Exploring the many facets of public relations

In just about every spokespersontraining class we conduct for ourclients, there comes a moment –the “aha!” moment – when itfinally “clicks.” The messageresonates; it makes sense. Andwhat (just a couple of hoursearlier) appeared to be aninsurmountable challenge to applythe fundamental spokespersontechniques, has become naturaland intuitive. Trainees begin topractice with new confidence.They stay focused andon-message. They are on theirway to becoming effectivespokespersons.

In today’s media landscape, thepressures on spokespersons aregreater than ever. Facing tighterdeadlines, viral-minded mediastruggle to keep pace with socialmedia. Careless expressions andmisstatements are prone to height-ened visibility and an endlesslifespan.

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Spring 2015

Don't Forget ToPractice ...

by Christopher J. Lukach, APRPresident

Honors and Awards

Mike Gross Is a “Good Guy”AKCG’s SVP and COO Mike Gross

received the prestigious “Joe DevirMemorial Sports Writers Service Award”during the Philadelphia Sports WritersAssociation’s annual awards dinner inJanuary. Mike has been a membervolunteer with the organization for morethan 10 years and currently serves on itsBoard of Governors.

Mike helps plan and execute the annualbanquet, which honors professional andstudent athletes from across the regionand attracts nearly 1,000 attendees eachyear. Mike’s award, nicknamed the“Good Guy Award,” is given each year toa PSWA member for service to theassociation beyond the call of duty.

Other honorees during this year’sbanquet included South Jersey nativeMike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels asprofessional athlete of the year, Lewis

Katz, the late co-owner of the Philadel-phia Inquirer, as humanitarian of the yearand Philadelphia’s Taney Dragons LittleLeague team as team of the year.

Master of Ceremonies and PSWAsecretary Larry Litwin presents theSports Writers’ “Good Guy” award toMike Gross.

AKCG Wins PepperpotsAnne Klein Communications Group

garnered two first-place awards and twosecond-place honors atthe 2014 PepperpotAwards in December.The awards program,organized by thePhiladelphia chapter ofthe Public RelationsSociety of America,recognizes best inclass public relationsefforts in the

Philadelphia region.

The winning campaigns includedAKCG’s crisis communications work inresponse to a tragic shooting at MercyFitzgerald Hospital, and a bylined feature

story about CPI Companies’ founder in atop trade publication.

The two ladles were forwork on Mercy LIFE’sannual Caregiver Awardevent and for a researchinitiative with CPICompanies to identify lifeinsurance policyholders’attitudes and behaviorsabout annual policyaudits.

The firm also presentedthe Anne Sceia Klein

Professional Promise award to RachelChristie, a senior at La Salle Universityin Philadelphia. The award, givenannually, was created in 2007 to mark thefirm’s 25th anniversary.

The AKCG team shows off thePepperpot awards.

Staff News

Anne and Jerry to be honored by AHAAnne and Jerry Klein will receive the

inaugural Go Red for Women “Heart ofSouth Jersey Award” from the SouthernNew Jersey affiliate of the AmericanHeart Association. The award, which“celebrates individuals making sustained,unique or extraordinary efforts ... advanc-ing women’s issues and promoting ahealthy lifestyle for all,” will bepresented on April 17 at the annual GoRed luncheon.

Anne has been active with the AHA fornearly 15 years. She served on the board,becoming its chairperson, and on theExecutive Leadership Team for Go Red.In 2011, she recruited Jerry to form theRed Tie Brigade. Jerry chaired the groupfor three years and was successful inrecruiting an influential group of menwho are involved in the Go Red luncheonto honor and celebrate the women in theirlives.

Jerry Appointed to BoardJerry Klein was recently appointed to

the Board of Visitors for TempleUniversity’s School of Media andCommunications. The Board providescounsel and advice on the developmentof strategic plans, policy formation andacademic matters. Last fall, Jerry wasinducted into SMC’s Alumni Hall ofFame.

Serving the CommunityKathryn Conda, recently promoted to

Account Executive from SeniorAssociate, continues to serve as chair ofthe Mentoring Committee of thePhiladelphia Public RelationsAssociation, connecting youngprofessionals with seasoned practitioners.In the coming months she will serve as anAmbassador with the Chamber ofCommerce of Southern New Jersey.

