Emily Wilkins
1/31/09
Current Topics
Fisher
Blogging
Another emerging trend in the field of public relations is blogging. Blogging can be important to public relations practitioners as far as delivery of news coverage and information sharing is concerned. The growing technique helps prove how influential the internet has become as a communication medium.
Blogs are short for weblogs. These are online personal commentary links according to www.educause.edu. They can be viewed as online journals to which people can respond to, such as an e-mail. They are simple to create and easy to access that lead to open discussions. Evaluating blogs strengths and weaknesses, guidelines are being set for the workplace. Blogs have become an accepted instructional technology tool and is continuing to be used for various tasks for practitioners.
Public relations practitioners use blogging as a way of delivering news coverage and information sharing. This way, they can not only reach out to bloggers, but to bloggers in question. This makes communication easier for faculty to express opinions, promote dialogue and support teaching and learning. Many companies in both technical fields such as eBay and Microsoft and nontechnical fields such as General Motors and Wells Fargo Bank now have in-house blogs that report on developments in the company. Some of those developments might include new items posted to the web pages, new cars on the lot, and different banking tools that are being introduced to the company. These blogs can also inform its readers on why these items, cars, programs, and accounts are all going to be beneficial to the customers. For any questions or concerns on behalf of these blogs or postings, customers are given the opportunity to reply to the blogs and ask questions directly.
Some of the benefits involved with blocks for public relation practitioners include gaining visibility as a thought leader, engaging customers in dialogue, developing your brand, and using each one as an opportunity. By publicizing their news through internet, discussion is opened up to various audiences. With the variety of people exposed to the blogs, it leaves room for people to communicate new ideas and an abundance of feedback. Allowing customers to engage in the dialogue, makes for a better outcome for the company. Using feedback and applying it towards ideas and new techniques. This is an excellent alternative for good customer service. Each blog can be used as an opportunity to reach out to these customers for an idea of what they are looking for in the company. It is a quick and easy-to-use tool to have that provides interaction with potential customers and accommodate to those needs.
Before creating a blog, practitioners need to remember a few things about what they are going to include in it. First of all, know who the audience is going to be. Plan the material according to the people that are going to be reading along. Secondly, choose what the blog is going to be about. The structure of the blog and the topic chosen is going to determine whether or not the message will get across to its readers. The topic chosen needs to be open-ended and have opportunity for feedback and conversation. Engaging in conversation is crucial in public relations to meet the needs of potential and current customers. Then, find what will be needed to do to exceed those expectations and accommodate accordingly. The public are what make public relations so it is most appropriate to find these new techniques that will help run a better system.
These aspects all contribute to the emerging trends in public relations. Practitioners are used to the consistent changes in the workforce, especially with technology. Technology faces regular changes and it is up to fields, such as public relations, to be prepared and learn new ways.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Blogging
Cisco Eos: The Media & Entertainment World's Social Media
Retrieved from http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10133792-93.html
Entertainment Experiences to Online Audiences [Newsgroup message]. Retrieved from
http://www.wmg.com/newsdetails/id/8a0af81222e46eb901230f17b92d17c0
Monica Peterson-Social Media Assignment
Flickr
Podcasts as an Excelling Form of Social Media by Laura Yeager
Podcasts have proven to be an emerging trend in the public relations industry. The public relations industry is constantly changing and adapting to keep up with technology and the public. Podcasting consists of recording a digital file that can be distributed over the net using syndication feeds to be able to be played over the computer, MP3, or via IPod ( Faulhaber). Especially when related to public relations, the importance of podcasts is to reach an audience. When it comes to public relations and reaching a specific target audience, the more people that are introduced to the product or service the more successful that product or service is. PodGarden, an innovator of online marketing, states that it is projected that by 2013, 37.6 million people will be downloading podcasts each month (Podcast Importance.) This proves that podcasts are an outlet that if used correctly, can reach the masses.
Those who receive a podcasts are called subscribers and the podcast receiver is the technology that allows the subscriber to receive the podcast content. The receiver produces technology that has a way of narrowing down the subscribers specific podcast interests. This allows podcasts to be targeted by individual interest.
Podcast websites have even targeted the public relations profession, to provide a tool to the individuals in the public relations industry. Podcast websites such as PRWebPodcast provides an aid for public relations professionals by featuring interviews about press releases, producing the ability to bring news releases to life, and once again connect with the public.
Eric Schwartzman, founder and chairman of public relations services provider, iPressroom, states that “Public Relations podcasting initiatives can whisper in the ear of an influential, outspoken audience of brand ambassadors and compelling listeners to serve as word-of-mouth agents, repeating what they hear to friends and family” (Schwartzman.) Podcasts can be an extremely valid public relations tool for organizations. Podcasts provide a way for companies and organizations to develop and emotional bond with their customers (101publicrelations.)
Podcasts can give companies more of a personality and hence make the company and the services it provides more relatable to the customer. Multiple companies including BMW and General Motors have podcasts linked to their company website to create more of an integrated relationship with their customers. The messages these companies send out via podcasts include messages for the CEO, new product launches, service use information, and technology briefs (Faulhaber.)
