Sure, these PR releases are good for Show and Tell among the membership, and perhaps a curious glance from the general public, but they do not have the impact of a good local action story. Recently we had two articles in our Port Townsend Leader. One covered our Jefferson County Council meeting at which our state Talking Book and Braille librarian spoke. We had local librarians, public school teachers and a school district superintendant present. From that story we gained two new members.
A few weeks later we elected our new president. She contacted the Leader with an article that talked about the impact of the JCCB in our community, as well as our Peninsula Rehabilitation Services, the service provided by Cathy and myself.
From that article we have added four new members and have several others coming to find out whether they want to join.
Today Cathy and I spent the day at an Senior Independence Fair in Port Angeles. This event was well covered by the local Peninsula Daily, as well as by the popular local talk jock, Mark Harvey. Besides the half dozen folks we signed up for our rehab services, we'll most likely receive additional calls about our Council chapter when the paper hits the streets.
In a rural county of about 24 thousand, and only one incorporated town, under 10 thousand residents, we have 24 members in our JCCB chapter, with another 6 or 7 visiting regularly.
My point is this, we can sit around and wait for Mitch and Ron to hustle out press releases that will probably not net us a single new local member, or we can get out and prove that this organization really is a people's movement, and make some local noise.
And now I'll clamber down off my soap box...until next time.
Carl Jarvis
----- Original Message -----From: Ronald E. MillimanTo: acb-l@acb.orgSent: Friday, May 03, 2013 7:19 AMSubject: Re: [acb-l] A Question for Ron MillimanMitch,
Considering how much NFB invests annually in their marketing and PR efforts
compared to the ACB, I'd say we are definitely getting maximum bang for the
invested buck, especially if we compare approximately $1000 out of pocket
dollars for ACB against Approximately $250,000 or more for NFB.
Ron M.
At 11:51 AM 5/2/2013 -0700, you wrote:
>Ron:
>
>Thank you for your response. What you're basically saying is that ACB seems
>to be getting more bang for the buck, as the saying goes.
>
>I also think you are suggesting quality over quantity, a point of view on
>which I agree entirely. Given current realities, that appears to be the
>road ACB will be traveling for the foreseeable future. And yes, I'd like to
>see your research.
>
>
>Mitch Pomerantz
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Ronald E. Milliman [mailto:rmilliman@insightbb.com]
>Sent: Thursday, May 02, 2013 11:23 AM
>To: Mitch Pomerantz
>Cc: acb-l@acb.org
>Subject: Re: [acb-l] A Question for Ron Milliman
>
>Mitch,
>
>In response to your question, I can tell you that media releases are still
>effective, but the distribution mix has changed considerably over the recent
>several years. Like in all media news situations, the first source to scoop
>the story gets the most coverage. In the case of ACB verses NFB in these
>situations, NFB tends to get the scoop on us most of the time. In
>this very latest news about the Kindle app, in my opinion,
>we had people
>in our organization that were fully informed about this development and
>could have given us a heads-up, in a completely ethical manner, to allow ACB
>to scoop this story. Unfortunately, that didn't happen.
>
>Aside from expediency being vitally important, it is also important to
>include all types of media outlets, including social media and internet
>sources.
>
>Too many media releases will work against the organization sending them out.
>NFB tends to put out entirely too many media releases. That actually hurts
>ACB as well because as much as we don't like it and as much as it is
>difficult for us to accept, many media sources that receive all of these
>releases tend to toss us all in the same bag; that is, they take one glance
>at the release, and their reactions are often: "Oh, it's that blind
>organization again," whether it comes from the NFB or ACB. They just zero in
>on the word "Blind." I did some research on this a few years ago, and I am
>trying to find the study to share with you, but so far, I haven't been able
>to find it. If and when I do, I'll send it to you.
>
>I've tracked the results of the media releases ACB has sent out and the ones
>the NFB has sent out, and frankly, we do as well, and in some cases even
>better, than the NFB. They send out lots more than we do, but when we send
>one out, it tends to be more important and news worthy, in my humble
>opinion, than most of the NFBs. Our distribution service does a good job of
>hitting all of the media sources, and while there is quite a bit of
>redundancy, our media releases usually are picked up by at least a few key
>wire services and media sources.
>
>We need to keep producing media releases, but we especially need to focus on
>timing, getting them out very quickly. That is why the PR Committee has felt
>it is important for the ACB office to get them produced and out; they tend
>to know about important news and are in a better position to act on it than
>our committee.
>
>Ron M.
>
>
>
>At 09:36 AM 5/2/2013 -0700, you wrote:
>> Ron: Nonetheless, since this is your area of expertise, I'd be
>>most interested in your feedback. Mitch Pomerantz > National
>>Federation of the Blind Comments on Amazon Kindle App > > Baltimore,
>>Maryland (May 1, 2013): The National Federation of the > Blind (NFB),
>>the nation's leading advocate for access to technology and education
>>for the blind, commented today on Amazon's incorporation of new
>>accessibility features into its application for the iPhone and other
>>devices using Apple's iOS operating system. > > Dr. Marc Maurer,
>>president of the National Federation of the Blind, said: "We are
>>pleased that Amazon has taken advantage of the inherent accessibility
>>of Apple products and Apple's clear guidelines for creating accessible
>>applications by finally releasing a version of its Kindle app that
>>allows blind readers to access Kindle content on Apple devices.
>>Continued improvement of this app is needed, however, in order to make
>>it appropriate for use in educational settings, and Amazon must also make
>its Kindle devices fully accessible.
>>Amazon should also make its future software, devices, and content
>>available to the blind when these products are released to the general
>>public rather than implementing accessibility at an unspecified later
>>time. Today's app release is a significant step on the journey to full
>>access to Kindle content by the blind, but that journey is not over,
>>and the National Federation of the Blind will not rest until its
>completion."
>>> > The National Federation of the Blind has advocated for full access
>>> to
>>Kindle devices and Kindle e-books since Amazon introduced the Kindle.
>>Most recently, NFB members staged an informational protest in front of
>>Amazon's Seattle headquarters to explain why Kindle e-books should not
>>be used in schools because they do not provide equal access to all of
>>the same information and features by both blind and sighted students.
>>For more information on this issue, please visit
>>http://www.nfb.org/kindle-books. >
>> > > > ### > > > > About the National Federation of the Blind > >
>> > The
>>National Federation of the Blind (NFB) is the oldest, largest, and
>>most influential nationwide membership organization of blind people in
>>the United States. Founded in 1940, the NFB advocates for the civil
>>rights and equality of blind Americans, and develops innovative
>>education, technology, and training programs to provide the blind and
>>those who are losing vision with the tools they need to become independent
>and successful. We need
>>your support. To make a donation, please go to www.nfb.org. > > >
>>[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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>Dr. Ronald E. Milliman, retired Professor Western Kentucky University
>Ph: 270-782-9325
>Email: rmilliman@insightbb.com
>
>Chair, American Council of the Blind Public Relations Committee
>
>Chair, American Council of the Blind's Monthly Monetary Support Program
>(MMS) Committee
>
>President: South Central Kentucky Council of the Blind (SCKCB)
>
>
Dr. Ronald E. Milliman, retired Professor Western Kentucky University
Ph: 270-782-9325
Email: rmilliman@insightbb.com
Chair, American Council of the Blind Public Relations Committee
Chair, American Council of the Blind's Monthly Monetary Support Program
(MMS) Committee
President: South Central Kentucky Council of the Blind (SCKCB)
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