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Australia’s Economy: Signs of Recovery, Lessons for America

Economic Growth Fuels Business Reputations and Investor Confidence

Are you looking up, when you should be looking "down-under"? Let me explain. You know how the weather can change – cloudy one day, sunny the next? There are signs that Australia’s economy may have weathered the worst, but do not expect to hear the forecast call for a return to complete economic-recovery sunshine, just yet.

But it does appear the clouds are passing. There are hints of blue sky ahead. Here are some ways to tell. Business journalists get accomplished at reading between the lines...and so should you. Why? What you learn is of interest to your CEO. The economic weather "down under" is very much linked to worldwide economic conditions. In short, Australia's economic forecast is watched closely by U.S. business and investors, alike. What happens in Australia, does not stay in Australia. What happens is vital to America.

Question? Are economic experts beginning to use words to describe the economy of Australia, such as “bottoming, flattening, stabilizing?”

Answer: “Yes.” Are big real estate firms seeing any increase in sales in their residential business? According to Lend Lease: “Yes.” And how is consumer sentiment? That means, what are you thinking and feeling about the economy ahead?

The National Australia Business Bank monthly business survey shows improvement in its index of business conditions. Optimism is showing itself. But the economy does not go from cloudy to sunshine in one month. Bottoming is a process.

Still, any improvement is another sign that the process of moving from "totally cloudy" to "partly sunny" may be underway. Finally, here is an important indicator: the stock market. Stocks typically move up before other economic indicators.

After its March low, the market gained about 17 percent. Market participants reacted positively to what they see coming for Australia’s economy. That not only makes consumers "feel" better, but also industry, too, as balance sheets improve.

"Yes," the market may pullback. A pullback is actually a healthy thing after such a strong move up. As long as the March 9 low stays the low, then you now know that there are a number of positive hints about the economic conditions ahead.

And you now know that when the world, including America and Wall Street, sees conditions looking UP "down-under"...it's also anticipating an improving global forecast. Economies and investors are geographically connected.

Note to America: Look "down-under" to see if the economy is looking up. Not only that, communicate what you see throughout your organization.

Good economic weather does wonders for the reputation of and confidence in business, Wall Street and investments worldwide. Economic growth is superb public relations, works magic on corporate reputations and fuels stakeholder confidence.

Your CEO already knows this. So should you, your PR and marketing firms, and key stakeholders. Economic trends somewhere "else" are important, wherever you look.

Mine That Bird's Stunning Victory: This Generation's Seabiscuit

Will Unlikely Kentucky Derby Winner Help Stimulate an Economic Rally?

U.S. business, if you don't know the story of Seabiscuit, you should. In fact, make it your business to learn. Because the story of how a single athlete energized a country reeling in a Great Depression may be the lesson for Wall Street in Mine That Bird's underdog, dramatic victory in the 2009 Kentucky Derby. In short, can history repeat itself?

From an unremarkable beginning, Seabiscuit proved an improbable champion, serving as a symbol of hope during America's Great Depression. A powerful, compelling figure. Rallying sports fans, yes, but also families and a nation, alike. Touching generations to come, including my grandfather, who went on to raise horses. It was not surprising that Laura Hillenbrand's book, "Seabiscuit: An American Legend," also a hit movie, touched new generations decades later.

Today, the world is mired in recession. Economists look for signs of a recovery. Wall Street traders, enjoying a spring rally, ask, "What would ignite a summer rally?"

Could a remarkable underdog story, a horse named Mine That Bird, who beat 50-to-1 odds, be that catalyst needed to spark our economic engine? Or at least carry part of the torch, emerging as a rallying symbol like Seabiscuit, along the way?

History provides lessons. Leaders see opportunities. Entrepreneurs turn passion into realized ideas such as the iPhone. It only takes one spark to light a fire.

Mine That Bird provided a spark for the ages. Did you catch the moment?

And is it something we can rally around? Don't bet against it.

The Twitter Virus...not "That" One

Twitter is "Blogging for the Rest of Us"

Twitter announced it successfully defended itself against four waves of recent computer-attacks. A malicious worm tangled with the popular Social Marketing site...and lost. And, "No," that is not a reference to the Brooklyn teenager allegedly behind the technical shenanigans that posed significant, potential damage to the reputation of this growing technology firm.

