There’s been a lot of talk recently at conferences I have attended about whether websites have outlived their usefulness and are merely dinosaurs left over from 1990s.

 I think in our line of work where fact and not hype are the foundations of our websites, a no frills approach is warranted and the website model fits quite well thank you. Whereas a consumer product or service might look to gain interest through blogs, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube first, most folks who want fire and EMS information will visit our websites as the main source of information. With that said though our websites should still serve as portals to assist in integrating our traditional website and social media marketing efforts.

The goal of using a variety of electronic sources is to reach our citizens wherever they are. I don’t want to sound like an alter boy though. I have been my own worst enemy at updating Facebook and Twitter and posting new videos on YouTube.

I recently took some money out of my PIO budget to do a redesign of our website which will be ready in September. I value this opportunity to be able to let visitors have a more seamless experience of transferring from the site into other forms of social media that we maintain.

It is not sufficient enough to make it easier to get to Facebook or Twitter. Once website visitors view these other pages the information needs to be relevant, different and up to date. They need to know that the website is the hub but for up to the minute information they should go to Twitter, for more informal information Facebook and for the real deal the website.

So I pledge that at the next department incident that warrants media coverage or information for members of the community I will not operate in social media silos but –

1. Use my Blackberry from the fireground or incident site to Tweet an initial report from the scene.

2. Use my Blackberry to do a Facebook post from the incident with early photos if warranted.

3. Make on scene Twitter and Facebook posts as needed.

4. Integrate and expand everything into our website after the incident and reports the information to Facebook and Twitter.

I promise I’ll try this 360 approach and let you know how it works out.

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Towards the top of my “to do” list is a push to increase the number of generic photos in my files. Generic shots would include all of our apparatus, photos of Chiefs, training and fireground shots etc.

As any editor will tell you, a release with a photo has a much higher chance of being used and could elevate your story from a few column centimeters on an inside page to a more prominent position and possibly the front page. This just happened to a story about a member in my department.

I’m fortunate that we had our 100^th anniversary a few years back so I have fairly current head shot photos of most of our members and apparatus. I felt like a genius a few weeks back when a local editor asked if I had a member’s headshot for a story he was writing about a potential EMS award the member was eligible for, and I was able to produce the picture immediately. The story with the photo did indeed get front page status.

A community newspaper editor who recently spoke at a PR breakfast I attended made the following recommendations. They are not specific to the fire service but still relevant to our own work as PIO’s -

1. As an absolute minimum, you should ensure that you have headshots of all people mentioned in your press releases and spokespeople representing your organization, before you are asked for them by a journalist. Avoid white background studio shots.

2. If you are ‘telling a story’ in your press release, make sure the photo also tells the (same) story. Ensure it has enough impact to immediately grab the attention of first the editor and second the reader.

3. Supplying a feature picture instead of a simple headshot is the biggest single thing you can do to bring your story to the top of the pile. Sometimes the most mundane story can be published as the lead story on the page thanks to a superb photo. This is known as a picture led story.

4. Have some generic shots taken that represent your business and industry sector. Both internal and exterior shots should be produced showing your business at work. Sometimes having these generic shots available when a picture editor is looking for a photo to go with an existing story can result in your organization being asked to comment. (Make sure you are told what the basis of the story is before making the pictures available).

5. Make sure all your photos meet the media photo specs so you they can easily be sent by email and will not overload the mailbox of the journalist you are sending them to.

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There are many cycles when I am constantly sending releases and news to the media. If my department has a particularly busy run schedule, newsworthy assessment of the incidents quickly follow. There are other cycles though when alarms settle down and the flow of information to the media takes a brief hiatus. To avoid being out of sight, out of mind, I make sure that my department, especially in the local community newspapers, has placement at least twice a month. One way I do this is with news “fillers.”

Fillers are news briefs that include captioned photos, short quizzes, or under 300 word safety articles and tips.

