Sunday, April 25, 2010
Avatar: Part of YOUR Personal Brand
You can also think of it like this. Your profile picture on your Facebook or Twitter page is also apart of your personal brand. Sometimes your picture may not represent an everyday look, but your best. Why do you want a photo of you looking your best? Of course you want people to see your default photo and equate your name with that photo. Same with an avatar. Even though you are not physically present in Second Life, you SELF is.
I actually just set up a Second Life character named Penelope Treeflame...so if she is flying around your area, it's me :)
Thursday, April 22, 2010
TwitterChat
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Shoud there be a Dewey Decimal System for Twitter?
Let's think about this, why would the Library of Congress want to store a pop culture icon of social media in the midst of thousands of historic pieces of literature? If you think about it like this, Twitter has been revolutionary in the way we share information. Twitter has been able to let us communicate live about some of the most historic events since its launch in 2006. Twitter has been able to capture moments like Obama winning the presidency or the Haiti earthquake, which have effected all of our lives in one way or another. Not only is Twitter just a social networking site, but buried beneath the tweets about your disgusting ex-boyfriend, there are tweets that are of value in our history.
However not ALL tweets are housed in the Library, if your tweets are protected, then they will stay that way. Also, if your tweet is going to be stored forever in such a renowned location, maybe people will think twice about their tweets sharing TMI..probably not, but wouldn't that be nice?
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
#youknowyoureaprstudentwhen
I am not a senior yet, but I am about to turn that corner soon when I am going to be scouting out for an entry level job. Of course it's never to early to start looking around and building up a network, that's how you get ahead of the game! Some popular social networks are PROpenMic, LinkedIn Groups like PRIntern |EntryLevel, and Twitter initiatives such as #HAPPO. So I figure now that have the resources, it can only benefit me to join these networks and do what any PR pro does best, NETWORK!
Also, a Twitter chat, #PRStudChat, will be held tomorrow Wednesday, April 14th at 1:00 pm CT. This is a great opportunity because experienced recruiters will be giving us some insight on how to land a job. Some of the experts will include:
- Jessica Porterfield, a recruiter with Fleishman Hilliard. Jessica has eight years of experience in the Biotech/Pharma industry and now recruiting in PR.
- Jessica Bayer, a Public Relations recruiter at Qorvis Communications. Jessica specializes in Public Affairs, Government, Crisis, Interactive, Creative, Consumer and International relations.
- Laurie Bartolo, a recruiter at Ogilvy. Laurie’s career spans almost 20 years and covers a wide geography, from Florida to Washington DC to New Mexico and now Michigan.
- Lindsay Olson, a recruiter, founder and partner with Paradigm Staffing who spends her days helping companies build public relations and communications teams nationwide.
- Rachel Kay , President and found of RKPR. Rachel, whose firm is currently hiring, is an award-winning public relations expert with experience spanning a multitude of industries including consumer technology, food, beauty and fashion, the Web and more.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Google Juice
Reading a little into Edelman's "Search Engine Visibility," gives a little insight in how Google might "select" the hits that come up when you put a search in and also the direction search engines are moving. First, Google is said to have a democratic way of selecting what things will rank accordingly when you search for something. For example, Edelman discussed how the New York Times was particularly frustrated when sites like outdated BBC sites, wikipedia, and YouTube showed up before their new story when "Gaza" was typed into Google. So it makes you wonder, what does it take to get a high ranking on Google? Bribes? Turns out, Google is just like a friend and all "it" wants is a little bit of TRUST.
Not only does content have to be reliable, it must also be LINKED. I discussed earlier, Foremski's rants about linking in a press releases, but as it turns out, linking is also very helpful in SEO. This is not really new information, but the methods in which we are linking and changing from "static linking" to a new form that allows a company to build relationships as well. Today, many companies are taking advantage of social media to link and drive traffic to their websites. That is to say if you see a Twitter discussion about a particular topic and then see a news story about the same topic, that link is more likely to rank higher because of the popularity of Twitter. So the more social networking sites you link to, the more "Google Juice" you will get!
The secret to Social Search is to employ an "embassy strategy." Companies that set up meaningful, engaging and permanent outposts inside all of the relevant social networks will be more discoverable than those who don't. Today the benefits of visibility are measured via Google results. Tomorrow it will be within search engines that are embedded into the social networks.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Topper Takes a Tour!
For this video, our group decided we would like to highlight the 125th anniversary of our St. Edward's campus. In order to accomplish our goal, we decided it would be helpful for prospective and incoming Freshman students to be aware of our anniversary, since the celebrations will roll over into the fall semester as well. We decided to incorporate the 125th anniversary theme of "Journey of St. Edward's," into creating a "journey of the campus," by giving a tour with a very special guest.
We have heard that our mascot, Topper the Hilltopper, was a huge hit at the previous Homecoming celebrations this past February. Naturally, we decided that this would definitely bring some traffic to our video because, come on, who doesn't love Topper? This would be a great way to build up our school spirit, both for current students and prospective students alike. Plus, Topper would be able to debut in his first feature film!
We hoped to not only use this video assignment for class on our blogs, but also feature it on the 125th anniversary website in order to bring traffic to the website. Speaking with the St. Edward’s Marketing Department early in the semester, I learned that one of the major goals is to link the microsite, Twitter, and Facebook page together to create a much more interactive experience for students to get involved. By bringing Topper in the mix, we wanted to a way for students to feel connected to their university and spread the word about the anniversary celebrations.
Ally Hugg, Sara Roberts, and I take a tour with Topper as our tour guide. He leads us toward many of the campus hotspots like the Holy Cross Plaza marked with our University seal, the captivating Main Building, and the grand Sorin Oak Tree. Topper provides us with fun facts and information that would be useful to prospective students and give them a visual of what it is like to walk around the St. Edward’s campus. Of course, the 125th anniversary is mentioned when the fountain located by the Main Building engraved with the words “St. Edward’s 1885” is passed in our tour. Of course Topper does not want anyone to forget about St. Edward’s birthday!
We hope that “Topper Takes a Tour” will encourage students to become more involved in St. Edward’s 125th anniversary. Whether it be to participate in the celebrations or participate in the 125 service challenge, it is a great way for students, faculty, and the St. Edward’s community to come together to celebrate the anniversary and the completion of the 10 year strategic plan that has transformed the campus.
Topper is also available by appointment for special University events!
Sunday, April 4, 2010
TweetTweet
It was a little difficult working with my Twitter frustrations for my "Personal Learning Project" in my Social Media for PR class. I was looking at the pros' posts and even asking questions, but I was getting very little response. Luckily, this PRSSA Assembly changed it all. I feel that now when I go on Twitter, that my network is a little more personal (probably because I actually met these people) and I enjoy reading their tweets. I am also glad that many of my followers and followees have really relevant links that have helped me with my project.
To be honest, I am not sure what the problem was before when I only had a few PR people I followed. Perhaps it could be that I am more motivated to interact and respond to people I have met before? I wonder if anyone else experiences this issue? Maybe for some people it is just the opposite and they are more inclined to interact with people they don't know. It could also be that I am interacting with my future generation of PR pros that could make it a little more interesting for me. Either way I am glad I have build up a network that I like. No offense PR pros... I am still following you too!