It's also not the Twitter virus I planned to focus on. But breaking news happens, so I will use it to bridge to something your CEO may ask you...and something you should be ready to answer quite quickly. Question: "So, has Twitter really caught on, in a good, 'viral-marketing' way and can it help our firm?"

The short answer is, "Yes." Twitter can help your firm in ways still evolving, but certainly to include customer service, project management, employee communications, public relations and reputation leadership.

As with any new tool, Twitter is generating a cottage-industry of new acronyms, jargon and geek-speak (I say that with admiration). This article explains some of the tool's new language and ways, and does so in a gentle manner all of us can understand.

Don't let the jargon distract you.

Here's the bottom line: Twitter is "blogging for the rest of us."

What you are reading right now is called blogging. If you were on Twitter, you'd get this same "bottom line," but in 140 characters or less. My "message" would be brief, right to the point.

In a future blog, I'll suggest what I think are some of the immediate benefits of using Twitter for your company, whether you work for Wall Street, TV, a Fortune-500 firm or a small business. The business media are all over the company, including speculation on on its future; not a bad thing to attract attention because of your growing popularity.

Well...come to think of it...I'm already pointing out practical uses right now.

"Follow" me on Twitter to see. You can get my thinking seconds after I type. I'm found at SchwartzNow. My most recent thoughts are also on the right side of this blog.

Look, call it a micro-blog, "blogging for the rest of us" or Social Marketing. But Twitter is fast, easy to learn, and, right now, it's free. 

So take a few minutes, sign up, pick a user name and try it...before your CEO does.

The "Defense" Sector: Wall Street doesn't Understand You (1 of 2)

Wall Street does not understand America's so-called "Defense" sector. That's a problem, especially with a new economic plan coming.

Here's the issue: Wall Street lumps firms such as Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), Northrup Grumman (NYSE: NOC) and Raytheon (NYSE: RTN) into two words: Defense sector. The business media, including CNBC and CNN, adopt the lingo. Yet, these firms are far bigger than a two-word, Wall Street label. They do so much more. They pioneer programs benefiting earth and space science, information technology, energy and the environment. They are the stuff of "gee-whiz" value.

So, in a nutshell, this is a leadership moment. It is a time to revisit your "positioning" and reputation management. When your company is unable to position itself appropriately, it may fail a brand "promise." Failed brand promises can risk damaging relationships. With customers and employees. Why? For one reason, we may not fully understand you. Can I connect in a meaningful way with a company boxed in by narrow Wall Street jargon? Answer: I may not connect, and I may not invest. Plus, jargon is a difficult cage to be trapped in -- especially when it does not capture the true role these "Defense" firms bring society. And, really, jargon is difficult to like. Jargon is useful for insiders, but a burden to the rest of us. A put off. Wall Street's "Defense"-sector jargon is like walking into a brick wall. That's a bump in the face no one needs. I say, "Wall Street...take down that brick wall." Re-position how these firms are "labeled-sectored." Question: "Is your company positioned to attract the greatest value?"

Brew Battle - Strategic Blogging by Budweiser & SABMiller

Your Fortune-500 company has news, a story to tell. Right now. The CEO wants the story told accurately...and first. After all, the first story to market has a higher probability of shaping other stories. The company news is legit, timely and of interest to key stakeholders.

So, why does the executive team decide not to "blast" the story to just about everyone on the planet in print and electronic journalism via subscription services like PR Newswire or BusinessWire? It's "what we've always done."

The answer:  Because there's a more effective way.

Why not allow a blogger to "break" the story, first, before the so-called "mainstream" media?

Industrial giants Budweiser (NYSE:BUD) and SABMiller (LON:SAB OTC:SBMRY) recently experienced this situation. With a surprising twist, as told by The Wall Street Journal.

Who blogs about your company, who "breaks" your news --and, importantly, who disseminates your competitor's news, first.

In short, have a strategic online communications plan. And I'm not talking about an obligatory web site. It's more than that and, with some planning, quite do-able by...tomorrow.

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The Benefits of Leadership: Attracting Good Press

Choosing a leadership position on an issue of societal importance has important benefits

Witness the dialogue stimulated and coverage earned by California's position on greenhouse gas pollution. Being a leader is not easy. There are inherent risks. Why not just play it safe? Yet, I believe people are hungry for leaders, and they are looking to you, the CEO, to be one.

