The SeaWorld Park-Orca incident

By Aric Bishop

Sea-World is dealing with a crisis because of the death of trainer earlier this week. Sea-World is using effective crisis communication to reach out to their stakeholders and keep them adequately informed about the incident where the trainer was killed by a 12,300 pound Orca whale.

"Trouble the water" - a film about Hurricane Katrina

by Sunshine Sutherland

"Troublethe water" is a documentary that tells a couple’s tale of what they went through, how they and their families were affected and how they overcame the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. The two people, Kim and Scott Roberts, were forced to remain in their home in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans for the hurricane because they lacked the resources to leave.  They  video-taped what they saw and experienced before, during and after the hurricane. 

They struggled to remain above water as it rushed through the streets and houses of their neighborhood. They eventually found refuge in their attic. Their camera battery died during this time so there is a big gap in the footage from them getting out of their attic to a few days after the hurricane. 

They then go through their neighborhood looking at houses and devastation; they even come upon a friend’s dead body. They try to find places to sleep and food to eat without any aid from the military soldiers that are guarding a deserted Navy base in town. They eventually make it to a Red Cross shelter and meet up with some family before finding a truck and leaving town. The couple makes it to Tennessee where they stay for a few months before heading back to New Orleans to rebuild their lives. 

The documentary, hard to forget or ignore, is an excellent film.  It shows how a crisis that can come in moments can forever change your life. It also shows the corruption in our own government and the lack of rescue efforts and resources to victims during and after the hurricane. The city was very ill-prepared for a crisis of that magnitude and, according to the documentary, still is. One example is that the levees that broke have not been properly rebuilt. 

This film is a must-see and will not be easy to lift from your mind. Seeing the intense suffering in the film and the faces of the people, you ache for the victims and survivors of the storm and want relief and comfort for them all.  

Skype: Informative Piece

Cherece Milton

The Social Media that I chose was Skype which was founded in 2003. According to the Skype official website, Skype is software that enables the world's conversations. Millions of individuals and businesses use Skype to make free video and voice calls send instant messages and share files with other Skype users. Skype is a leading global internet communications company. And of course, Skype-to-Skype voice and video calls are completely free.

There has definitely been a fast spreading buzz about this new technological innovation. Since its origination in 2003, millions of people across the nation have started to use this unique service. Many people find that this service is not only convenient but a genius way to connect with family and friends around the world. Since this technology has given people the opportunity to connect with loved ones it has eased minds and pocket books which are crucial aspects in the economic times that we live in.

Many people have been wondering what makes Skype so different and unique from similar sites such as yahoo messenger. According to the associated content, Skype Chat allows you to chat with more than one person in the same chat window. For instance, if you and your colleagues were separated and wanted to communicate together, everyone could sign into Skype and participate in the group chat. Yahoo Messenger's chat engine is more bulky and slower and has yet to reach the point of chatting with multiple users.

Studies have shown that Skype is on the rise of trumping face book, a social network that has the attention of millions as well. Within the research conducted, there were over 220 million registered accounts and 9 million concurrent users as of January 2007. Facebook on the other hand claims 39 million active users as of August 2007. Skype is definitely not settling and continues to find new innovations that will benefit their users. The most recent innovation launching is Skype Space which is a certified Skype program which allows Skype users to download and file share easier.

As you see, Skype is an innovation that society should pay more attention to because they keep on surprising us. This technology has helped millions and I have no doubt that they only have more to come.

 

Cherece Milton

President of the Omega Sigma Chapter of

Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc.

 

Social media is not technology

Solis writes "technology is just that: technology.  Social media is about people and how we can approach them as informed and helpful peers" (Putting the public back in public relations, p. 154). Business people forget that social media is changing PR "from pitching to personalized and genuine engagement." 90% of social media is people and 10% technology.  Yet, businesses will invest 90% in technology and 10% toward engaging with people. Then, they wonder why their use of social media doesn't work. 

Hi-5 Social Media

Hi5

www.hi5.com

 

            Hi5 is a social networking site through the internet. This website is targeted toward a general audience and has many of the same aspects as other social networking sites. The website is very easy to navigate through and it is a very popular social networking site throughout the world. While it is often found in the top 10 most visited websites in the world, it often fails to make the top 50 in the U.S. (http://webtrends.about.com/od/profiles/fr/what-is-hi5.htm).

When you first get to the website it will automatically ask you if you are a member or not and either prompt you to login or sign up for an account. Once you sign up it takes you to a page where you are able to upload a profile picture for your page. Going through the site you will see that “Hi5” games are at the bottom of the page and are promoted throughout navigation. Once you start adding friends and have more interaction within the website you “earn” coins that enable you to add more stuff your profile and “buy” games with the coins you have earned.

 Although created and headquartered in the United States, it is more popular in other countries, particularly in Latin America, being ranked 37th in the world only among people who have the Alexa toolbar installed on their browser but only 84th in the US (http://www.bing.com/reference/semhtml/Hi5_%28website%29?src=abop&fwd=1&q=hi5&qpvt=hi5). I think that Hi5 isn’t popular in the US because Facebook is promoted throughout all of the media channels, whether it be television, newspapers or the internet, so therefore it is always in the minds of US citizens.

I personally do not think that I will ever use this site because I am already friends with everybody I know on Facebook so this website isn’t very useful for me. I have also never heard of this social networking site before researching it which verifies how unpopular this website is in the minds of United States citizens, unless they have connections with other countries where it is more popular with their culture.

