In the United States, just over 56 million acres of land exist as Native American reservations, which is about 2.3 percent of the ancestral indigenous land that the country occupies. Despite its relatively small geographic footprint, the treasure trove of cultural richness and heritage found within tribal communities is undeniable.
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Color is simple, right? Black is black, red is red and white is white. Well, not always.
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While data-driven insights undeniably play a crucial role in marketing and communications, there are times when being led by data without considering its context and potential biases can lead to flawed decision-making. We explore when to listen to your gut over the numbers and how embracing your instincts can fuel innovation and success.
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By Julie Wright —President
Twitter: @juliewright
I recently had the opportunity to hear from Jon Goldberg of Reputation Architects on managing your online reputation. The occasion was the PRSA Western District Conference in Phoenix, April 11 and 12 where I spoke on a storytelling panel.
Goldberg is a seasoned public relations and reputation strategist advising Fortune 500 clients as Chief Reputation Architect with his firm, specialists in managing your online reputation and offline as well.
I learned about many different landmines lurking on the web. The risks run from websites that post damaging content and then charge fees to remove it to consultants who cut corners to suppress damaging search engine results.
Goldberg shared story after story of reputation management gone awry as well as best practices to follow for managing your online reputation.
If you find yourself the subject of an Internet nastygram, Goldberg advised that you have three options:
When emotions are running high, it’s hard for people to keep their cool and put things in perspective. However, ignoring damaging content online is often the best strategy. More on this below.
Through the publication of a large volume of search-optimized content, you can seek to overwhelm the negative result in search engine rankings. Search algorithms are wise to these strategies so attempting to game the system can raise Google’s suspicion.
“The idea is to publish a steady stream of high-quality content, which over time will push negative search results off the first page. Attempting to game the system by pumping out low-quality content and questionable links, a technique used by many black-hat SEO companies, will just lead to a bigger and potentially more embarrassing mess in organic search,” said Goldberg.
If you want to make a negative search result vanish forever, you also have only three options: ask nicely, threaten the publisher or sue.
Threatening or suing both risk angering the outlet. For instance, if you’re a Fortune 1000 company targeting a small publisher or individual, the David-and-Goliath narrative will give your brand a black eye. Suing is risky because libel, slander, defamation and other such allegations are difficult to prove to the courts.
Goldberg shared a few examples of online reputation management gone horribly wrong. One very interesting example is what has become known as the Streisand Effect. It refers to a situation where Barbra Streisand’s Malibu home was photographed in a public database of coastal lands. She sued the photographer to have her home removed from the database. From Wikipedia:
Before Streisand filed her lawsuit, “Image 3850” had been downloaded from Adelman’s website only six times; two of those downloads were by Streisand’s attorneys. As a result of the case, public knowledge of the picture increased greatly; more than 420,000 people visited the site over the following month.
Sometimes confrontation attracts even more unwanted attention and ignoring the content is the best course.
So, how do you legitimately suppress an unfortunate online mention?
“Good content is the answer to bad content,” said Goldberg.
Publishing good content that attracts significant views and inbound links from other reputable sites with high domain authority is the answer.
Goldberg’s message perfectly echoed the sentiment presented by another of the conference’s speakers, Gini Dietrich. Dietrich is founder and CEO of marketing communications firm Arment Dietrich in Chicago. She is also lead blogger at the PR and marketing blog Spin Sucks. She urged public relations practitioners to lean into PR’s power for producing credible, high-ranking online content.
Working with media outlets to get that content published with an optimized inbound hyperlink are the key to raising search engine visibility for good content.
Both Dietrich and Goldberg warned that there are many underqualified and ill-equipped service providers who are encroaching on what should be PR’s domain (reputation management and story pitching and placement). These unscrupulous SEO consultants would have companies believe that reputations and rankings can be bought cheap.
