A few months ago the barista-by-day/DJ-by-night in my office building and I had the following exchange as he prepared my mid-day double nonfat latte:

Him: So you’re in PR. How can I get some press?

Me: What kind of press do you want?

Him: I want a big story in the SF Weekly or East Bay Express.

Me: Ummm.

Him: Give me some ideas! Anything!

Me: Let me get back to you on that one.

Some people don’t quite understand that PR varies so much by industry, just like it does for other lines of work. I have a vivid memory of being a kid with a hurt leg at a family gathering, and going up to my Uncle Kami, a doctor, to fix it and make it all better.

The only problem? Uncle Kami is a dentist. I won’t even mention the prodding questions I’ve asked to one of my other uncles, who happens to have a Ph.D. … in economics.

In the last few years, it’s become apparent just how different one segment of the PR industry is different from another, in large part thanks to the onslaught of reality TV shows on the field. PR Newser says it best: “Since When Did PR Reality Shows Become So Popular?” It’s true, shows such as SPINdistry, Kell On Earth and PoweR Girls are practically creating a new genre of reality TV, but they are so far from my reality as well as the reality of many of my PR brethren. Being tasked with the front-row seating assignments at Bryant Park is as mysterious to me as prepping for a Gartner analyst briefing is for them.

There’s an inside joke in the PR industry about how many times our parents ask us what we actually do all day. I found myself in this situation just this weekend with my family yet again. I usually brush it off by explaining my job in a short sentence that dramatically underplays its true value. “I make sure people who care about my clients know about them and are updated on what they do,” I say. But this time I decided to go further, speaking in explicit detail about my daily activities and the specific reasons why they are important for tech companies to do – from market research, to extensive planning, to securing and staffing meetings with press/analysts, to media training, to writing writing writing, to reading reading reading and so on. They were astounded by the amount of work that goes into doing good tech PR. And maybe I should start going into more depth when people ask. The industry needs it. After all, a huge reason why so many people slam PR is that they don’t understand what it entails, or think it’s just about getting a story in a magazine. It’s not.

So how did I end up answering my barista when he asked me, the analogous dentist, how to fix his proverbial shin splints? I explained to him that he can’t just want press because he thinks he deserves it. He needs to start thinking about what makes him interesting and what larger trends he might fit into. Then, to think of an event or something else timely coming up that 1) the reporter can tie the story to; and 2) will meet his objective of getting some more bodies at his shows. Because whether you’re in music, fashion, celebrity, consumer or tech PR, some rules will always be universal.

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A few months back I found myself at a tech event listening to a discussion about women in technology. It struck me how bloody tired I was – and still am – of the topic. I fail to see what complaining why there are not enough women entering the technology field really accomplishes beyond female bonding and commiseration. Perhaps it’s due to my immigrant-influenced roots, but I don’t believe in excuses. I believe in…just doing.

Part of the “problem” in my eyes has always been that there are not enough women who make themselves visible in the industry, especially without feeling the need to overcompensate by pushing their “geekery” on everyone.

So, with my personal video blogging winding down, I dreamed up an idea of a video blog on SF-area technology entrepreneurs, dreamers and movers-and-shakers hosted by thoughtful, fun, intelligent hosts…who happen to be women. The video blog would be quirky yet educational, professional yet personal. I have to give a lot of props to my friend and UI designer Lindsay Tabas, who really helped hone the initial tone from the get go, was very encouraging of the idea, and brought her trademark gusto to make this project happen.

Without further ado, meet wildwest, hosted by Lindsay, myself and Camille Ricketts from VentureBeat.

Sad to say, Lindsay has decided to leave San Francisco to embark on an epic, 6-month tour of the world. This means that wildwest will be a one-off project, and I’m out a great friend to hang out with!

Still, I have an inkling – a large one – that you will really enjoy what we’ve done. For the video, we interviewed Sprout community managing, brand evangelizing, fanny-pack wearing, skeeball loving Joey Mucha. Joey’s one of my best friends here in town and an all-around great guy.

Please visit the site, wildwestshow.tv,  for the full scoop on Joey and all three of your hosts.

Sit back. Watch. And I hope you enjoy what we’ve done.

UPDATE: You should really head over to Lindsay’s blog to read her synopsis on the project. She has captured her (as well as my) thoughts on being a “girl in tech” so poignantly, masterfully drawing an analogy back to our beloved Bayside High cast of characters. She also delves deeper into why felt it was so necessary to make wildwest a reality.

So TechCrunch 50. Nothing else matters besides the fact that I finally met Shel Isreal puppet and Michael Arrington puppet, courtesy of 1938 Media. Look how happy we are to be together!

Three's company

Also, I’ve said this many times before, but if you don’t watch Loren Feldman’s videos, you’re missing out. The world needs more straight shooters – and more puppets!

If you’re dying to know what TechCrunch 50 start-up was my favorite, my pick would be secondary-market ticket price forecasting outfit, SeatGeek. No, it’s not a “game-changing” company, but I’m fairly positive we didn’t see any next Googles or Facebooks at the conference, as the clichéd saying goes. (Seriously people, let’s figure out a more creative analogy!)

SeatGeek has a solid product on its hands, is already profitable and is targeting an untapped marketplace. Plus, judging by the concert obsessed folks in my own social circle, the company may have just as well called itself SeatFreak. A built-in passionate user base never hurts.

Here’s SeatGeek’s presentation at the conference for reference:

You can watch all of the launching start-ups’ presentations, along with “expert” judge commentary, over on the TechCrunch 50 site.