Hotwire are MWC legends. Much of the video footage you might have seen from MWC over the years has been thanks to some serious efforts on the part of the Hotwire team moving heaven and earth to sort out logistics to enable me to get some of their client executives on camera. It’s all a bit of a rush during those 3-4 key days and rarely does everything go exactly to plan. Which is why preparation is absolutely key, especially if you’re new to MWC — or if you haven’t yet had the responsibility of managing your CEO’s expectations when he’s expecting you to deliver a sit-down 3-hour fire side chat with a chap from the Financial Times — with 10 minutes notice. And when all he’s got to talk about is a 0.8 product revision.

Oh it’s a stressful time for the PRs. I do my best to get organised as quickly as I can and get the meetings in the diary. And I do my best to try and work with as many PRs and companies as possible during that week.

There are some really smart techniques that you can deploy as a marketer/public relations person. If you happen to know the journalist or blogger in question (and Hotwire do), then you can style the news and announcements to their exact requirements. For instance, I much prefer capturing output on video. I don’t *like* sit down interviews at MWC where I have to take notes, because the chances are I’ll be running a massive sugar low — and can’t write fast enough.

If you’ve got that kind of media knowledge then the chances on getting better, faster or higher quality coverage are so much greater. THIS is the sort of thing the Hotwire team will be discussing at their reception. It’s all informal though. No presentations, no speeches. Just good company, a keen topic and a bit of food & drink.

By the way, in terms of sugar lows, did you know that Rafe Blandford of All About Symbian and All About Windows Phone stuffs his laptop bag with Mars Bars at Heathrow Airport prior to coming to MWC? I thought it was hilarious until I found myself starving running from interview to interview. Rafe’s offer of a Mars Bar kept me going. Now I do the same. BUT. And this is a big but… why don’t you think about doing similar with your press briefings? For instance, last year I arrived to film one of Hotwire’s clients and Annette from their team asked if I’d like a coke from the bar of their client’s stand. Yes. Yes please. It might sound a bit trite or a bit irrelevant, but that sort of thing really can help a blogger/journalist along. These are the sorts of tips I’m getting into order for the reception — I shall be there to vent forth on my viewpoints if you’d like to listen.

Please do consider coming along.

The reception is taking place on the 25th of January 2012 from 6-830pm at Zebrano Bar, 18 Greek Street, Soho, W1D 4DS. If you’d like to come, please simply drop a note to Fiona Stevens (fiona.stevens@hotwirepr.com) to RSVP or give her a call on 020 7608 4697.

But if you’re part of the marketing effort at a mobile company, the chances are you’re working all this week — even if you’re on a ski slope somewhere. You’re working in your mind! Or, panicking professionally — about Mobile World Congress (“MWC”).

It’s a big, big event — the biggest in the calendar for much of the Western world and beyond.

I’d like to invite you to discuss your marketing and public relations activities with me at a pre-MWC reception next month (i.e. late January). It’s being hosted by the team at Hotwire PR (old pros when it comes to MWC). The event is targeted at anyone who’s currently planning their media outreach and who might like to pick a few brains. Hotwire are one of those firms who do MWC very, very well. I have first hand experience as I’ve done what feels like hundreds of interviews with their clients over the years.

Hotwire kindly invited me to attend the event to answer any last minute queries from a blogger/media perspective. I’ve got a lot of views on this topic having been to MWC many, many times — and had some rather (needlessly) stressful interview experiences.

Please do consider coming along.

The reception is taking place on the 25th of January 2012 from 6-830pm at Zebrano Bar, 18 Greek Street, Soho, W1D 4DS. If you’d like to come along, please drop a note to Fiona Stevens (fiona.stevens@hotwirepr.com) to RSVP or give her a call on 020 7608 4697.

Please do pass this note on to any of your colleagues who are quietly sitting in the corner of your office this week stressing about MWC!

Now, I do. Most of the ones I know are either far too busy or allied/employed by a larger agency. These chaps are on the hunt for a freelancer. Do you have any suggestions? Feel free to post here or drop me an email.

