Winter sports aren’t typically my thing. The season itself? I’m challenged to walk outside when the temperature dips below 60 degrees. But after Super Bowl LX, like many of you, I was locked into the 2026 Winter Olympics. 

Ratings soared past the last Olympics. Friends who rarely talk sports suddenly had takes and rattled off details about athletes.

It wasn’t just about snowscaped mountains or slick sleds. It was about storylines: the comeback. A crash or fall. The pressure. Families in the stands, cheering at home—or there in memory.

When storytelling is Olympic-strong, casual viewers stop scrolling. Whether it’s a gut-wrenching collapse, a magnificent comeback or friends cheering halfway across the world, those are moments that stay with us. NBC/Peacock knows and plans for this. It’s also what makes sharing those stories special (from local media, too).

PR you can use: Don't promote the event; promote the human. When your story connects … when it makes you cheer or brings you to tears … your audience follows. 

❤️ Most ads are forgettable. These aren’t.

I know Valentine’s Day is in the rearview mirror, but the panic of forgetting something important is a universal brand goldmine. And when you veer into unexpected territory with your message, people really pay attention. DoorDash for Valentine’s Day is what happens when you listen to what people say before you write, produce or post.

Even as many of us use social differently than we did a decade ago, DoorDash’s Valentine’s Day campaigns prove social listening still matters. Even if you hate it, social media could point you toward what you produce next.

But, how?

Set keyword searches (yup, they’re still relevant, just in different ways) to see what people are saying about holidays or other moments during the year. Think of ways your business fits in. Those words could guide some of your best work. 

It follows a simple format: identify a timely brand challenge, follow with a plan to meet the challenge, make it memorable and shareable and launch your ideas into action.

DoorDash’s Direction: Partners forget Valentine’s Day. The brand reminds them why their crushes care. Reports say the company’s 2025 ad drove 80% of its flower sales … EIGHTY percent … ON Feb. 14. (Check out some other Valentine’s Day creatives in this MarketingBrew story.)

PR you can use: Let spots like these change how you approach your next marketing and PR campaign. Until then, I’m off to make T-shirts with a couple of those promos’ one-liners.

☝🏼PR Rules 1 through 100: Don’t be a jerk

UCLA basketball coach Mick Cronin’s name is back in the sports news. Part of a pattern? Well, this one lingers. 

After ejecting one of his players for what he called a “dirty play” during Michigan State’s blowout of the Bruins, he lashed out at a reporter postgame. Cronin later apologized, at least to the player and the UCLA fan base, after headlines across sports media painted him as out of control.

“I thought it was kind of petulant and unnecessary,” ESPN analyst Jay Bilas said of Cronin’s outburst to Chris Russo on Russo’s SiriusXM show, where the former college player also criticized other coaches who handled losses poorly.

When you feel you have to publicly convince people you’re good at your job—even with a winning record (Cronin’s got more than 520 career wins)—you’ve likely gone too far. Winning makes people forgive a few bad decisions until it doesn’t. Then you’re yelling at a wall.

“If you don’t like a question, just say, ‘Look, I prefer not to answer that,’ ” Bilas said.

And that’s your PR takeaway. Yup, it’s that simple.

©2026 Gail Sideman; gpublicity.com; SIDEbar

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