Future PR Professionals

With many of us entering the real world shortly, I came across this article that has both interesting and helpful information to be aware of if you are looking for a job in Public Relations. As many of us are aware, the industry has been and continues to grow into something it never was even just ten years ago. It is important for those who are looking for a PR job to understanding the differences and similarities between the old and the new way the field works. Also, it is helpful to have a diverse knowledge base and understanding of the business world. PR professionals have to be aware of the different areas of social media and properly manage these connections. Finally, it is important to be aware of all different aspects of an organization and work with different departments to ensure the companies best image. Younger adults just coming out of college may be inexperienced; however they have the desire to learn and change with the field. These individuals are also more technologically savvy than older people in the field, giving them an upper hand. Even in a tough economy, there are still great opportunities available and people willing to do their best to accomplish their goals.

http://publicrelationsblogger.com/2010/05/public-relations-today-what-it-means.html

Social media not quite so social

In recent news, woman decided to spend 30 days in a storefront, only communicating through Twitter, Facebook and Skype. She is not allowed to leave and no one is allowed to go inside.

"Admitting social media can be a good thing for people who live in different states, Norin said it's gotten to the point where people do not do anything other than stay home to communicate with others."

"The experiment is being filmed by Norin's friend Josh Elliott who, like Norin, says he is not anti-technology. The goal, he says, is to inspire conversation about how social media affects people's lives."

Norin's thoughts, ""It interrupts luncheons. You see it, where we do that, we stop and answer text messages rather than just enjoy who we are with. Or people have to a get a photo of the luncheon and then post it on Facebook. It's like we need a Web presence to prove our existence."

I think this is an interesting case study as well as interesting to talk about but I would not be able to do that for 30 days.
http://ktar.com/?nid=49&sid=1357789

6 key skills for PR pros in 2011

As a public relations pro you must have a variety of skills to do your job succesfully. If you want to get information out to the general public you must understand that the people you are trying to impress are the editors and writers. They are the ones who decide if your story has credibility and merit, allowing the journalists to run them. The general public will only read what you have to say if you can convince these editors and writers it is newsworthy. Gregarious, an online communication website run by Greg Matusky has a variety of different tools for PR Professionals. One that I found extremely interesting was "6 Key Skills for PR Pro's on 2011."

1. Read. It sounds basic. But the best way to understand the media is to read it daily, hourly, and by the minute. Set up RSS feeds. Download media apps. Bookmark media favorites. Start each day with The Wall Street Journal, and end it with AP. Know the news and how it's reported. And learn journalism's standards of how information is gathered, vetted, and reported.
2. Write. Every day. All day, if you can. The key to improving writing skills is to write all the time. I started my career by writing a book. It took eight months at 14 hours a day, and required me to write, rewrite, edit, and write again each chapter. It was a crash course in writing that consumed more than 2,500 hours and gave me a jump start on the 10,000 hours needed to master any pursuit.
3. Get edited. Often and always. Even after a 25-year career in public relations, I make sure all of my work is edited, and edited heavily. Editing exposes weaknesses, improves clarity, and breaks lazy habits.
4. Stay current. This week, I had a chance to listen to the first Internet broadcast of a radio show -- an episode of NPR's "Science Friday" that first aired 20 years ago. Even then, the transformation was on. The Internet was a breaking story as thoughtful people considered how it would transform human communications. It has, and the pace has only quickened. The iPad, Google TV, next-generation blogging. They're all accelerating the rate of change, and causing us to learn more, more quickly, and try new things every day.
5. Learn instant re-prioritization. In our business, refresh rates hit quickly. Plan your work, but be forewarned. You have to be able to shuffle priorities in order to capitalize on breaking news, address client demands, and meet changing expectations.
6. Think more like a newsroom and less like an advertising agency. Public relations fails the moment bias is seen or promotion is obvious. We're the insidious few who control the story and tell it invisibly, without the crass hand of promotion. Think beats, news flow, and assignment. Forget about offers, come-ons, and schemes.


http://blog.gregoryfca.com/2010/12/10-key-skills-for-pr-pros-in-2011.html

Who Tweets?

Recently, Aaron Smith, Senior Research Specialist and Lee Rainie, Director of Pew Internet and American Life Project. This was their first project that examined twitter users on Who Tweets? They started off with an overview of Twitter and general information. "Eight percent of the American adults who use the internet are Twitter users."

This is the reason why did decided to focus on Twitter specifcally this time, "The message service Twitter launched on July 15, 2006 now claims tens of millions of users worldwide. It is one of the most popular online activities among tech enthusiasts and has become a widely used tool among analysts to study the conversations and interests of users, buzz about news, products or services, and announcements by commercial, non-profit, and government organizations."

Some of the groups who are notable for their relatively high levels of Twitter use include:

• Young adults: Internet users ages 18-29 are significantly more likely to use Twitter than are older adults.


• 
  African-Americans and Latinos: Minority internet users are more than twice as likely to use Twitter as are white internet users.


• 
  Urbanites: Urban residents are roughly twice as likely to use Twitter as rural dwellers.
  Women and the college-educated are also slightly more likely than average to use the service.

