Trafcom News

What does your voicemail say about you?

Sometimes – this week for example – I spend oodles of time on the phone. In the course of arranging and conducting interviews for clients, I do lots of dialing. And as a communicator, I can’t help but analyze some of the things I hear after I punch in those 11-digit numbers.

For starters, I am amazed at the number of business people who answer the phone by saying just “Hello.” Right off the bat, I don’t know if I’ve called the right party, so I have to ask, “Is this Joe Jones?” Suggestion: Answer the phone with your name, even just the first name: “Hello, this is Chris speaking.” That would be nice.

What if you’re not there? What does your answering machine or automated voicemail system say? Believe it or not, this is what I heard when I phoned a consultant the other day: “You have reached the number that you have dialed. Please leave a message.”

Ha ha. Very funny. So, did I reach the right number? Are you operating a real business or is this your personal line and you’re using it to run your consulting gig on the side? In this case, I left a message for the person and followed up with an email to say, “I THINK I left you a message!” (Of course his email sig doesn’t list his number; another of my pet peeves.)

And then there are the mumblers. They leave YOU a voicemail message that’s so muffled that you can’t decipher their name. You actually phone them back, and you STILL don’t know who they are because they’ve also mumbled on their voice recording.

What about the secret vacationers? You dial their number and leave a message, expecting a call back in a day or two. Of course you don’t know that they’re on a three-week South Seas cruise, because their outbound message was mum on the subject. (I know some people don’t like to say they’re away because of security and privacy concerns. On my home phone I never reveal that I’m out of town, but I do so on my business line as a courtesy to clients, prospects and colleagues. If I’m going to be checking my messages from a remote location, I’ll often just say that I’m in meetings or away from the phone for the day. At least they’ll know why I’m not returning the call quickly.)

So, here are my suggestions:

1. Always include your name in your outbound voicemail message.
2. Speak clearly; don’t mumble.
3. If you’re not able to return calls within 24 hours, say so.
4. Use humour if you wish, but remember to follow suggestions 1-3.

Is PR training necessary?

Over on the Class Act blog, educator Gary Schlee asks some thought-provoking questions after reading a piece about PR training in the Princeton Review. See what Gary has to say.

Hmm, I wonder if my daughter could land a PR job right after finishing her degree in Classical Studies.

Recruiting in the Facebook age

When I look at the world in the days when I first sought a full-time job (the Jurassic era, I believe) and compare it to our plugged-in, always-on, 24/7-video culture, I shudder to think how difficult it is for corporate recruiters to attract and retain young talent.  If I were among the ranks of these corporate HR people, I’d be booking Tod Maffin for my next event, to hear what he has to say about recruiting in the age of Facebook. If you’ve ever heard Tod speak, you already know that he’s a futurist, he’s brilliant and he’s funny as hell. I’m glad to see he has added this new presentation to his offerings.

Starting a podcast: tips from Scott Monty

Last week I spent extra time in the car driving to meetings, so I had the opportunity to catch up on my podcast listening. One of the shows I never miss is NewComm Road with Bryan Person. If you’re thinking of starting a podcast, don’t miss Bryan’s conversation with Scott Monty, who recently launched I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere, a perfect example of niche-casting.

For more tips, see my Podcaster's Checklist.

Testing your PR agency’s social-media mettle

Every week, we seem to see announcements from various PR firms, touting their presence in the world of social media. In last week’s edition of the InsidePR podcast, the intrepid hosts Dave Jones and Terry Fallis ask: “Does your agency merely talk the social-media line, or do they walk it?” Here are five questions to ask:

1. Do you blog yourself?
2. What blogs and podcasts do you recommend?
3. What clients have you got into social media?
4. What do you think of ghost blogging?
5. How do you approach a blogger who wrote something negative?

I’d say these queries are a great starting point for a discussion with your agency.

What’s on YOUR not to-do list?

Tim Ferriss of The 4-Hour Workweek shares his “not to-do list” with “nine habits to stop now” to increase productivity.

I wish I could comply with No. 2!

Good ol’ file-naming conventions

Back in the olden days when I toiled as a systems analyst, we had to follow very strict rules when naming computer files. Years later, I can still remember some of those naming conventions. The rules made our work easier, because you could spot different types of files right away, and lists of names would sort easily.

Today, anything goes. People send me stuff called “article.doc” or “invoice.pdf”  or "0000001.jpg." Sheesh. Not very helpful.

Because of my background and training, I tend to be pretty exacting (OK, obsessive) when it comes to naming files for my client projects or my own work. For example, the name ABC-CN25.1-en.doc would be ABC Corporation’s Communicators’ Notes newsletter, Issue 25, draft one, English version in Word.

What about you? What do you do?

Just a few spots left: Free Podcasting 101 Webinar

Who says summer is slow? A dozen go-getters have signed up for my next Webinar, Podcasting 101 for Communicators and Marketers, scheduled for 2 p.m. Eastern on August 21.

Here’s a testimonial from Scott MacDonald, who participated in my last session:

Last Tuesday I was treated to my first webinar hosted by Donna Papacosta of Trafalgar Communications. The webinar, Podcasting 101 for Communicators and Marketers, served as a great little intro to the world of podcasting.  It lasted about 45 minutes and covered everything from “What’s a podcast?” to “How do I sell it to management?”.   Oh yeah, it was free (woo!), which is great for poor little PR students…….like myself.

I’ve been listening to podcasts for almost a year now but recently decided to try and develop a better understanding of the actual production process behind them.  There’s lots to be learned and Donna’s webinar was a great launching pad for my podcasting endeavour.

I like to keep the number of attendees small so that people can ask questions. So if you’re interested, sign up soon! To attend, all you need is a phone and an Internet connection. To register, send an email to trafcom@gmail.com.

Trimming the fat in your podcast

My latest podcast is a lean 17 minutes all about trimming the fat in your podcast. You don't need a sharp knife - just some planning up front and a commitment to ruthless post-production.

You'll find the show on the Trafcom News Podcast blog.

Please listen and let me know what you think!

How to put your priorities straight in three easy steps

1. Spend the weekend with friends you’ve known for almost your whole life.
2. Scare yourself silly by traveling in a Beechcraft prop plane to get there.
3. Reflect on how fortunate you are to be alive.