You’re invited to join us for the 4^th Annual American Fine Wine Competition Gala Dinner presented by Patriot National Insurance Group. Throughout the evening, guests will enjoy competition-winning wines and a five-course dinner prepared by the esteemed chefs at Hyatt Pier Sixty-Six. Entertainment for the night includes guest Emcee Alan Kalter, announcer for The Late Show with David Letterman, famed performance artist Michael Israel, Dayve Stewart & the Vibe, and Temptations singer Richard Street and his new ‘Temptations’ Band.

Click on image to view details. Hope to see you there!

As one of the most revered daily newspapers in the world, The New York Times is making its way into the pay-for-it digital world.  Meanwhile, the rest of the news and publishing industry is taking note. The Wall Street Journal, among others, has written about the new pay service and bundled choices that the Times is preparing to roll out. 

With various options for purchase, ranging from internet access only to iPad applications, the Times is testing the water to gauge its readers’ loyalty and interest.  Will consumers pay $20 per month to get the Times on their laptop?  Will other free sites benefit from those unwilling to pay for the Times?  Will die-hard NY Times readers make up enough of a critical mass for this model to be successful?

These are questions that dailies across the country are waiting to find out.  The Times is not pioneering the concept – other papers have created paid content service including the Times of London.  The Dallas Morning News will charge for access next month.

But it is the New York Times, one of the most trusted providers of news that is now making news.  How it fares will be a signal to the rest of the industry.

But how will it fare?

Only time (and the Times) will tell!

Click here for the full story: Times Prepares Pay Wall

Every year, it seems as though law firm marketers are inundated with attorneys who want to start the New Year off on the right foot with marketing themselves, enhancing their profile and ultimately developing new business. 2011 is sure to be more of the same—and now’s the time to prepare.

Here are some practical law firm marketing resolutions that any attorney can, and should, do early in 2011 to position themselves for the coming year:

1. Edit online bios: The Internet is fast becoming the most popular resource for people looking to learn more about attorneys and their firm. As such, editing and enhancing attorney bios should be done on a regular basis. At Boardroom, we suggest at least twice a year. Things attorneys should review include honors and recognition, representative cases and even memberships. What’s changed? What’s new? In addition, look at the headshot. Is it recent? If not, now is the perfect time to add a new picture.

2. Update contact lists: Most of new business generated usually comes from an existing client, contact or referral source. The beginning of the year is a great time to weed through existing contact lists to see who’s on it and pick out a handful to personally target for 2011. Organize contacts in different categories—current and old clients, referral sources, networking contacts, prospects, etc. This way, attorneys can customize mailings and e-blasts to different targeted groups.

3. Expand social media: Whether we want to get away from it or not, the truth is social media isn’t going away, it’s just gaining momentum. I know it’s hard to convince an already busy attorney to add something else to their plate, but nowadays at least some degree of an online presence is almost mandatory. The beginning of the year is a great time for law firm marketers to educate their attorneys into at least one manageable social media outlet such as LinkedIn or Facebook. With both, you can join groups and get involved—and for LinkedIn, you can even recommend others. The more interactive an attorney is, the better. For those who have more willing attorneys, Twitter or a blog might be a good suggestion. If your firm has an existing blog, attorneys can start out participating and writing there first. Either way, getting a jumpstart on social media will only enhance attorneys’ reputation, and image—and trust me, they’ll thank you later.

 Although I could list several other suggestions, these three are the most realistic and could potentially pay the most dividends for attorneys in the coming year. Starting off with easily accomplished marketing tasks such as these will only empower attorneys to want to do more—which will turn, increase your value.

We are all aware of the power and popularity of YouTube, which is now the Internet’s second most popular search engine behind Google.

With its 18 million daily US visitors, it is fast becoming a great outlet for Florida advertisers, hobbyists, social media users and PR pros.  Some use it for simple how-to videos while others promote viral campaigns to attract, educate, entertain and hopefully make some new relationships.

The following Fast Company article provides us with the back story on how former Google executive and current YouTube chief executive Salar Kamangar helped mold the concept and the company into an important part of Google’s current and future growth plans.

Click here to view article:

How YouTube’s Global Platform Is Redefining the Entertainment Business

Last night more than 300 members of the Latin American Association of  Insurance Agencies got together at United Automobile Insurance Company’s headquarters to help stamp out the out-of-control PIP insurance fraud occurring throughout Florida. Also included were representatives of the Florida Property & Casualty Association, Property & Casualty Insurers of America, Florida Legislators, Insurance Information Institute, Florida Department of Insurance Fraud, local law enforcement, Florida Underwriter and others.

All agreed that today’s PIP fraud involving Florida’s PIP clinics, plaintiff attorneys, lawyer referral services and their allies are contributing to the lack of availability and sky rocketing rates that are no longer sustainable.  All agreed to contact their legislators to demand substantial PIP insurance reforms that will enable our state to survive economically.

Boardroom Communications applauds the efforts of LAAIA and the industry to destroy this plague that has invaded our state and its citizens. Boardroom is committed to the fight and support Florida’s insurance industry through its media relations, social media and public affairs work.

In the January 4, 2011 issue of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, an article titled, “Cruise Line Ads Are Everywhere” clues readers in on the fact that while product placement has long been a staple of television and movies, cruise line public relations and marketing has taken off in creative, unexpected ways.  During the recent New Years’ Eve celebration in Times’ Square, Carnival Cruise Lines sponsored the festivities in a very visible way, including the one ton of confetti that was dropped on the crowd. The CEO of Norwegian Cruise Lines was recently featured on the ABC television program, “Undercover Boss” and Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas will be featured on in the upcoming Adam Sandler film, “Jack and Jill”.

One reason behind this use of non-traditional cruise marketing might be that audiences are becoming more sophisticated. With the advent of internet television, DVRs and other devices, audiences can view TV while bypassing traditional ads. Additionally, many people eschew travel magazines and travel agents for travel blogs and sites like Expedia and Travelocity that allow users to seek out their own vacation experience.  Yet another reason might be that the cruise line’s target demographic, first-time cruisers, are younger and respond better to “guerilla” marketing tactics like social media and appearances on Reality TV programs and at large-scale events.  In any case, it is clear that marketing for cruise lines can sneak up on consumers in the least likely places.

This year, Boardroom Communications will be posting videos on our blog with advice from our very own public relations professionals. For our first video log, Boardroom Executive Vice President Todd Templin gives tips on how to effectively pitch your story to the media. PR professionals can agree that there isn’t one right way to pitch your story, however there are wrong ways. Check out our first video log below for Todd’s PR tips and keep checking back for more. Enjoy!

Also available on Boardroom’s YouTube Channel