 

References

Hi5 (website) – Bing Reference. Retrieved from, http://www.bing.com/reference/semhtml/Hi5_%28website%29?src=abop&fwd=1&q=hi5&qpvt=hi5.

Nations, Daniel. What is Hi5? A Hi5 Profile and User Reviews. http://webtrends.about.com/od/profiles/fr/what-is-hi5.htm

SEO keyword searches

Keywords, phrases and embedded links make it easier for customers (or journalists) to find your blog, webpage, or social media release in traditional search engines like Google and Yahoo.

Here are some tools you can use to find keywords.

SEO Book

SEO Book includes lots of free services that can help you understand the use of keywords.  However, membership costs $300 a month - which you might consider you are using the internet to sell your products or services.  SEO Book claims to have over 100 training modules, covering topics like: keyword research, link building, site architecture, website monetization, pay per click ads, tracking results, and more - that are accessible for free.

Wordtracker

I linked WordTracker from SEO Book.  Wordtracker claims its research tool provides keywords to rise above competitors in search engine rankings. They also show how to use keyword research to discover untapped market niches, get inspiration for new products, and create compelling content that distinguishes your site from the pack. Wordtracker costs $39 a month.

Google AdWords: Keyword Tool

I put strategic planning into the Google AdWords keyword tool and it generated in seconds close to a hundred alternatives with supporting statistics.  While tool is free, AdWords is paid advertising on Google. When people search on Google using one of your keywords, your ad may appear next to the search results. This promotes your advertisement to an audience that might be already interested in your product or service.

Google Trends

With Google Trends, you can compare interest in topics. You can enter up to five topics and see how often they’ve been searched on Google over time. Google Trends also shows how frequently your topics have appeared in Google News stories, and in which geographic regions people have searched for them most.

BlogPulse Trends

BlogPulse Trends claims to be the one-click answer to the simple question: "What’s the buzz?" BlogPulse Trends identifies the topics and subjects that people are talking about in their blogs. A trend graph displays the buzz generated by any given topic or the comparison of buzz across a set of topics. You can also use the trend search to create your own graphs that plot "buzz" about specific search terms (issues, people, companies, brands, sports, etc.) that interest you in the blogosphere.

StumbleUpon

By Kael Martin

StumbleUpon is a great site for websurfers. Users acknowledge their personal preferences from a list of 500 topics. These topics include sports, philosophy, food, games, politics, and many more. By simply clicking "stumble," web sites with these personal interests are displayed. Users may also rate the site which also helps individuals find interesting sites.

Many times, search engines provide irrelevant information or information overload. Rather than searching for quality web sites, StumbleUpon members are taken directly to their preferred sites. StumbleUpon is an easy, community based web site. There is a StumbleUpon toolbar that is integrated in the users browser to allow for one click access to these quality sites. Also, there is a two level rating system that allow users to pass or offer their opinion on the webpage they just observed. These ratings connect people who share the same interests. The stumblers share their favorite web sites and interact with other users.

StumbleUpon is an excellent Social Media tool that can be used in organizations. I believe many organizations have not tried Stumble but its attributes could be very useful. An organization working to promote and inform the public on a developing program would be able to reach a wide range of audiences. Users will learn about the organization as well as the intent of the program.

Source:
About StumbleUpon.  (2009).  http://www.stumbleupon.com/aboutus/

TUMBLR THE NEW FACE OF BLOGGING

BY: BRENT RICE

        Over the course of the past decade there has been a rise in online blogging. Many blog writers have become overnight celebrities through their online blog. Several websites have adopted the technique of blogging to keep their consumers up to date on the latest within their company. However, people are always looking for a way to make something simpler and easier to use.    In the past, the be considered a blogger you had to have some whit and the time to actually sit down and write a blog.

Tumblr is being deemed by magazines such as: PC WORLD; BUSINESS WEEK, THE NEW YORK OBSERVER, FORBES, ETC AS THE FTURE OF BLOGGING.

Tumblr is an aspect of Microblogging. Microblogging is the technique of sending regular blog updates via text message or email. This allows the user to post blogs wherever they are. The iphone has adopted this technique and even has created an application for Tumblr.
According to PC WORLD magazine, Tumblr is among the top 5 tech tools that President Obama has adopted not only during his campaign, but also to regularly update his followers.

One thing that sets tumblr apart from the rest of the blogging websites, is that 1) anyone can do it, it is user friendly and doesn’t require a lot of knowledge to operate. 2) It connects to other social media websites such as: YouTube, Twitter and Facebook. These sites also work together to promote each other. A video that is posted on YouTube can reach viral status in no time through the “reblog” option in Tumblr. “Reblog” allows subscribers to repost a blog of their interest, published by another person for a wider audience to view. This would be ideal for product advertising and companies to generate a larger audience that they might be completely missing.

Tumblr could also be used for similar uses as traditional blogging websites such as: wordpress, blogspot, livejournal, etc. However that is not the main use of Tumblr. Tumblr is deemed the new face of blogging, it saves time, easy to use and gets straight to the point without having to read lines upon lines of blogs.

Twitter: Tweet Tweet?

Twitter: Tweet Tweet?

 

By DeWayne McIntyre

 

 

Twitter this, Twitter that.  Brian tweeted today a story on camels.  Kyle’s twitter page is wack.  I was once able to be updated on the Chiefs game in the Super bowl via Twitter.  Did you see Sony’s new iPad on that tweet?

