I used to be an active parent blogger.* The beauty of blogging is the community. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting some amazing people. Over the years, we’ve supported each other through divorces, deaths of spouses, parents, and children, and job loss. We’ve collectively celebrated new babies, new relationships, book deals, amazing travels, and more. It’s been a trip to say the least.
As a PR pro and a blogger, I get to see the good and bad side of blogger relationships. Relationships between bloggers and companies can be very mutually beneficial. Bloggers give brands access to an extensive, targeted group in a more intimate way than paid or earned traditional media could ever offer. Done right, the relationship lends creedence to both sides of the equation.
Done wrong, it can be hurtful, tacky and downright awful.
Case in point: Califmom.
Here’s a little background. I met Califmom at BlogHer ’09 and was immediately charmed by her smart, quick wit. She was already quite well known and I started to follow her adventures with her amazing husband and kids on her blog. I was enamored with her from the start.
Her husband, Bob, was diagnosed with cancer and tragically passed far too soon. She’s spent the past few years rebuilding her life and holding things together (amazingly in my opinion), and has even found love again.
So, she gets a pitch. She’s a popular blogger, so getting pitched is not uncommon.
However, the pitch’s approach is less than genuine and the company? Downright tacky.
Go here and take a read. PR professionals, please comment, apologize and swear on a stack of (insert the religious text of your choice here) that you will never, ever, EVER do that to ANYONE. Then come back here.
Okay, here’s the deal. PR pros often get some clients with oddball products and services**. Some of those products and services may be offensive to others. If you’re pro-choice or pro-gay marriage, you may take great issue with your PR colleagues who choose to represent the interests of Dominos Pizza or Chick-Fil-A.
We call these less-than-appealing organizations “repugnant clients.”
Remember, PR professionals are not attorneys and individuals, organizations, and companies are not entitled to representation under American rules of due process.
In the end, my advice is to never take on a client whose business or practices are illegal or even weigh on your conscience enough to keep you up at night. It’s just not worth the stress.
In my opinion, a company that’s made a business profiting off the sale of dead people’s jewelry is repugnant. Yes, some people may need to sell a deceased loved one’s personal effects for a variety of reasons, but there are more sensitive and delicate ways to handle such transactions. Using a trumped up blogger award to bait someone into posting a link to your site is disingenuous and damaging to your brand. It’s insensitive and tacky and casts a pall on all of us.
So, today’s lesson: Pick your clients well. Make sure their business model aligns with your personal ethics and morals. Granted, it’s our job to find the silver linings and good stories that build your clients relationships with target audiences. But, trust your gut. If you’re not comfortable then you’re not going to do your best work for the client. They need to either fix the objectionable issue or find someone else who loves them for who they are.
And that’s okay.
*Don’t bother searching…they’ve all been pulled down for various reasons.
**Disclosure: I worked on a government high-level nuclear waste study project that some of my colleagues would have never touched, but that’s a post for another day.)
Nancy Syzdek, APR 