However, the outcomes produced by these firms look cheap and cheapen your reputation. They’ll generate gibberish articles, plagiarized or generic content, and black hat SEO techniques that can get you blacklisted from review sites.
It reminds me of my advice to young PR practitioners: there are no PR shortcuts. The same is true for managing your online reputation, not to mention your offline reputation.
Reputation management is like a game of chutes and ladders. It takes a lot of work and many years to build up your reputation but only minutes and one mistake to tear it down.
Don’t be fooled into thinking your reputation online is any different.
By Julie Wright —President
Twitter: @juliewright
Has your mom ever used your childhood nickname in front of your adult friends? That’s how I feel when someone uses the term publicist or publicity to describe my work.
Generating positive media coverage is definitely among the many functions performed by a public relations professional. But the word “publicist” says nothing of the research, strategy, messaging and many other thoughtful, and even artful, activities that go into a successful public relations program. The word, in my opinion, minimizes my work.
For that reason, I would like to see “publicist” buried next to “flack” and “spin doctor.”
Public relations professionals are strategic communicators.
Two years ago, PRSA’s 2017 Chair, Jane Dvorak, addressed the PRSA Western District Conference in Riverside, Calif. urging attendees to see themselves as leaders, strategists and analysts. To my ear, “publicist” is a label that says none of those things. Two years later, I continue to hear this term applied to describe work that is only about 10-20 percent producing media coverage.
If you’re not convinced that “publicist” needs to go, give these four points careful consideration, and let me know if they help change your thinking. (If you already agree, these may help you convert or at least educate others.)
We work in a very transactional environment today. Marketing and communications outcomes are boiled down to clicks, likes, links and conversions, but the stakeholders who need to receive your messages are not clicks and conversions—they’re real human beings who crave meaningful emotional connections with other real human beings.
This absolutely includes journalists.
Media databases like Cision and Meltwater make it much easier to build a big list than a targeted one. Journalists become email addresses and not people. Instead of building a relationship with the media, this transactional approach plays a numbers game. Ultimately, when the media gripes about getting a PR pitch addressed to the wrong name or that’s a country mile off the mark, it’s because they’re not being communicated to as human beings.
Public relations requires building understanding, changing perceptions and motivating behaviors and beliefs. Those kinds of outcomes need a relational versus transactional approach, which requires understanding your audiences and treating them as humans. This can be accomplished through surveys, interviews and focus groups and using that information to create personas.
Publicity is just too limiting a term to encompass these approaches.
As public relations professionals, we can’t fulfill our role and responsibilities with a tactical mindset. We must think strategically.
From research to message development and testing to creative—strategy drives the choices we make, and those choices drive our campaign results. Did we communicate in a manner that earned our audience’s attention and resonated with them so that their perceptions, beliefs and behaviors were impacted?
I equate publicity with none of the above. Instead, I picture someone producing a bunch of press clippings which is useful if stroking your client’s ego is the only goal of your campaign.
There is far more pitching, posting and publishing than listening on social media and the web these days. I like the term coined by Mark Schaefer five years ago, Content Shock, to sum up the impact of content marketing run rampant. Schaefer pointed out then how the pace and volume of content being produced far exceeded the pace and volume of content being consumed.
Anyone today who is pushing content or a message without creating a way for the recipient to engage, respond and be heard is missing a huge opportunity to build relationships.
Communicators who create space for their stakeholders to be heard are the ones doing it right. When a crisis hits, they’ll be able to engage in conversations with their customers or investors rather than an avalanche of angry or outraged Tweets and Facebook posts.
The brands that weather crises more easily than others are those that have built relationships and goodwill with their stakeholders. And those are the brands being stewarded by strategic communicators and not publicists.
A decade ago, traditional media outlets underwent an implosion, while podcasts, online videos, blogs and social media storytelling platforms exploded. In the aftermath of these two trends, traditional media gatekeepers like the daily newspaper or evening newscast have lost their ability to influence public perception at scale.