These are all statements that you might have heard of if you have recently used the social media site called, Twitter.  Twitter is the new up and coming social media site, that many businesses, friends and family use to connect with one another.

According to Twitter’s website, “Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent messages.  People write short updates, often called "tweets" of 140 characters or fewer.  These messages are posted to your profile or your blog, sent to your followers, and are searchable on Twitter search.”

    There are some ways you can use Twitter as a social media platform to build your personal brand. And building your personal brand is the primary benefit of developing a casual persona, as it establishes you as a “social personality” that is connected and approachable.   As Twitter adoption increases, new users will be drawn towards well established Twitter personas.

The first thing you want to do, is let people know that you are tweeting.  Don’t make people assume that you or your company has twitter. Instead, go out there and tell people that you do have twitter.

One thing that really helps you become a better “tweeter” is to understand that when you make a tweet, think  of it as a conversation starter and not a statement.  Because that is what you are trying to do, you are trying to start up a conversation with people.  This is where people often get it wrong.  You aren’t there to talk at someone, but to talk with some one. Big difference.

So as you can see, Twitter can be a powerful tool to use. Let people know that you have twitter, and get those conversation tweets out there today.  It can really help get your business some spotlight.

 

 

 

17 ways you can use twitter. (2008, January 15). Retrieved from index2.php?reqstyleid=1#

 

How to use Twitter. (n.d.). Retrieved from index2.php?reqstyleid=1#

 

Twitter support: faq. (n.d.). Retrieved from index2.php?reqstyleid=1#

StumbleUpon

 

What makes good comedy?

The answer: David Letterman, Jay Leno, and Oprah Winfrey all on one couch.

Entertainment Weekly asked "Late Show" producer Rob Burnett if he thought that in producing the commercial they had the potential to upstage the Super Bowl.

Burnett replied: "I've been asked the question more than once about all these advertisers who spent millions of dollars on their ads. My response is: They had a year, millions of dollars, and 30 seconds! We had one week, no money, and 15 seconds."

The bottom line is not even the best commercial could upstage the New Orleans Saints victory over the Indianapolis Colts.

See the commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcEx767TIas

Augmented Reality

Rae Hildreth

 

Augmented reality is an application of computer-generated imagery using live-video streams as a way to expand the real-world.  The imagery is "augmented" by virtual computer-generated imagery. Augmented reality adds graphics, sounds, feedback and smell to the natural world as it exists. Both video games and cell phones are driving the development of augmented reality.

 

The best way to see how this works is to walk through the steps using Esquire magazine as an example-  they launched their December issue with augmented reality.  On the cover Robert Downey Jr. introduces you to the issue.  There are several pieces of bonus content that can be accessed and controlled on Esquire's website by downloading an app and pointing the AR marker at your webcam. The augmented reality feature is all supplement content in the print magazine. So, for example, in one of the magazine's fashion features, tilting your magazine in different directions controls the weather, and the model adjusts clothing appropriately. There's also a time-based joke – check out the augmented reality component after midnight and the content is different than what you find during the day. There are interactive commercial advertisements. It's incredible. 

 

 Here is a link to see how it works first hand:

http://blogs.timeslive.co.za/vlad/2009/11/10/534/

 

What is this thing called blogging?

By John Fisher

My students are reading Putting the Public Back in Public Relations by Brian Solis and Deidre Breakenridge as part of a course on social media.  Two times a week they write summaries of chapters from the book. Although there seems to be a lot of duplication of ideas throughout the book, students are finding the book helpful in creating a better understanding of social media.  As they read they also are becoming experts on one form of social media they have chosen. They are also working in groups to begin conversations about issues or problems important to them.

For today's class students will have written summaries of Chapter 7 about "Blogger Relations." Solis and Breakenridge point to two mistakes traditional PR people make when dealing with bloggers.  One, they under estimate the power of blogs to persuade.  Two, they think PR should focus on the A-list bloggers like they focus on the traditional media elite.

"The difference between bloggers and journalists is only the medium they use to reach people," they say. Now that can't be true.  Journalists write for huge audiences, sometimes huge, huge audiences.  That's what the mass in mass media is all about.  Sometimes bloggers like me write for only one or two people.

Blogging, Solis and Breakenridge say, is "an important evolution not only in citizen journalism, but in publishing in general."  They add, "Similar to anything that has the capability to connect with and build an audience, blogging is … an online printing press with the inherent capability for others to discover and stay connected to relevant content and the communities that help them thrive."  Bloggers can't be ignored, because while their audiences may be small, they are important influencers with those audiences.

NOT EVERY BLOG IS CREATED EQUAL

So why not focus only on the A-list bloggers, some PR people ask. Solis and Breakenridge write: "Although there is an A-list fir every market, and the A-list helps with the credibility of a brand, it does very little for generating new customers or enhancing brand loyalty." While A-list bloggers may reach large audiences, they may not be the true influencers of the customers you want to reach.  "The true influencers are the peers of your customers."  The magic middle may be the bloggers PR people want to join in a conversation with.  The magic middle, as defined by David Sifry of Technorati, are those blogs with 20 to 1,000 active inbound links.