Apart from providing public relations for products and services, as well as being able to appeal to specific audiences, podcasting can also produce a public relations campaign for individuals. California Governor Arnold Swarzenegger used podcasts to package and distribute political speeches (Fernado.)
Communication is the core of public relations. A global study by Universal McCann found that the number of podcast listeners in the United States has doubled in the last year and a half (Schwartzman). With its availability on the internet, podcasts can be reached throughout the global marketplace and can provide a public relations tool for a variety of different outlets. Podcasts are one of the latest communication tools used by all generations and most target groups, and will continue to be a successful public relations practice.
Faulhaber, P. (2008). Podcasts and public relations. Suite 101, Retrieved from http://marketingpr.suite101.com/article.cfm/podcasting_perfect_tool_for_public_relations
Fernado, A. (2005). Podcasting, anyone?. Communication World, 22. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=3&hid=112&sid=98683033-0c5c-4fb6-88e5-d9d7f1c35465%40sessionmgr111&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d
(n.d.). Podcast importance. Retrieved from http://podgarden.oneupweb.com/podcast_importance.htm
Shwartzman, E. (2008). Study suggests corporate podcasting is a growth opportunity for communicators. Comprehnsion, Retrieved from http://comprehension.prsa.org/?p=141
(n.d.). The Value of podcasting. 101 Public Relations, Retrieved from http://101publicrelations.com/blog/the_value_of_podcasting_001792.html
Thursday, January 28, 2010
LinkedIn to Business
By Jessica Tobin
LinkedIn is a business-oriented social networking site. Founded in December 2002 by Reid Hoffman and launched in May 2003. It is used as a professional networking media. The new CEO of LinkedIn is Jeff Weiner, who was once a Yahoo! Inc executive. LinkedIn allows members to create business contacts (called connections on LinkedIn), search for jobs, and find potential clients. Members have the ability to create their own professional profile that can be viewed by others in their network, and also view the profiles of their own contacts. Employers can look for people to hire also, as you can post your resume.
There are more than 55 million people on LinkedIn taking advantage of all the professionals who get on this site and network. Executives from all fortune 500 companies are members. Over half of these people are from the United States alone, 11 million are from Europe and 3 million are from India. There are170 industries and over 200 countries around the world using LinkedIn.
Networking is important when you are trying to get a job, ever hear it’s not what you know, it’s who you know? This is a website that combines both of these! You post what you know, and meet the people you need to know to get ahead. By adding all the people you know to your connections, you can see who they are connected with too, and if they know someone you want to be introduced to for a job, you can ask them to introduce you. This is like ‘mutual friends’ on facebook. If there is someone you would like to meet, you would search your mutual friends and that is how you would be able to meet that person.
Also, when you are researching a company you may want to look for, there are all kinds of statistics about the company. These statistics include female to male ratio of the employees, the percentage of most common titles/positions in the company, location of company’s headquarters and offices, or it could even include a list of employees who work there or used to work there.
There are other features of LinkedIn like LinkedIn Answers and LinkedIn Groups. LinkedIn Answers is a lot like Google Answers, or Yahoo Answers, except more business oriented with the questions and the people who answer the questions. LinkedIn Groups are like the networks on Facebook, but can include anything from alumni to greek or sports teams. With LinkedIn groups, this is a good way to see what you have in common in life outside of the business world with other people in your industry.
http://press.linkedin.com/
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
How Stores Use Kaboodle to their Advantage
By: Tiffiny Towne
The organizations that would use Kaboodle are on-site and online shopping stores like Walmart to overstock.com. So shoppers can make a wish list for certain holidays like Christmas, Valentines Day or their birthday for their family and friends to view. The business can see what the consumer likes by how many people are adding their products to their favorites. The stores can also market their products to these online shoppers than better before. Now products have reviews from real people and are not being censored on the website. If a company takes forever to ship a product then other consumers will know what to expect or go to another store.
For example, I ordered the Putting Public Back in Public Relations textbook from SuperBookDeals.com because that was the cheapest price and according to Amazon.com, it had four out of five stars. Which is not too bad compared to my other options. I am a poor college student so I hate paying for shipping so I decided to pick the cheapest shipping option. The option was two to fourteen days, I figured since the order was being shipped from Indiana that it would not take too long. Apparently I was off on my estimation because it has been exactly fourteen days and I still have no textbook. The shipping did not provide tracking like if I would have ordered it from Amazon.com and paid a few extra dollars. So now, I have to call the store to find out what is going on with this book. Like, have they even shipped it yet? If I would have read somewhere about their shipping problems then I would have picked Amazon.com because I am familiar with them but just wanted the better price.
Examples from Kaboodlers
"I love Kaboodle because it's my memory. I have a terrible memory, so Kaboodle helps me keep track of the things I need, want and dream to own. Beyond all that, shopping alongside people worldwide offers the opportunity to discover things you might never have known to exist otherwise. Who doesn't love that?"