Overall, observations related to users' personal or professional lives are the most popular types of updates, while location-based tweets and links to videos are the least commonly mentioned:

-72% of Twitter users in our sample say that they post updates related to their personal life, activities or interests. A total of one-in-five Twitter users (19%) say they post personal updates once a day or more.
-62% of those we queried said they post updates related to their work life, activities or interests, with 12% doing so on a daily basis.
-55% of these Twitter users share links to news stories. About one in ten (12%) do this at least once a day.
-54% of these Twitter users say they post humorous or philosophical observations about life in general, with 16% doing so on a daily basis.
-53% of these Twitter users use Twitter to retweet material posted by others, with 18% doing so on a daily basis.
-52% of these Twitter users send direct messages to other users, with 11% doing so on a daily basis.
-40% use Twitter to share photos with others, with 12% going so at least once a day.
-28% use Twitter to share videos with others. Fewer than one-in-ten Twitter users (8%) do this once a day or more.
-24% use the service to tweet their location, with 7% of users doing so on a daily basis

This information is really interesting, I like the way they break down thei nformation, by race as well as by different ways you can use Twitter and share and receive information.

Site:




http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1821/twitter-users-profile-exclusive-examination

What Journalists Want From Us

At an industry breakfast hosted by Businesswire a reporter from Assosciated Press handed out a Do's and Don't list for pitched the Assosicated Press. It has some really great insight...

1) DO some research and figure out the right AP reporter before you pitch a story. AP reporters have beats and AP also has national writers who specialize in certain areas, including business, entertainment, medicine, health, sports and lifestyles.
2) DO make sure your story pitch is national in interest and sharply focused. AP is for national and international news. Stories about 5K runs, bake sales and a new product developed by a local company aren’t AP stories — but they might be a better fit at another publication.
3) DO write succinct press releases, preferably with bullet points noting the time, place and date of the event and a FEW sentences explaining the “what” and “why” of the story. AP’s Orange County bureau receives hundreds of press releases each day by fax and email. Long winded pitches fall through the cracks.
4) DON’T shop your story around to multiple AP reporters at once. If one AP reporter turns down your pitch, its likely all AP reporters will turn it down. If a reporter can’t handle your pitch or it isn’t in their beat area but he or she thinks it has interest, the reporter will pass it along to the appropriate person. Please keep in mind, we talk to each other and pass along pitches all the time.
5) DO tell reporters that if (despite no. 4)you’re sending a pitch to multiple people within the AP. We are a huge organization and I have had many experiences where I begin a story based on a pitch, only to find out one or two other reporters in other bureaus have done the same thing. That will make reporters more cautious the next time you pitch something.
6) DON’T call to follow up on a pitch. If we are interested, we will call to let you know.
7) DON’T call about getting on AP’s daybook. All 13 Western states now have one daybook, which is compiled by our new regional headquarters in Phoenix. The daybook is dedicated to news events, such as government press conferences, court hearings, and other hard news events — not corporate releases.
DO take no for an answer. Nothing drives a reporter crazier than getting multiple pitches for the same story from the same person aftyer we’ve said no once, twice or even three times or having a spokesperson argue on the phone over a “no” response. If you accept a no this time, maybe the next time we work together. If you drive me nuts when I’m on deadline, that won’t happen.
9) If you really have a great story, DON’T wait until the day before, or even two days before, to pitch it. The best stories may require a week or more of planning and reporting. Too often, we receive pitches that could have been a good story for AP, but we are first notified of them the day of the event or the day before. That’s just enough time to turn around a story, alert all the editors, coordinate any video or photo coverage and edit the piece.

On this small list, there is definetly some things that we have learned about however, we have not discussed pitches. For my groups PR Plan one of our tactics is pitches. This information would be very helpful if we were to actually be sending out the pitches for our first time.

http://www.sportsinfo101.com/businesstips-topics/what-journalists-want-from-us

Best Career's of 2011: PR Specialist

U.S. New's.com named Public Relations Specialist as one of the top 50 careers to havein 2011. Over the next decade, PR specialists are predicted to have a strong growth as well as succesful careers. According to the labor department, employement of PR is expected to increase by more than 66,000 jobs (24 percent) between 2008 and 2018. So, for everyone graduating within the next few years you have a very positive future. One of the most well known PR Specialist is Robert Gibb's press secretary for the President Barack Obama. "This is one job that demands confidence for success, and an extroverted personality doesnt hurt."

The article discusses the money, upward mobility, activity level, stress level, education and preparation as well as real advice from real people in the PR Specialist field. This article is a great brief of what to expect when working in the PR field. It gives a great overview and summary and I beleive it is very accurate.

The list also includes, accountant, financial advisor and sales manager.

usnews.com

The Importance of Opinion Leaders

While doing research for my Public Relations plan, I came across this interesting blog that discusses the importance of opinion leaders. Allie Tam, a guest blogger for an HIV campaign traveled to Madagascar to set up and HIV prevention project. Since her project is in Africa, she needs to understand the different laws, cultures and traditions so that she does not upset the locals. She must set up meetings with various opinion leaders such as Chef Region (the regional Chief), the government official responsible for overseeing all public activities,Chef Fokontanies in the 6 urban villages that we will be implementing the maternal HIV prevention project and many more. By speaking to these opinion leaders, Allie able to let them know how the project will work as to not interrupt their traditions and lifestyles.

"The Chefs will have a key role in the smooth running of the project, as they will support us identifying suitable women to attend our antenatal group and the launch of our project to the community."

"Our next visits will be to partner organizations to introduce the project and establish ways of supporting each other’s objectives, sharing information resources and monitoring data. Other meetings will be with the Presidents of the Women’s Associations that have been chosen to partake in our peer group educator training course and other health professionals such as local midwives, specialist doctors and sexual health workers that could assist with our training and service referral process."