So how do you rank bloggers?  You can use tools like those found at www.compete.com or www.alexa.com to analyze the amount of online traffic.  You can use referring links via http://technorati.com/ and find ensuing conversations (memes) by using http://www.blogpulse.com/. You can see the number of subscribers to a blogger's feed through reader.google.com or feedburner.com (now owned by google).  You can get a feel for how well certain bloggers grasp the industry they represent using tools like http://www.radian6.com/ and
http://www.buzzlogic.com/.

Solis and Breakenridge end by suggesting PR people do their homework and develop real one-on-one conversations.  They say PR people can show their credentials by:
- Knowing who you're talking to and why what you represent matters to them and their readers.
- By packaging your story to their preferences.
- By being an expert in your in the field where you work, knowing about the playing field and the players.
- Positioning yourself as a resource rather than a spammer.

Links:
What is radian6? http://www.radian6.com/what-we-do/

What Social Media Should a Political Campaign Use?

Facebook is comprehensive and allows you to post pictures, add videos, send detailed mass messages, publicly interact on Walls, and more.

Twitter excels in short message bursts, event updates, blog post pushes, and breaking news. It allows a campaign to instantly send a succinct message to 1000’s of followers and also lets the campaign interact with other people in a one-on-one manner.

YouTube is purely a video medium. However, its reach cannot be underestimated. The service’s search engine is second in use only to Google! This staggering number of searches makes it essential to own your candidate’s name for search on this platform.

Flickr should be used to publish campaign photos. With more than 4 billion images and over 30 million monthly visitors, it’s an important place to be and exposes your campaign to an important network.

See the complete article by Clay Schossow.

YouTube: Broadcast Yourself

By Jessica Seipel

This name is known and used worldwide, in twenty-two different countries, and available in fourteen different languages. Founded in February 2005, by Steve Chen, and Steve Hurly, their headquarters are
located in San Bruno, California. They were originally funded by Sequoia Capital.

It was while working for PayPal, that they realized there was no way of uploading videos and sharing them with friends. So they decided to make up this website where regular everyday people could go and watch,
share, and upload videos. What was a simple idea turned out to be very profitable.

YouTube was bought by Google in November 2006 for $1.65 Billion. Youtube has become the leader of online videos.

What is on YouTube?

YouTube has a variety of different things to watch, from clips of television shows to what Lady Gaga was wearing last night at the Grammy's. YouTube has video content, movies, television, and even
music videos. It also has many amateur videos and blogging as well. Lots of larger businesses upload videos such as, CBS, BBC, UMG (Universal Music Group), but mostly Youtube consists of tons of individual clips.

You must be a member to upload videos, but non members can access videos. These are shared through many different media sources, cell phones, blogs, and e-mail. YouTube is viewed around one billion times a day.

YouTube has been a great asset to our growing economy. This social media helps us stay updated on what is going on right now. You can watch clips of virtually everything all with one click of your mouse. Many people use this tool also for business purposes or for school projects. Some teachers put examples of step by step things up as a video showing students exactly what it is they need to do. YouTube is a wonderful social media tool to have.



Cited Sources:
Wikipedia. (February 1, 2010). YouTube. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/YouTube
YouTube Broadcast Yourself. (2010). YouTube Company History.
http://www.youtube.com/t/about

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Six tools non-profits can use for fund raising

Here are six tools non-profits can use for online fund raising. You
might consider using some or all of these for your fund raising.  I
checked for an organization I donate to and it wasn't listed on any of
the sites.

ChipIn (http://www.chipin.com)
The ChipIn widget allows you to keep people up-to-date on ChipIn
events you organize to collect money. The widget works with any Web
page and many popular social media Web sites.  All you need is a
PayPal account to get started. PayPal charges a transaction fee.

SixDegrees.org (http://www.sixdegrees.org)
SixDegrees.org, which is affiliated with Network for Good, lets
individuals and organizations create donation widgets, that can be
inserted into a Web site or integrated into social networking sites.
SixDegrees.org does not support individual fundraising pages, and the
badges are only somewhat customizable. Fees are 4.75 percent per
transaction with no setup fee.

Change.org (http://www.change.org)
Change.org provides a social networking site geared toward nonprofit
causes, which includes both online giving and distributed fundraising
tools.  Change.org offers a premium package for an additional monthly
fee that allows for more customization. Donations are processed by
Network for Good, a common processor, with a fee of 4.75 percent for
each donation.

ChangingthePresent.org (http://www.changingthepresent.org)
This site encourages donors to replace traditional gifts with
donations to a cause. With the free package, organizations have a very
basic home page where donors can make a simple donation of any amount
and supporters can create fundraising page to raise money for the
organization. Changingthepresent.org also offers a premium package for
a yearly charge. Fees are 3 percent, plus $.30, per donation.

Facebook Causes (http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=2318966938)
Facebook Causes is specifically geared to let supporters who use
Facebook to raise funds from their own Facebook contacts.
Members establish a cause, select a beneficiary organization, and
solicit donations through their Facebook friends network. They can
also post Cause profiles on their Facebook page, though they're
limited to one at a time. Costs are 4.75 percent per donation,
processed through Network for Good. Donors must be registered
on Facebook in order to donate.

Firstgiving (http://www.firstgiving.org)
FirstGiving provides easy to use tools that let supporters set up
their own fundraising pages, and allows campaign administrators to
track campaign progress across individual fundraisers. Because
FirstGiving does not have a built in audience, you'll need to rely
solely on your own supporters to spread the word. Transactions cost
7.5 percent (5 percent for the FirstGiving service fee and 2.5 percent
for credit card processing.)

