Hey, It’s Been Well Over Month Now. So Why Aren’t I Famous and Walking Down the Red Carpet Yet
Thomas J. Madden, Chairman and CEO, Transmedia GroupThis is what I tell those impatient PR clients whose expectations are way over-the-top unrealistic:Well, you see sir, PR takes a little time before everyone knows who you are, recognizes your brand and wants to join your club. You must give it a little more time to work as first you have to plant seeds before you can harvest a crop of fame.Yes, it takes time. That’s because PR firms like mine, TransMedia Group, are not purchasing media exposure for our clients. We sometimes have to wait in line for it.And today the lines are getting longer because there are fewer places you can go to make people, products and services overnight famous.Take for example the case of the ex-prizefighter who came to us not too long ago to do publicity for his new boxing club for women, including a grand opening of his gym.Frankly, we liked the pugilist’s concept a lot as it fit right into a newsworthy context that’s red hot—the MeToo Movement.And we could see boxing as a way women could build their self confidence. Defend themselves. Punch any would-be Weinstein right in the schnozzola. Bam! Stop sexual abusers dead in their tracks.Actually women’s boxing has a long history that many sports fans may not be aware of. The female fight game can trace its history to the 1700s.But it wasn’t until the late 1980s that professional women’s boxing would be officially sanctioned and today it’s bigger than ever. So we were onto something . . . a news story with lots of facets and punch.We could see ourselves milking it . . . making our pugilistic client a hero. So we sign him up and immediately put out an “agency roster” news release on the wires announcing this new client and the wonderful story we’ll soon be marketing starting with the grand opening of his boxing club for women.End of Round 1.In round two, we go to see this soon to be famous female boxing hall of fame, only to find it’s not that easy to find as it’s located in a sort of alley way behind a large store. Too bad. Not too impressive. Oh well, maybe it’s amazing inside.When we look inside, however, we find very little amazing. There’s a couple punching bags. No boxing ring. What? No boxing ring? So we ask our boxing impresario:Where’s the ring where we’ll see brave females boxing their way to stardom . . . building their self-confidence, going toe-to-toe with sexual abusers as a pugilistic part of the news-making MeToo Movement?Our pugilist client explains there’s not enough room for a boxing ring. Ouch, that hurts. Oh well.End of Round 2
The Grand Opening
Despite the hard-to-find location and ringless gym, we promise media a phantasmagoria of fun, edifying entertainment, self- defense insights plus beautiful female boxers hitting punching bags. We even have a noted female psychologist put on a pair of boxing gloves while talking about women needing to boost their self-confidence and stand strong and combative against abusers.The Main EventEveryone attending thought it was a colorful, well-attended fun event with lots of picture taking, interviews and speeches. We got some press there and took tons of photographs to blast out to media, both traditional and social. Yes, the media campaign was on, hot and heavy.One problem. Our client was cold and unhappy. He was disappointed his grand opening wasn’t on the front page of the local newspaper . . . wasn’t the lead story on local TV news that night.So a short time later, he fires us. The fights over. We’re the loser. Knocked out before we even got fully started!Here’s how our client saw it. It’s been well over a month and you haven’t made me or my new business famous yet. And as if that weren’t enough to just summarily fire us, he gives us a bad review in Google. Wonderful.Nice guy. He deserves a left hook to his pugnacious jaw. And Google, so do you. Shame on you for publishing his rant about us for not making him famous overnight.
About the Author: Thomas Madden is CEO of TransMedia Group, one of the largest independent PR firms in Florida, where it currently operates. The firm’s clients have included AT&T, American Red Cross, City of New York, GL Homes, Jordache Enterprises, McCormick and Schmick’s, Rexall Sundown, Stanley Steemer. Fight fans, don’t miss out on ringside seats at book signings of my latest book “Love Boat 78” coming out this fall.
