Round-up Of Interesting Brand Israel Stories from 5WPR

Round-up of interesting Mid-East related stories concerning Brand Israel as deemed good reading by 5WPR:

• Many different stories appearing online about Israel digital media: “…the notion of a “Twitter battlefield” had become a journalistic truism. Numerous pundits mulled over the meaning of this vanguard shift in military and political strategy. Was Israel charting new worlds of warcraft? Would future war plans be molded in Israel’s likeness, employing a toolbox comprised of Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr? Evident in much of the voluminous commentary was a tone of something like wonderment — as if once again, and even under rocket fire, Israeli technology cum modernity had triumphed….”http://www.merip.org/mero/mero112412
• Shame on Stevie Wonder for pulling out of the annual Friends of The Israel Defense Forces Dinner.  Hope he gets a lot of heat from the Jewish community for it. Shame on him.
• Great video describing continued fraudulent pr work of the Palestinian Arabs -
• http://www.aish.com/jw/mo/Photo-Fraud-in-Gaza.html
• Strong op-ed by Paul Eidelberg says Israel has to be more like Machiavelli – and “Israel’s prime ministers are pathologically concerned with favorable public relations in the international media.” http://i-ari.org/sacrificing-jews-on-the-altar-of-pr/

5WPR is a PR agency which was founded by Ronn Torossian in 2003.


SOURCE http://www.jewocity.com/blog/author/ronn_torossian

Public Relations & Marketing Jobs

n  The Promised Podcast is seeking someone for a part-time marketing and public relations position to manage the podcasts Facebook page, and increase exposure of the podcast in English-speaking Jewish communities in Israel and worldwide. The Promised Podcast reflects on the events of the week and brings unique perspectives on Israeli politics and culture. More information at: http://www.facebook.com/promisedpodcast

n  Marketer is sought for a publisher of Jewish educational materials in New York City.  They are seeking someone with a background in Jewish education and its NYC based.  More information is available by emailing gbdtx-3424149536@job.craigslist.org

n  Via LinkedIn, an Online Marketing Manager is being sought in Tel Aviv to build & manage online marketing.  This includes SEO, PPC, and other tasks focused on driving online traffic.  Israel has many companies focused on this arena and many jobs exist for people skilled in driving online traffic.  More information on this opportunity is available at http://us.linkedin.com/jobs?viewJob=&jobId=4118722&srchIndex=9&trk=njsrch_hits&goback=%2Efjs_*1_*1_*1_Y_il_*1_*1_1_R_true_*1_*2_*2_*2_il%3A0_*2_mrkt_*2_*2

n  EMM Group owned by Mark Birnbaum & Eugene Remm invites resumes at: http://emmgroupinc.com/careers

My PR Firm 5WPR is always hiring skilled PR professionals.  Send resumes to careers@5wpr.com

“For Immediate Release” by Ronn Torossian is available on Amazon.

SOURCE http://www.jewocity.com/blog/public-relations-marketing-jobs/6094

Follow Chabad to Succeed In Marketing Judaism

On a recent Shabbat where Shabbat commences at 420 in New York City, I was surprised to see a Rabbi from another local shul walk into the shul I usually daven at.  He unabashedly told all of us “My minyan is still at work.” This Rabbi with an uber-successful synagogue focused on outreach clearly understood the reality of Jewish life in America.  He may not have liked it – but he didn’t pretend it didn’t exist. He reminded me how lucky I am to work for myself – and noted he will have a full house of 200 plus for Shabbat lunch.

This Sunday evening was the annual International Conference of Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries, which thousands of Jews will attend – and who knows how many hundreds of thousands will watch live online via a live webcast of the gala banquet.  Every shaliach for the largest Jewish movement in the world, Chabad sent emails to their email lists informing them about the opportunity to watch the event live. It’s a very special event, and undoubtedly Jews of all religious levels tuned in online and got a sliver of extra Judaism in their lives.  What a victory.

Contrast that to August’s Siyum HaShas where 90,000 Jewish men and women attended a celebration for the completion of reading all six orders of the Babylonian Talmud, the compendium of Jewish oral law that was written down in the fourth and fifth centuries. It wasn’t available online – and so the impact was naturally limited.

The reality of life is that there is work – and Rabbis like it or not shouldn’t ignore it.  The reality of life is that there is an Internet – and whatever the level of one’s observance they need to control their behavior online just as they do offline. Different homes have different rules for how families should engage online – and for some, Rabbis have a role in helping to determine what’s permissible and what’s not.  But why not make it online to adapt to the reality of life in the 21st Century?  Chabad having tonight’s program online is undoubtedly the right decision – for who knows what Jew somewhere may be excited and inspired – and that’s a step in the right direction.

