BLOGS!

So I was stumped when it came to writing my first (of three) class-required blogs. It seems like everyone is blogging these days, and most people have something actually important or interesting to say. I was planning on writing something semi-meaningful about culture or the importance of public relations in shaping a company's image or something, but I figure just the subject of blogging is good enough.

It blows my mind that websites are now creating lists of the Top 100 Bloggers . From media experts like Jeff Jarvis to the now-infamous celebrity gossip queen Perez Hilton, blogs can cover any range of topice and people still find exactly what they're looking for- sports blogs, current events blogs, class blogs, blogs that review restaurants and plays and books and movies...

I think that's the genius of the blogosphere. There's something for everyone. A couple years ago, there were topic-specific magazines and TV shows, but now there are an endless supply of blogs and websites to entertain us and keep us informed. Of course, a blogger needs to establish credibility before his or her reviews will be taken seriously, for example, but that's not at all imppssible. And, if you're lucky, a blog can catapult you to stardom. Perez Hilton now has his own clothing line and makes guest appearances on prime-time television shows.

I don't expect my little class blog to end up on Technorati's Top 100 list or earn me a spot on Perez's website or anything, but it's cool to think about.

Networking

I have been trying to find a job. This guy at Harvard hasn't helped my morale.

What ever happened to the American work ethic? I sincerely hope that no one takes this seriously. Through my time at Marquette University I have learned just how far hard work will get you. I don't believe in giving up.

Through my recent efforts to get a job, I've realized just how important networking is. PRSSA and BMA can help out, but my friends in the industry have been telling me to sign up for informational interviews at different communications and Public Relations companies throughout the area.

I think that I have great internships and other related experiences that would help me to stand out above many other potential job candidates, but I'm realizing just how important networking is. I suppose what the Harvard blog is saying is, don't overextend yourself trying to find something that isn't there. If we think outside the typical box and avoid simply sending resume's in, we'll find a job.

I'm not worried...yet.

The End

How great is social media?

My daily routine for getting on the internet:
Facebook
Email
CNN
Twitter (ever since we had to for class)
Perezhilton.com
So while browsing CNN I saw an article on social media and class. Check it out here. After reading it it got me thinking. How affective is Facebook advertising, blogs, Twitter, Myspace. Certain demographics tend to be on Facebook and a different demographic is on MySpace, according to the article. Like any other way of advertising or getting media attention, you have to be aware of who you are reaching. I think the hard part of social media is that people assume everyone is a part of it. While I am part of the world that checks Facebook and Twitter daily, others are not. Maybe your key audience doesn't even know how Twitter works!
The point is, like with many other things, it sounds wonderful. A quick way to reach millions of people quickly, but according to this it is a very specific type of people. PR, advertisers, and marketers should be aware of the type of social media they use and the people they are going to be reaching. You might not be getting to all different demographics you want.

Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty

Today society has distorted what beauty is and it has driven individuals, especially girls, to an image of perfection that is not possible. What has driven girls to compare themselves to others and find themselves not as beautiful as others? Media.

Media has severely distorted the image of women by the pictures posted in magazines, in advertisements and on television. You see the ultra-thin models who are usually around 5' 10" and 110 lbs opposed to the average woman who is 5'4" and 145 lbs according toWalden Behavioral Care. With the images floating in society, it is no wonder that eating disorders seem to have become more common.

YouTube actually provides a video by Dove called Dove Evolution that shows how companies manipulate pictures to portray perfection. They have also started a campaign called the Campaign for Real Beauty that provides discussion forums, interactive self-esteem builders, a facebook group, video's on girls stories of their self-esteem issues, videos of pressures girls feel from society and other such links that are used to tackle the issue of self-esteem and body image.

I feel that this is a great start on getting girls to realize that they are not alone in the struggles they face on body image pressures and self-esteem issues. It is an dilemma that many girls face at sometime in their lives and often times they do not have the tools available or confidence to talk about it. This campaign will hopefully change that.

Girls have to remember that beauty varies and it not this thin figure that we are used to seeing. Everyone is beautiful in their unique ways and it's about time we all realized it and started to believe it.

A Look at the Instantaneous World We Have Created

First it was myspace, then it was Facebook, then Twitter and LinkedIn popped up. These social media sites have given way to an aspect of communication that has become second nature to us. This aspect is the instantaneous way society now receives information. The world heard of the deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett on Twitter before any news medium could report on it, and when those news stations did report the story, the video of the coverage was instantly available on YouTube. And vice versa, ordinary citizens who have the ability to upload personal videos on YouTube become overnight sensations and end up on Good Morning America because of people like Ashton Kutcher tweeting about it. Remember "Jill and Kevin's Big Day" video? If you don't, here's a refresher :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8DCt3Lmi28

The biggest question I am left with is what does this mean for our news stations, journalist, and more importantly how our generation and generations after us will gather information? Will journalists be replaced with celebrity's publicist texting Kim Kardashian a news story who will in turn tweet about it where it will be picked up by hundreds of thousands of people in a matter of seconds? Will TV news stations cease to exist and become one person behind a computer updating a Facebook page with the top news stories of the day? Moreover, how will this affect the sources we use to get our news to gather information for reports, papers, secondary research and our personal knowledge consumption?

