The Fireside Chat: Modern PR with Deirdre Breakenridge

By: Gini Dietrich | September 29, 2017 |

Welcome to another episode of the Spin Sucks Fireside Chat.

Today I have a guest who, hands down, is one of the nicest people on the face of this earth.

When you think about what a person should act like, all you have to do is think of Deirdre Breakenridge.

She is the epitome of a morally sound human being.

I met Deirdre in 2009, right after “Putting the Public Back in Public Relations” was published.

Since then, she’s gone on to publish several more books—at least four, if not more.

She is the host of Women Worldwide, a podcast about women (mostly, there are some men in there) who have experienced the heights of success and, at times, the agony of defeat.

She is a LinkedIn Learning instructor and she is the CEO of Pure Performance Communications.

While you may not know how nice Deirdre is until you watch the modern PR episode of The Fireside Chat, it’s pretty clear she’s ridiculously successful.

And smart.

So smart.

And nice.

Have I mentioned that?

You’re going to love this up close and personal conversation with her.

The Fireside Chat: Modern PR with Deirdre Breakenridge

Here are the questions I asked her about modern PR, podcasting, and all things digital.

You just finished writing “Answers for Modern Communicators,” which will be published next month. Tell us about it.
At Content Marketing World a couple of weeks ago, I met someone who works for Libsyn. He told me it’s 7,000 to 1 (men to women) for podcasters. You seem to have broken the mold with Women Worldwide. Tell us your most favorite guest and what you learned from that interview.
You are all in on digital. You are doing Facebook Livestreaming, you have the podcast, you have the LinkedIn video courses, and you’re going to do some live podcasting next month. Tell us what’s up your sleeve for that.
Now we are going to have our speed round. The goal is for you to answer with the first thing that comes to mind.
What’s next for Deirdre?

My Favorite Parts of the Conversation

Typically when I do these interviews, I’m furiously taking notes while the person is talking.

This time, because I was having a conversation with a friend, I forgot all about the note taking!

I had to go back and watch the video so I could outline my favorite parts.

Do you know how hard it is to watch yourself on video? I wanted to trash it and start all over. But I did this for you.

You’re welcome.

My favorite parts of the conversation are:

Why we should stop saying we can’t see the forest for the trees.
Why writing a book is like having a baby, but in this case, it’s twins!
How many modern PR questions she answers in her new book.
How many years she’s been in PR (you won’t believe it).
The importance of professionals working with students.
A simple way to do an analysis of your website messaging and compare to what your customers think of you.
How to get started with podcasting and why you should consider it.
Her story about Carol Todd.
Why women should be out there and how we need to support one another.
One of the most interesting interviews she’s done on Women Worldwide.
Why it’s so important to be a forever student.
And, selfishly, why my Small Child thinks I am a sad vegetarian (and her definition of a happy vegetarian).

Plus, wait until you see how popular she is. Someone really wanted to get a hold of her. It’s not even annoying because she’s so nice.

(I can now also tell you my least favorite parts, too. Oy.)

Without Further Ado…The Fireside Chat

Enjoy the conversation…and let us know what you think!

(If you can’t view the video below, click here and you’ll be magically transported to YouTube to watch it.)

Next Month’s Fireside Chat

Next month, I am going to host Heidi Sullivan, the president of HK Sully and former Cision executive.

We are going to talk about women in leadership, cool PR tools, and the future of modern PR.

Stay tuned for that on October 27 at 1 p.m. EST.

About Gini Dietrich

Gini Dietrich is the founder, CEO, and author of Spin Sucks, host of the Spin Sucks podcast, and author of Spin Sucks (the book). She also has run, built, and grown an agency for the past 14 years. She is co-author of Marketing in the Round, co-host of Inside PR, and co-host of The Agency Leadership podcast.