Chabad is the largest and most successful Jewish organization in the world –because they do an enviable job of listening to constituents, and becoming an integral part of their lives.  Chabad.org is the largest Jewish educational website in the world – promoting Judaism and providing daily Torah lectures and Jewish news and insights.  With 1.3 million unique visitors monthly, Chabad.org uses social media platforms effectively.

As the head of PR for Chabad, Rabbi Motti Seligson says “It is about a traditional movement with traditional foundations harnessing the power of technology. Everything in this world was created for a divine purpose, and it is our job to use the tools we are given for a higher purpose, whether it is TV or the Internet.” Judaism has to adapt to the 21st century – and that doesn’t mean sacrificing Halacha or losing authenticity.  It simply means dealing with reality.

A Rabbi I respect greatly invites people to his home every Shabbat from all over. He knows they are people, who don’t observe Shabbat, and some of them may ask ok but how should I get home? He will tell them “I invited you over for Shabbat dinner – I won’t ask what you do afterwards.” Owning 5WPR, a Public Relations Agency, the most effective marketing for established, successful companies is done through evolution, step by step – rather than radical change which could scare people away.  Judaism should be marketed similarly. For many, Judaism is a series of steps – someone who takes 2 steps forward and then falls back a step it’s not the end of the world. But if they take 10 steps forward and then 10 back, it’s much harder to climb back up.

Organizations like Chabad are marketing authentic Judaism the right way – and it’s why they are the most successful Jewish organization in the world.

Ronn Torossian is CEO of 5WPR, a top 25 US PR agency.


SOURCE http://www.jewocity.com/blog/author/ronn_torossian

Media Round-Up & Like 5WPR on Facebook!

Ronn Torossian asks “Why Are Terrorists Allowed To Use Social Media If They Can’t Scream Fire In A Crowded Theatre” http://frontpagemag.com/2012/ronn-torossian/why-allow-terrorists-to-use-social-media/

n  PR firms help Spin Iran & Syria But Rebuke Israel: http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/pr-firms-help-spin-iran-and-syria-but-say-no-to-israel/

n  The media’s despicable silence on Israel – which was apparent this week as usual: http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/the-medias-despicable-silence-on-israel/

n  Thank You Ze’ev Jabotinsky – “In the past 10 years, Israel’s stock market produced better risk adjusted returns than all other developed stock markets in the past decade. The Tel Aviv TA-25 returned 161 percent, including dividends, over the past 10 years. What a beautiful Israel Public Relations success story. It must not be overlooked that it is precisely because the nationalist camp is in power that the economy has thrived – as the ideological leader of the right Ze’ev Jabotinsky had clear support for economic freedom. Jabotinsky believed “every individual is a king” and the state should not impair his freedom. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/11816

The CEO of 5WPR contributes regularly to media. Like 5WPR on facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/5WPublicRelations


SOURCE http://www.jewocity.com/blog/author/ronn_torossian

Join in Supporting Israel’s Right to Defend Itself

Can you imagine going to work and have someone waiting for you on the other side of the street and trying to hit you with a stone every morning? How about 800 rockets that were fired on Israel since the beginning of 2012? Have you ever seen a sleeping baby wake up crying to the sound of a police car going by with the sirens on? How about the sirens warning from a potential missile falling on his bedroom?

Remember how your dad walked you to school, showing you the safest place to cross the street? Can you imagine him having to show you the nearest shelter, just in case an alarm catches you on your way? This is reality for too many Israelis for too many years, and this Tuesday we come together to stand in support of them and with Israel.

We do not encourage war – rather the opposite, we encourage the right of men, women and children to go to sleep peacefully in their bedroom and not a shelter.

We do not promote war – rather the opposite, we promote the right of Israelis to celebrate their lives, birthdays, and weddings without fear.

We do not support war – we simply support Israel’s right to defend itself and give its citizens the normal life they deserve.

Tuesday Nov. 20th at 12:30pm there will be a rally to support Israel.

This article was submitted by Ronn Torossian.


SOURCE http://www.jewocity.com/blog/author/ronn_torossian

Ronn Torossian: Small Businesses and Social Media

Many small businesses realize there is “something” about social media and online marketing, but are more hesitant in this arena than others.   Today, at 5WPR my PR agency, social media is an integral part of any PR plan.

The Ami-Partners research group reported the results of a study they conducted under the title “U.S. Small Business Marketing Activity and Spending Study: Where and How U.S. Small Businesses are Spending Marketing Dollars”. Social media in these businesses is under the responsibility of the existing marketing division and staff. The greatest implication is the time resource these staffers and managers lack, which directly impedes on any possible social media planning and implementation.