- triplyksis, Kaboodler since January 15, 2007
"I became addicted the first time I used Kaboodle and by the next day, I had sent out at least 50 emails to friends telling them to join because this was the greatest thing since sliced bread! I love Kaboodle because it makes life easier. Kaboodle is like a layaway for the mind and a personal shopper all in one! Who can beat that?"
- adriannaa, Kaboodler since December 11, 2006
Monday, January 25, 2010
Glenn Beck ends his first year at Fox with great ratings
extremely high for the 5 p.m.EST time slot. http://tinyurl.com/yaednqa
Beck's numbers were four times better than CNN and were just short of
the ratings for Bill O'Reilly at 8 p.m.
MSNBC insults Massachusetts voters
Massachusetts' election results lat week, MSNBC's comments and
coverage were vitriolic and demeaning. A good summary of MSNBC's lack
of journalistic integrity is found in Glenn Garvin's blog Changing
Channels. http://tinyurl.com/ydoqfkr
Look at Bill O'Reilly's comments about Fox news coverage.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXPKccesQmE&feature=player_embedded
How Stores Use Kaboodle to their Advantage
By: Tiffiny Towne
The organizations that would use Kaboodle.com are on-site and online shopping stores like walmart.com to overstock.com. Shoppers can make a wish list for certain holidays like Christmas, Valentine’s Day or their birthday for their family and friends to view. The business can see what the consumer likes by how many people are adding their products to their favorites. The stores can also market their products to these online shoppers. Now products have reviews from real people and are not being censored on the website. If a company takes forever to ship a product, other consumers will know what to expect or go to another store.
For example, I ordered the Putting Public Back in Public Relations textbook from a little known book seller because that was the cheapest price and, according to Amazon.com, it had four out of five stars. That was not too bad compared to my other options. I am a poor college student. I hate paying for shipping so I decided to pick the cheapest shipping option. The option was two to fourteen days. I figured since the order was being shipped from Indiana that it would not take too long. Apparently I was off on my estimation because it has been exactly fourteen days and I still have no textbook. The shipping did not provide tracking like Amazon.com. Now, I have to call the store to find out what is going on with this book. Like, have they even shipped it yet? If I would have read somewhere about their shipping problems then I would have picked Amazon.com because I am familiar with them.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Kaboodlin'
Kaboodle's only function is to be a resource for shoppers like an online shopping community. It has tools to help shoppers organize their shopping through lists; discover new things from people with a similar taste in style while finding the best prices. Shoppers can even personalize their profiles with polls and other widgets.
I will now describe the steps on how to kaboodle. Go to kaboodle.com and register. Please remember to write down your user name and password. It is important to register so your family will remember what you want for Christmas or other holidays. You will need to check your email for updates.
The items can be classified according to different departments like home and garden, electronics, music, and computers. You can also classify your products into gifts or in ranges of price like less than twenty, twenty to two-hundred, or if I had a million dollars classification.
Now it is time to "connect with Kaboodle members, write reviews, play games, shop, add friends and join groups as desired or time allows." If you want to products private from other users then there is an option for that.
You can invite your friends to the website through email and also they will see your gift list. There is also a way to select a few email contacts.
There is a toolbar that Kaboodle offers that when you are shopping online, you can click "add to caboodle" when a product pops up that you like so you can put it in the proper list.
There are email subscription options. Please choose wisely; they can sometimes overload you.
I went ahead and created my own Kaboodle because I believe it is more important to learn from experience than from reading someone else's. When I was registering, they gave me a big variety of different brands to choose from. I picked twelve from overstock.com to Sony. I do not have any friends yet but it is on my to-do list.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Air America ends broadcasting short of its sixth anniversary
The progressive radio network Air America goes off the air on Monday
night at 9. That's almost six years after the network started March
31, 2004.
David Hinckley in the New York Daily News lists a number of reasons
for the network's failure.
First, talk radio has to entertain. But Air America wasn'tentertaining. Instead it had an agenda, based on ideology.
Air America brought in professional entertainers Al Franken and
Janeane Garafalo, but neither were radio people. Rachel Maddow
learned radio at Air America and then went to MSNBC.
Second, as The Daily News' David Hinckley wrote, "If people can't hear
you, what you're saying doesn't matter."
Air America was underfinanced and so didn't find any major stations to
host their shows. In addition, Air America didn't get the publicity
from the liberal media to boost its popularity.
While Air America was a failure, it could be argued that it made Al
Franken a U.S. Senator. It also made Maddow a star and gave voice to
other progressives.
It may have also may have helped progressive politicians like Obama.
But this has its downside. While progressive radio had plenty to talk
about under Bush, it's hard to bash your own man when he is president.
Air America could have gone to the Internet like Moveon dot org and the
Huffington Post. However, the web isn't a great money producer.
While it could be argued that diversity in opinion is important,
reinstating the Fairness Doctrine is not the answer. In a democracy,
any media, including radio, needs to stand based on its ability to
gain an audience and run at a profit.
So, while Air America is signing off permanently, conservative talk
show hosts like Rush Limbaugh, Glen Beck, and Michael Savage continue
to reach huge audiences.