See article by Stella Hernandez for more information:
http://www.idealware.org/FGTOnlineDistributedFundraising.php

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Social media may not be meeting retailers needs

Retailers, according to Social Media Today, have been reaching
existing customers with social media but not prospecting new ones.
It is too hard to use social media to take leads through to the final
sale.

Perhaps retailers are expecting too much from social media. Social
media can be used to get prospects to the retailers' webpages, but
sales have to be made there. Social media, on the other hand, can
be used to build current customer satisfaction.

Retailers should also consider using sites like
http://www.kaboodle.com/, which gives consumers a place to shop
and compare.



For more information, read the Social Media Today article at:
http://www.socialmediatoday.com/SMC/172018

Tumblr- An Overview

By Jaimie Ham

Tumblr is a social networking site that’s main focus is blogging. It is more than your typical blogging site, however. It offers a variety of applications that keep the user interested and entertained. For example, you can post text, photos, quotes, links, audio, video, and even chat as well. You also have the option to receive messages for more sensitive material. Besides posting you own personal information, you are able to view others’ information easily. Tumblr also links to other people with the same interests as you.

You are able to add “friends” and see their more recent posts on your homepage. This application reminds me of Twitter- how you can choose who you follow and see their updates without them having to confirm you as a friend- unless their profile is private.

Tumblr also offers some a chance for creativity. You are able to choose from templates to design your page with, or you can design your own. You also can name your blog and choose what the URL address is for easier access. When you post your text, you have the chance to save them to your drafts, line them up in a queue, and decide when each will be published. You also have the option to “tag” your posts so that you can categorize them with others’ whose posts contain similar topics. When you click on a “tag” or search for a “tag”, you see all the posts made (whether they are your friends or not) that contain that tag.

Personally, I do have a Tumblr. It was very useful when I was searching for graduate school. I typed in the name of the schools I was interested in, and viewed the posts with those tags. It was interesting to get students point of view of their schools. 

social media assignment

 

How to measure effectiveness of Google Wave

Organizations can measure the effectiveness of Google Wave by measuring the amount of messages, replies and comments their wave receives on the web. Google also created a Wave that follows the Twitter messages of the user. The organization can measure the  "engagement of its audience by ReTweets, subscribers, time spent, and comments" as well as by volume of fans, followers, tweets per minute and trending topics.

Christina L. Ewing

The language of new PR

Four words have been part of traditional PR strategy and planning, but they are no longer appropriate in the world of social media, according to Solis and Breakenridge in "Putting the public back in public relations." The words are pitch, message, audience and user. 

In the language of new PR we don't "rely on pitching messages to target audiences or users."  PR is about people.  As consumers we don't make decisions based on messages.  We consider information that relates to us as people and customers.

-- John Fisher

Just announced: Google Wave.

By Christina L. Ewing

Google Wave is an online tool for real-time communication and collaboration. "A wave can be both a conversation and a document where people can discuss and work together using text, photos, videos, maps, and more. It can be used as a personal communication tool. It is designed to merge e-mail, instant messaging and social networking." 

"Google Wave works like systems such as  e-mail but instead of sending a message along with its entire thread of previous messages, or requiring all responses to be stored in each user's inbox for context, message documents (referred to as waves) that contain complete threads of multimedia messages (blips) are perpetually stored on a central server. Waves are shared with collaborators who can be added or removed from the wave at any point during a wave's existence." 

A wave is a conversation with several participants who are added to a wave to discuss the information and content. In order to participate in google wave you have to apply for or receive an invitation.

Read what Mashable says about google wave:  

http://mashable.com/2009/05/28/google-wave-guide/

YouTube

YouTube is not only for videos of funny things happening. It can also be used by a business to get its message across.  You can use it to show your expertise, share knowledge, market your products and connect with customers, colleagues and potential customers.   

People can use YouTube to show presentations of their company or videos of certain things that are going on.  People can interactively become involved in a business through this tool.  They can record meetings that they feel are important and that they would want to share with fellow employees and shareholders, etc.  They can use this tool to advertise their business.   

They can set up a “channel” as they call it; this is where you basically set up a page for yourself.  People can follow the company through this channel either through the website or tweeting has become popular.  Company’s can have their staff portrayed in a video maybe of them working or doing the skills required for that business.   

By using YouTube I feel that it is very effective.  People can promote their business in a different way from television commercials and radio. Everything is moving to the internet. This is helping this social media to grow.  I feel like this will become more popular in years to come.  

Instructions on how to add a video to your blog.

What is ooVoo?

By Demetric Fane

OoVoo was created in so many words as competition for the Skype communication application. OoVoo’s purpose is to make communication for families, business, or any other need possible without ever leaving your home or office pc.  The application allows you to make phone calls over the internet for a small fee that you can add credits to with your debit/credit card. The phone calls are said to be the clearest calls ever made over the web. Another great feature that has attracted users to ooVoo is the capability to make video phone calls as well.  This application has the same features as Skype, but there are a few features that set the two giants apart.  OoVoo allows the users to have more than one person at a time on a video chat. There is the possibility of having six users at a time at one time. Skype has not yet been able to have that feature.  OoVoo is also working on a new feature that allows users to use the program from their cell phone to do video conference calls from the cell.  OoVoo is trying its best to wipe out the skype generation by stepping up one level above everything that Skype tries to create.

