April 9, 2013

One of Mr. B's best buds. We love Cranium! 

In case anyone was wondering, I haven't lost the gift of gab. I got a call this afternoon from the public relations firm for Bayou City Art Festival (BCAF). They had gotten a call from the Houston Press, which had earlier this year named BCAF as one of the top ten festivals in Houston. After the article ran earlier this year, the Houston Press got some negative comments that BCAF should include more Houston artists, since it was named the Bayou City Art Festival. I was asked to call the reporter back and speak on behalf of BCAF.

This was a strange position for me to be in since I'm normally the one coaching clients on what to say when they are interviewed. The public relations firm sent me some talking points and I developed a couple more (based on the mission of BCAF) before I called the reporter back. We spoke for about 10 minutes and I stuck to my talking points, which is very important in what's called a "crisis communication" situation. The reporter was extremely nice and promised to send me the article so I could fact check it for her. But about five minutes after I got off the phone with the reporter, she sent an email to the BCAF public relations firm stating that the article was being canceled. Due to my telephone conversation with the reporter, the Houston Press decided that there wasn't a story to report. Yes (I exclaim in writing with a big smile on my face)! I've still got it.

Today I'm creating plans for upcoming events for my Tuesday client. I love my work!