"Activities cannot start until these courtesy visits have been paid and would cause an uncomfortable disruption to the traditions of fomba if they were. These visits can take time, but are vital to the overall success of any community-based project in south east Madagascar."

This article is a great example of what we have recently talked about in Prin/Prac class, Chapter 19 International Public Relations. The many challenges that one would face when working internationally such as languages, laws and culture.

Site: http://www.staying-alive.org/en/2010/10/azafady-opinion-leaders-needed/

Adidas PR in China

I came across this article that deals with public relations in China. I found it very interesting that so much of what we talk about in our PR classes is brought up not only in the real world but in other countries. Back in 1984 the Chinese Women’s Volleyball Team (CWVT) had great success at the Olympics, but since then has lost its popularity players performances decreased. Adidas is a CWVT sponsor and a partner in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. This PR plan aimed to make Chinese children ages 14 through 24 see volleyball again as an entertaining and exciting game. It was clear that digital media would be effective in reaching their target public because there are over 18 million high school students using the internet. Chinese youth is greatly influenced by star players and sports icons. The PR team decided to create an online blog which would create dialogue between star players and the fans. They also promoted viral films that made volleyball seem edgy and dangerous and there was also a volleyball chant competition that adidas sponsored which allowed for youth involvement. Research showed that the target audience increased by 16% in just a couple months. This was a successful campaign which furthered the point that networking and social media are crucial in the PR field.

http://www.ogilvypr.com/en/case-study/adidas

PR for the homeless

After reading the WashingtonPost today, I came across this story about a man who is homeless and uses facebook as a tool in his campaign to help others who are homeless as well. He posts links to articles about poverty and help for the disadvantaged, how to give during the holiday season, and other information he feels to be very helpful.

The article, though a bit lengthy for a news article, is a great read in how Eric Sheptock used facebook and twitter to be an advocate for homeless people. Though he has no official job title, I found him to be a great public relations advocate.

To read the article, click below:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/12/AR2010121203509.html?sid=ST2010121203831

9 Reasons to Hire a Public Relations Firm

When searching through the Public Relations Forms website, I found this posting which I found to be very true. It discusses nine reasons why company's should hire a PR Firm.

9 Reasons to Hire a Public Relations Firm

1. Tweet Me

One of the reasons that public relations has been validated so emphatically by the business community is the rapidly evolving nature of communications itself.

In a word: Digital.

The “What” (information) may essentially be the same, but the “How” keeps changing. Companies today need a combination of communications counselor, navigator and interpreter to do it right.

Today’s public relations firms have the expertise and experience to help clients maximize social media platforms such as blogs, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and many more social media networks.

2. Ever Ready

Monitoring the conversations taking place about your company and preparedness to act on negative or potentially damaging news can be a daunting task along with one’s everyday job. Firms provide a critical perspective for their clients, keeping them abreast of all manner of news and chatter, advising them on the best ways to respond, or in some cases to simply listen.

The new tools/platforms, specifically the power of search engines, have also upped the ante when it comes to reputation. Consider the public relations implications of this quote, taken from a 2007 Wired article, “Google is not a search engine, but a reputation management system.” Others have posited that we are indeed moving from the Information Age to theReputation Age. A 2007 article in Business Week showed how public relations could effectively measure, and help support and guard, reputation.

The stakes have never been higher for companies that must perform in a virtual fishbowl. Public relations firms as an extension of the clients’ staff are ever ready to offer the kind of client service that achieves agreed-upon outcomes.

3. Objective Expertise: Today’s sophisticated public relations firms can offer a wide variety of specialized expertise – market intelligence that can be difficult to bring in house. Public relations firms are some of the specialized consultants that provide critical outside perspective.

From crisis managers to corporate reputation experts who know how to mitigate risk, today’s public relations firms objectively counsel all types of organizations across the full spectrum of communications programs.

Objectivity is an important part of providing smart public relations counsel. Businesses profit from having not only the expert advice of its public relations firm to call upon, but also their unvarnished and experienced outsiders’ perspective.

4. Stakeholder Engagement and Influence: Who you know is important, but so too is the “diplomacy of interaction.” Public Relations firms can significantly bolster a company’s ability to engage key stakeholders such as employees, online influencers, community leaders, shareholders and public officials, counsel that includes -- but goes far beyond -- how to speak to the media. And depending on need, many firms today have global reach.

Public relations firms excel in researching, identifying and communicating with the online and offline ‘influencers’ who are important to a business’s success.

5. Storytellers: Public relations firm have a legacy of integrating the voice of the customer into communications.. Voice of the customer (VOC) is an important concept today and PR practitioners are highly suited for gathering customer input and reflecting their stories in their true voices. Trained as professional advocates, the ability to persuade through clear explanation is at the top of the hierarchy of skills PR firms offer their clients, while also helping to identify the most appropriate spokesperson for the task.

“In all this clutter and fragmentation, it falls to public relations professionals to lead companies into this conversation between consumers, mainstream media, employees, analysts, investors, bloggers and competitors around brands.”

-- -- Sir Martin Sorrell, CEO, WPP (speech: “Public Relations: The Story Behind a Remarkable Renaissance,” IPR dinner, November, 2008)

Public relations firms provide their clients’ third party credibility from “earned” media – the classic strength of public relations vs. other marketing functions – is more highly valued as marketing noise increases, the credibility that public relations and editorial provide cuts through the clutter.

