Entering my second year of college I was your classic “not sure what I want to do in life” college student. I knew I was ready for something, but I needed to be nudged in the right direction. I was lucky enough to be at Northern Kentucky University at the time a new college was starting: The College of Informatics. I wasn’t sure what "Informatics" had to offer, but I did have the foresight to understand that there would probably be some interesting opportunities with a new college at a growing university.
I sat down with an assistant dean to discuss what this new college had to offer. As we went over majors, and talked about my interests, she brought up PR. She explained that you see PR everyday, but probably don't even know it. We discussed relationship building, delivering clear messages, crisis communication and other aspects of the field that NKU would emphasize to prepare me to be a public relations practitioner. After that, I was hooked!
My absolute favorite part about PR (what really makes me #HAPPO) is building relationships. This has never been more apparent than during the past 8 days. #HAPPO is a reason for all PR practitioners to give themselves an emphatic pat on the back! You would be hard pressed to find another profession that could start a Facebook group and in 8 days grow that group to 827 people! More than the number, #HAPPO participants interact and engage with one another. I personally posted on the Facebook group’s wall and was given a response within the hour. To everyone out there in the #HAPPO community ---Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! I am blown away by how awesome it is to see PR practitioners digging in and helping one another.
I am so #HAPPO I chose PR!
Showing posts with label PR. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PR. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Information is Addicting
Addiction is a word that commonly drums up a negative connotation. It is commonly associated with such words as: alcohol, gambling, drugs and other generally unhealthy behavior. However, in this “Web 2.0” age there is a new addiction: The Addiction to Information. Companies that combine their PR and social media efforts to feed this addiction will create large dividends.
Most companies are beginning to realize how to utilize social media; in that they now understand it’s about being PART of the conversation, not CONTROLLING the conversation. Unfortunately, companies are putting the wrong personnel at the forefront of these highly important touchpoints. It is true younger PR professionals have more experience with social media, but they can also get into a lot more trouble. Matt Singley explains this really well in his blog post “6 Things You Need to Know about Running a Social Media Program: The Channels”.
“Twitter is often the most immediate and intimate touch point with your current and future customers; make sure you put your best and brightest people behind this channel…and pay them well! They can make or break your reputation in just a few key strokes.” ---Matt Singley
How true (not to mention scary) is that. Where companies can begin to capitalize on social media is combining veteran PR professionals with younger Gen Y professionals. Companies need to be willing to commit more personnel hours and talent to their social media efforts. One person can no longer handle one company’s social media efforts. There is simply too much information, and people still want more.
Due to this addiction of information, companies have to be ready and willing to get as much information out there as possible. Do not misunderstand me to mean a company can get by with flooding the market with tons of information. A company has to get high quality content to their publics.
Companies need to use that content and traditional PR efforts to get articles published, segments on radio, and TV spots; but to get the most bang for their buck social media teams need to push traditional media efforts through social media touchpoints.
As we become a culture more and more addicted to information, companies are going to have to understand the importance of producing high quality content. Always remember content is (and always will be) KING!
Most companies are beginning to realize how to utilize social media; in that they now understand it’s about being PART of the conversation, not CONTROLLING the conversation. Unfortunately, companies are putting the wrong personnel at the forefront of these highly important touchpoints. It is true younger PR professionals have more experience with social media, but they can also get into a lot more trouble. Matt Singley explains this really well in his blog post “6 Things You Need to Know about Running a Social Media Program: The Channels”.
“Twitter is often the most immediate and intimate touch point with your current and future customers; make sure you put your best and brightest people behind this channel…and pay them well! They can make or break your reputation in just a few key strokes.” ---Matt Singley
How true (not to mention scary) is that. Where companies can begin to capitalize on social media is combining veteran PR professionals with younger Gen Y professionals. Companies need to be willing to commit more personnel hours and talent to their social media efforts. One person can no longer handle one company’s social media efforts. There is simply too much information, and people still want more.
Due to this addiction of information, companies have to be ready and willing to get as much information out there as possible. Do not misunderstand me to mean a company can get by with flooding the market with tons of information. A company has to get high quality content to their publics.
Companies need to use that content and traditional PR efforts to get articles published, segments on radio, and TV spots; but to get the most bang for their buck social media teams need to push traditional media efforts through social media touchpoints.
As we become a culture more and more addicted to information, companies are going to have to understand the importance of producing high quality content. Always remember content is (and always will be) KING!
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Building Relationships with PR Pro’s through Twitter
140 characters doesn’t seem like a lot to work with, but vast amounts of information can be found on Twitter. Thanks to the advent of bit.ly, and other web address shrinkers, those 140 characters can take you anywhere. As a young public relations practitioner I am constantly learning in this quickly changing field.
