Killer Content
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.”