Agency personnel are expert content creators who author Web sites, speeches, bylines, position papers, op-eds, brochures, Q&As and, of course, press materials.

6. Creative Platforms: Whether it’s figuring out the most appropriate message to present to the media, or developing a comprehensive communications strategy, clients want the best idea, period.

Creativity often inspires and informs the communications strategies proposed by public relations firms. This flow naturally to the tactics implemented in public relations campaigns, such as events, web design, experiential marketing, collateral material, and the always-important media relations.

The “earned” media aspect of public relations – unlike the “paid for” placement of other marketing disciplines – has to meet a very high, built-in standard. It must pass through the skeptical filter of producers and reporters before it can reach the public. Producers, reporters and bloggers evaluate each public relations tactic and pitch, then decide whether it’s important, interesting and – ultimately – newsworthy to their audience.

That’s a very high bar. But it forces the public relations firm practitioner to continually hone the communications relevance of every marketing public relations campaign, public affairs initiative and crisis response.

7. Speed to Market: Public relations firms are built for speed and are conditioned to work in the 24/7 Information Age. Just as they were configured to work with traditional media’s deadlines and requirements back in the day, today’s firms have incorporated the ethos – and the dialect - of the digital age into their workplace culture.

8. It makes financial sense: In relationship to the cost of doing business, public relations is extremely cost effective. For organizations to develop in-house specialization, the cost can be prohibitively expensive; firms which represent a myriad of client industries, geographies and cultures are able cross-pollinate ideas providing richer thinking that can be tapped as needed. Public relations firms are also able to provide peak-load capacity, which can scale up or down as programs ebb and flow.

9. The risk of inaction: The market has never been more fluid, information has never moved so fast, nor reached so many people who form and test their perceptions more quickly than ever. When it comes to communications in general, and implementing a public relations strategy specifically, doing nothing is often not an option for any serious business or organization. Today’s public relations firms work at the highest level of strategic consultation throughout the organization down to the critical ‘tactical’ work in the trenches and online, making sure the client is prepared and competitive.

All of these reasons go straight to what is using in a successful PR campaign. In most campaigns you need to be put your information in the digital world to get a larger audience engaged. You need objectives that you know are timely, attainable, ambitious, and with a goal attached. You need to be able to voice your campaign. You need creative platforms/tactics in disseminating the campaign. Are you need to do all of this in a timely manor (aka creating a calendar with dates that you will execute your campaign)

Should Shape have apologized?

Roughly a month ago, Shape Magazine was highly criticized for placing a 'homewrecker' on the cover of their magazine.Country singer LeAnn Rimes was the cover of the October issue just months after the media discovered her affair with married actor Eddie Cibrian.

After receiving complaints from people who were subscribed to the magazine, editor-in-chief Valerie Latona issued an apology email to those who complained. Part of the email read as follows:

“You are all in good company (why I’m emailing you all together) as you all agree Shape has made a terrible mistake in putting LeAnn Rimes on the cover,” ... “Please know that putting her on the cover was not meant to put a husband-stealer on a pedestal – but to show (through her story) how we are all human."

The article was meant to read as how working out strongly helped LeAnne Rimes get through a tough time in her life. Isn't that what the magazine is about? Using working out as an answer in living a healthy life style? With this in mind, I feel as though the editor-in-chief should not have apologized. They did no wrong in publishing a story about how someone enjoyed working out.

Or maybe a better solution was to think this all through BEFORE running/publishing the story.....Maybe then Shape magazine wouldn't have found themselves in a PR CRISIS.

The Importance of Public Relations

Recently in my Mass Comm Theory class there was a debate between some students of whether or not Public Relations is necessary. One side of the argument was that people/organizations should be able to speak for themselves and take responsibility for their own actions. One student believed that the PR field will not be around in the future.

During this debate I was reminded of a lawyer in a court case. If PR is not useful/appropriate it could be argued that lawyers are doing the same thing only in a different scenario.

PR is important for many reasons. For one thing, not everybody is able to communicate with the public effectively. A PR professional accomplishes their primary objective when they successfully create, change, or reinforce opinion through persuasion.

Not only are communication skills important, but PR professionals have to be able to manage, market, and control individuals and organizations.

If anything, I think the PR field will continue to grow in the future because there are so many different aspects involved and a variety of job opportunities to choose from.

How to Neogiate during a Job Interview

In yesterdays case studies class we learned some invaluable tips about how to neogiate during a job interview to make sure you get the most out of your job and salary. Professor Shelton covered some of the basics that any college student should know when going on the hunt for their very first job.

• First and foremost everyone always wants to know is how much should they expect to make and what to say to that question if an employer asks how much do you expect to make? $35,000 is the average first year salary that a college graduate in PR should expect to make. Now if an employer ever asks you the question " How much do you want to make" Professor Shelton gave us some invaluable advice never answer it, or say neogotiable, but do not give a actual amount.


• We also discussed what a 401K is. We learned that is it important to know what your benefits are and whether or not the company offers a 401K retirement plan is. The best plan is one that matches you. For example if you put 5% of your paycheck into your retirement plan and then your company does the same so therefore 10% of your money is really going into the plan. You also, want to know whether or not your plan is vested and when does it become vested. Majority of companies become vested after one year which means that after one year the money in your fund is yours.


