Jon Coifman, VP of the environment practice at Waggener Edstrom Worldwide, led the Wednesday morning breakfast roundtable about “green” issues at PRWeek’s Next Conference.

One of the main concerns for the green movement, Coifman noted, was whether or not people would continue to purchase products and brands that may cost more during hard economic times.

Discussion ranged from the role of gas prices and how they relate to energy reform, the situation facing The Big Three and their economic impact, and the perceptions of Millennials when it comes to concerns about the environment.

Two days after the conference, Coifman noted that he was “pleasantly surprised at the scope and knowledge of understanding” at the roundtable, because so many of the participants worked outside of the sector.

“People outside this space are paying attention,” he says.

Ask a PR professional what word – or phrase - he or she thinks will best describe the next year or two, and you’ll likely get a variety of answers.

When moderator Andrew Heyward, the former CBS News president, asked that question to the folks gathered at the What’s Next for the Media roundtable at the PRWeek Next Conference, most replies regarded technological advancements.

Among the answers: “transparency,” “speed and volume,” “implementation,” “keeping up,” “time management,” and “Twitter.”

Thought leaders make bold predictions about the future of PR and media. Here’s one of many.

Shelly Holmes, EVP, The Rogers Group
PR people will soon be blamed as a party to the financial bail out issues. Over-the-top marketing and hyped media coverage will be blamed for making Americans believe home ownership was not only attainable – but a “right.”

Anyone that works in PR knows that it’s filled with women, and notably, there were a number of top women from the industry speaking at PRWeek’s NEXT conference on Wednesday: Marian Salzman (Porter Novelli), Christine Cea (Unilever), and Shoba Purushothaman (NewsMarket), to name a few. My morning roundtable, “Womenomics - The Rise of Women as Power Influencers” was led by Gail Heimann of Weber Shandwick. Calling it a topic of personal interest, Heimann asked the group to consider how to harness the economic power of women given that they control $14 trillion in global wealth. (I stuck that notecard on one wall of my cube.) A number of ideas arose, including a grassroots campaign on par with breast cancer organizing that would focus on poverty and the earning power of women. Something that would address why women still make less than men. Another idea was an influencer index to find the right women to reach, like the active PTA mom. (more after break) Read more »

In case you couldn’t make it to the NEXT Conference, here are the from #NEXTPRWeek

One of the first sessions at PRWeek’s Next Conference yesterday was “Killer Content.” Moderated by Marian Salzman, CMO at Porter Novelli, the panel featured quite an array of speakers: Bonnie Fuller, former editorial director of American Media and founder of Bonnie Fuller Media; Bill Persky, screenwriter famous for his work on “That Girl” and “Kate and Allie”; and Michael Zimbalist, VP of R&D for The New York Times Co.  Fuller caught my attention the minute she said that she owed a great deal to Britney Spears, whose rise to fame and subsequent downfall she referred to as a “watershed moment in media.”  She was referring of course to the fascination the American public, and particularly women, have with celebrity culture. It also ties into her theory that women are a “very needy and emotional group,” something she is  BBno doubt trying to tap into with her latest media venture, geared toward the 20-40-year-old demographic.

Persky brought his own take on what’s wrong with communications in America. He bemoaned the fact that technology has faciliated “more contact, but less communication.” It’s oddly something I have noted too, odd because Persky is old enough to be my grandfather. Yet his point is an important one for marketers to consider, and it was something Fuller echoed.  Ultimately, communications is about forming an emotional bond with the consumer. Above all, it’s the message that is the most important. While user-generated content has gotten its fair share of buzz over the years, Fuller noted that “slick can still work if you have underlying emotion. It’s all about the message you’re trying to create.”

I had the pleasure of sitting at the “Brands with a Purpose” breakfast roundtable at the PRWeek Next Conference this morning, led by Mitch Markson, president of consumer brands and global creative director at Edelman, and Caroline Dettman, GM, EVP, and US consumer practice director at Edelman. The agency recently released the second annual “good purpose” study, which asked 6,000 consumers worldwide about their commitment to helping others and their interactions with brands that do so as well. One interesting stat: 63% of consumers say brands spend too much money on advertising or marketing and should put more into a good cause.

Yesterday I attended the “40 Under 40″ lunch roundtable at PRWeek’s Next Conference. The roundtable was hosted by Peter Himler, proprietor of Flatiron Communications and blogger at The Flack.

The dominating theme of the discussion was, predictably, social media and defining PR role’s in the digital age. Several participants pointed out that the word “pitch” had not even been used at the day’s conference. And most agreed that the future of the PR isn’t pitching, but it is still somewhat unclear what that future will be.

Steve Rubel, SVP at Edelman Digital, argued the future for PR is “to be found” on sites like Google through SEO. “Google is king,” he said. While Russell Dubner, president of Edelman’s New Yorkoffice, said media relations isn’t going away — even if pitching does. PR’s role will continue to be “provoking conversation,” he noted. The group grappled with the various functions PR plays in different scenarios - from product launches, corporate communications to crisis management. Even so, there was a moment of consensus when Rubel said no matter where the industry goes, PR will still be about “influence, access, and customer acquisition.”

The 40 under 40 list comes out on December 8

Thought leaders make bold predictions about the future of PR and media. Here’s one of many.

Ken Luce, president of Weber Shandwick California and Southwest

PR finally becomes the preferred communication medium for clients. Budget shifts continue as clients invest in PR over other mediums as the importance of reaching audiences through different means (digital, mobile, social, print, TV) continued to drive overall communications.

Not sure which was more exciting yesterday, the delightful appetizers at the cocktail reception after the Next conference or hearing Marianne Diorio, SVP, global comms, The Estee Lauder Companies, speak on the Global Branding panel. She talked about managing comms for the company’s 29 categorically diverse brands, ranging from luxury La Mer to Good Skin. 

Diorio explained that traditional media is still essential for the brands, especially in developing global markets like Russia, Brazil, China, and India. So while the changing media landscape doesn’t necessarily impact the traditional media strategy, it does require that additional attention be paid to new media. The communiations team must understand how to strategically allocate new and traditional media resources where they’ll have the biggest impact, by brand and region. (More after break.) Read more »