Earned media was once the bread and butter of the public relations function, but today, it is just one of several communication platforms our profession employs to reach and engage with its stakeholders.
The contemporary integrated approach, sometimes referred to as the PESO Model, combines paid, earned, shared and owned media. Paid media can include social media ads and boosting or Google AdWords. Earned media includes press coverage but can include analyst relations, awards and speaking opportunities that imply and/or impart third-party validation. Shared media refers to social networks like Facebook but also review sites like TripAdvisor and Yelp. Owned media describes all of the creative assets at your disposal to engage your audiences and to interact with them directly including print, digital and multimedia content.
Publicity is a component of only one of those four platforms, making it an inadequate label for describing what today’s strategic communicators do.
It’s time to toss this transactional, tactical, and out-of-touch term. It’s old school and perpetuates a narrow stereotype of what public relations today actually is. Publicity is about as apropos to what my team and I do every day at (W)right On Communications as my childhood nickname is to my adult identity. Now, if only I could get my mom to stop calling me Oobies.
By Julie Wright —President
Twitter: @juliewright
We recently moved our San Diego head office into a beautiful new space. I couldn’t wait to share it with the world. There was just one problem. Our new setting needed to be experienced rather than described or shown. Words either fell flat or came off as braggadocious and standard photos and video weren’t capturing the scene I wanted to depict.
How could I share our agency story so people could experience virtually what our team was experiencing in real life?
Inspired by a recent journalism presentation I attended on immersive storytelling, I realized that, as a PR professional, I could use 360° cameras for visual storytelling too—in fact, a 360° camera was probably the perfect solution for my quandary. So, I began browsing Amazon for options and settled on the Samsung Gear 360.
For $99, this camera shoots in 4K, has a microphone and takes photos and videos plus time lapse, live video and HDR landscape images. It has two lenses–one in the front and the other in the rear. You can shoot from just one lens for an extra wide angle, panoramic-style still or video. When you use both lenses, the camera’s software stitches the images captured by each lens together to create a seamless 360° view of your surroundings.
Visual storytelling is more important than ever. In the information economy, the scarcest commodity is attention, and visuals are the most economical vehicle for communicators to get their points across.
That’s because the brain can process visual information—or at least recognize a concept—in as little as 13 milliseconds, according to MIT research released in 2014. (By comparison, it takes 400 milliseconds to blink an eye.)
Through strategic design, motion graphics and video, today’s storytellers can convey a message or create a feeling in their target audience “at a glance”—and a glance may be all you have. The visual draws your audience’s attention and makes them care long enough to read the rest of your message or material. Additionally, visual content is highly correlated with recall. An audience exposed only to text or spoken word could recall 10 to 20 percent of the content after three days. With visuals, audience recall rose to an average of 65 percent. (For more on visual storytelling, check out our most recent newsletter.)
There’s a hierarchy at work: still images outperform text, motion graphics outperform still images, video outperforms motion graphics and live experiences outperform video. As an experiential form of video, 360° cameras for visual storytelling can bridge that gap between stills, videos and experiences.
Social media stories (videos with animated gifs and virtual reality filters like Snapchat’s and Instagram’s) illustrate this hierarchy perfectly as they have nearly overtaken traditional feed posts as the new preferred medium for social sharing.
And news outlets have embraced 360° storytelling too with The New York Times, Associated Press and others using this technology to immerse their readers and viewers in their reports from the field.
Don’t be afraid to use this technology. I wouldn’t call myself a technophile by any stretch of the imagination. I hate reading user manuals and expect my tech to be intuitive to use right out of the box. That said, the instructions for the Samsung Gear 360 were straightforward and easy to digest.
After charging the device; I downloaded the app on my Samsung S9 (an iPhone app is also available), inserted a memory card (sold separately), connected my phone via Bluetooth and started taking photos and videos using my phone to control the device and to store the images too.