• It is important that you also ask how often do you get paid because there are several different ways that a company can pay whether it be biweekly, bimonthly, monthly, etc. Looking at the package that they offer you is important as well. The package is the number of days off, number of vacation days and sick days. Also, do they roll over and can you bank them or at the end of the year do you lose what days you do not use.

• Lastly, you need to look into the health care package they are offering and whether or not you are going to opt into this plan. When looking at the health care package you need to see what your premiums and deductibles/co pays are going to be. This is important to understand because part of you health care costs will be left up to you majority of companies do not cover all of your insurance. Therefore, the remaining costs are deducted out of you salary before you even receive your paycheck. In addition you will want to know when your benefits will kick in and what are their offers for vision and dental. An important note is if they offer the dental you want to take the dental.

Remember these are only the basics you want to remember when in that job interview, it is still important to go and do your own research and make a list of the questions that you want answered during the interview.

In Family Court, a Reckoning for Gibson's Erratic Career

In the recent article, In Family Court, a Reckoning for Gibson's Erratic Career, the NYTimes discussed the future of Mel Gibson's career.. That is, if he even has one.

For those of you who are unaware, Mel Gibson was recently dropped by his agency and banished from appearing in an upcoming movie "The Hangover Part II" because of recordings that emerged on the web of him ranting in racist terms at his wife, Ms. Grigorieva.

But my only question is, what do these allegations have to do with his ability to produce films or star in movies?

Taking his career into account, let's rewind to movies such as "Braveheart", "A Passion of the Christ", and "Leathal Weapon". All of these films were directed by Mel Gibson. Would these films have been any less successful had they been produced today after the allegations of his wife? I do not believe so.

Mel Gibson, who is now in family court fighting for legal rights for his year old daughter now has to defend himself to a family law judge who has more power than he may believe. The film industry seems to be waiting on the legal system's decision of Mel Gibson before releasing two films he stars in. Being safe much?

The media has decided because he is on trial with his wife, his career and ability to produce films should be on trial as well. Now, does that seem very fair? You decide.

Press Agent Ronni Chasen Murdered

So maybe I didn't know the full story of what happened when I discussed this in class Friday, but I wasn't too far from the truth.

Early Tuesday morning, November 16, Press Agent Ronni Chasen (left) was shot five times in the chest while driving, crashing her Mercedes-Benz into a pole. It is assumed she was on her way home from the premier of Burlesque in LA.

Bryan Alexander and Lindsay Powers of Hollywoodreporter.com report:

A Beverly Hills Police spokesperson tells THR: "On November 16th 2010 at approximately 12:28 a.m. Beverly Hills police officers received info regarding shots that were heard in the area of Sunset and Whittier, shortly after a collision was reported in the same area. Units arrived and discovered a newer black Mercedes Benz E-350 involved in a solo crash to the light pole. The lone female occupant was located in the vehicle with apparent multiple gunshot wounds to her chest. Beverly Hills paramedics transported the victim to a local hospital where she was later pronounced deceased. The investigation is in the preliminary stages and no further information is available at this time. At this time there is no suspect, info or motive for this crime."

In 1993 Chasen was named senior vice president of worldwide publicity at MGM. She also worked for Rogers & Cowans.

For the full story, click here.

I was shocked when I saw this story covered for a few minutes on the 11 oclock news the other night.

It's a scary world out there...its darkness seeps through, even through the brightest stars of Hollywood.

Pawtucket Red Sox Internships!

The Pawtucket Red Sox, Triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, are currently in search of 6-7 interns to begin work in January/February 2011. These internships are designed to offer marketing/Public relations students the opportunity to garner significant experience with a premier minor league baseball team by managing a public outreach campaign from January – May 2011. For more information check out full details by clicking HERE or visit RWU Hawks Hunt Job ID#5708. APPLICATION DEADLINE: NOVEMBER 29TH!!

Young Professionals need to Develop Credibility and Influence in Social Media

I learn in school constantly about being an active consumer of media and participating in the use of social media by using Facebook, Twitter and blogging about what I am reading and learning that is occurring in the news and in the PR realm. My Professor constantly tells us to be consumers of the media to build credibility for ourselves and show that we are active social media users.

In a recent article I read on ComPRhension, they discussed the importance of knowing social media as a young professional, especially given that many PR professionals now have been thrown social media and are trying to grasps its use and importance for their clients, without having the knowledge of which sites are more popular for their target publics and what social media should be used for.

Yet, the other side is simply this despite young professionals grasp on social media some of the old standard rules still apply, this is that quite simply that you need to develop credibility and influence. Developing this can be as simple as retweeting tweets because it is important to maintain the idea of two-way communication in social media just like within traditional media. According to the article only 1 in every 300 Tweets are retweeted. Now if you look at the number of people on Twitter that number does not seem so bad, but the simple fact is as young professionals we need to make sure that we are engaging and forming those relationships now with credible journalists and media outlets.

It is important to remember just having a lot of followers does not matter it is the content of the information that you are putting out their and who is recognizing that. This is what will get you notice in social media by journalist not your number of followers. In short it is the social media in the PR world use the same concept as with traditional media maintaining credibility and understanding the news will help you develop influence and respect.

Taking Command of Your Messages-Greg Radner

Looking on PRSA.org, I found this article regarding the DC conference this year and message control. It's an interesting account by Greg Radner, head, PR Services, Thomson Reuters. This short article is applies to what Comm 300 is learning now - developing and delivering messages.