But there is a stronger factor kicking in: the economic downturn. AMI predicts that an acceleration of U.S. small business social media marketing adoption is expected. Budgets and good adaptive character are not enough.

There are millions of small businesses. If they all rendered at social media like advertising savages we’d lose the whole point of “social” and would merely be left with “media”, – as simple as any other familiar media till now. Social media was not meant to be an advertising and aggressive-marketing channel. There is more than enough TV for that.

For an effective adaptation by small businesses to social media, there is a need to check things out step by step – as small as these steps may be. Here is some insight:

·         Don’t fall into the temptation of selling through your social media channels. Yes, people are present – but they’re tuned out of advertising slogans. To get a sense of social media is about – even for your business pages – go back to your own private profile and skim through your connection’s posts. How often do you see people selling each other products or services? What you witness is conversation and virtual interaction. Start a relatively private conversation with your followers, be a little informal about what they feel/read/know of your service

·         It is highly recommended that you designate a person, team, division – depending on your business size – for the new media planning and implementation. It requires and deserves a special attention and consideration. Yes, it can include different marketing initiatives that go on occasionally – but not necessarily. As you become more new media adept you will find out that marketing models on social media are based on totally different “rules” that those more traditional ones you are used to even from recent innovations like direct email marketing. People have different expectations.

·         Reflect some of your daily thoughts and whereabouts. People need to be reminded that behind every Facebook business fan page, every twitter profile, and every business-based YouTube page there is a person, not a “bot”. The best way to show that is to share something “human” like your feeling out of a meeting, a hectic day, a curios question regarding other people’s opinions.

Engage your audience, accept and expect feedback and reactions, encourage debate and product-related discussions. Whatever you do – start small, start authentic, start today.

Ronn Torossian is president and CEO of 5WPR. Named to the “40 under 40” list of PR Week & Advertising Age, Ronn Torossian was a semi-finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and may be reached at Rtorossian@5wpr.com and followed on twitter @rtorossian5wpr


SOURCE http://www.jewocity.com/blog/author/ronn_torossian

Why is the Jewish and Israeli Left so Extreme?

While Arab nations bordering Israel don’t permit women to vote, Israel was the first nation in the world to have a woman Prime Minister – Golda Meir. Described as the “strong-willed, straight-talking, grey-bunned grandmother of the Jewish people”, Meir led the Jewish nation for many years.

While many of Meir’s views on economic policy would differ from those of today’s Prime Minister, as she was a member of the left-wing Mapai political party, her views on security coincide with the leaders of the Israeli government today.

Nowadays, the Left has moved to the extreme far-left – far further than many of the Zionist forefathers of the State of Israel (Meir was one of 24 signatories, two of which were women, of the Israeli Declaration of Independence in 1948). They are well beyond the pale of consensus.

Golda Meir’s ideas in her own words:

    “Now they say we should go back to the ’67 borders, but that’s where we were so why was there a war? And we had ’47 borders… we didn’t like them very much but we said yes to them. But there was still a war. And after the ’48 war they said we should go back to the ’47 borders. But that’s where we were…and that’s where they wanted to get us out from…They still nurture a hope that at some time we’ll disappear.”

    “One need not have a fertile imagination to realize what the situation of the State of Israel would have been if we had been deployed on the June 4th 1967 lines… The Arab rulers pretend that their objective is limited to reaching the lines of June 1967 but we know their true objective: the total subjugation of the State of Israel.”

    “There can be no greater mistake in assessing the current situation in the Middle East than to assume that the conflict continues because of a specific Arab grievance – the plight of the Arab refugees, the Israeli presence on the West Bank, the reunification of Jerusalem. The heart of the problem is what caused the Six Day War… Simply put the root issue is the Arab attitude to Israel’s very existence…They don’t want us here. That’s what it’s about. It isn’t true that they don’t want us in Nablus or Jenin. They don’t want us, period.”

    “Everybody today tells us there is no such thing in the world today as secure borders. Yet I haven’t seen any people stepping back from their borders and saying “we don’t care what our borders are.” They tell us there will be international guarantees. … does any other people depend on international guarantees? No. But we should. And if we don’t, we’re stubborn or intransigent or not accommodating or we don’t care about public relations.”

    “There are those who threaten with a gun and those who try to defend themselves…to say a plague upon both your houses is an injustice.”

    “If we are criticized because we do not bow – because we cannot compromise on the question, ‘To be or not to be,’ it is because we have decided that, come what may, we are and we will be.”

    “There is nothing Israel wants so much as peace – With all the bleakness of the desert, the desert of hate around us is even more bleak.”

