Archive for February, 2008
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I had a hard time narrowing the choices down this week, so there are a bunch to take a look at. Enjoy! and thanks, blogosphere for some terrific posts. How-To: Identifying Influences, Neutralizing Detractors, Marketing Vox: Tips on how to find those individuals to whom you should be listening. Getting to Know GenWhy, BusinessWeek: An experts look at managing millennials (that’s you). For Small Companies, Blogger Relations’ Double-Edged Sword Bites Deeper, PR Squared: An example of how a small company does it wrong with blogger relations. Inspiration Matters, Presentation Zen: Garr Reynolds has a great post about inspiration in words, speeches and presentations and why it matters. The Oprah Factor, Origins of Brands Blog: Branding expert Laura Ries sizes up each celeb endorsement behind Obama and Clinton. Social Marketing vs. Social Media Marketing: Do you know the difference? Grad School Decision Time…; More With Les: MA, MBA or IMC… so... Continue Reading
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Tomorrow morning I’m meeting with a client to brainstorm ideas for their brand spankin’ new social media campaign. I’m very excited – despite my best efforts, so far my social media campaign ideas haven’t been terribly well-received and the implementation? a little half-baked. Usually I’m passionate about the idea and see the tremendous potential of social media and the client just isn’t ready yet. Once the campaign rolls out, I’ll share it with you, but until then, I thought I’d share my process for getting started. If you have ideas to contribute, please (please!) feel free to include them in the comments, or take the discussion to your own blog. **** Take Stock of the Conversation: I knew social media was going to be a good fit. When I did a Technorati and Google Blogsearch on my client’s brands, the results were great. I didn’t expect posts to be bad,... Continue Reading
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Bob LeDrew at Flacklife posts about a fake campaign carried out by Hunter College on behalf of Coach. I’ll let you read the specifics here and here. Social media tools are powerful. They can help create dialogue and conversation with your customers and they can help humanize an organization through transparency and authenticity. Of course, they can also create buzz, better your search engine results and reach new audiences in new ways- which are the nice tangibles for many clients, and, too often, the “short cuts” for social media use and can lack the strategic focus necessary. Unfortunately, they can also be extremely opaque and obscure the true identity, motives and money at work. It’s unfortunate that the students at Hunter College learned how to use social media in this way, rather than in an authentic way. What I think is AS disappointing is that, while there are plenty of... Continue Reading
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Thanks to all the smart folks that contributed this week to some outstanding insights and conversations – here are my faves. MWAH! Does Knowledge of Social Media Make You a Better Job Candidate?, my 2 cents: Interesting post. Some great insights and I always love when professionals back up things I say in class. Thanks! Measurable Objectives Precede Meaningful Evaluation, Les is More: Les, a professor at Towson University, is judging the IABC awards and provides some advice about the PR process that leads to a well-planned and executed campaign. Social Media Will Change Your Business, BusinessWeek: I’m sending this link to every business owner I know. Consequences for Not Having a Blogging Policy, Neville Hobson: We’ve been talking about blogging and ethics policies in class, so this is a perfect example of why such things are important. Cleansing Your Online Reputation, Murphy’s Law: Understanding search engine results is, apparently,... Continue Reading
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Lots of my students want to plan and implement special events. I’m not great at meeting/event logistics (caterers! florists! incentives! promotional items!), so I find special events a bit tedious. The best lesson I’ve learned from event planning experience? Plan a massage the day after a big event. Thanks, Marilyn for that lesson! That said, there are tons of great jobs in event planning. And what a great way to meet people, make connections and go to a lot of great parties. Ned’s Job of the Week email newsletter has a section specifically for the Hospitality and Event Planning Network. Weekly job posts galore! If you’re interested in this field, you can subscribe and get updates via email or via your feed reader.... Permalink
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This isn’t breaking news, by any means, but I just came across this YouTube video. It’s from our local United Way and has a great message about homelessness. Project Homeless Connect is a nationwide movement to end homelesses. In Eugene, the event is held at the Lane County Fairgrounds. In just one day, 1,007 adults, youth and families who were homeless or at risk of being homeless sought help to meet basic needs. Project Homeless Connect is a collaborative effort between Lane County, the cities of Eugene and Springfield, and United Way along with more than 150 individual donors. 724 contacts were made with area housing assistance programs 115 legal consultations 74 sessions low income energy assistance for those at risk of homelessness 208 haircuts by Willamette Hair Stylists and Supercuts 12 dental exams and 55 dental vouchers and 60 medical vouchers were distributed 63 flu shots, 68 diabetes screenings,... Continue Reading
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It’s all about the love this weekend with a guest post from Marilyn Hawkins of Hawkins & Company PR. She offers seven tips for students and new PRos negotiating those tricky client relationships. 1. Relax. This always demonstrates confidence. And never sell yourself – your ideas or solutions – too soon. Allow the client to “buy” the service or make the assignment. Your clients will love you only after they trust you – and they see competence, feel legitimate rapport and sense genuine value. 2. Never Complain About How Busy You Are. The client needs to feel that he or she is the most important thing on your work mind at any point. 3. Seek a Peer Relationship. You’re not a mere order-taker, so work to establish a joint-venture environment. Yes, you’re smart, but let the client discover that. If she or he ever complains – hear it undefensively, then... Continue Reading
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I’m a little embarrassed that I haven’t blogged all week. But the PR blogosphere has kept on spinning without me (shocking, I know!) and here are my favorites from this week. First of all, send your blog URL to Chris at Student PR for the student blogroll. Public Relations Low Life PR, The Flack: Peter Himler at The Flack discusses the, er… messy business of some publicists representing celebs. I’m glad it’s not me, either, Peter. Measuring the Value of Authenticity and Engagement, KD Paine: KD’s post is contrasting the “authentic” town hall of Hillary Clinton with the moving “Yes We Can” video by Will.i.am for Obama. Interesting stuff. 1o Ways To Get Local Media Coverage, Getting Ink: I love this blog. If you’re not subscribing, do so. Right now. Check out the “seven questions” series about “PRs” and journalists (by journalists). For Immediate Release Podcast: Hobson and Holtz have... Continue Reading
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As usual, some great things online this week. Here are some of my favorites: Why Your Clients Need Media Training, Getting Ink: Oh, how’d I’d like to think that this is not normal…. Hotel Chain Hires the Sandman and Other Poor PR, Getting Ink: A second great post from this blog. Good reasons to double check, triple check and be smart about your releases. You never know where they’ll show up. Fear, Hope and Love: The Three Marketing Levers, Seth’s Blog: Seth says taking advantage of one of these basic needs leads to successful marketing. Top Five Reasons Companies Resist Social Media, a shel of my former self: Good to know the questions, so you can have the answers (or at least try). More Thoughts on Blogger/Citizen Journalism, Global Neighbourhoods: A great post from Shel Israel about some of the ways journalism is changing. Very good stuff. Creating an Environment... Continue Reading
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This is a guest post from Leona Laurie, PR/Marketing consultant, graduate student and blogger. I see resumes as being living documents, and I treat them as one part of a trio: resumes, cover letters and interviews. I tweak my cover letter and resume for every position I apply for, and I update my resume every three-to-six months as a matter of course. Putting together a custom resume can be very time consuming if you’re applying for more than one or two jobs, but if you have an exhaustive master resume that covers every position you’ve ever held (including every measurable result, every duty you were responsible for, every computer program or machine you used, and how much you were paid), it’s easy to cut and paste the most relevant things into a shiny, new document. The complementary tool I use with my master resume is what I call a “spiritual... Continue Reading
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