Don’t be like Andy Marken / Marken Communications
I know a lot of really smart, talented people in PR and marketing. This post isn’t really for them. They know that a relationship matters more than a story, and that results are measured continuously – sometimes over a span of years — not necessarily immediately. And they know it’s not just about being easy to work with, it’s about being a real person, and treating your industry colleagues (especially the ones with ink) with mutual respect.
Naw, this is just for the people who care too little to do three minutes of homework before making a wasted five minute pitch; who email and immediately call to follow up; who just can’t tell when they’ve crossed the line; or who just don’t know how to lose your email address, no matter how many times you ask. People like Andy Marken of Marken Communications (andy@markencom.com), whose name has become infamous in tech journalist circles for representing everything dysfunctional with certain old models of PR.
I know for some it can be hard work, but don’t be Andy. Your company and/or clients will thank you.
I'm an editor and technology critic in the midst of founding a new web startup: 
I think Andy Marken is synonymous with awful emails, wasted time and generally not getting it with literally every tech journalist that I’ve ever talked to. He’s a bit of a punchline now.
This Andy guy sounds like a total douche. I hate when people and companies stick to the “old way” of doing business and fail to evolve with the times.
You seem like you’re pretty up on these sorts of things, but I guess email filters slipped by you.
I filtered Andy out of my Google inbox along with ads for erectile dysfunction. Fitting company I think.
I remember your tweets over the past couple weeks about a ton of email and phone calls following. PR really does have a talent for attracting the wrong types of people though, clearly evidenced by this. From the sound of it I don’t even know if it’s a case of evolving, more than just acting like a normal human being.
Oh and his website looks amazing! Love the CES 2007 quote – deep stuff! (/endsarcasm)
So why is he still in the business? Sounds like he does nothing right or particularly useful
mattheww, email filters cure the symptom, not the disease. The Markens of the world need a wake up call — and Andy, specifically, needs to learn a lesson that after 15+ unsubscribe requests over the last four years, it is NOT okay to keep spamming someone.
Fair enough I guess. Still something struck me as a little tool-y about this post; the guy is such an easy target (1. pr guy, 2. unpopular one) that you seem like a bully here. He was after all just doing his job, however poorly, and dealing with aggressive p.r. people strikes me as an inevitable part of yours. Making readers who came here to learn about gadgets slog though your workplace gripes is not you executing “tech writer” in top form either.
Except Andy wasn’t just doing his (or any) job. He wasn’t emailing on behalf of a client this week, he was sending yet another irrelevant, spammy newsletter. But if he was emailing on behalf a client, he wouldn’t have been doing his job then, either. It’s the job of a PR person to make your client or company look good, and have their story told. Hard to do that when every tech reporter in the industry has MarkenCom emails filtered to trash because Andy has such an abysmal reputation.
The Markens of the world are to PR as writing uninformed, sloppy, factually inaccurate stories is to journalists. Both are unacceptable, and I take as much issue with Andy as I do with the hacks who parrot, plagiarize, or just simply add no value.
By the way, no one “made” you come here — and in case you hadn’t already noticed, this isn’t gdgt or Engadget, this is my personal site.
As a college student hoping to enter the tech world someday, things like this are helpful.
Thank you.
Haha, that was a classic slap.
Beleive me, Markens exist on all local markets. I’d retweet you on that but I’m too much afraid to hurt as here in Russia Andy Marken’s spirit happened to be reborn in a sensitive and somewhat naive 25 yr old girl.
I have asked him a hundred times to remove me from his list and he never has. I don’t even get mad anymore, it’s that sad haha.
I’ve been working with Andy recently and thought I was replying emails to a 10 year old with a keyboard. Excessive use of exclamation marks and poor/humorous attempts at using slang.
But totally agree, I get an excessive amount of emails from the man about random video encoding tools and other products that no one really cares much for. I only realized that he’s in his 80s or something after I tracked down his LinkedIn page to find out more about him.
It’s impressive and surprising that he’s been able to keep his agency running for a couple decades. Most of these PR agencies are all targeting the “social media” audience instead.
Anyways, I haven’t had any problems with him per say, but hope he can change a few practices.
Don’t stick to the old ways..Businesses change year round!
I used to work for the guy about 25+ years ago (before email). Sounds like not much has changed.
Oh man, Andy looks like an old rock star. Look at his bling-bling!
http://img525.imageshack.us/i/snap20100205164922004.png/
http://www.berkeleyabc.org/2009/images/Andy%20Marken.jpg
Looks a little more like the living dead if you ask me.
Bling bling! What a pose! That picture should go right there with that blog post.
I haven’t read-up on this Andy but he looks like the “A-typical” MaigicJack (TM) actuary that seems to sit in the pyramid scheem of the “Cartel/Mafia” International investers (Amer-Europeen). The ring has some significance to Solomon’s ring?… interesting…
Hi Ryan,
are you seriously letting your website down? Everytime I come here, hoping for some brilliant remarks on whatever, I find the don´t be like the marken guy – post.
Young, brilliant and good looking, as you are, there should be more interesting content here. Anyway, keep on the good work!
yours sincerely
Susanne A.
(Berlin, Germany)
Susanne, sorry, just have very little time to write these days!
Where can I find some of these guys articles? I want to know what not to do.
Hey Ryan,
As a former PR person turned quasi journalist I’ve already been a victim of the random totally unrelated release bomb and definitely feel for you.
Also, just noticed you (fittingly) have /ryan on twitter, impressive.
Hope all is well,
David Cohen
Marken Communications was my first job out of college–for all of six weeks in 1991. Andy and his wife Jeanine (who oversees all text editing!) are bullies and hacks. In just those six weeks, they shattered my confidence, as they have with countless other entry-level hires over the years–bright people with PR degrees. And it’s always the same old story in the end; they wonder “why are all these young people SO immature??”–it’s never, ever THEIR fault. The Markens represent the worst of a shady industry…I marvel how they’ve stayed in business with such sloppy practices as you’ve decribed. TRUST ME–they’ve made plenty of enemies.
hehe I met him in 1987 when I was an editor at a tech publication. He blew smoke in my face (literally) and tried to blow it up my butt (figuratively). I was still a young guy then, and have never forgotten the indelible impression he made on me as to what not to do as a PR person or human being.
This post make me feel better about myself: I thought I might be the only person who did not understand what Marken says in his e-mail message…either I was missing something, or (which is quite possible) didn’t have enough time to try to read and discern what information he attempts to convey.
There are hundreds of us who once worked for Andy Marken. He has been in business for about 3 decades, and has survived by sheer force of will, and by having unsophisiticated clients who don’t know anything about PR, and pay him to run roughshod over the editorial community. Marken is a physically repulsive, serial womanizing, chain-smoking, Obsession-for-Men-wearing, PR dinosaur whose tactics are rooted back in the 1970s and 1980s when PR was a much different business. Believe you me when I tell you that you DO NOT ever want to meet this man in person, and if you have, you will know what I am talking about. Marken is a blight on this earth and the world will be a much better place when he passes on.