Another Zionist leader, before Meir was Ze’ev Jabotinsky who wrote in 1929: “The Jewish people – all of us, 100 percent want peace” – but more important than peace is survival.  The mistake the Left makes today was highlighted by Jabotinsky when he said:  “A great commotion is currently afoot in Zionism, caused by the community of the seekers of peace, whose intention is to achieve (by way, of course, of preaching to the Jews alone) agreement with the Arabs.”

Whether one defines themselves as a Revisionist Zionist like Jabotinsky, or a Liberal Zionist like Meir, Zionists must be concerned with the security of the Jewish state more than “peace” with an enemy who wants to destroy Israel piece by piece.

Based in New York, Ronn Torossian founded 5WPR, a leading Public Relations Agency.  He is a Jewish community leader, and author of “For Immediate Release”.


SOURCE http://www.algemeiner.com/2012/11/09/why-is-the-jewish-and-israeli-left-so-extreme/

Israel Public Relations News & Happenings

n  Hebrew University of Jerusalem is hosting a “Leadership and Public Diplomacy”together with the Israeli Government.   Programme fellows will meet twice a month, where topics will include “techniques of Hasbara, standing before an audience…image of Israel in the world…”, and other topics. The Fellowship is offered at seven universities in Israel, including Hebrew University – and the fellows at each university work as a group to initiate and implement a public diplomacy project, “the echoes of which {are} heard throughout Israel and the world.”

n  The latest celebrity to visit Israel is American tennis champion Serena Williams – who visited Eilat and other cities.  So great and important for Israel when high-profile people visit the State of Israel.

n  “Living on the liberal Upper West Side of Manhattan, as a self-made successful entrepreneur who grew up in this great city, I see people every day who I think must come from another planet. When I see people in my über-luxury condominium building, where 1-bedroom apartments cost approximately $1 million dollars, sporting buttons and t-shirts for socialist causes, they get angry when I tell them if they want to share their wealth I’d be happy to take their money. They aren’t humored (and I am not joking).” I welcome your thoughts and feedback on my op-ed at: http://frontpagemag.com/2012/ronn-torossian/hating-the-successful/

“No city in the world, not even Athens or Rome, ever played as great a role in the life of a nation for so long a time, as Jerusalem has done in the life of the Jewish people.” David Ben-Gurion, the first Prime Minister of Israel

The view of Jerusalem is the history of the world; it is more, it is the history of earth and of heaven.” Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield and British Prime Minister

Ronn Torossian is CEO of 5WPR, an active philanthropist and author. Ronn Torossian contributes often to media.


SOURCE http://www.jewocity.com/blog/author/ronn_torossian

Jewish & Israel Community Leaders Comment on “For Immediate Release” by Ronn Torossian

“For Immediate Release: Shape Minds, Build Brands and Deliver Results with Game-Changing Public Relations” by entrepreneur Ronn Torossian continues to sell well, and Jewish and Israel community leaders continue to offer very strong commentary on the book.

Rabbi Avi Weiss of the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, who was named to the 2010, 2011 & 2012 Newsweek list of most influential American Rabbis said: “Ronn Torossian has always had a brilliant ability to present complicated, sophisticated ideas with clarity and simplicity. For Immediate Release is no exception. In it, Ronn demonstrates his unique talent for understanding the issues, deciphering and filtering them, and then presenting them to the public in just the right way. This book takes the reader into Ronn’s world, and gives a glimpse of his passion, brilliance, and rare aptitude for communicating well.”

The Deputy Speaker of the Israeli Knesset, Likud Member of Knesset Danny Danon said the book is “the best book ever on Israel public relations.”

A book review this week on Israel National News said: “In this remarkable book that delves into the gritty underside of the tough public relations world that so many people, governments and companies seek out to help build, improve or repair images, Torossian demonstrates in vivid written illustration, that “It’s not enough to simply convey a message—you need people to listen. The terrific part of reading “For Immediate Release,” is that he not only shares with you his strategies for making people listen, but he offers fact-filled proof of how it worked in specific situations. If Israel’s leaders are looking for a solid approach to making sure its narrative is told clearly and supported around the world, they would be smart to pick up a copy and read it…”

And not to leave out the Christian Pro-Israel community, Roberta Combs, the National President of the Christian Coalition of America said: ““For Immediate Release is the perfect handbook for navigating public relations. My good friend, Ronn Torossian, a master of the PR world, has written a thorough, easy-to-understand resource. Read this book!”

The book is available for purchase at: http://www.amazon.com/Immediate-Release-Deliver-Game-Changing-Relations/dp/1936661160


SOURCE http://www.jewocity.com/blog/jewish-israel-community-leaders-comment-on-for-immediate-release-by-ronn-torossian/5597