You’ll want to get familiar with the camera’s features. Give yourself the opportunity to learn what works and how to get the best images when you’re not under pressure or on the clock. Set aside some time and space to play with your new toy. You’ll quickly see for yourself what each mode can do. Below are some examples that I shot from our San Diego and Los Angeles offices and a few from my summer visit to Honolulu:
Click and drag your cursor to experience the agency’s La Jolla office from all directions!
Click the image and drag your cursor to see who’s at the table!
These 360° images become interactive when uploaded directly to Facebook. Your followers just need to tip, tilt and turn their mobile handset to view the image from all angles. Here’s an example—if you’re reading this on your mobile device, click on the link and give it a try.
Your thumbs and fingers might wind up in your 360° shots because the 360° view is so wide.
To keep your thumbs out of the shot, secure the camera on a slender extendable mount of some kind. I found that a light stand worked perfectly. I also tried a stabilizer I had been using for taking standard video with my smart phone, but its mount was too chunky and showed up in the shot. Most light stands have a simple screw at the top upon which the Samsung Gear 360 model fits securely. Light stands are generally very lightweight, collapsible and inexpensive.
Ultimately, I also purchased a short, lightweight tripod that I can also hold in my hand to keep my fingers out of the image and which is easier to travel with.
Once the camera is mounted on a tripod, you can control it from a distance using your Bluetooth-connected phone. That means that you can place the camera to capture a scene and then go pose for the shot. With the camera’s timer mode, you can also set up a shot and give yourself a few seconds to put your camera down and get yourself or your group into position.
If you’re holding the device in your hand, you’ll be happier with the results if you look up at the camera and say “cheese” or, as explained above, place it on a tripod and operate the camera at a distance with your smart phone for a less posed shot.
With the 360° video setting, the immersive nature of a moving image can be a bit disorienting. A gimbal device can be used to create a more professional, totally stabilized image or video.
But even without additional stabilizing accessories you can capture motion elegantly.
First, place the camera on a tripod so that it’s perfectly still. Allow the camera to capture the motion around it. That will give the viewer the sense that they’re immersed in the action without the distraction of jarring camera movements.
Second, make use of the time lapse setting. Hold the camera at a distance on a narrow stabilizer and slowly move through the scene that you’re seeking to capture. Because the final image will be considerably sped up, any jerky motions won’t be visible. This effect creates a fun, high-energy image and can really boil a scene or experience down into mere seconds for at-a-glance communication.
Third, combine a tripod with the time lapse feature. Using the tripod, take a time lapse image of the surroundings. If the experience you’re trying to capture is something like an event getting set up, a streetfront or bustling beach scene, this combination will immerse your viewer in that place and convey the scene in mere seconds.
Depending on the 360° product you’re using, it may have a “Stabilize” setting, which, in the case of the Gear 360, automatically corrects shaky or tilted photos and videos. If you’re uploading to YouTube to share your footage, you can also toggle YouTube’s Auto-Fix or Stabilize Video options in its Effects menu before publishing.
The uses are manifold! Essentially, anytime you want your audience to feel or experience something remotely or virtually, 360° video or stills are a great tool in your communicator’s toolkit.
Hospitality PR pros can bring prospective guests and media right into the property’s lobby or immerse them in a nearby visitor attraction. A technology public relations team can bring the trade-show floor or their CES booth to life. And imagine doing that as a behind-the-scenes Facebook or Instagram live video to tease your booth or product launch? If you’re in entertainment PR, this technology is perfect to immerse your audience in a red carpet or festival experience.
I’m most excited by this technology for nonprofit visual storytelling. Putting your donors in the environment of the people, places or pets that their philanthropy helps can be incredibly powerful. A hospital foundation can show the new wing or equipment that its donors helped fund, a food bank can show its empty shelves ahead of a food drive and a nature preserve can share a time lapse with hikers, wildlife and passing clouds to encourage public support.
All of the above are perfectly suited for social media engagement too. And with Facebook and YouTube supporting 360° video, you can use these social networks to share your immersive visual stories.