Senior Associate Darrah Foster is alsokeeping busy as a volunteer. She servedon the committee that planned PPRA’sAnnual Gold Medal Award luncheon thispast November. For the third year,Darrah is helping to plan PPRA’s Careers101, an annual program for students andyoung professionals. Darrah continues aschair of PPRA’s Recruitment and Reten-tion Committee.

Darrah also served as a mediacoordinator at the Philadelphia FlowerShow. In the coming weeks Darrah willparticipate in PRSA’s PR Institute, anadvanced eight-week training programwhere participants join a mock-agencyteam to create and pitch an integratedcommunications plan to a real-life client.

AKCG is working with long-time clientCroda Inc, a chemical manufacturer inNew Castle, Del., to develop mediainterest and community engagement forits recently announced plans to establishthe first U.S.-based surfactant plant touse corn-based bio-ethanol. Thisinvestment, which will bring new jobs tothe region and new opportunities toCroda, grows out of the company’ssustainability initiatives. Followingmonths of strategic planning andanticipating community interest, AKCGhelped Croda announce its plans andsecured media coverage in thecommunity’s primary newspaper, theDelaware News Journal and its onlinecounterpart, delawareonline.com (photoat right), among others. As thepermitting process and developmentprogresses, ACKG will help Croda usherin this one-of-a-kind operation.

In January the AKCG team, togetherwith client New Jersey AmericanWater, designed and implemented aunique social media contest. Thecompetition, hosted on Twitter, taskedmiddle school science studentsthroughout New Jersey to photograph

and submit their building projects leadingup to the Future City Regional Finals atRutgers University on January 18. Priorto competition day, student teamssubmitted “Selfie Sneak Peek” photos oftheir projects and tagged entries with thehashtag #NJAWNeers. The first annual#NJAWNeer photo contest attractedseveral creative entries and elevated NewJersey American Water’s Twitter profilethroughout the state. Leading edgeengineering practices are the foundationof New Jersey American Water’s dailyoperations. The company sponsors theFuture City Competition annually toreinforce this message and to encourageyoung students to learn about careers inthe water industry. This year’s winningteam, Iselin Middle School inWoodbridge, N.J., received a $500 cashprize to invest into math and sciencesupplies at their school.

Client News

AKCG’s Kathryn Conda, Jerry Kleinand Anne Klein were guests of SJMagazine publisher and editor-in-chiefMarianne Aleardi (second from right) inNovember at a sneak preview of anentertaining new TV program called“This is South Jersey.” Hosted byAleardi, it’s a lifestyle show focusing onthe people and places of Southern NewJersey. Each month, the program followsAleardi as she explores the places thatmake South Jersey such a great place tolive and visit. Anne Klein is a member ofthe magazine’s editorial advisory board.

And if you thought you spotted acouple of familiar faces in SJ Magazinerecently, you were right! The photo wasof Anne and Jerry in their 1976 weddingphoto. The two were highlighted in theFebruary issue (just in time forValentine’s Day) featuring stories of howsome local couples first met.

Spotlight on a Client

Bringing Attention to Mercy Life’sQuality Healthcare and Adult Programs

As part of its 2014 expansion into all ofDelaware County, Pa., AKCG clientMercy LIFE celebrated the grandopening of Mercy LIFE Sharon Hill lastNovember. The grand opening eventincluded a dedication and blessing, openhouse and facility tours in addition to thethird annual Mercy LIFE DevotedCaregiver Award presentation, all in timefor National Family Caregivers Month inNovember.

Mercy LIFE is a nationally recognizedProgram for All-Inclusive Care for theElderly (PACE) and the new facility,located conveniently on a major localthorofare, expands access to qualityhealthcare and adult day programservices to all qualifying Delco seniors.

In addition to the grand openingceremony, Mercy LIFE celebrated itsthird annual Devoted Caregiver Awardprogram. The award, established in 2012to recognize one outstanding Mercy LIFEfamily caregiver, was presented to JuanitaSmith of South Philadelphia. Smith, abusy mother of five, has dedicated herlife to caring for her mother Wilhelmina,a Mercy LIFE participant who suffersfrom early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.