The social media tendencies our generation has now will greatly affect how information is produced and gathered for generations to come.

http://twitter.com/GMA

http://twitter.com/CNN

http://twitter.com/nytimes

Social Media & The Music Industry

There has been a lot of talk about social media and its affect on the business world. It has been amazing to watch social media grow from teen fad to future of my profession. Many industries are using public relations in conjunction with social media in a variety of ways to reach its target audience. As an avid follower of the music industry, I have noticed that artists are increasingly involved in social media. Sites such as Blogger, MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter are starting to replace many traditional artists’ websites.

One example of how an artist can utilize social media is Ryan Leslie. Ryan Leslie is a musician who was dissatisfied with the marketing efforts of his major label (Universal) and decided to market himself. In 2005 he launched his own youtube channel titled Ryan Leslie TV. On the site he uploads content like music videos, studio footage, and day-to-day footage of his development as an artist.

Ryan Leslie has taken his social media efforts one-step further with his site RyanLeslie.com. The site is a one stop shop for all matters concerning Ryan Leslie. It allows fans to read blogs, watch videos, and experience the life of Ryan Leslie on a day-to-day basis with Twitter updates..

http://www.ryanleslie.com/

The site may seem a bit personal in nature, but Ryan Leslie is a pioneer and has already realized the influence consumer interaction can have on his success. Ryan Leslie has an advantage in marketing research, because he can now market himself as desired by the end consumer, his fans.

The Fun Theory

VW launched a new PR campaign dubbed "The Fun Theory." The tagline is "Fun can obviously change behaviour for the better." VW's street crew is taking over parts of Sweden to prove that if they make mundane things more fun, like recycling bins making fun noises.


The most recent viral video transforms a subway staircase into piano, ala the movie Big. Sorry, I was not able to embed the video. SPOILER It works, 66% more people took the stairs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lXh2n0aPyw&feature=player_embedded

The project is a great combination of community relations and guerilla marketing. But it is hard to tell what they are promoting. The image of fun and Volkswagon do not seem to resonate, and there is little product promotion for a video that is supposed circle the web and create a buzz about a product. When I searched for the site, I had difficulty finding the blog. It was not indexing high on Google. Perhaps, Volskwagon should stake more on SEO in their social media campaign. Maybe because it is for another country? Not sure. The small logo placement at the end of the video is not blatantly promoting the product, but it is not doing much to get VW in the front of people's minds while watching. It is creating a positive, environmentally friendly image of the company.

Here is The Fun Theory Blog
I found this campaign from an article on Mashable

What's Your Icon?

Social Media Icons are everywhere. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Blogger and all the rest have their own recognizable icon. A site's icon is the one, and maybe the only, thing that sets them apart from other social media sites. Social media is a networking tool that allows you to share news, jobs, talk internationally, share links and pictures, and the list can go on and on.

I bet everyone knows the Facebook icon from the YouTube icon because this sign becomes branded into peoples mind the more they see it. It becomes designated for only that site. The icon is a fast and efficient way to access sites without going through the entire search engine process. Not only is this useful in differentiating social media sites, but it also allows people to recognize icons anywhere.

Almost every website or social media page has several icons on the sidebar or on the bottom of the page that allows you to share information with other people. People can recognize and even identify any particular three centimeter icon and know where it would lead them. That's amazing!

In today's world, its important to set yourself apart from the rest of the crowd. Well, now you can do it through social media icons! This website allows you to create your own! Check it out.
http://directoryfordesigners.com/50-free-social-media-icon-sets-for-your-blog

Ain't that tweet?

I was not a twitter fan. I can barely stand facebook. I don't see the need to post one's entire life onto a public domain for the world to see. I do have a facebook, it is a necessary evil these days. I guess the thing that bothers me the most is that people think it can take the place of face to face communication. If i want to talk to someone, I will call them for dinner or coffee or just to hang out. My feelings towards can be summed up by the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVA047JAQsk

Given my experience with facebook, I assumed twitter be worst. I viewed twitter as facebook, except with the good parts taken out. Facebook with just the status updates? Sounds terrible.

After two weeks of twittering, my worst fears were confirmed. I learned nothing useful in my two weeks. All i recieved was mostly useless banter. I'll list the three worst experiencs.

First off, within an hour of joining, I had five people following me, none of whom I knew. To make it worse, four of these five were people attempting to convince me to join....uh....adult....websites. This trend of random strangers and groups deciding to follow me continued throughout the two weeks. I do not want these vultures following me, I do not want to be associated with these groups. The fact that every time i logged on there was some new annoyance to block was just disgraceful.

Secondly, the information shared by those I chose to follow was usually pointless. I don't care that it is raining outside. Or you are having a good day :). I don't follow status updates on facebook, so a program that only contains status updates is not for me. I will admit that there were some interesting articles posted by my classmates. Also, following the New York Times supplied me with some extra current events. I was dissapointed by some of the groups that I followed such as The Economist, their posts were limited.

Finally, the various functions of twitter are confusing! I would often end up posting my status twice because I would mess up on the tag at the end. Direct messages also gave me trouble. I'm pretty sure I accidentally messaged some very confused strangers because of my inability to master the various functions of twitter. However, I will admit that if I spent some more time on twitter I would have gotten used to it.

So call me a luddite, call me old fashioned. But after this two week trial, twitter and I will be ending our relationship.