With more than 30 sessions related to social media management at this year’s PRSA 2010 International Conference in D.C., it is clear that figuring out social technologies is a priority for public relations professionals, even if it takes them out of their comfort zone. Public relations is about controlling your message, but trying to take control in a communal environment is often a losing battle.

The Conference provided a perfect case study when Mickey Mouse made a surprise appearance to promote next year’s Conference location of Orlando, FL. Shortly after the session, an e-mail was distributed to the PRSA blogging crew asking us not to use images of Mickey in our blog posts. It was to prevent unauthorized commercial use of the image, but it got me thinking about control of content in the age of real-time news. Armed with cell phone cameras, images of Mickey had already been shared through Twitter and other social networks across the Web by many of the non-blogging attendees.

As Charlene Li suggested in her Tuesday morning keynote address, PR professionals need to learn how to “give up control but still be in command.” To that point, I spoke with many attendees who stopped by the Thomson Reuters booth with questions on how they can better manage the monitoring and measurement of their communications once they are released into the marketplace. It’s an issue that is top of mind across the industry, and the exhibit hall was filled with providers offering solutions to help address this need.

Today’s tools allow PR professionals to listen to and participate in the conversation, rather than trying to tame the message. Here, knowledge is power and the social sphere provides a rich river of gold. These tools allow for real-time monitoring of the online conversation and employ measurement tools that can extract market sentiment and opinions from the discussions. So, while you cannot always control the message, you can listen in on how your message is being received and use that information to respond as necessary.

There’s a rich vein of information out there, so get out your tools and start mining it.

While I wasn't at the DC Conference, I'm curious to find out if those who were there thought about the use of Mickey Mouse to promote next years conference. Did you think of the implications of distributing Mickey Mouse's trademark across social networking platforms? In a world where everything exciting, new, fun, engaging, etc. is immediately shared via texts, blogs, tweets, status updates, messages, and other outlets, I think it's quite the task to share a message while hoping it's imagery or logos to not be subsequently reproduced. Mickey Mouse had no choice but to be subjected to picture-taking. Almost every technological device can capture an image - phones, computers, cameras - is it realistic to expect people not to share his surprise arrival? If there is anything to come away with from this experience, it's from Charlene Li's aforementioned keynote address:

"PR professionals need to learn how to “give up control but still be in command.”

Kik, The New AIM for Smartphones

First, there was AIM, ADIDO and Yahoo!Messenger then we had Myspace. iChat and Skype came along with the inventions of the webcam. Now we all Skype, iChat, Google chat and use Facebook online to interact with our peers, families, friends and professionals. Now there is Kik Messenger is this just a fad or the next big thing like AIM was or Skype is.

Now what is Kik messenger, it is free-real time text messenger. Now it allows you to create a screen name or a username, depending on what you like to call it and chat back and forth between your friends on cell phones. Yet what makes it any different than texting between you and your friends? It is suppose to be quicker and more social than traditional SMS texting. Kik currently supports the Blackberry, Android, and iPhone.

It is apparently a fad that is quickly catching on Kik has had to upgrade their servers to handle the amount of people downloading their new application twice now. They ended up with a million users in just 15 days. Now as you log onto Facebook you see your friends updating their statuses with their Kik usernames. It is safe to say the only real determining factor of the success of Kik is how long will it last or will it just disappear when the next app for the smartphone comes out.

Networking 101

Some interesting information I found on the PRSSA job center page about the myths and truths about networking.

What is it?

A supportive system of sharing information and services among individuals and groups having a common interest.

What can people do for you?

• Offer you a job/internship, now or in the future.
• Introduce you to someone else who is hiring.
• Give you information about other companies/agencies that have openings.
  

Myths and Realities

Myth: You should only network with people who can help you get a job.

Reality: Don't set limits-think broadly-people may know someone else who can help you get a job or internship.

Myth: You need to know the "right" people to network effectively.

Reality: It's up to YOU to create the connections that will eventually help you.

Myth: Strangers resent you asking for help with your job/internship search.

Reality: If you approach people properly and make reasonable requests, they will most likely help.

Create a Network List of Contacts

Think of your list in the shape of a pyramid, broken down into levels.

Level One
These are people you are comfortable approaching for names and other requests. These are your friends, neighbors and relatives with whom you have regular contact. This level consists of about 10-15 people.

Level Two
These are your colleagues and acquaintances that you see occasionally. These people know you and are willing to help you-you may deal with them on a professional level (i.e. your doctor).

Level Three
This is the toughest level. These are strangers-people you have yet to meet. You have heard about them from someone in level one or two, or you found his/her name in a directory (i.e. The Blue Book) or a newspaper.

Now that you have organized your networking contacts into levels, it's time to put them into a database.

Network Database

This should include:

• Name
  
• Title
  
• Company
  
• Business address
  
• Home address
  
• Phone number
  
• Fax number
  
• E-mail address
  

It would also be helpful for you to explain:

• Nature of this connection (i.e. met at PRSSA National Conference Career Expo)
  
• Names of other people or companies they gave you
  
• Priority-how valuable is this person to you?
  
• Comments-record meetings you may have had, any letters you may have sent, etc.
  

Example

Here is an example of what you can say to a potential network contact:

"Hi, my name is_______ and I got your name from _________. For the past ____ years I have been studying at _______. During that time I've had the opportunity to develop my PR skills in the areas of ________. I will be graduating in ________ and am looking for _______.

Be articulate, speak naturally and have confidence.