The celebration and Devoted CaregiverAward ceremony featured a program ofspeakers, including Delaware CountyCouncil Chairman and Senator-elect TomMcGarrigle; a representative from theoffice of U.S. Senator Pat Toomey; andKaren Hepp, anchor/reporter for FOX 29News. Susan Croushore, InterimPresident & CEO of Mercy HealthSystem, and Carol Quinn, MSN, BSN,RN, CEO of Mercy LIFE and MercyHome Health, also gave remarks.

Fox 29 anchor/reporter Karen Hepppresents the 2014 Mercy LIFE DevotedCaregiver Award to recipient JuanitaSmith at the third annual DevotedCaregiver event in November.

At Mercy Philadelphia Hospital,110-year-old Viola Toomer recoveredfrom hip surgery in record time. Shownin the photo above with her orthopedicsurgeon, Dr. Menachem Meller, Ms.Toomer is the oldest patient ever toundergo hip surgery at the hospital. Sheshared her inspiring story with NBC 10reporter Cydney Long.

And of special note: Mercy LIFEparticipant Muriel Nesbitt recentlycelebrated her 100th birthday at theNorth Hancock Day Center with herfriends, family, and Zac Lashway fromWPHL-TV’s popular morning program,Eye Opener Philly.

More Client News

With our region enduring one of thecoldest winters on record, cardiologistDr. Thomas Metkus of client NazarethHospital shared heart-healthy wintersafety tips with listeners of Philadelphia’sKYW Newsradio. Nazareth’s Dr. GeorgeHobbib spoke on WCAU-TV (NBC 10)to alert viewers to the potential forinjuries resulting from cold weather.

Chris Lukach and Mike Gross recentlyled two days of spokesperson training forresearchers and administrators at theJohns Hopkins University BloombergSchool of Public Health in Baltimore.The extensive program began with aworkshop to introduce fundamentalspokesperson techniques to more than100 attendees, and ended with a series ofsmall-group training sessions, duringwhich attendees refined their techniquesthrough on-camera exercises.

Ron Sussman and Tricia Pilone, the powerhouse husband and wife teambehind Voorhees, N.J.-based CPI Companies and PolicyAudits.com,shared their story of success in business and in love with the PhiladelphiaBusiness Journal in November. The full-page feature highlighted some oftheir top tips for business owners. CPI Companies is a South Jersey-basedlife insurance brokerage firm that works with clients to identify lifeinsurance best practices and recommend policies that best meet clients’changing needs as their lives and business evolve. PolicyAudits.comprovides easy access to a client advocate within the life insurance industryand provides a patented process of evaluating life insurance policies fromany insurance carrier anywhere in the world.

Printed on recycled paper

(Continued from front page.)

KALEIDOSCOPE is published byAnne Klein Communications Group, LLC

1000 Atrium Way, Suite 102Mount Laurel, NJ 08054-3903

856-866-0411

e-mail: newsletter@annekleincg.comWWW: http://www.annekleincg.com

Editor — Jerry Klein

AKCG is a member of IPREX (theInternational Public RelationsExchange), one of the world’s largestpublic relations networks.

Don't Forget To Practice ...

Anne Klein Communications Group isa public relations consulting firm basedin the Philadelphia region, with clientsthroughout the United States.

The firm is certified as a Small BusinessEnterprise (SBE) by the State of NewJersey.

Nice Words

I know I don’t say it enough but I justwanted to thank you for your constantsupport of Mercy. You are wonderful towork with and I personally feelcomforted that I can reach out to you at amoment’s notice when something uniqueand interesting happens. You help tocalm me down, make me laugh and dealeffectively with the situation at hand.Don’t know what I or Mercy would dowithout you.

Ann D’AntonioSenior Director,Marketing CommunicationsMercy Health System

Fortunately, fundamentalspokesperson techniques – tried andtrue – remain just as valid as ever.

AKCG’s training philosophycenters on helping spokespersonspresent key message points andcommunicate with authority andcredibility. Being an effectivespokesperson doesn’t mean beingflashy or quick-witted; it does meanbeing a “natural” and thoughtfulcommunicator.

The best spokespersons are thosewho understand their value, theirrole, and their responsibility. Theyassimilate the techniques. Theyexercise control. They know howto say what they need to say andthen stop. — C.J.L.