A professional friend of mine -- an executive at a mid-sized industry association -- was working last week on her budget for 2021, and she reached out to me for ideas.
With an historic Pride Season getting underway – marking the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising in New York City, which spurred the Pride movement – it seemed like a perfect time for some reflection on what LGBTQ pride means to our business. (Photo: The co-chairs of the Human Rights Campaign’s National Dinner 2018, a wonderfully diverse and talented bunch! )
Having worked with reporters and editors for most of my career – and having been on the receiving end of media pitches myself – here are five keys to great media relations.
While this topic could easily fill an entire book — indeed, it has filled many — here are my top tips for how to rapidly improve your writing and editing.
Like good food, a solid strategy takes a little time to prepare. Here are some tips on how to tackle the challenge.
This month, Dale had the opportunity to attend the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce International Business & Leadership Conference!
Check out this short message from Dale describing his experiences as the conference, as well as his plans for DCC over the next year.
Do the terms “public relations,” “advocacy,” and/or “thought leadership” make you and your team nervous?
Do you worry that your organization needs to step up its communications game or miss out on opportunities? Do you face an outright threat that is grounded in part on poor communications strategy or tactics?
What does it mean to conduct “public relations,” anyway?
To answer these questions, DCC is proud to introduce a new video series: “Ask Dale.”
In this first installment, Dale draws on his 30+ years of experience as a communicator to tackle the question: How can I make my message stand out in an overcrowded media environment?
The answer lies in three parts: Know your target audience; develop clear and compelling content; and be persistent in building bridges to your audience.
For more information, check out the video above. For future editions of “Ask Dale” and all DCC news, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn; and subscribe to our newsletter, DCC Dispatch. Let us know what questions you need answered.
And don’t hesitate to give us a call at 202-495-3700 if you need a little help with your team’s communications efforts.
For the second year in a row, DCC has been selected to appear in the O’Dwyer’s Annual Rankings issue!
This year, we are proud to be ranked #17 in Washington, DC, and #123 among firms with major U.S. operations. On the list of U.S. firms specializing in technology issues, we’ve moved up six spots from last year, from #53 to #47! We’re also among the top five “Leading Gainers” among firms in our size category.
The full rankings, which are based on 2017 net fees and employee counts, are available here.
Thanks to our all of our clients and friends who have supported DCC over the years, making this recognition possible! Onward and upward!
Coming from a conservative, fairly religious family, accepting and embracing the annual LGBTQ Pride celebration was difficult for me.
Some of the friends and family members I grew up with might have said things like, “Why would anyone be proud of that?” or “Why don’t we have Straight Pride?”
Dale and Lamar enjoyed attending “Night OUT at Nationals Park” on June 5, just one of many Pride celebrations this month in DC
Setting aside the answers to those questions for another blog, that’s exactly the kind of negative social pressure that all LGBTQ people have to deal with as youths and as adults. It’s a constant questioning of our right to exist and enjoy life on a path that’s just a little bit different.
Early in my career, I worried about how being gay would affect my career. Coming out to friends in college was relatively easy; being out in Republican politics in the 1980s and 90s, not so much. It wasn’t until I was in my 30s, working as a journalist, that I felt comfortable to be out at work, and to switch allegiances to the political party that (usually) supported my right to exist without discrimination.
Fast forward to today: I’ve been running my own PR business for almost nine years as an out-gay man, and for the most part, I don’t need to fear the effect on my business. As far as I know, it’s not an issue with any of my clients, and it’s a plus in my professional network. When I married my husband Lamar last year, we were showered with well wishes from our professional colleagues.
In recent years, I’ve stepped up my professional involvement in the LGBTQ community, and today I’m active in the Human Rights Campaign (as Table Captains co-chair for the 2018 National Dinner); Q Street (on the board of directors); and both the Capital Area Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce and the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce, which certified DCC as an LGBT-owned business in 2017.
While Team DCC continues to serve clients in a variety of industry and nonprofit sectors, I’m now hoping to put our team’s collective skills and experience to work for outstanding LGBTQ-related clients, as well.
Our work for equality is far, far from over. In my adult life, Americans have made tremendous strides toward full equality and respect for diversity, both as a society and as individuals. (Including me. There have been times when I was uncomfortable working with members of our LGBTQ community who are quite different from me. I think I’ve made progress on that front, and I’m committed to doing more.)
And yet hundreds of millions of Americans – and people in the other 95 percent of the world – still face daily pressures to hide who they are and who they love, at home and at work. Advocates of religious-based discrimination ignore some of the core tenets of their faith in their relentless dedication to discrimination and hate.
For all these reasons, I am proud to work for LGBTQ equality – not just in June but all year-round – both in my personal life and in my business.
Happy Pride!
As we celebrate National 9-1-1 Education Month in April and the 50th anniversary of the 9-1-1 system all year long, we wanted to share a few snapshots of our work for NENA—The 9-1-1 Association.