Free download http://www.oovoo.com/Download.aspx

ooVoo takes on Skype http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE56G7PQ20090717

In Beat with BeBo

By Andrew Maddux,

The world of Bebo is one that is of interest not only to you the individual, but to musical groups, and lends support to causes.  With Bebo, registered users can make their own online blog, post numerous photos, and even send messages in an instant. (bebo.net,2009) The features found in Bebo do contain lots of the same elements as Facebook, MySpace. Bebo recognizes this fact and responds simply, “Bebo is used to meet new people but also to stay in touch with their old friends, colleagues, and more who are now far away from them.”(bebo.net, 2009) This is a great idea I believe to not try and replace their friends by finding new ones, instead it’s used to foster and improve the relationships that they already have.

Bebo is also doing something interesting by allowing, “Bebo members are able to keep up with their friends’ activities on other sites, such as Flickr, Twitter and Delicious. Now Facebook, MySpace and YouTube are being supported as well.” (Schonfeld, 2009) The capability listed above is very convenient for me as a user of Bebo, and for bands and organizations to be able to channel their efforts through one media source. By allowing other people to see what you’re up to on other sites means you can share information over several mediums and get a unique result with each, along with a combined result on Bebo.

The website has several other advantages and accomplishments associated already with its name; first and foremost it was recently acquired by AOL.  “AOL migrated all of its AIM Profiles members over to Bebo on Wednesday and Thursday. This single move will more than double Bebo’s presence in the U.S” (Schonfeld,2009) Along with this the website boast more than 22.5million visits a year, in 2007 Bebo was one of the most searched terms on Google, along with the top Social media site in several countries such as Ireland, Australia and other European countries. (Schonfeld,2009)

The features that I personally enjoy on the website are the lifestream mentioned above, however I also enjoy the fact that Bebo, integrates the ability to list music groups, Create Polls and Quizzes along with widgets a comment wall, and a very important aspect a blog integrated right into the profile. With all the above mentioned services and the ability to integrate other social media websites through it, the Timeline service is simply amazing with the simplicity it breaks down your Bebo and the actions you partake in. The way that customer service is done on Bebo is also personalized, and feedback is presented to the person who submitted the inquiry to reassure their time was not wasted. (Schonfeld,2009)

There are several different bands that are using Bebo as a platform to increase their popularity, however I have no doubt that as a PR student I can use the site to increase visibility of my cause of, “Lowering college tuition and fees.” The site is sleek, interesting and integrated which is why I suggest to everyone to get in beat with Bebo!

Sources

1. Shonefeld, E. (2009, February 23). Bebo zeroes in on lifestreaming for the masses: gets massive bump form AIM profiles [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/02/23/bebo-zeroes-in-on-lifestreaming-for-the-masses-gets-massive-bump-from-aim-profiles/
2. Bebo information center. (2009). Bebo Info. Retrieved February 1, 2010, from http://beboinfo.net/

The US says hello world - Alex Huxol

Social media is on the rise and one big form of social media is Skype. Skype is a software application that allows users to make voice calls over the Internet and use the webcam for visuals. This is something that business can and are using to cut the cost of communicating. “The majority of Skype's 405 million registered users are consumers, but about 30 percent of them also use the service for business, the company has said. Most of these business users have been small or medium-sized companies looking to keep costs down” (Reardon, 2009) Skype is an easy cheap way to communication all over the country and to other countries. In public relations communicating quickly is very important and to be cheap is a huge plus with the economic downfall right now. Users tend to say that they really like this social media, it is an easy way to talk to people daily that they normally only talk to every once in a while because of long distance charges. My roommate last year was dating someone that lived in Florida and she discovered Skype was a very easy fast way to talk to him. You can talk to each other face to face as well so it made her feel like she was with him every day. The only complaints I have heard are that it sometimes cuts out and drops your call but it is very easy to reconnect and start your conversation again. Others have said that the voice quality is sometimes poor. Over the entire consensus is that Skype is a great way of communication for a cheap price (free). 

Marguerite Reardon.  (2009, March 23). Skype gunning for business call-cost assault.  Silicom.com.

PR is about relationships says Solis

By John Fisher

In chapter 5 of "Putting the Public Back in PR", Solis and Breakenridge write that PR is about relationships.  And "only active engagement and listening can lead to meaningful relationships." The new PR is not about broadcasting and selling pitches. The new PR is about "one-to-one" relationships rather than "one-to-many."

Reporters and analysts are on one end of the media spectrum while A-list bloggers are at the other.  It's the magic middle where we can find our customers and so its in the middle that we want to develop relationships. 

The first thing to do in developing relationships is to find out the people's preferred forms of communication.  We can do that by listening to their conversations. Solis gives the example of Robert Scoble, and A-list tech blogger.  Scoble wrote, "It's amazing that in the age of Twitter that people still send email.  I hate email.  I hate direct Tweets.  I hate Facebook messages."   

By going to Technorati, Blogged.com, Google BlogSearch and the blogrolls of bloggers we can see what bloggers are writing.  A google search will allow you to see the latest twitters to and about someone.  For example, search "twitter scobleizer" and you can see his latest tweets.  What you read is a conversation that is taking place.  "You need to watch and listen to the people with whom you want to interact.," write Solis and Breakenridge.  The most effective campaigns start with listening, reading, watching and observing.

