Early in my career, when I first had the responsibility of hiring an employee, I spoke with a colleague who was a longtime HR director. His advice? Look for attitude above all else. Skills are important, he said, but can be acquired or enhanced on the job to some extent. Attitude, on the other hand, is tough to change.

In today’s economic climate, folks are either struggling to maintain their businesses, grateful for the job they have or anxiously looking for work or clients. It’s not an easy environment for a great attitude, I know.

Having a positive outlook is like jet fuel – it provides you with lift and can take those around you up a level as well. A good attitude inspires energy and enthusiasm on the job on the good days, and it keeps you moving toward higher ground when times are tough.

Think back to your first week at a desirable new job – you were excited to be there and eager to contribute and learn, remember? That’s the attitude that we should strive to keep. This is the backbone of working toward a common good with colleagues and clients alike.

What creates a good attitude?

• Enjoy what you do. If you need to revitalize your career, find something new to learn, whether it’s through a book, a webinar or a colleague. If you need a change, look into other options – action steps will improve your view of the current situation.
• Keep the team going. Work diligently and creatively. Be liberal with praise when it’s due. And if someone drops a ball, help them toss it back in the air.
• Find the silver lining. Even the worst situation will bring something positive, even if it’s only a lesson or new insight.
• Maintain a sense of humor. Laughter is a universal bond, and it keeps good energy flowing through the day.
• Balance confidence with humility. It’s important to believe in yourself and your skills, as long you don’t ram your accomplishments down everyone’s throat! Be aware for opportunities to assist the common good.

In the world of marketing, advertising and PR, a good attitude is essential since it transmits to a much wider audience. It eases collaboration in the creative process and keeps you flexible and patient through each round of edits or press pitches. And it’s absolutely mandatory in social media conversations. Remember that your words may be floating on the Web for years! Your thoughts and opinions are important but use diplomacy when sharing them.

So what’s the big deal about attitude? Everything. It’s something you carry with you, from day to day, job to job, person to person.

What do you think makes a good attitude on the job?

As marketers, we appreciate the need for conducting accurate research whether it’s for an opinion poll about a product or to gauge the mood of voters for a candidate or issue during local and national elections.

A recent U.S. government survey throws a wrench into the usual telephone survey methodology. The study estimates that up to 17 percent of adults have ditched their landline phones, nearly doubling the trend of cell-only users since 2003. Another recent survey by The Pew Research Center reports 23 percent of landline users say they are “very or somewhat likely” to go cell-only.

Both of these studies present considerable challenges for researchers conducting public opinion polls – whether it’s a news organization striving to obtain an accurate snapshot of how people are going to vote, or for thousands of corporations that depend heavily on market research for product development.

With cell-only users significantly less accessible than landline respondents, many in the public opinion research community wonder if the polls conducted this election season are reflecting true voting trends, especially among the 18 to 29 age group, which represents the largest portion of cell-only users.

To address this issue, the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press conducted three major election surveys using cell phone, landline, and “dual user” samples. Each survey resulted in small but not statistically significant differences compared to the polls by major news and research organizations. However, the younger age group – the largest proportion of cell-only users – showed a consistent pattern of more support for Obama. This raises an important question for pollsters about whether or not the difficulty in reaching the younger demographic group will impact their expected results on Election Day.

“Even though the omission of cell phones from election polls does not currently make a large difference in the substantive results, Pew’s surveys this year suggest at least the possibility of a small bias in landline surveys. Such a bias could be consequential in an election that appears to be very competitive right now, especially if significant numbers of young people turn out to vote.” ( http://pewresearch.org/pubs/964/).

The challenge in obtaining information from cell-only users will only increase as more households become wireless. The biggest obstacles facing researchers right now are associated with costs, as federal law prohibits automated dialing to cell phones. Another costly factor is the time involved reaching eligible respondents since many children carry cell phones and random calls will frequently reach those under voting age. Polling organizations may also have to prepare to reimburse respondents to answer questions, as cell phone users pay for airtime and may be reluctant to stay on the line.

Political and market researchers are anticipating how the outcome on Nov. 4 will reflect the polling data and what changes will have to be made in reaching a balanced proportion of Americans for future surveys. We in marketing should all keep a careful eye on the election results tomorrow as they are measured against the polling data, which could very well influence how we move forward with our own market research projects.

Everyone wants to make the most of a media opportunity, yet much preparation goes into a successful interview. At your best, you finish up knowing that you said what you wanted to say, the way that you wanted to say it. At worst, you’re uncomfortable, say the wrong thing, or after the fact wish you’d made points that didn’t occur to you in the moment.

The goal, then, is to be ready – to be proactive rather than reactive. Here are three critical steps in preparing for an interview that can help you convey your thoughts more clearly and confidently:

Think

Knowing your audience, or audience analysis – is primary. Who’s doing the interview and what do you know about this person? Also important: who’s your target audience, what do they care about and need to hear about? The more you can find out on both fronts, the better.