If you’re ready to try a 360° camera for visual storytelling, you can buy one for about the same price as a 164 GB storage card, and you’ll likely need both, so budget at least $200. While you might be able to save $20 by buying a smaller memory card, why have regrets when you run out of storage capacity in the middle of a video shoot?
A light stand as a tripod may run you a minimum of $20 and a handheld stabilizer about $15 to $500 depending on how fancy you want to get.
I also upgraded the storage card on my phone to make sure I would not run out of storage space as I began accumulating more large video files. And the Landscape HDR mode images are quite large too – but beyond worth it. (I never want to take a standard landscape photo again!)
If you do go for it (or are already producing 360° video and immersive stories for your client or company), I’d love to hear about your experiences or see your work. Share with me on Instagram at @juliewrightPR or see our agency’s feed at @wrightoncomm. I can’t wait to see how others are using immersive storytelling to earn attention and drive interest in their messages.
And if you’re not yet but would like to bring a 360° influencer to your site or work with an agency that is embracing new methods to bring your story to your audience, please contact us at info@wrightoncomm.com.
The results will be well worth it!
Justin BeachJustin Beach brings over 25 years of expertise in web development, programming and technical support to his role at (W)right On Communications. As the agency’s Web Developer and Technical Resource, Justin ensures our client partners’ digital platforms are optimized for success and deliver seamless functionality and a compelling user experience.
Justin’s career spans leadership and entrepreneurial roles with experience building corporate websites, e-commerce platforms and electronic marketing campaigns for a diverse client base. His technical fluency extends across PHP, ASP, MySQL, CSS, JS and multiple database architectures.
Previously, Justin supported strategic SEO campaigns at Myers Media Group, creating platforms responsible for deploying over a million search-optimized web pages. He also led the development of an online shopping platform for Kodak subsidiary ENCAD, Inc., driving e-commerce growth through sophisticated web solutions and marketing integrations.
From guiding print marketing clients into the digital age to deploying hundreds of websites across various frameworks, Justin’s ability to blend design and technical expertise has benefited industries ranging from finance and bioscience to wellness and nonprofit organizations.
At (W)right On Communications, Justin’s creative problem-solving, deep technical know-how and passion for excellence power our clients’ digital strategies, elevating their brands in the digital space.
Blake BunchBlake provides (W)right On’s client partners more than 15 years of experience as a regional newspaper Editor, Copywriter and Digital Content Creator. Blake is instrumental in creating media relations strategies and results; optimizing website strategies and road mapping; developing creative, engaging, SEO-driven and data-oriented content across all platforms in brand voice; and keeping abreast of emerging digital, social media and website technologies. Blake has a strong understanding of cultural diversity and what resonates with audiences; is adept at delivering complex content projects under tight deadline; and leads analytical reviews to improve processes and recommendations.
A resident of San Diego’s coastal community, Blake holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the College of Charleston, South Carolina.
Claudia Askew, APRClaudia Askew, APR is based in Washington, D.C. and draws on her 30 years of experience in strategic communications to serve client partners in the energy, cleantech and B2B sectors. She led marketing and PR planning for the NeighborWorks America program for eight years helping low-income residents in all 50 states access down payment assistance through the Neighborhood LIFT program. She has a long history of volunteerism helping underserved youth and low-income women, and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Speech Communication from Wake Forest University and her Accredited in PR (APR) designation from the Public Relations Society of America.
Marsha KellyMarsha Kelly has dedicated her career to assisting American Indian tribal communities and businesses with strategies to diversify their economies through wind farms, solar arrays, EV charging infrastructure and other initiatives. Her tribal relationships include the Mesa Grande Band of Mission Indians and the Minnesota Indian Gaming Association with consulting to other tribes across California, Michigan, New Mexico, North and South Dakota and Wisconsin. She holds a Bachelor of Science in English and Communications from the University of Minnesota.