Here’s the mail:

We’re looking for some freelance PR / social media help across a couple of clients that are building in the US. We’d prefer a New York based but needs must.

They would need to have a deep knowledge of mobile and digital marketing techniques / tech since both clients are ‘names’ in that space

Can you help us – any leads in would be welcome.

Any suggestions? Mail me, I’ll introduce you.

I regularly receive a heck of a lot of press releases and now and again, for the ones that I think are relevant, I — or one of the team — take the release and ‘write it up’.

This typically causes me no end of arse-ache. That’s because I’m not really that interested in churning ‘news’. I like walking down the street and discovering a new service and then writing about it; or popping into the 3 store and finding they’ve got something coming. Or sitting with a chap from Vodafone hearing their viewpoints on the marketplace. I like meeting people and listening to them explain what they’re doing, what problems they’re solving, what their hopes are for the industry and what kind of customers they’re looking for. If you’re doing something in mobile, chances are, I’m really, really interested — and I probably want to write about it.

‘Write about it’ — I like documenting things. I like getting stuff up and out there. It’s very cathartic, having been an entrepreneur struggling to get coverage, being able to shed light on smart stuff. Sometimes a rather mundane announcement from a company might get next to no views when I publish it. But give it two or three weeks; or a few months even, and the post will have a ton of traffic. I’ll get emails about it. It’ll be well entrenched in Google, thanks to the way they archive this site. That’s valuable to everyone.

My challenge with press releases is that, more and more, instead of receiving a sanitised overview ‘fantastical’ announcement, I think I’d much rather get an email from the chap or lady in charge of the project, product or the like.

MIR is at its most valuable when it’s helping deliver knowledge, perspective and business networking to its readers. More and more increasingly, I think it might be far more relevant and interesting to hear from the executives who’re actually running the companies. I’ve no issue with public relations talent. I think there’s a huge need for those skills. But I’m feeling that, unless you’re T-Mobile announcing the G1 (in which case I want a full run-down of specifications and background), the traditional release isn’t required for Mobile Industry Review.

I emailed a few people in the industry and did a call for comments on Android recently. The direct feedback from the executives (with, perhaps, a few chops or changes from their PR), was — is — really good.

I therefore would encourage anyone who has something to say about what they’re doing in the mobile industry to write to me with news that I can quote. I’d like to try it out and see how you all react.

So, for example, if you met the Marketing Director of LG Mobile at a networking event and asked him what’s up, or what’s new — he’d be telling you about the successor to the Viewty (we’re seeing that tonight) or he’d be telling you about their successes with currently available models. Or winning a new deal with a mobile operator.

I think I’d much rather hear it from him in a missive — a few lines, or a few paragraphs — than the sanitised announcement with an insert-quote from the guy that he most probably didn’t ever speak.

For the enterprising public relations chaps and ladies reading, if time permits, can we try this out? The next announcement you’ve got going on, ask your executive to write me a note about what’s happening. As though he or she was standing in front of me at a networking evening. Make it a few paragraphs at least.

One of the chief frustrations I have with releases is that they’re intended to be churned. That is, cut/paste/quoted in the media. If you can get the journalist (or blogger) to quote verbatim, *brilliant*. Well I’d like to offer the ability for you to sidestep the ‘if’. We’ll quote you verbatim. The MIR audience is smart enough to discern superlatives. There still needs to be editorial control. That is, we won’t guarantee to publish everything. Check with me first to make sure that the subject is one that we think will be relevant.

Maybe it won’t work. I’m in two minds. I think it could be really interesting to read an update from, say, Nick Ris over at MX Telecom. Or a viewpoint from an investor. Or an update from Scott at Mippin.

“Dear Ewan and the MIR readers, I’d like to tell you about our latest product. It’s..”

It could work. It could be really useful.

Does anyone fancy giving it a go?

I’m always, always pleased to hear about people taking the entrepreneurial step so good luck and every success, Stephen!