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Essentials in
Get Famous
The best-kept SECRET in town!
Strike those words from your vocabulary. If your group is a secret, better get to work
Updated: 4/26/2004 11:43:00 AM
LEE ROTH used basic PR principles. He met with the media, exploited established channels, and kept the chorus’s best image in public view.
Award-winning PR: a lesson in basics
Lee Roth’s barbershop public relations career started almost by accident. In 1995, he didn’t even know that there was a barbershop chapter in his town in New Jersey. Then he happened to hear a performance by the local Hunterdon Harmonizers and asked himself that single, all-important question: “Why haven’t I heard of those guys?”
He even knew several of them! Roth and his wife are both very active in the local arts scene. His wife is the concertmaster for the Hunterdon Symphony Orchestra, so he asked another important question: “Why haven’t any of these guys talked with me about singing?”
(Editor’s note: This year, part of the Society’s PR effort is to remove the phrase “the best-kept secret” from every chapter’s vocabulary. If your existence is a secret, then your PR program probably has some serious shortcomings.)
Roth set out to learn more about the Harmonizers and eventually joined the chapter. He was the chapter’s “Rookie of the Year” in 1996. Since becoming a member, he’s held several offices, including president. He was named Barbershopper of the Year for 2000. He ran the chapter’s public relations program in 2000 and 2001.
His body of great PR work got him named the 2001 Public Relations Officer of the Year by PROBE, the association of public relations officers and bulletin editors. There are many little reasons his approach stands out.
Roth wasn’t content to do what the chapter had done before—he wanted to do what worked. So he set about turning things around. He started by making appointments with editors and arts writers to talk with them face-to-face. Then, he made sure there was a good story to be had.
A newspaper writer agreed to do a story about the chapter. The newspaper photographer said he would come to their rehearsal, but could only spend a few minutes between assignments. Roth worked with him that evening. The photographer spent at least an hour and shot three rolls of film. The chapter got a full-page story.
Roth also took photos of all the chapter members and put them on a board with each man’s name beneath his photo. The chapter was growing, so everyone got to know one another more quickly.
He developed a press release form that incorporated the chapter logo and used distinctive bright red envelopes to mail his releases. Why? They stand out from all the other letters on an editor’s desk.
There’s no magic touch in any of the above. But it was a lot of common sense and, in some cases, common courtesy. Editors, writers and program managers are people. He treated them with respect because he wanted their help.
In the period 2000-2001, Roth had three major events for which to plan. The committee examined what had been done in the past, kept the things that worked, set some new goals, and found ways to improve the events. Basic planning was the key.
The result of their labor was that all three events got great publicity and coverage in the local media. Newspapers ran color photos with every story. (Quality photos—especially action photos—get printed, plain and simple. A picture of a bunch of tuxedo-clad guys grinning from the risers usually gets buried on page D-18.)
A radio interview about the chapter’s Singing Valentines program turned into a weekly show featuring barbershop harmony.
A special project to benefit a local art museum—a coffee table book—featured the Harmonizers and the local symphony orchestra. The chapter has a booth at the chamber expo. The Harmonizers also support youth choral events.
And the list goes on. But the remarkable thing is that there isn’t a thing on Roth’s outstanding list of accomplishments that any barbershop chapter couldn’t do—with the likely exception of the radio show. That was truly a unique opportunity.
But it wasn’t luck either. Roth and his chapter have been successful because people have stepped up to do what needed to be done. Besides, the best definition I’ve heard says that “luck is when opportunity and preparation come together.” Nothing could be truer for Roth and the Hunterdon Harmonizers. Topnotch planning, outstanding leadership and a lot of hard work have paid off handsomely for the chapter.
As I looked through Roth’s nomination package, some key points leapt off the page at me:
Organization. Every PR program absolutely requires organization. Roth knew that and provided it—up front where it belongs.
Planning. Lee did plenty of short-range and long-range planning. There’s an old saying that applies here, “If you don’t know where you’re going, how will you know when you get there?” Roth had some very specific goals for his program and for his committee.
A PR Committee. “Committee?” you ask. Well, of course. Your chapter PRO cannot, and should not, be expected to do it all alone. It’s a team effort with several people contributing. And they need a budget, too.
Creative thinking. Plenty of that went into the PR program—fabulous ideas that moved the chapter into the limelight.
Basic PR principles. Roth isn’t a PR professional, but he applied tried and true PR principles rather than just “do what the last guy with the job did.” He simply took advantage of his ability to write and talk with people—he’s an attorney who was the editor of his college newspaper—and he knows how to use a camera.
Quality photos. Roth understands the value of quality photos when they accompany press releases. Good photos help articles get printed, boring photos ensure stories will be buried. (A rule for all chapters: Hire a photographer or engage a chapter member who knows photography. Don’t ask, “Who has a camera?”)
Comprehensive PR. A chapter’s PR program should consist of more than advertising for your annual show. Before Roth got on the scene, come show time, PR consisted of someone writing a press release and mailing it to the local weekly newspaper. It would be edited (read: shortened) and placed (space available) in the back pages of the paper. “Is it any wonder I’d never heard of the Harmonizers?” Roth asked.
Consider adopting the Hunterdon philosophy for your chapter. “Every performance we give, every performance given by one of our quartets, is a marketing and public relations opportunity and event. Every document we produce, every card we pass out, every time we hang our banner anywhere, every time one of us serves on a community organization, we project the image of our chapter and barbershopping.”
Eight keys to PR success
- Set your goals
- Develop your plan
- Get everyone on board
- Use your contacts
- Allow lots of time
- Share your enthusiasm
- Increase your visibility
- Keep track of what works and what doesn’t
By Reed Sampson, SPEBSQSA Public Relations Manager
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