Articles
The Terri Ammerman Group pairs decades of communications and media experience with relevant, current perspective. We understand the ever-changing needs and scenarios faced by companies, executives, and media professionals. Part of our training involves examining communications scenarios in real-time, so participants can clearly see what to avoid when speaking and what to say when delivering a clear, convincing message. Our team regularly offers perspective and insights on current situations through the articles posted here.
Campaigning For Hearts & Minds in The Community
As we enter the presidential election season, the candidates’ campaign rhetoric that drives one side over the other enters the main stage of our national press. We can’t help but be affected by the campaigns as each candidate makes his or her appeal to the hearts and minds of our nation. There are times when we must address the communities of our...
4 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Opening PowerPoint
You open your email and read that you’ve been selected to give an executive presentation to the board on the project you’ve been a part of for the past year. As your stomach sinks to the bottom of your chair, you frantically move your mouse to the PowerPoint icon. But before you open PowerPoint to start creating slides, following these four tips...
Never Go on the Air Mad
You can’t believe what they are saying about your company and your industry! How dare they make accusations without representing your side of the table? Before you call your local reporter to make a stand, you might want to consider removing your emotions from the conversation. Don’t go on the air mad. Your first mistake was letting them...
3 Steps to Handling a Sudden Crisis
It happens without warning - something tragic that puts the lives of loved ones at risk and ignites our collective fears of the unthinkable horrors of life. In a thundering heartbeat, a crisis awakens a company from its day-to-day duties into a hive of activity, concern, and fear. At Ammerman, we stand to make sure that no company is...
Communicating with the News Media: What to Do When the CEO Can’t Cut It
Before Deepwater Horizon in 2010, the largest oil spill in the United States came from the Exxon Valdez tanker operating in Prince William Sound in Alaska in 1989. In both disasters, the CEO of each company demonstrated some pretty poor – make that very poor – media communication skills! Tony Hayward, then CEO of BP, at first...
3 Reasons Why You’re Never Really “Off the Record”
You’ve heard the term, and likely you’ve used it more than you should have. Going "off the record” is a term that we’d like to think provides a blanket of protection on the next words to be said. Yet, we all know the sad truth of the matter is that you are never really off the record and in this post we’ll explain why. A reporter is a...
How One Company Hits a Home Run in Its Analyst Presentations
Analyst presentations probably rank among the most important presentations a publicly traded company delivers. Typically, the CEO, CFO, and usually several additional executives are the individuals involved in the presentations, which often are held in New York and may run a half-day or more in length. In short, they’re a big deal. We’re...
Developing and Selling Your Company’s Story
For most publicly traded companies, the annual or biennial analyst presentation is a financial communications staple – an important tool to reach analysts and investors. The time, effort and money some companies invest in these presentations can be staggering. For example, one of my clients provided extra compensation to about a hundred select...
Some Communication Advice for Recent Grads
The ability to communicate effectively is frequently ranked the number one key to success by business leaders. In one survey, executives earning more than $250,000 a year were asked to cite the primary factors in achieving success. First on their list? Communication skills. Solid communication skills are important not just in business, but...
Some Tips for Communicating Change to Your Employees
It’s been said that the one constant in life is change.
As a firm based in Houston, the energy capital of the United States, we’ve seen a lot of change in our city lately. According to Graves & Company, a Houston consulting firm, ever since crude oil prices began dropping last year, energy companies have announced plans to lay off more than 122,000 workers around the world.