make the people with me cranky. (“Come on, let’s go to the beach!”)



Working with journalists is one of the things I like best about my job. Reporters, editor, producers, videographers and others in the news business are incredibly interesting and informed. They are great people to stand beside at cocktail parties because they have the best stories and are usually up on what is happening in the community, nationally and around the world. At AHA, we have strong, positive relationships with the majority of journalists that we have worked with over the years. Even in a challenging situation when a client is dealing with an issue or a crisis, good journalists want to get the story, get it right and to do a good job. We always approach any interaction with a journalist with the assumption that they have integrity and ethics. We respect what they do. Having said that, it’s also important to understand that they have a job to do and that they aren’t being paid to get your message out. They don’t work for you.



When we provide media training for clients, we often talk about the different personality types of reporters and the different ways a journalist will ask a question. I recently read a great piece on Ragan.com about some different “types” of reporters; it’s worth a read.



The people that make their living asking questions are adept at getting answers – it’s their job and most of them are really good at it. They prepare for an interview and that’s why we believe our clients should also prepare when they agree to an interview. Working with the media can create positive outcomes, but not if you go into an interview unprepared. You wouldn’t go into any meeting unprepared and an interview is a very important meeting – one where what you say is recorded and printed or broadcast.



At AHA, we work with clients to make sure they are prepared. It’s about making the most of an opportunity to reach your target market.

Share this article:
Read more



I grew up at Maclean’s, Canada’s national news magazine. It was my first real job out of university and I was a part of the Maclean’s “family” for decades. Until I started AHA in 2003 (with co-founder Paul Holman), I was listed on the masthead as a Contributing Editor. At Maclean’s I was surrounded by some of the best journalists in the country (and I would argue, in the world). They were smart, knowledgeable and dedicated. Quite a few of them took the time to help me, mentor me, show me the ways of journalism and taught me how to tell a good story based on facts. They also drove into me what makes a story and how to pitch it so you got approval to do the piece. That is a skill set I use every day as a communicator.



We have a process at AHA that is similar to what a story idea would go through in a newsroom. We put the idea and the pitch through its paces and spend time on making sure that not only is the core idea able to stand up, that the pitch itself is crafted in a way that speaks to the community or audience that we are targeting. And, I have to say – sometimes the pitch might not generate coverage, but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad idea. There is only so much room for stories in newspapers, magazines, morning shows and the news. Sometimes, it isn’t the story, it’s the space and that’s where, as communicators, we are fortunate to work in a time that allows us to share the story through websites, blogs, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social media networking sites.



I recently came across an interesting post on Ragan.com that talks about how to pitch media. It’s worth a read.



There is a skill and a craft to pitching media and to generating coverage for an organization. It takes time, effort, research and planning – and it takes an ability to take the facts and information and tell them in a compelling way. So much has changed in the last decade – technology has given us so much opportunity to share information and our stories with a larger community. What hasn’t changed is that if you want someone to pay attention, at the heart of it all, you need a story that matters to them and you need tell it well.



On a side note, I have to admit that watching the reports about the News of the World newspaper being shut down because of the phone hacking scandal, I wish that I could recreate the Friday nights at Maclean’s when we would all go for a beer after work and talk about news. I would love to know what they think of this and if they were ever tempted to bend their integrity for a story.

Share this article:
Read more

AHA - Social Media



Social media has changed the game for everyone in the marketing, PR and advertising world. There is a different approach to how we communicate and what consumers expect from a brand or organization.



Social media is a big part of what we do at AHA. Whether a client organization should participate in different areas of social media or not depends on the organization, their stakeholder groups and their communication objectives. However, every communications plan that we develop has a social media component to it – at the very least for monitoring the conversations online.



We often partner with ad agencies and marketing agencies on projects and social media is usually a part of a campaign. Who manages the social media aspect is usually an interesting discussion. It often becomes a blend of the advertising or marketing team and the AHA team.



I strongly believe that social media provides an opportunity to deliver what PR was created to do: generate authentic, transparent, two-way conversations that engage, inform, educate and, often, entertain.



I came across an excellent blog post by Cheryl Gale that clearly explains (and supports) why PR should take the lead with social media. It’s worth a read.

Share this article:
Read more