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Ready, Set, Talk!

Written by: Andy Marken

Article Overview: If you have a cause, a company or a product you want to "sell," you'll probably find Ready, Set, Talk of interest and possible assistance. The challenge is to listen as well as talk.

Ready, Set, Talk!

Ready, Set, Talk! – Ellen Ratner, Kathie Scarrah; Chelsea Green Publishing, White River Junction, Vermont, 802-295-6300; www.chelseagreen.com; ISBN – 10: 1933392215; 244 p, June 2006, $13.60



In a world where citizen journalism is being advanced so vigorously, perhaps it is time that we advance the concept of citizen public relations.

Why not?

There’s a world of do-it-yourself being written including some that spell out how to publish your own book.

Ready, Set, Talk! is another in a long series of D-I-Y books that promises to deliver everything you need to know on getting your message heard by millions. Ratner’s and Scarrah’s focus is on talk radio, talk television and talk Internet.

The book comes up short in one area in our opinion and for cause and issue promotion. It is the most critical, the most difficult, the dullest, the most time consuming and the most important – marketplace feedback.

But if there is a short-coming to cause and issue promotion perhaps this can be overlooked.

The authors do a very good job of developing a roadmap for groups that want to get their message out. For the novice PR person it does a very nice job of examining and explaining all of the media outlets including today’s emerging podcasts and videocasts.

If you can synthesize and pretest your message, choose and train the right amateur spokesperson the book will probably be of assistance. After reading the book we came to the conclusion that the problem often occurs in the pivotal area, the spokesperson.

Cause campaigns – even those we might agree in – often seem to be run by individuals who are most fevering, most committed and often the least willing to hear and think about the opposing view. In many instances, the winner is the one with the loudest voice.

But Ready, Set, Talk! is interesting to read and study because the authors provide some outstanding case studies that analyze the strengths and weaknesses of campaigns. For students and PR people who are new in the workforce we believe they will find the appendices of value by helping them understand how to prepare their spokesperson with the right sound bites and how to ensure they are presented properly and at just the right time.

Want to get your project off on the right foot at the outset? Ratner and Scarrah provide a good foundation checklist. In addition, their inclusion of a discussion on branding and crisis management are very well done.

For the student who wants to gain experience by volunteering to handle the publicity work for a cause or for individuals just getting started and wanting to put a gratis success story in their portfolio, the book can help ensure some degree of success. At the very least it will help you avoid the most common or dumb mistakes…assuming you ensure your campaign is balanced with solid two-way communications.

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