Here are some reasons that “fillers” work -

1. Because they are so short, editors often rely on them to “fill a hole” on a page. A 100-word brief on when to install a new smoke detector battery always stands a much better chance of being published than a 650 word story on the same topic.

2.  Briefs help portray your department’s firematic knowledge and community minded spirit.

3.  They appeal to readers with short attention spans and can be skimmed quickly.

4.  They’re easy to write and distribute without having to pitch editors. You can usually submit briefs to editors at a variety of non-competing publications at the same time. Editors don’t expect exclusivity on these items and usually don’t care if they appear in other publications.

 It’s important to stay in the public’s mind for them to know that their tax dollars are being constantly rewarded with outstanding fire and EMS protection and advice.

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I always love going to the firehouse on an early Sunday morning and having a cup of coffee while shooting the breeze with those congregating before Church or gearing up for a day with the family. I didn’t expect to drink my coffee today while getting hammered for not holding the lofty position of Czar of all Media.

 Don’t get me wrong. I am respected for the job I do as PIO. We get good reviews for our website and media placements in both the weekly local papers as well as the larger dailies and on TV. But for some reason, a few of my brothers and sisters think that in addition to providing information I can also swing a magic Halligan and tell the media what to print, where to place it and how extensive the coverage should be.

 It seems some of the kitchen pundits were wondering why a captioned picture of one of our firefighters, receiving an EMS citation for his civilian response to assist patients involved in a major MVA, featured himself and an ex-Chief and not the current Chief. The award was presented at a Chiefs Council dinner with officers and members of six departments present.

 I went on to tell the crowd in the kitchen that I did indeed originally send a photo with a picture of the current Chief and the recipient at the dinner as well. The editor of the paper in question e-mailed me back to see if I would be able to send him additional pictures of the presentation to choose from. I obliged. It appears he liked the ex-Chief photo better and printed that one since the recipient and ex-Chief are related and thought that was a better angle for the piece. The coffee crew wondered why I sent more than one picture and why I didn’t tell the editor to only use the picture with the current Chief.

 I related to the crowd, now circling me with torches, that I try to be as accommodating as possible, but have no say in editorial placement of materials once they are in the hands of the editors. This made sense to many but one curmudgeon still wondered why I didn’t send just the one photo, and tell the editor that’s it.

 Are you a PIO? No, but I stayed at a Holliday Inn Express last night.

 Anyone else have an experience where arm chair quarterbacks think we should have greater sway over what is actually printed?

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When we signed on the dotted line to become firefighters we quickly became the guys on the other side of the yellow caution tape. While we go about our business of fire suppression or extrication or EMS emergencies the public is watching us at the scene with critical eyes. In essence we are characters in a drama being played out before them.

The homeowners who are watching their lives literally go up in smoke or the small business owner who is watching his or her dreams being extinguished or the college student who’s MVA will change  life forever is counting on us to help ease their pain to whichever extent we can. We are in a serious business interacting with folks who are having the worst day of their life.

It never ceases to amaze me how on the fire ground many firefighters just don’t get it. During a personal tragedy they laugh, mug for the camera, take motley crew pictures and toast each other with Gatorade. How is this benefiting the image of the fire service? I understand how the adrenaline pumps, but there are limits to the outcome.

To make matters worse many departments semi condone this behavior by posting these pictures on there websites along with more serious photo’s of the scene. If a department created their web site to be an internal tool, then use a password and lock out the public.

But if a website is for the public’s consumption, what are we saying about the attitude of these departments towards a terrible day for one of its citizens?

The public can now record and chronicle everything they see and upload it to YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. Most cell phones have cameras. Video can be recorded on a number of new mini cams like the Flip. Scrutiny is all around us.

It is the responsibility of every PIO to make sure their department establishes a policy of decorum on the fire ground or at an accident scene. PIO’s should make an appearance at Probationary training within their department to inform Probies of the appropriate way to handle themselves at scenes. In my own department this is drummed into Probies heads from almost day one.

 I would be interested to know how other departments handle this situation.

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