Tatiana MartinezTatiana Martinez leads Spanish-language media outreach and community relations efforts for the agency and its client partners. She acts as a spokesperson for Spanish-language media and business or community group outreach. Tatiana has provided translations, Spanish voiceovers and strategies for reaching Spanish-speaking stakeholders. A former journalist for Mexican and American media outlets, Tatiana has a journalism degree from the University of Arizona and communications degree from Mexico’s Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara.
Terry WhitakerA communications veteran with more than 20 years’ experience, Terry brings brand development and communication programs to life through strategic counsel and event activations across the agency’s client partners. He’s most at home developing and implementing fresh ideas and strategically integrated approaches for client partners’ complex communication needs that keep the agency at the forefront of our industry.
Before joining the (W)right On team, Terry was based in Sydney, Australia and represented client partners such as the USA’s National Football League, Visit California, Sydney Festival, Budweiser, Electronic Sports League, Holden, IBM, TEDx, Major League Baseball International and numerous others.
Terry’s past accomplishments include winning a Bronze Media Lion Award at the Cannes International Advertising Festival; helping three Australian startups be named to the Fast 100; and managing media relations for the Australian speaking tours of former US Presidents Bill Clinton and George HW Bush involving hundreds of journalists and raising millions for charity.
Outside of his professional endeavors, Terry enjoys family time with his wife and two young children, travel and team sports.
Julie WrightJulie Wright is President of (W)right On Communications, Inc., the award-winning integrated strategic communications firm she founded in 1998. With offices in San Diego, Los Angeles and Vancouver, B.C., her team handles complex communications challenges for B2B tech, cleantech and energy, healthcare, tourism and hospitality, not-for-profit and public sector organizations. Wright and her team elevate the agency experience through data-driven insights and measurable results for client partners.
Earlier in her career, Wright served at several public relations agencies and in-house as Director of Marketing for a financial institution. She began her career as a journalist, working as a radio news anchor.
Wright currently serves as a director and past chair of the San Diego North Economic Development Council and a director of CalTravel. Her previous community service has included director of the Los Angeles chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators, board vice president of the La Jolla Village Merchants Association, trustee for the Tri-City Hospital Foundation and chair of the President’s Advisory Council for California State University San Marcos.
Wright was named a “Woman Who Means Business” by the San Diego Business Journal and a “40 Under 40” honoree by the San Diego Metropolitan magazine. She was also recognized with the annual Fran Aleshire Award for community leadership by Leadership North County and founded the LNC Alumni group, which is now 400 strong.
Wright holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of B.C. and a Master of Journalism degree from the Graduate School of Journalism at the University of Western Ontario. She is a graduate of the Leadership North County program as well as the Corporate Directors Forum Governance Academy.
She lives in San Diego with her husband, has two sons in college, loves being outdoors in Southern California and Vancouver, and has a passion for elephants, frogs and Champagne. Twitter LinkedIn Facebook
Alex MikhailAlex Mikhail brings more than four years of experience as a communications & public relations professional to his role as a Communications Strategist with (W)right On Communications. Alex possesses a particular interest in media relations, having established and maintained relationships with myriad producers, editor and reporters from coast to coast. At (W)right On, he’s responsible for such strategic activities as content creation, media outreach, relationship building, client reporting, etc. A native of Southern California, Alex earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications with a minor in public relations from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.
Grant WrightGrant Wright has more than 30 years of senior management experience including external affairs and business development leadership roles for major American and Canadian corporations and their subsidiaries. With extensive skills in all aspects of communications including media, regulatory, governmental, community outreach and labor relations; he has also led major infrastructure project development, M&A due diligence and implementation management, marketing and brand development, strategic planning and business plan development for small through Fortune 500 companies.
As CEO and Managing Partner, Grant provides oversight and senior-level communications and business counsel for the agency’s client partners while also overseeing agency management and administration.