They recommend that we become sociologists and market experts.  "This is a shift from pitching to participating, from selling a story to telling a story."  The best way to do this is to become a participant observer.  Here the observer doesn't hide his identity and is truthful about his goals and objectives. 

I like the following analogy.  Watching a conversation from the outside is like "engaging in cultural voyeurism."  This is like "setting up camp next to a village ... and expecting the village to integrate you into its society."

What traditional marketing and PR consider harmless activities is discouraged in social media.  For example, one of the most annoying things a marketer can do is put sales information on my blog as a comment.  Or spam me on twitter with products they are selling.

As Solis and Breakenridge write, "In PR, relationships are the currency required to prosper. For these relations to increase in value over time, they must be cultivated from both sides."

iTunes by Justin Yates

                In today’s highly-advanced and technologically dominated world, fewer devices have become more iconic than Apple’s iPod.  Millions of people now have access to countless media right at their fingertips.  Today, you can literally carry a library in your coat pocket.

                What makes the iPod so revolutionary is not what it does, but what it can do.  Since its creation, millions have used their iPods for more than just playing music.  Students, executives, teachers, children, and many more are capable of having a plethora of information—not just music, at their fingertips.  And with the emergence of iTunes, these capabilities are endless.

                The iTunes website/download is the iPod owner’s central nervous system.  The program can manage and edit music, download countless movies, television programs, audiobooks, podcasts, applications, and more.  (apple.com/itunes)  And with newer, more advanced versions of the iPod, the iPhone, iPod nano, iPod touch, and the newly-presented iPad (scheduled for release later this spring), the iPod is becoming a handheld computer.  Through the iTunes website, users can redeem iTunes gift cards or create an account with any credit or debit card to directly charge purchases.  Users can purchase music (legally—no more worrying about illegal “pirating” of music).  More than that, iTunes also provides a ratings forum for users to rate and comment on their favorite media.  If a movie stinks, they say so.  If an album rocks, they say so.  Users can even create their personal “favorites” playlist, and upload it to the iTunes website to be put on sale for others to enjoy.  The emergence of iTunes as a commonplace social media is extraordinary.

                One of the newer, most popular elements of iTunes is the “Apps” section.  This is where iPhone/iPod touch/iPad users can download various applications for use on their device.  There are hundreds of thousands of applications on the iTunes website already, and the number continues to grow exponentially.  Some apps are free; some are not.  But their practical, and sometimes fun use, are becoming commonplace in today’s society.  “There’s an app for that,” has become synonymous with iTunes.  Users can now check their Facebook profile, read their favorite newspaper, play games, or countless other possibilities due to the ease and availability of iTunes applications.

                iTunes is not limited as far as it’s practical use.  In fact, some universities have used podcasts as a valuable teaching supplement.  A podcast is a downloadable “mini-broadcast” that can be downloaded from an iTunes account.  Many professors are now able to record classes/lectures, and upload them to the iTunes website for download by students who may have missed the class (for whatever reason).  The student can download the podcast, and watch it on his/her iPod. 

                Results from these podcasts have been positive.  In a recent study, students who downloaded podcasts of lectures actually performed considerably higher than students who attended the lectures in person.  (Callaway 2009)  Does this mean we can go to college through our iPods?  Probably not.  But as a part of the recent “iTunes university” program, podcasts are finding their place in students’ hearts and minds.

                In conclusion, writing a summary of iTunes is nearly impossible due to its ever-changing growth and evolution.  Apple has caught on to a major social medium and we’ve not heard the last from iTunes—in fact, I believe the opposite is true.  With iTunes being so simple and easy to operate, yet so diverse in its practicality, it will continue to be prevalent and relevant in the distant future as well. 

Sources:

Apple.com/itunes

Callaway, E.  (Feb. 2009).  iTunes university better than the real thing.  Retrieved from:

                http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16624-itunes-university-better-than-the-real-thing.html

Wiggio Blog

Wiggio: Making it Easy to Work in Groups

by Katie Adkins

            Wiggio is a site that allows working in groups to become like no work at all. This social media site allows group members to stay connected. Wiggio, from the acronym WIG (Working In Groups), sends mass text messages, e-mails, and voice messages to group members. Wiggio also allows groups to host conference calls, webinars, keep a common calendar, and share documents in a common folder. This tool is totally free and the best part is that you do not have to have a Wiggio account to join a group!

            The first step is creating a profile. There are links available to your Facebook, Twitter, and Skype accounts. Once you have created a profile, you can create a group. A group name and e-mail addresses of potential group members will be required here.  Once you have created your group, you can get started by adding names, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses of potential group members. I created a group called Current Topics for this class. You can also join existing groups that other members have created. You will need the group name and password. In this group you can share a common calendar, upload and edit common documents, and conduct video conferences.  

            Wiggio was created by Dana Lampert and Lance Polivy, two programming students from Cornell University. Several test runs were conducted on campuses such as Harvard and Brown University. As students, they found it hard to communicate with group members and friends when everyone used different methods. So these graduates wanted to put the services from other popular sites such as freeconference.com and Google Calendar all together.   

            “We were in many different business organizations, bands, sports teams, fraternity councils, and living in apartments with different housemates, and we found that each group was using different tools,” says Lampert. “Some were using Google Calendar; others were using Yahoo’s calendars. Some just sent e-mails out, others used listservs. For polls, they’d go to Survey Monkey, and for conference calls they’d use free apps like FreeConference.com. When Lance and I put our heads together, we thought we could put all these things in one place.”  

