On the Radar Screen:
Omnicom Acquisition of Fleishman-Hillard Goes Through; New Group Formed
The long-awaited Omnicom Group Inc. acquisition of Fleishman-Hillard was inked Sept. 3 - sealing a deal which was announced in April and setting in motion one of the most competitive chapters in PR history: Omnicom's ownership of Fleishman-Hillard signals the near close of an era for independent PR firms.
In making the announcement, Omnicom also said that it has created Communications Consulting World-wide, an umbrella organization for Porter Novelli and F-H; high-tech firms Brodeur Porter Novelli and Copithorne & Bellows and GPC International, which operates GPC Market Access Group, a public-policy and government relations firm in Europe. (Omnicom, 314/982-1700)
Philanthropy
Polishing Your Corporate Reputation With Philanthropy
Philanthropy's all the rage in the business market when it comes to corporate imaging in the 1990s but where exactly does cause-related marketing stand today?
The National Commission on Philanthropy and Civic Renewal tackles those issues in its recently released Executive Summary of Giving Better, Giving Smarter and through its Road Map to Giving in America.
Among the guidelines the group highlights is revitalizing communities, a grassroots way for companies to reach the press and customers in regional markets. (NCPCR, 202/463-1460)
CyberGold Rakes In the Dough With Online Matching Promo
Neither rattling a tin cup on the nearest street corner nor knocking on doors and asking strangers for money are particularly effective means of raising money for a good cause.
But an Internet "Surfathon" with five non-profits, which allows surfers to exercise their charitable impulses without letting go of their mouse, might just help the cause.
In a clever online promotion not unlike campaigns American Express [AXP], Visa International [4824Z], and other credit card companies have used to help charity, CyberGold Inc. this month will match dollar-for-dollar any amount surfers donate in CyberGold to any of its five charitable partners.
The plan calls for CyberGold - which pays people for enduring ads on the Internet (not the average media buyer's ideal motivation) - to deposit money in participating surfers' accounts, from which they can electronically choose to spend and thereby send real money, which Cybergold matches, to the non-profits.
Beneficiaries are the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Hereditary Disease Foundation, the I Have a Dream Foundation, National Kidney Foundation, and The Nature Conservancy. (Colette Sandstedt, CyberGold, 510/845-5000)
New Business Ventures
- Planned Television Arts, a division of Ruder Finn Inc., opened an office in Dallas last month. The new office will provide personalized media services to publishers, corporate clients and businesses in the Southwest. (Ruder-Finn, 214/363-8860)
- Springbok Technologies, a media relations firm specializing in high-tech, opened on Sept. 2 an office in Austin. (Springbok, 512/502-8223)
Tools
Crisis Communications the Internet Way
Another site has hit cyberspace to help companies in a crisis. Or for the more forward-thinking companies, to help them create their crisis plans.
The Gable Group, W3PR and Inspired Arts launched Sept. 2 an Internet service, WebResponse (http://www.CrisisPR.com) designed to aid companies with the technical and crisis communications expertise needed to manage information flow. WebResponse also offers tools to help plan for crises and minimize them when they happen. On the side? You'll also get crisis consulting and technical assistance on a 24-hour basis. (The Gable Group, 619/234-1300)
IABC Collecting Info. For Resource Yellow Pages
If you want an entry in the International Association of Business Communicators' 1997 Resource Yellow Pages, you have until Oct. 13 to ensure that your company is listed.
Costs vary between $30 and $215 (depending on whether you're an IABC member and according to category). Call 800/776-4222.