Strategically, leaders stand out, attracting attention, stimulating dialogue and getting involved in shaping the public agenda.  Tactically, leaders earn support, admiration and media coverage. Successful leaders, like Pacific Gas and Electric's Peter Darbee, can seemingly come into the public eye from nowhere.  Rest assured, their conviction is not a path easily chosen. In full openness, I'm currently providing consulting services to support one of the company's initiatives.

Question: Are you missing a leadership opportunity?

I continue to find leadership refreshing and more strategically sound than "followership."

Telling all Your News?

If not, expect additional scrutiny and a story with legs

There is nothing more painful than trying to weather a "bad-news" story involving your business, especially when the story has "legs." That is jargon for a story that just does not want to go away. Poorly managed bad news distracts management attention, paralyzes business operations, destroys morale and makes your media relations staff want to shut off the phones and turn off their pagers. Just ask them.

I have a sure way of allowing your bad news to grow legs in the media:  Don't tell all of it.  Let it dribble out, and do so only when cornered. I do not advise this strategy, but I see it.  The Wall Street Journal wrote about one Colorado company living it.

I counsel just the opposite:  Be transparent.  If you have bad news to report, develop a plan to get it out, all at once.  It's good business strategy, earns credibility and your stakeholders, including the press, respect that type of behavior.

Question:  Is your business news transparent?  If not, why not?  Wall Street loves clarity.

A bad-news story with legs subjects your firm, employees and shareholders to the drip, drip, drip of prolonged media scrutiny and public pain.  Now, the ability to tell bad news is not amateur hour.  So, bring in the expertise needed to do it right.  I've just never seen a CEO convince me why subjecting a company to extended, negative media attention is the right thing to do. 

Bad News: Break Your Own Story, First

Apple Finds 'Irregularities' in Employee Stock Options, Including Some of Jobs's

Apple Computer Inc. just became "the best-known of several Silicon Valley companies to acknowledge that some stock options awarded to employees might have been mishandled and said the options included a batch granted to co-founder Steve Jobs," according to the Associated Press.

Both "good" news and "bad" news present CEOs and their organizations with a simple but criticial leadership imperative:  Break your own news, first.  That means be the first to tell your organization's story. 

Questions:  Could you have done what Apple's Steve Jobs just did (attached)?  Do you recognize the strategy in Apple's announcement?  It is a superb case study.

Going public with good news -- that's an easy decision.  Ask your PR or Marketing Communications Department to brief you on their media and stakeholder relations plan and then enjoy the headlines or web coverage.

Going public with bad news -- that's a leadership moment.  I've seen world-class CEOs and management teams freeze like the proverbial deer in the headlights when faced with these moments.  What will my boss think?  How will our stock react?  What will this do to my career?

All the media training in the world will not help you without the fundamental understanding that you and your enterprise are better off telling your own "news"...than letting someone else do so.

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The Best PR: Think Early

When anchoring those 5:30 a.m. newscasts, I was convinced that it was just me looking at the red light on the camera...and no one else was awake, much less watching.

The big bucks were "supposed" to be in the evening newscasts.  (I anchored those, too).  But, times are changing.  Early news is important, and savvy CEOs recognize that publicity early can be a bigger bang for the buck later.  Are you targeting the early shows with your PR? 

It's not just my opinion. 

From The Wall Street Journal, quoting now:

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Trends & Impact: iPod vs. Beer

CEOs are you making the best use of your public relations and marketing monies? Or are you still handing out branded pens, T-shirts and coffee mugs?

This article from The Washington Post will stir some thoughts.  I am not saying to abandon traditional advertising and PR; I am saying to consider your options to achieve the best ROI.  Big business or small business, you can easily brand your logo, web site and phone number on an iPod (or the popular "memory sticks"), and hand them out...instead of pens. And make a lasting impression.

     

Correct Answer is Highlighted in Green

                         

	The iPod has surpassed beer drinking as the most "in" thing among undergraduate college students, according to a new survey. What was tied with drinking beer as the second-most popular activity?
	Downloading music
	Instant messaging		Your Answer
	Visiting Facebook.com		Correct Answer
	Text messaging
	Nearly three quarters, or 73 percent, of 1,200 students surveyed said iPods were "in" -- more than any other item in a list. This year, drinking beer and Facebook.com, a social networking Web site, were tied for second most popular, with 71 percent of the students identifying them as "in." The only other time beer was temporarily dethroned in the 18 years of the survey was in 1997 -- by the Internet, said Eric Weil, a managing partner at Student Monitor, a Ridgewood, N.J.-based firm that conducted the biannual market research study. [Full Story...]