                                                                                    -Dana Lampert, Co-Creator

             This software is specifically targeted toward college students who are busy with multiple jobs, classes, clubs, and friends. This is a great way to stay connected with all groups students are a part of. The creators are constantly creating updates and new features. You can learn more at blog.wiggio.com, the site’s blog.

Lampert, Dana; Polivy, Lance. (November 6, 2009). Wiggio Blog. Retrieved from http://www.blog.wiggio.com

Roush, Wade. (September 11, 2008). Wiggio Offers Free Groupware for Harried College             Students. Retrieved from http://www.xconomy.com/boston/2008/09/11/wiggio-offers-       free-groupware-for-harried-college-students/

BlackBerry Mobile Applications

By Mandy Sevitts

Mobile applications are an up and coming trend when it comes to the public relations fields and social media outlets all over the country.  People are no longer relying on their phones to just make a phone call to a friend, relative or colleague.  These handheld devices are now miniature laptops that allow people to work with ease, as well as having the capability to send pictures, listen to music and browse the internet.  The possibilities seem endless when it comes to mobile advertising done within the public relations department as well.  With cell phones coming in a variety of types, sizes and colors, it allows the owner to have the freedom to pick out a personalized device as well (Wintour 2008).  Phone companies utilize all of these advancements and see them as a chance to branch out to their consumers, in order to ensure their satisfaction with the product and loyalty to their company.

            When the use of payphones quickly became unnecessary and the success within the mobile phone industry continued to grow, it became very noticeable that cell phones were here to stay.  Within ten years, the capabilities of a cell phone have drastically changed.  Text messaging was introduced to the public and had a tremendous amount of success.  Being able to send a typed out message to another person’s phone, without actually calling them, was the first big step that was taken to make cell phones more useful.  Within the last five years, our society has watched as the ever popular BlackBerry has swept our country with a high customer demand.  BlackBerry products consist of Smartphones, which are integrated with software that enables access to a variety of data and communication services (Blackberry, 2009).  The popularity of BlackBerry cell phones has been on a steady rise for quite some time now, and isn’t showing any signs of slowing in the future.  Being able to access the internet on cell phones is the latest advancement that has taken consumers by storm.  Out of all of the people in the US that have a cell phone, on an average day, 58 percent of adults use their phones for at least one non-voice application.  These applications can be in a variety of forms, such as; text, e-mail, photos, looking up maps or directions, or recording a video (Perez, 2008).  This allows for more opportunities with advertising, planning and customer service on behalf of the public relations departments of companies all over this country that are striving for success.

            The trend of mobile applications is growing within the PR field for a variety of reasons.  People in general are becoming more mobile when it comes to work as well as their personal lives which is the main reason why the mobile application trend is emerging.  Cell phones are compact and provide a convenience for people with a busy schedule.  By having more mobile internet users, it has caused a decrease in the usage of desktop personal computers, or PC’s.  Mobile access to the World Wide Web has given more people the opportunity to work away from a stationary computer (Perez, 2008).  Public relation departments have been known to have close ties with the advertising departments as well.  This is because a lot of the time ads are one of the main ways that the companies reach out to the public.  The growth of mobile applications can also be seen within the advertising field as it relates to public relations.  Mobile and online advertisements have finally achieved their ‘places at the table’ in mainstream media plans, as they continue to prove their importance to traditional styles of media (Butcher, 2008). 

            Public Relation Professionals are addressing the emerging trend of mobile applications by simply utilizing all of their capabilities and putting them to use.  For example, a company could utilize the ‘BlackBerry solution’ for its employees who own a BlackBerry Smartphone.   

According to BlackBerry.com, the BlackBerry solution supports leading enterprise email platforms, and can be customized to meet the needs of one person or an entire enterprise, to any scale, in any industry (BlackBerry, 2009).  PR professionals could utilize the BlackBerry solution in a variety of different ways, but its main purpose is clear.  PR Professionals also see the financial benefit of investing their time into mobile relations and advertising.  Total spending on mobile advertising by companies in 2008 was $530.2 million, which Gartner expects to grow to $7.5 billion in 2012 (Gartner, 2009).  To invest an amount of money that large into a form of public relations is obviously going to provide companies with an extreme advantage in return, by being ‘in-tune’ with their consumers. 

            Mobile applications can be integrated into the global marketplace in a variety of ways for many different reasons.  However, I found that the main reason why mobile devices prove to be the most beneficial is because of their speed and reliability.  One major company that is known for incorporating mobile use across the globe, and affordable costs, is iPass. iPass is a company that combines world-wide remote and mobile broadband access with comprehensive management control over connectivity, devices and cost (iPass, 2009).  This makes it possible to unify mobility management for the global marketplace.  Having the advantage to communicate on a global level, gives PR professionals an even bigger range to work in.  Being able to access people, companies and information all over the globe, is truly remarkable.  Millions of people and companies choose to invest in iPass because of its ease and overall global capabilities within the marketplace.

            When it comes to mobile applications and the various challenges and opportunities that they create for PR Professionals and the social media field, the results can be seen in numerous ways.  The main opportunity that stood out to me was that of the many choices that people are given.  By having a personal mobile device, it presents itself with so many choices and settings, that it can be overwhelming (White, 2008).  However, by embracing the fact that the mobile application field is still growing and will continue to do so, it opens up a lot of doors for PR Professionals everywhere to utilize.