In Defense of Public Relations

I’ve worked with celebrities who act as my clients’ brand ambassadors and it’s a great way to gain awareness. Most of the time, it requires a ton of planning to ensure the celebrity’s time is well spent because that means the clients’ money is well spent. This type of events normally begin by determining how much the talent would cost whether the event is for charity, new product launch, etc.

At times though, it’s great to see a celebrity who would just show up to put a smile on their fans’ faces.  The reclusive actor, Johnny Depp, did just that when he visited an elementary school in London in full regalia playing the role of Capt. Jack Sparrow. Obviously, it’s great for Disney to earn that kind of publicity in advance of its summer 2011 premiere of the latest Pirates of the Caribbean series. Props to Johnny Depp for showing up.

I apologize if the headline is a bit raunchy, but hey, it’s the only time of the year where it wouldn’t sound so sleazy. Unless you’re living in a cave in Afghanistan, you must’ve seen all the pink ribbons surrounding us this month. So this is my post to raise more attention for breast cancer awareness. Not that the folks behind the awareness campaign need my help. I think the Susan G. Komen Foundation has done an awesome job in not only building buzz about breast cancer awareness in October, but sustaining it throughout the year.

As Breast Cancer Awareness Month activities continue this month, it makes me wonder what the world would be like if it finally rids itself of this disease. Please take the following list with a sense of humor. For the record, I am not trying to diminish the suffering caused by breast cancer. So here goes:

- Professional athletes will not be wearing pink shoes, pants, shirts, socks, jockstraps, etc.

- National Pasta Month will get more publicity. Probably not.

- Victoria’s Secret and Maidenform sales will increase.

- So will sales for silicon gel.

- More babies would be breastfed.

- More men would be breastfed.

- There will be less divorce. [There are douchebags out there ladies.]

- Think Pink will only mean think about her.

- 40,000 amazing women would still be alive each year including the mom of a dear friend.

It would be a wonderful world indeed without breast cancer. Unfortunately, it is still all too real, but there are ways to prevent it and you can help. See what you can do by clicking below.