Cheryl Snapp Conner is the Founder and Managing Partner of Snapp Conner PR, a successful Utah-based PR agency focused on technology. Since 1989, Cheryl has led 4 different tech PR agencies and directed strategic programs for companies such as Novell, Altiris, and Lexmark. We sat down with Cheryl to find out more about her new agency, how PR is adapting to new media, and how the landscape of Utah technology has changed over the years.

Silicon Slopes:  Tell us a little about your company and how it was started?

Cheryl Snapp Conner: I launched Snapp Conner PR in April of 2007, but the history of our team goes back much further with my prior agency Snapp Norris Group. My initial small team was an outgrowth of my efforts there. We wanted to continue in a direction that focused entirely on PR and would allow us to push that envelope still further with programs to address new media and to leverage the increasingly “viral” and informal methods of communication that are becoming more prevalent now. Currently we’re 12 people with plans to grow to 20-24 people within the next 1-2 years. So we’re still a boutique, but we want to continue a very high degree of specialization.

Silicon Slopes: What are some key differences between PR for technology companies and PR for other industries?

Cheryl Snapp Conner: Actually, there are fewer differences than there used to be. The lines are increasingly blurred. Many aspects of technology are becoming relevant within most consumer and lifestyle publications. When it comes to very deep technology and enterprise business-to-business products, however, the publications become more specialized and continue to be ruled by a discrete set of highly respected editors and reviewers. So the deeper the specialization, the more critical the working relationships and ability to connect with those key individuals will be. But beyond that factor, there are actually more similarities than differences these days.

Silicon Slopes: What are your thoughts on the shift to Web 2.0 media and how is it affecting PR? Are firms having a hard time adjusting to these changes?

Cheryl Snapp Conner: The shift to Web 2.0 and new media is one of the hottest PR topics these days. Interestingly, the PR event for the Utah Technology Council (UTC) that we run once a year has had New Media as its topic for the past three years running, and we’re still far from through. It’s an arena that is perpetually shifting, and so it’s required all of us—both practioners and vendors—to be continually evaluating and evolving our methodology and tactics. It’s keeping us all on our toes.

Silicon Slopes:  How has your firm adjusted?

Cheryl Snapp Conner: Actually, the ability to innovate so many new methods and programs has made life more interesting for us. It’s also an arena where the younger partners and consultants can play especially well, so it’s exciting for them to have the chance to innovate programs and initiate their own new ideas alongside those of us who grew up in the “old school.”

We’ve had a strong advantage in our ability to blend new and old—the benefit of 23 years working relationships with the top editors coupled with the opportunity to leverage new tools such as podcast features, new blogging methodology, and even Twitter and Facebook campaigns. It’s given us some unique advantages and it’s also making our programs more fun.

Silicon Slopes:  What do you think of the trend of corporate blogs coming online? What tips do you have for corporate bloggers?

Cheryl Snapp Conner: We think it’s a wonderful trend. Handled correctly, corporate blogs have become a great way of creating a more meaningful and personal dialogue with customers.

Our primary points of advice would be to use the corporate blog to provide unique value, such as tips and tricks for best use of the company’s product, and a forum for answering customer’s toughest questions. Don’t discourage or screen tough questions or negative comments, but do make certain that your company executives are trained in the best ways to respond (i.e. they can’t violate any SEC rules for disclosure, and they need to be very, very clear about when they’re speaking from their areas of personal expertise and when they’re acting as company spokespeople.)

The worst mistake would be to use the corporate blog too heavily as a means to promote. Make sure you’re filling the bulk of the blog with information your readers can’t get from anywhere else.

Silicon Slopes:  What are some effective PR strategies for companies with a limited budget?

Cheryl Snapp Conner: With a limited budget, it’s critical to ensure you’re using your outside PR counsel for the most strategic activities you wouldn’t be able to cover in house. You should also work with your agency or PR staff to ensure that each program is put to the test of assuring that each activity is honed to help meet your company’s most critical business objectives.

With limited resources, a campaign to pull leads in to validate a new product would be more valuable than awareness announcements about your company’s growth.

For one of our recent clients in a very specialized market with a very long sales cycle, we determined that getting case study articles out to ensure that any Web search on their relevant terms produced lots of hits on their name and on their customers’ stories has provided the credibility they need to get through the door when they’re pursuing a new lead. So this was that company’s best use of their limited PR dollars.

Silicon Slopes:  In your 22 years of PR experience, what has been your favorite campaign?

Cheryl Snapp Conner: Hmmm… it’s hard to pick just one favorite. The advent of high-quality color printing for every office and individual was fun. We collected favorite photos from each editor we were working with and then presented the reporters with framed “photos” that were indistinguishable from the originals in our product launch discussions with them. That was a lot of fun.

The launch of the FlipDog online jobsite was another favorite. Rather than hold an event or launch with an announcement, we developed a guerilla campaign to blanket the U.S. with various articles about this unknown company within two weeks of its launch. We found out from a key financial analyst which reporters were most credible in that particular sector and then we spoke to them all.

We broke the story in the Washington Post. It was extremely hard to get that appointment, but I will never forget the reporter becoming so entranced by the news that she chased us into the parking lot after the interview. She was calling out “one more question! Just one more question!” I missed my flight home over that interview, but it was worth it. Our news had pretty much blanketed both hemispheres by the following Monday a.m.

Silicon Slopes:  How has the technology atmosphere changed in Utah since you first started doing PR?

Cheryl Snapp Conner: I’m really happy to say the atmosphere has gotten substantially better in the years since I first started doing PR. When I first started my PR career in Utah, Novell and WordPerfect were pretty much the only large technology companies here. Today there are more than 5,200 Utah technology firms.

As recently as 2002, my team brought nine of the technology industry’s top technology editors out to Utah during the Winter Olympics. The editors were highly complementary about our industry’s status but were still maintaining that to be taken seriously, a company would have to maintain strong presence and enact its launch from one of the coasts. Today that concern has gone completely away. Some of the industry’s most respected technology companies are currently headquartered and launching in Utah.

The Utah Technology Council (UTC) is one of the very top tech associations in the nation, and UTC’s President, Rich Nelson, is also the President of its national counterpart, CRITA (the Council of Regional IT Associations). In many respects, Utah’s rankings in the technology industry lead the nation. The funding sources and the infrastructure to support these companies is increasing quickly as well.

It’s been a great evolution and we’re very happy for the chance to be a part of it.