By Carl Carter, APR I don’t get to make laws, of course. But in four decades of communicating for a living, I’ve figured out a few things. If you ask what I know for a certainty, this is what I’d tell you. I could be wrong, but folks do pay me for my advice. And […]
Your words matter, more than you can possibly imagine
By Carl Carter, APR Your mama was right. That time she told you to be kind, it was good advice. When she said your words would come back to haunt you, she was right about that too. Words matter. In the last couple of days, we’ve seen hasty words, bullying words and obscene insults backfire […]
The United mess is about relationships.
What to make of the United mess? The discussions I’ve been watching seem to have shaken out to three sides: (a) The authoritarian law-and-order, do-what-you’re told position, (b) the “civil disobedience” position, and (c) the argument that it is an unwise business strategy to come across as heavy-handed in the way one treats customers […]
Want to change someone’s mind? Take them for a walk.
By Carl Carter, APR Jack has terrible social skills and has trouble making friends. He’d like to have more. But he’s just lousy at it. He starts every conversation by barking at the one across from him. I should mention, Jack’s my hound. And despite his lack of emotional intelligence, there’s a lesson we can […]
Why smoke is more dangerous than fire: Public opinion is the harshest court of all
By Carl Carter, APR Forget the headlines about meetings with Russians for a moment. Let’s set aside the question of whether any of the stuff about conflicts of interest have any merit. Instead, I’m going to argue that in terms of its danger to a politician, a corporation or any other institution, looking guilty is […]
Sometimes, the worst thing you can do is believe what you see right in front of you
In 1982, futurist John Naisbitt was about the biggest star in the world of business publishing. His book, Megatrends, provided a startling look at the big forces on the horizon. As time passed and we looked back, we could see that his projections were startling in their accuracy — especially considering that he wrote the […]
You want publicity? If you don’t know these things, you’re screwed.
By Carl Carter, APR You’ve seen the numbers on the decline in the number of working journalists in our nation’s newspapers. I’ve been writing about them for a decade. Now, I’m going to tell you some of the stuff behind the numbers. I’m a public relations professional and a media relations specialist. (No, those aren’t […]
PR lessons from the new administration’s first week
By Carl Carter, APR You may have noticed we’ve had a few busy news days. And among other things, we seem to have a war of sorts going on between our new president and the nation’s mainstream media. The charges and counter-charges of lying are flying thick and fast. I can’t fix the nation or […]
Want to sell more stuff? Screw content: Tell a great story
By Carl Carter, APR One of the scariest things I ever saw was Birmingham News city editor Clarke Stallworth behind the horseshoe-shaped city desk. He was a big, loud, white-haired guy who sometimes came back sweaty from a noontime racquetball game. Long before I met him, he was a legend. I was a rookie, fresh […]
Study success: Positive messages convey more information
By Carl Carter, APR Don’t do that. Seriously, stop it. You’re making me mad. Now then, what did I just tell you? Did I give you any useful information? Not a bit. And that’s why I always advocate positive communications. It isn’t about being happy or making people feel good. It’s about information, and the […]
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