Utilizing Twitter, in a targeted way, can open doors to immense amounts of information. Opening these doors will help build relationships with other PR professionals. Almost all PR pros are social media fanatics (or if they are any good at their job they are). Therefore, Twitter is the best way to reach out to a worldwide network of PR professionals.
You can learn a lot of information by sitting back and following the vast amounts of really smart PR pros out there. However, chances are as someone interested in Public Relations, you are going to want to interact. So how do you get involved? Below I have outlined 3 simple ways I try to interact with PR Pros in the Twitterverse
1. Send a DM (Direct Message) After Every “Follow” -. Don’t just thank them for the follow, you need to engage them. Ask them about something on their Twitter background, or check out their blog and tell them a specific thing you enjoyed reading. This is a great tool b/c you can add some personality and build those ever-important relationships.
2. Send a DM (rather than thank them in a tweet) if you get Retweeted - In the DM I do thank them for the RT, but I go on to ask what they liked about the tweet, or why they retweeted. This gives me good feedback on the effectiveness of my Tweeting. It also helps me understand what people are interested in reading.
3. Retweet, Retweet, and Retweet – However, hitting the RT button and retweeting information doesn’t really help you connect to people. Do your best to personalize the retweet. I understand this can be tough with the 140 character restraints, but adding something of your own helps to engage the person you are retweeting.
This is not the magic formula, as nothing in social media is, but I have had success building relationships in only a short time. Social media is all about involvement, finding your style is what will set you apart. So get out there and start engaging.
Twitter is a constantly evolving and fascinating form of media. It gives young PR pros the ability to interact with proven professionals worldwide. Take advantage of this fast growing form of social media. It has given at least one young PR pro (ME!) some great information on current PR issues and trends.
Please feel free to share what has worked for you. I'm always interested to learn, and look forward to reading some great comments.
Utilizing Twitter, in a targeted way, can open doors to immense amounts of information. Opening these doors will help build relationships with other PR professionals. Almost all PR pros are social media fanatics (or if they are any good at their job they are). Therefore, Twitter is the best way to reach out to a worldwide network of PR professionals.
You can learn a lot of information by sitting back and following the vast amounts of really smart PR pros out there. However, chances are as someone interested in Public Relations, you are going to want to interact. So how do you get involved? Below I have outlined 3 simple ways I try to interact with PR Pros in the Twitterverse
1. Send a DM (Direct Message) After Every “Follow” -. Don’t just thank them for the follow, you need to engage them. Ask them about something on their Twitter background, or check out their blog and tell them a specific thing you enjoyed reading. This is a great tool b/c you can add some personality and build those ever-important relationships.
2. Send a DM (rather than thank them in a tweet) if you get Retweeted - In the DM I do thank them for the RT, but I go on to ask what they liked about the tweet, or why they retweeted. This gives me good feedback on the effectiveness of my Tweeting. It also helps me understand what people are interested in reading.
3. Retweet, Retweet, and Retweet – However, hitting the RT button and retweeting information doesn’t really help you connect to people. Do your best to personalize the retweet. I understand this can be tough with the 140 character restraints, but adding something of your own helps to engage the person you are retweeting.
This is not the magic formula, as nothing in social media is, but I have had success building relationships in only a short time. Social media is all about involvement, finding your style is what will set you apart. So get out there and start engaging.
Twitter is a constantly evolving and fascinating form of media. It gives young PR pros the ability to interact with proven professionals worldwide. Take advantage of this fast growing form of social media. It has given at least one young PR pro (ME!) some great information on current PR issues and trends.
Please feel free to share what has worked for you. I'm always interested to learn, and look forward to reading some great comments.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
The Human Factor
Social media reaches everyone, we all know that. Companies are beginning to understand that social media influences everyone. According to John Jantsch, “It’s becoming clear that social media is no longer marketing’s new thing; it’s marketing in the world we live in today.” People of all ages, races, genders, and economic levels have their own voice.
The quicker companies realize the immense influence of social media, the faster they will grow. Due to the abundance of social media, the "human factor" is now more apparent than ever. Everyone, regardless of income level, has a voice. In the past, only the voice of the wealthy was heard. Stories about the poor were only told by the wealthy. Social media enables everyone a voice regardless of income level. This is unprecedented.
The human factor can no longer be ignored and we will be a better generation because of it. PR practitioners that incorporate social media into their strategy will reach more people in a more personal way.
The quicker companies realize the immense influence of social media, the faster they will grow. Due to the abundance of social media, the "human factor" is now more apparent than ever. Everyone, regardless of income level, has a voice. In the past, only the voice of the wealthy was heard. Stories about the poor were only told by the wealthy. Social media enables everyone a voice regardless of income level. This is unprecedented.
The human factor can no longer be ignored and we will be a better generation because of it. PR practitioners that incorporate social media into their strategy will reach more people in a more personal way.
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