"Wal-Mart Enlists Bloggers in Its Public Relations Campaign"

BusinessWeek now has reporters assigned to cover blogs.  Why?  Involving bloggers is now a proven tactic to earning key stakeholder support and shaping public opinion about your company.

Develop a plan to look at the potential benefits of folding bloggers into stakeholder outreach -- the 100,000-foot view from such a plan will cost less than the design and printing of one, nice brochure.  What are "bloggers" saying about you and your company?  The number of people saying something, including your own staff, will surprise you.  Have your communications/media relations office or PR firm track the blogs for you, in addition to the "daily newsclips."

My Recommendation:
Incorporate web-logs into your Online Outreach Plan.  And track your success.  Getting the right message in front of the right stakeholders is crucial for your image.  This strategy goes deeper:  You are actually involving key influencers in your success.  GE and Microsoft get it, according to the New York Times:

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"Coal-Mine Crisis -- Your Crisis, Too"

What I write here is meant to help you today.  View me as your tried-and-true "laboratory" on how to succeed in public relations, marketing and corporate communications.  I have 20-plus years of experience with Fortune-500 firms, the nation's news media and with representing some of our nation's most important issues in the media worldwide.

I've been allowed to learn and do what you want to know.  I have set up or performed more than 5,000 interviews in the media worldwide, developed 1,000-plus news releases, and coordinated hundreds of public, press and regulatory meetings and I have trained senior corporate officials, elected officials, and local, state, federal and community leaders for them.  That means my portfolio of experience -- my intellectual capital earned on the street -- is available to you right now.  I've managed the communication of crises, both short- and long-lived events.  Some events involved VIPS, highly sensitive personal and/or classified information.  Some I can't talk about.  Along the way, I've learned a lot and been both honored and humbled by the journey.  I am wired to do what I do and I have lessons and perspective to share.

So, it is not lightly that I say to CEOs out there, in small companies or large ones:  The recent coal-mine crisis is your crisis, too.  Let me explain.

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"Saving Money - Ruining Reputations?"

A growing number of U.S. hospitals are reportedly saving money by reusing medical devices designated for one-time use, ignoring the warnings of manufacturers, which will not vouch for the safety of their reconditioned products.

Question:   When it comes to your health, what is more important than safety...and what are you doing to communicate your safety success to potential customers and key stakeholders?

Strategy:   Develop a Safety Communications Plan.

Your safety record helps consumers make good buying decisions.  It worked for Volvo. It works for construction and engineering firms.  I believe the first healthcare firm (and I worked for the largest one in the country) that declares it is the "safest" will get my attention...and recruit the top physicians and nurses.  How about the firms that make children's clothing, utilities, environmental and defense companies, food companies, computer ergonomics?  Safety is a differentiator and can attract new business.

Tactic:   Audit and create key messages about your safety advantages.  Form a multi-disciplinary Safety Success Team.  Give it the resources to communicate to internal and external audiences.  This includes vendor support.  Attract media attention. 

If your safety record stands up to accepted industry standards, publicize it widely and earn credibility for your efforts.

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"Your City's Reputation - Plugged In?"

$122-billion a year.  If your city competes well for the lucrative convention business, the economic impacts could help you.  Image and reputation.  They are not just tactics for your Public or Investor Relations departments.  Baltimore has jumped into this high-stakes battle.

Question:  Do you know how active you and your employees are in your Chamber(s) of Commerce and city affairs and community organizations?

Strategy: Develop a Stakeholder Relations plan that audits your existing relationships...compares them to your desired relationships...and then couples the natural interests of your employees with the business goals of your firm and the interests of your community.

Tactic:  Implement your Stakeholder Relations plan through a volunteer Community Team.  The Hawthorne Effect goes to work for you.   Then have your Community Team brief your boss on your firm's success.

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"Your Online IQ - Anheuser-Busch"

Anheuser-Busch, the brewing giant long associated with glitzy network-TV ads, plans to shift some ad dollars away from network prime time toward cable TV and the Internet to "recognize changes in viewership.

Questions:  When is the last time you had time to read a newspaper from start to finish...or sat through your favorite TV shows' ads?  Did you know that ad space on some of the larger web sites is sold out?

Strategy: Develop an Online Communications Plan that achieves your business objectives and bonds your brand, products and services with potential customers in measurable ways.  This is more than a marketing buy.  This is about targeted relationships and purchasing patterns.   

