In Public Relations, Looks Aren't Everything (But They Sure Can Help)

Many movies hing on a simple wardrobe change as a transformation experience for a character. From My Fair Lady to The Devil Wears Prada, pop culture points to the impact of appearance. Public relations is an image business and how you look is as much your calling card as the one in your wallet.

Everything about how you look, your haircut to your shoe choice, speaks volumes about who you are and where you're going, whether you are consciously trying to communicate that or not. Usually, the safest way to dress is to stick with simple, understated clothing. Men should invest in a gray or black, light wool, two-button suit. For women, keep color, accessories and skin to a minimum. Basic shapes such as a wrap dress or a tie-neck blouse paired with a pencil skirt are sure to impress. Otherwise, a black suit is safe and professional way to dress for your business meeting. It doesn't have to be an exact match- there is no reason why you can't buy a nice blazer and wear it with a pair of chic pants that you already have in your closet. When in doubt, guys (if not on a job interview or uber-formal setting) should wear dressy khaki pants, a blue, crisp, button-down shirt and a good-looking tie. Bring a navy blazer. You can always ditch it at the last minute if no one else is sporting one.

Start by shopping your closet. Buy the basics and then add affordable, amazing pieces to mix in match with. There are tons of affordable choices ranging from online flash sale sites to designed collaborations with big box retailers including pick up some basic wardrobe building blocks. Consignment stops are great for accessories too. A good handbag can make a powerful punch in the style department.

In PR, looking the part is key to being able to communicate effectively to your audience. Consider your client, their expectations, the setting of the meeting and the purpose. This even matters when you're looking for a job. During an interview, you're evaluated not only for what you have to say, but what you're wearing.

Whether you are trying to land a job somewhere full time or freelancing, remember that companies will hire and promote people who help put their best foot forward in every scenario. No matter what you're doing, you are, in essence, the face of the company, so it's vital to pay attention to your style.

Charlie Sheen's Publicist

Charlie Sheen's publicist resigns respectfully after latest round of actor's media outbursts.

Veteran Hollywood publicist Stan Rosenfield who has represented Charlie Sheen through through the actor's rehab attempts and breakup with his employers on the hit sitcom "Two and a half Men," abruptly resigned on Monday.

"I have worked with Sheen for a long time and I care about him very much," Rosenfield wrote in a brief statement. "However, at this time, I'm unable to work effectively as his publicist and have respectfully resigned." In a follow-up e-mail, Rosenfield said he had represented Sheen for at least seven years.

The news came on the same day that Sheen turned up in another round of interviews on ABC, NBC, TMZ and elsewhere, attacking everyone from CBS to his father, former "The West Wing" star Martin Sheen. Since CBS and Warner Bros. decided last week to halt production on "Two and a Half Men" after Sheen attacked his boss, Chuck Lorre, the actor has gone on a manic round of media interviews. It's unclear what role, if any, Rosenfield played in setting up those interviews.

But, the public relations man was still working on the Sheen account Monday morning, when he dispelled an e-mail hoax that said Sheen had retired from acting.

As a fellow PR professional, I feel for Rosenfield. It's hard to work with someone who is not working with you, listening to your advice and setting up their own media relations efforts, spewing their own key messages - which in my opinion is sending Sheen into a downward failure spiral. Right now, Sheen doesn't care a thing about his own PR. He wants to do and say anything he wants and is not thinking about the repercussions. This is all fine and dandy, as long as Sheen keeps his fan base. Once that's gone, it doesn't really matter anymore if his TV show comes back or not. No one is going to want to pay Sheen the money required to keep his fancy lifestyle going. I wish him well.

What do you think of the Cheeseburger Bill?

This week, a Minnesota House panel approved legislation that would block consumers from suing fast-food chains and other food companies for weight problems. The Civil Law Committee approved the Personality Responsibility in Food Consumption Act on a voice vote. The proposal is also know as the "cheeseburger bill."

The bill would prevent consumers for suing the food industry for weight gain, obesity and other health problems caused by long-term consumption of fattening foods and non-alcohol drinks such as soda.

The sponsor, Republican Rep. Dean Urdahl of Grove City, says the bill would prevent frivolous lawsuits. Urdahl has been pushing this legislation since 2004. So far, this bill has been passed in 24 states.

I'm a fan of the cheeseburger bill. I think it promotes personal responsibility and I agree, it prevents annoying lawsuits. McDonalds has been brought to court numerous times for being the problem for many consumers obesity, ever since their 2002 New York court case. It is still pending and I think it's silly. Eat something different, don't eat a cheeseburger and french fries everyday!

What is Klout?

I just learned of the website Klout, an online personal profile social media influence measurement tool. It's pretty cool if you're social media savvy and interact a lot using social media tools.

People are given an 'online score' which measures your overall online influence. The score ranges from 1 to 100 with higher scores representing a wider and stronger sphere of influence. Klout uses 35 variables on Facebook and Twitter to measure True Reach, Amplification Probability, and Network Score.

True Reach is the size of your engaged audience and is based on those of your followers and friends who actively listen and react to your messages.

Amplification Score is the likelihood that your messages will generate actions (retweets, @messages, likes and comments) and is on a scale of 1 to 100.

Network Score indicates how influential your engage audience is and is also on a scale of 1 to 100.

The Klout Score is highly correlated to clicks, comments and retweets. I recommend you check out your own Klout Score if you use social media a lot. Learn more: www.klout.com

Was the 2011 Super Bowl the Greenest NFL Championship Ever?

Just Energy, a green energy retailer supplying renewable energy certificates to Super Bowl venues, is claiming that "the 2011 Super Bowl will be the greenest NFL championship on record." Is this true, or is it just greenwashing?

Just Energy is contributing heavily to the Super Bowl's sustainability with a commitment to offset all direct and indirect carbon emissions from power generation at major Super Bowl venues, including NFL Super Bowl headquarters, the Super Bowl Media Center, the AFC and NFC team hotels, and even the NFL Experience Football Theme Park. For every megawatt of electricity used to power these facilities, Just Energy is purchasing one megawatt of renewable energy from Sweetwater Wind Farm in Sweetwater, Texas. This will be the largest renewable energy credit program in Super Bowl history.

and then there is Cowboy Stadium, the site of this year's game. The stadium, which was the first to be recognized in the EPA's National Environmental Performance Track Program, has targets to cut solid waste by 25%, water consumption by 1 million gallons, and energy use by 20% each year. All solid waste from the Super Bowl will be diverted to local recycling projects, and leftover materials will be sent to local non-profits.

This year is also the debut of the Super Grow XLV program, a partnership between the Texas Trees Foundation and the Texas Forest Service that planted over 6,500 trees in 12 north Texas communities, marketing it the biggest tree-planting effort in Super Bowl history (other Super Bowl-connected tree-planting efforts have been going on for years). The program is intended to offset CO2 emissions from Super Bowl events.

Do these efforts add up to a truly sustainable sporting event? Soft of. Just Energy's renewable energy credits are helpful, but they aren't sustainable as producing all that renewable energy on site. And this year's event will use 15,000 megawatts of power, or enough electricity to power 1,500 homes for a year. It would be more impressive if the NFL could cut that number in half, but the Cowboy stadium does, at least, have noble energy goals, and the NFL is doing more in the sustainability arena for this year's game than it ever has before. Let's just hope every year from now on features the "greenest NFL championship" yet.