Grant holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and an MBA in Marketing and Finance. Professionally, he is formerly a Board Director of the San Diego Venture Group (now Connect San Diego – the region’s venture capital ecosystem). Grant is a two-time Finalist for the San Diego Business Journal’s Most Admired CEO Awards, and currently is in his second year as Chair of the North American chapter of the International PR Network (IPRN) based in Brussels, Belgium. He is also one of five board directors chosen by its worldwide membership for a second year to lead IPRN globally. A resident of and advocate for San Diego, and with (W)right On being a prominent tenant in San Diego’s iconic Emerald Plaza, Grant also serves on the board of directors of the Downtown San Diego Partnership.
During his free time, Grant enjoys scuba diving, hiking and family time. He is also a commercial pilot licensed in both Canada and the U.S. and is the founding board chairman of the Southern California Aviation Association that has provided more than $500,000 in student scholarship grants since the organization’s inception.
David CumpstonDavid brings more than 22 years of communication experience to (W)right On’s client partners, currently overseeing the agency’s hospitality, tourism, senior living, wellness and education practice areas. He has developed and successfully led strategic communications for numerous prominent brands including JP Morgan Chase, Oakmont Management Group, Aramark, San Diego Tourism Marketing District, SEGA, RISE Healthcare Group, Horizon Organic, Visit Napa Valley, Stanford Children’s Hospital, Orbitz, Best Western, Walmart and Velodyne Lidar.
He is a two-time winner of Bulldog Media’s Best Response to Breaking News Award and earned a bachelor degree in Mass Communication & Public Relations from Texas State University. David cemented his love for travel early on and has visited more than 45 countries on six continents; he’s also passionate about dogs and, in particular, his Chiweenie mix, Dora.
Larry SmalheiserLarry is a strategic communications and PR pro who brings more than 20 years’ in-house, agency and independent experience driving brand visibility, supporting sales growth, and establishing executives as thought leaders in the B2B and B2C spaces. He has a track record of building, leading, and excelling on cross-functional global teams for emerging and established brands including Sony, Dell, VMware, RSA, Xerox, Virgin Galactic, Underwriters Laboratories, Purfresh, Radiant Logic, Sumo Logic and more. He regularly serves as mentor to business and community organizations and has earned two PRSA Silver Anvil Awards for his work over the years.
Larry most recently served as Public Relations and Analyst Relations Lead at Sony Electronics, where he worked closely with Sony Electronics North America President & COO, and the global team. He holds a Master’s degree, is fluent in Japanese and Spanish, and lives in San Diego with his wife and their rescue Morkie, Cookie.
Felicia WatsonWith a proven track record of success and more than 20 years of design and marketing experience, Felicia approaches each project with a commitment to create an impactful design that achieves results. Responsible for leading the agency’s creative services that integrate print and digital graphic design, online programming, videography, editing and photography, Felicia also oversees agency services including animation, motion graphics, and emerging technologies including augmented/virtual reality and holography as they may be integrated in strategic communication programs.
Through the course of her career, Felicia has created effective marketing campaigns for many notable domestic and international brands including the Motion Picture Association of America, Kirkland, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, bliss Skincare, City National Bank, Abbott Diagnostics, KB Home and more.
Felicia was named a 2023 San Diego Business Journal Leader of Influence in Advertising, PR & Marketing. Felicia holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of San Diego and enjoys keeping abreast of new creative technologies in the ever-evolving field of marketing communications.
Corie FiebigerWith more than 10 years of experience in prior marketing roles in the Santa Barbara and Los Angeles markets, Corie supports the (W)right On team in multi-channel digital marketing, client relations management, social media, copywriting and copyediting, research and analytics, media pitching and more.
Corie holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from the University of California Santa Barbara.