Tactic:  Direct your Public Affairs, Media Relations or Communications Department to contact Google, Yahoo, AOL and MSN directly (and any specialty web sites if you are in an extremely segmented, niche line of business), and have them pitch you on an Online Media Buy.  Skip your media buyer for now (and save the 15 percent fee).  The research, alone, will raise your firm's Online IQ.  Ask those involved to brief marketing, sales and senior management on their findings.  You will immediately change your advertising footprint -- or decide that less-costly Public and Stakeholder Relationships are more important than an outdoor billboard at $4.8K a month.    

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"Leading the Way"

Success in business.  This builds on my last post about the 10 "traits to success." 

Let me add to those traits and ask the following question:  "Do you know your strengths?"

The Gallup Organization has done extensive research on "strengths." 

It says to stop focusing on trying to "fix" what people are not "wired" to be.  Now, that should get your attention.

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"10 Secrets to Success: Reputation means Everything"

10 traits that turn dreams into reality. Investor's Business Daily spent years analyzing leaders and successful people in "all walks of life."

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"CEOs: Can We Talk?"

The Wall Street Journal just waved a red flag at you and your firm.  Read on. 

"Knowledge management is one of the workplaces most vexing problems...few organizations can figure out how to share knowledge among employees, or to pass it on when employees leave or change..."

Alright, you're the CEO.  You have a financial question.  So, you turn to the CFO.  A legal question?  Well, no question, time for legal counsel or your ethics and compliance officer.  An employee-related issue?  That would be a call to HR.  But, today, you have a media-, community- or stakeholder-relations issue or need help with marketing communications.  No need for help here.  You're the CEO.  This is the "soft" side of the house.  The category "Other" on the balance sheet.  With your background, you can handle it yourself.  No need to bother your boss with it.  Better yet, just assign the issue to the "PR" or "Marketing" department. 

Wrong. 

Everyone needs a "Kitchen Cabinet," especially when you are at the top.  The real question is, "Is your public or media relations staff in your inner circle and, if not, why not?" This is not a post about "succession planning."  This is about real-world "Knowledge" and the credibility, reputation, relevancy and profitability of your firm.

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"Operational Problems? Don't Hide - Be Open"

The technology firm I rely on to maintain my online relationship with you recently experienced a severe service failure.  The firm is in the middle of what I call an "extended, nagging-crisis."

Its crisis, which involves an upset in operations, is your opportunity to plan today for tomorrow's, ""what if?""

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"CEOs: Credibility Gone in a Blink"

"If it takes a lifetime to build crediblity, why does it take only a minute to lose it?  Forever."

When your enterprise loses crediblity, you lose your future.  Your sales suffer, your operations grind to a halt, your best people jump ship and your stock prices crater.  Consider United Way's latest troubles.

I donate to United Way, but I do not believe the organization will ever recover fully from its scandal many years ago about how much of its monies were going to overhead vs. the needy.  Now, the ethics of the American Red Cross are again making headlines.  Bad headlines.  After the Hurricanes, I donated to the Red Cross.  I am seriously reconsidering my choice.

It will not be the power or words of the CEO that gets the Red Cross through this -- if it can get through this.  Assuming its operations are not fatally flawed, it will be the ability of the Red Cross to set a new standard in public and media relations to weather this crisis.  The organization can not do this with just its in-house PR team.  It is not big enough and can only work so many hours in a day.

Let me be clear:  The future of the Red Cross is at stake.  The stakes don't get higher.

What would you, as CEO, do?  How quickly could you move?  What contract help -- what PR "swat-team" -- do you have "on-call" for your crisis?

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D.C. Landmarks

In D.C.

After visiting with John L. Pulley, senior reporter with The Chronicle of Higher Education, my son and I toured the great landmarks of Washington, D.C.  Here we are at the Lincoln Memorial.  Earlier, I had met with business editors at The Wall Street Journal, The Chicago Tribune and BusinessWeek.

Apple and California

My son, Jake, was a VIP guest of Steve Jobs at Apple's Annual Worldwide Web Developer's Conference.  We are able to mix interests with geography, as I am currently providing strategic planning, business development, marketing communications and media relations services to help California save energy -- a national issue. This site is a good resource with some good energy-saving tips no matter where you live. 

What is your company doing to save energy...and are you getting good PR for your efforts?