US Newspaper Circulation Continues To Fall, Though Moderates Read more: US Newspaper Circulation Continues To Fall

Daily circulation at many of the U.S.'s largest newspapers fell during the six months ended in September, adding to the industry's woes caused by weak advertising and competition from a swath of digital technologies, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations.

Average weekday circulation for 635 U.S. dailies dropped 5%, based on a cumulative average for the period ended Sept. 30, from a year earlier. The decline follows year-to-year decreases of 8.7% in the six months through March 31 and 11% through Sept. 30, 2009. Sunday circulation for 553 Sunday papers was down 4.5% in the latest period.

The figures were released Monday by a publishing industry group, the Audit Bureau of Circulations, and reflect figures from many, though not all, U.S. newspapers. Three of the country's 25 largest papers posted declines of at least 10%.

Among the country's largest papers, the sharpest drops were at the Newsday, owned by Cablevision Systems Corp. (CVC), where circulation fell 12%, and the San Francisco Chronicle, owned by Hearst Corp. Its circulation declined 11%.

Newspaper circulation has been declining for decades, but the pace has picked up in recent years, as more readers turn to a range of digital media and as some publishers have drastically curtailed the distribution of their papers or abandoned print partially or altogether for the Internet.

Read more: US Newspaper Circulation Continues To Fall, Though Moderates - Investing - Dow Jones Newswire - SmartMoney.com http://www.smartmoney.com/news/ON/?story=ON-20101025-000211#ixzz13g596p4l

Facebook reaches 62% of online Americans | Social Media Today

Facebook reaches 62% of online Americans | Social Media Today

Facebook now reaches more than 50% of Americans who are online according to the chart below, by comSource. This chart shows that social media is the new media in some ways that in order to reach your public many times you need to head to the internet. Yet, this chart begs the question how should your campaign focus from a social media perspective do you use Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Blogs, etc, or because of this chart should the focus really be on the use of Facebook alone. In my opinion the best approach is to use Facebook, especially for a campaign is as your main hub of information and then you that page to link your "friends" or users to all of your other social media by the use of share buttons, just like I will after this post is finished. What are your opinions on how Facebook should be used in social media or a PR campaign.

“Adapt or die” — PRSA/PRSSA Key Note Speakers: Bill Tancer and Jeffrey Hayzlett

Attendees of the PRSSA National Conference were invited to a keynote session with over 1,500 professionals at the Public Relations Society of America International Conference on Monday, October 18. Bill Tancer, author of, Click: What Millions of People Are Doing Online and Why It Matters- Unexpected Insights for Business and Life, opened up the session talking to the audience about human behavior online and how this information can be utilized to benefit a business. Tancer stressed the importance of trending topics to help public relations strategy. Trending topics involve social media sites, such as Twitter, and search engines to find out what information people are concerned with. He used the example of Tylenol, currently the company is recalling some of its products, and by using trending services, such as Google Trends, Google Insights, and Tweet Cloud, Tylenol can understand how people feel about the company based on what they are searching and posting on social media sites. Tancer explained it best, “we are what we click.” Based on what we can gather from what people are talking about online, we can frame our messages to fit the trending topics.

The second keynote speaker, Jeffrey Hayzlett, is the author of, The Mirror Test: Is Your Business Really Breathing?, and spoke about staying current in the business world. When in leadership positions, Hayzlett explained that Conditons of Satisfaction (COS) is crucial. By initially laying out the COS within a business, there will be less need for “catching up” in the long run. If employees cannot keep up, it is not the company’s responsibility to hold on to that employee. This information is extremely applicable to the fast-moving field of public relations. The industry is constantly changing; currently there is a huge shift moving from the use of traditional media to social media. The professionals who cannot keep up with the trends could hinder a company’s level of success. Hayzlett quoted a fictional employer speaking to an out-dated employee, “we love you… but we’ll miss you.” In PR, in order to success you need to move fast. It is more important to stay ahead and risk making a mistake, than to not keep up with the industry. Hayzlett explained, “If you make a mistake, no one is going to die.” It is more important to be one of the first to get a story out, for example, and risk making an editing mistake, than take the time to perfect it and submit it when the story is no longer applicable. Hayzlett explained his success with Kodak camera company, being the first to put out a waterproof hand-held video camera. They thought of the idea and immediately created it. Kodak could have taken an additional year to further evaluate their product, but that would have risked their opportunity to beat out other camera companies. Kodak now outsells its competition ten to one.

PRSSA National Conference

Our chapter just got back from national conference in Washington, DC. Even though it was a conference full of sessions and speakers our chapter made the most of every opportunity that was there. We explored the city taking in our nation’s history and exploring the world of Public Relations outside of conference.

We started our trip on Friday, October 15 with a tour of the Holocaust museum, we viewed the exhibit State of Deception: The Power of Nazi Propaganda, in which we learn how Hitler used propaganda, which is an early known form of public relations, to convince millions that Jews were the cause of all of Germany’s problems. Hitler created himself to be a trust agent and opinion leader of the Nazi party that lead the German military and country to trust and believe that his party’s ideals and messages where true and that the Jews were to blame for all their country’s problems and that a final solution was needed. We learned how he used messages and power over Germany to cause mass genocide. We continued that day with a sight seeing tour on bicycles, through the national mall visiting all the national monuments. Friday evening was out first opportunity to network with our peers as we went to the social that evening and met other PRSSA members and chapters.