Write

Potential questions
Think about and write down the questions you expect to be asked. Consider the context of the interview and what’s been going on and write down everything that come to mind. You also need to face up to questions you dread, that you hope not to be asked – the ugly and awkward, the embarrassing and controversial, the ones you have no idea how to answer. If you do this step, you’re half way home.

Potential answers
Now look at those questions and jot a few notes. Don’t write out answers and memorize them – you’ll sound scripted and phony. For questions you have no idea how to answer, turn to the people who can help you – with facts and an approach that is positive and neither apologetic nor defensive.

Key messages
Sometimes reporters don’t know much about your business, or choose to take the interview in a negative direction. Yet you know what your audience needs to hear your story. Jot down a few points you intend to get across. Then, listen for opportunities to work these messages in during the course of the interview. This helps shape the direction of the interview that simply responding to the questions as given will not. It also enables you to move from defense to offense when the going gets tough.

Talk

Practice, but don’t rehearse. You don’t really know what you think until you hear what you say. Have someone ask you the questions you’ve written down and see how it goes. Better to hear what you’d like to say differently in practice rather than wait until the interview and be surprised at what comes tumbling out of your mouth.

Media interviews can have a significant impact on your story, your company and your reputation as a leader. Take time to prepare effectively and you’ll likely have a positive media experience.

A column in last week’s Wall Street Journal highlights the Oreo cookie’s journey from America to China and what it finally took for Kraft Foods to find success in appealing to the most populated country in the world.

In 1996, Kraft introduced the Oreo to China – hoping the popular cookie would be as big a hit as it has been in the U.S. But sales remained flat for more than 10 years until Kraft began to rethink its marketing strategies, or lack thereof, and decided on some new approaches.

“Albert Einstein’s definition of insanity — doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results –- ‘characterized what we were doing,’” according to Shawn Warren, vice president of marketing for Kraft Foods International.

So Kraft went to work and during its research learned, for one thing, the Chinese weren’t big cookie eaters. Traditional Oreos were too sweet for Chinese tastes and the packages of 14 Oreos priced at 72 cents were too expensive.
The company developed 20 prototypes of reduced-sugar Oreos and tested them with Chinese consumers to come up with the right formula. A new taste and the repackaging of fewer cookies at a reduced price, combined with major grassroots marketing and PR campaigns, began to generate sales.
While the remade Oreo looks almost nothing like the original (the new Chinese Oreo consists of four layers of crispy wafer filled with vanilla and chocolate cream, coated in chocolate), the new concoction is now a best-selling treat. Over the past two years, Kraft has doubled its Oreo revenue in China, with those sales contributing to revenue that topped $1 billion worldwide for the first time last year.

In the end, Kraft overhauled the entire essence of its 96-year-old Oreo and it worked.

The Chinese version of the Oreo cookie is a powerful reminder to all of us, namely:

• Invest in the necessary research & homework up front before launching a product

• Know your consumers and give them what they want; focus on your target audience for the most important information.

• Remember other cultures often have vastly different preferences than Americans

Finally, when a tried and true recipe doesn’t appeal to a new audience – or no longer works for the same audience – it’s time to come up with new ingredients for success.

While public relations and marketing experts use different methods and media to communicate their messages, the goals are the same: to get maximum visibility for clients and generate responses from target audiences.

When well planned, PR and marketing are a dynamic duo. PR leaves off where marketing should pick up, and visa versa. In fact, it should be a continual tag team of picking up the client’s ball and running with it.

If one agency handles both PR & marketing, the client is positioned to be ahead of the game – both strategically and financially. When PR & marketing are not under the same roof, it’s critical the client asks each firm to communicate and work with one another, or the risks can include mixed messages, misunderstandings, and missed opportunities.

Here are two examples of a well integrated PR-marketing team:

• A client gets a great interview in a highly visible publication or with a major news station. Once the story has run, the PR and marketing team will keep it alive for as long as possible. The interview will turn into reprints for company brochures and press kits, as well as links and podcasts for the company web site, social media web sites, and news releases, etc. Mentions and/or portions of the interview are used in advertising and/or branding campaigns, and the news piece is highlighted in company backgrounders, press pitches, future media opportunities, and proposals for prospective clients.

• A marketing department holds a major event, with proceeds benefiting a charity. The role of PR is to publicize the charitable aspect of the event and work toward media coverage. Each function is promoting the same event using different avenues to generate responses and engage different participants. When PR and marketing work in sync, the chances are greater the message will cover more bases that reach a larger audience.

And, with PR and marketing working as a team, an added value to the client is the brainstorming sessions from “two sides of the house” (as we say here) that result in fresh and innovative approaches, ideas, and campaigns. When pooling creative resources from different areas, the agency launches more initiatives in a more efficient way – which leads to more success for the client.