Brian WrightResponsible for communication programs research and analysis, Brian provides administrative and functional support to the agency’s program leads as well as senior management. With experience managing a retail store in the complex pool supply industry, Brian is a key contributor for social media programs, media relations, content development, vendor management, software programs oversight and other critical program aspects. He brings an innate sense of the agency’s GSD attitude to help ensure the agency remains at the industry forefront.
Brian holds a Bachelor of Economics degree from the University of Victoria in British Columbia, is an FAA-licensed Private Pilot, and is an accomplished musician and music producer in his spare time.
Shae GearyShae Geary is a seasoned professional with 20 years of experience representing world-class travel and hospitality PR clients. Formerly PR Director with Four Seasons Resorts and a consultant for a wide variety of resorts in California, Hawaii and Mexico, Shae began her career in Hawaii for six years with the state’s largest PR firm. Over the course of her career, Shae has spearheaded numerous campaigns involving everything from hotel openings and property renovations to anniversaries and special events. Her expertise in communications and all things hospitality includes a broad range of niche markets – spa, golf, recreation, weddings, dining, luxury, family and green travel. Shae holds a Bachelor’s degree from Arizona State University and Master’s degree in Mass Communications (with PR emphasis) from UC Santa Barbara. In her spare time, Shae enjoys playing soccer, running training and spending time with her husband and two kids.
Roman LukjanenkoWith more than 10 years of video production experience, Roman is a skilled cinematographer, editor and animator for such organizations as HP, PetSmart, Airbnb and Nike. Prior to joining the (W)right On team, Roman supported UCLA and UCLA Health where he successfully helped researchers, educators and healthcare professionals communicate their messages through comprehensive videos and motion graphic animations. Roman believes that a well-crafted video brings organizations and their audiences closer together, improving understanding and ultimately strengthening society as a whole.
Phelan RiessenPhelan Riessen is a passionate web and graphic design artist with over 25 years of experience designing and building more than 60 websites for a variety of organizations. Skilled in fontography, web design, Photoshop and web marketing strategies; Phelan also holds a strong presence in the San Diego tech community by serving as an organizer of several large-scale events including RefreshSD, March Mingle and Startup Week.
Katrina EarlyFormerly with VisitBritain and Showtime Networks, Katrina Early provides (W)right On client partners’ integrated and creative partnerships with film and TV studios, retailers, and media outlets such as Sony Pictures, Universal, Warner Brothers, The Ellen DeGeneres Show and Entertainment Tonight to name a few. Experienced in the hospitality, travel, entertainment industries among others, Katrina coordinates all aspects of B2B industry events, as well as grows client partners’ audience social media engagement through highly sharable digital content. Results achieved include positive media placement in top tier outlets including National Geographic, Robb Report, Forbes, USA Today, LA Times, NBC/Today Show, E! News, Extra, The Tonight Show, People and many others. Katrina holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism & Public Relations from CSU Long Beach and a Master of Arts in Communications from the prestigious University of Southern California Annenberg School of Communication.
Hamish MarshallAs Director of Research & Analytics based out of (W)right On’s Vancouver office, Hamish leads (W)right On’s survey and stakeholder information gathering initiatives North America-wide. A former advisor to the Prime Minister of Canada, Provincial Premiers, City Mayors and dozens of elected officials, he also served in the government of Canada overseeing the quantitative and qualitative research activities of federal government agencies. With experience using every sort of data collection method to provide critical insights for strategic planning, marketing and other organizational activities, Hamish has worked with dozens of private and public sector client partners, including the world’s largest mining company. In 2004 he worked in radio business development in Kabul, Afghanistan, and he has volunteered in democracy-building activities in Bangladesh and Jordan. Today, Hamish is frequently sought out by the media as an expert commentator for national television, radio and print publications. Prior to joining (W)right On, Hamish worked as the Research Director for Angus Reid Public Opinion, conducting and performing analysis on surveys in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. He holds a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Oxford in England, a Bachelor of Arts (Honors) degree from the University of Toronto and enjoys history, writing and sailing.