Saturday, kicked off with speaker Jim Margolis from the firm GMMB, he is most known for working on the Obama presidential campaign. He talked to us about using emotion, creating clarity in messages and needing to create a moment to stand out and show a pivotal changing point. He also, stressed the importance of social networking. We also got the opportunity to present a chant about our chapter. We continued the day by attending sessions focused on media relations, careers in entertainment and sports, public affairs, corporate and agency PR, travel and tourism, and entertainment PR. Our e-board then got the opportunity to sit down with other e-boards and discuss their chapter and the problems and opportunities within their chapters and get support and ideas from one another.

Sunday, we attended professional development sessions that focused on diversity, career preparation with the intern queen, and nonprofit PR. All of the professional development sessions were helpful because it gave us all the opportunity to learn about the areas of PR we may or may not be interested in and learn more about the field from professionals who actually work in them on an everyday basis.

Monday, was our last day of conference, it was also our chance to talk with PRSA members and network with them. It was here we learned many things we wanted to bring back to our chapter and implement things in the classroom and in our weekly chapter meetings. We heard keynote speakers such as Bill Tancer talk about data and its link to social media and Jeff Hayzlett discuss having 118 seconds to pitch and sell yourself or an idea. We had the opportunity to sit in on sessions about forming messages and research. We spent the end of the day networking with PR firms and companies offering internships and entry-level positions, in hope of finding opportunities for jobs and internships. The conference also gave us an opportunity to learn about different graduate school programs, media measurement tools like VMS, pitch engine, and Cision.

We concluded conference with the Inaugural Ball this awards ceremony gave us the opportunity to recognize our peers for their work in PR. It was also an opportunity for us to be recognized for our successful Bateman campaign in 2010 that resulted in 3^rd place for our chapter.

Gap Logo Controversy

"Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future" -- JFK

So what is the future of the Gap logo? Well, the past of course. Change, this law of life, has been duped by the forever adored Gap logo. The GAP logo as we know it, left, has been in use for over twenty years.

The new gap logo, right, immediately went viral after its release in early October.

It had the lifespan of a house fly, barely lasting a week. Social media networks simply ate it alive.

Vanity Fairs' obituary for the redesign, sums up the disaster:

"The new Gap logo is survived by its antagonistic Twitter feed and a dozen 'failed branding strategies' slide shows, in which it will be archived in the annals of history," the magazine wrote. "To heaven, the Helvetica now ascends."

Designers take logo design seriously. Apparently, so does the public.

Take Twitter, for example. There is even an account labeled, GAP Logo. The man behind its tweets has outed himself as "Frank." " Frank's twitter is yet another outlet for people to vent their hatred for the gap logo redesign. Gap Logo's latest tweet, Everyone hates me. (@ Lupe's East LA Kitchen w/ 2 others), pretty much puts the situation in perspective.

Personally, as a designer, it's quite impressive that the new gap logo has inspired someone to create a twitter updating the life of an inanimate object.

Either the influence of design has reached new heights or people have way too much time on their hands.

The public is just not willing to part with a blue box. Specifically, GAP's blue box.

Accordingly, GAP has admitted that they want what is best for the brand and its customers and has reverted back to the old logo.

Controversies such as this one make me feel good about pursuing a career in the graphic design field. Graphic design matters, whether people like to think so or not. If it didn't, then why would this controversy start in the first place? Graphic designers are powerful people.

I mean, what other profession could empower a simple blue box? Design has transformed its four corners into a symbol recognized across the world, a symbol powerful enough to escape the law of change.

Take a look at other companies who have experienced the logo redesign process...

Tips on Following Up After You Send a Resume

One of the most frequent questions I get from job seekers is about follow-up timing after submitting a resume. Who do I contact and how long should I wait?

The answer depends on how you were introduced to the company. If you respond to a job posting online, it's important to remember that some ads generate hundreds of responses a day. Many companies have tools to automate processing your application into their applicant tracking systems. A real person may not be looking at the responses sent and many times, the hiring manager isn't even involved at this stage.

[See 21 Things Hiring Managers Wish You Knew.]

The best way to make sure your resume gains the attention it deserves is to tweak it to fit the job description. It sounds like obvious advice, but job seekers often don't do it. Integrate the keywords that a recruiter might use to find a qualified candidate in their database. Your goal is to make sure your resume will be found and put on the short-list. If you have done this and haven't heard back, give it a week and follow-up.

The best-case scenario is when you know someone within the company. An internal recommendation almost always holds more weight (as long as you are qualified). If your contact presents your resume to the hiring manager or the HR department directly, your chances getting an interview improve immensely. Ask your contact to let you know when your resume has been received, and follow-up directly with the hiring contact in a day or two by phone or E-mail.

[See Why You Should Never Skip the Interview Thank-you Note.]

In both cases, your follow-up should be concise, polite, and reiterate your interest in the position. Highlight how your qualifications make you a good fit. Be specific and don′t assume that the company will recognize your name or for which position you applied.

A few key points about following up:

• Don't re-send the same resume and cover letter multiple times for the same position. Sending the same E-mail over and over lessens your chance of getting an interview because it seems desperate and disorganized. Make it obvious that you are following up on a specific position for your applications sent on a specific dates.
• Keep a positive tone in your follow-up message. A job search can be frustrating, especially when you feel that you are qualified and don't receive a response. A negative or an accusatory tone will kill your chance of getting a response as well as any future opportunities with the company.
• It would be wonderful to hear back from every employer, but it's not realistic. If you have followed up three times and have not heard back, it's time to move on. Don't take it personally.

Found at usnewsandworldreport