Real PR: An Ode to Good Leadership

At Monday’s staff meeting, I was asked to do the “Credo Credit.” This is a weekly activity where one staff member highlights and personalizes a particular part of STF | PR’s Credo.

Our firm has been buzzing with client activity, which rought my attention to the amazing leadership going on all around me. Not hierarchal structures or authoritarian demands, but genuine, thoughtful leadership that aims to support others and make them want to be the best they can. Our credo reads: We believe our employees are the reason for our success. We believe in celebrating their achievements and rewarding them for high levels of performance. Continue…

Leveling the Playing Field

I wonder what job searching was like back in the day – you know, before the internet. Without Monster.com or Google, I don’t know where I would look for a job. I would be completely reliant on word-of-mouth and the newspaper to learn about places of business.

Now, I don’t even have to ask around. If I want to know who the leading PR firms in Oklahoma are, I do a search on Google. I go to the company’s Web site and click on “About,” I read biographies of the owners and of each employee. I look at the employees’ Facebook and Twitter accounts to see what kind of people they are, and whether I think I would fit in their culture.  Continue reading…

Keeping it Personal

At our weekly staff meeting at Schnake Turnbo Frank PR, Becky reminded us of the importance of maintaining working relationships with clients by keeping up face-to-face interaction.

It seems that, in today’s electronic-everything world, many people have a hard time talking to people in such an intimate way- myself included.

When I have a question for a professor at school, it is easier to shoot him an e-mail or text message a classmate than to call someone. Click here to continue reading…

Tinker.com: Friend or Foe?

Today, I read an article in AdAge.com about Tinker.com, discussing its ability to offer a system that automatically finds only positive comments on Twitter about a particular brand and filters out all negative and profane comments, as well as any comments mentioning a competitor. A brand could use this tool to its advantage to display all the great things people are saying about it on Twitter. But is this fair?

Here, I’m conflicted. For that segment of the brand’s target audience that does not understand “social media” or the reason Twitter is becoming such a big deal, I think it’s a great idea. It’s a way to share word-of-mouth advertising with these customers without revealing anything you don’t want them to know or see.

To those audience members who understand that the greatness of Twitter lies in its ability to show what everyone is saying- not just the good stuff- its an abomination, and an exploitation of a tool that is meant to provide a true marketplace of ideas. The people who understand that transparency is key and will accept nothing less will probably not be a fan of brands using Tinker’s tool.

I guess I would have to know more about how the tool works to really form a strong opinion, although I am biased toward the latter. Will the filtered comments appear on the company’s Web site as a Twitterfeed? Will it take effect when anyone searches for the brand on Twitter?

I will at least remain wary of this tool and I think others should, too.

What do you think?

My first day

It’s my first day of interning with Schnake Turnbo Frank PR, and it’s been going well so far. Basically I am just meeting people today. It’s been a little difficult- of course I got horribly ill yesterday (NOT H1N1, so don’t even tease), so my body is still recovering. Needless to say I’m a teensy bit tired today. Even so, it’s been a good day. Everyone has been so nice, and I got to have lunch with a couple girls from the office and Steve Turnbo himself. What a fun guy! Soon I’ll be off to meet with some more people around the office and learn how to do some basic intern work. Then I’ll be off to go shop for some work-appropriate clothing! I have a feeling that as of right now I won’t have enough to get me through the summer.

My Ah-ha moment

I’ve learned a lot about PR since I got my job at a marketing communications firm in Downtown Stillwater, and I’m sure I’ve taken in a lot more valuable information and experience than I even realize. One thing I definitely understand more than I did before is the astounding affect a college education can have on your value as a professional.

I enjoy being a public relations assistant, but there are times I feel like I am getting paid an awful lot for doing what feels like nothing.

My favorite (and easiest) task at work is to look at Web sites and old campaigns of new clients and evaluate what they are doing- was the old campaign effective? What were its strengths and weaknesses? Are they reaching their target audience? Are they sending the right message? What are they doing well? How could they improve?

Tasks like this are fun and easy, and it’s hard to believe that I’m getting paid for them. But could just anyone do what I do? After some thought, I don’t think so.

I’ve learned a lot in my PR classes, but one of the most valuable things I have learned is critical thinking from a marketing/PR perspective.

It’s something I didn’t have to memorize or study, and I never had a test over it. But it has found its way deep into my mind through repeated discussion and interesting case studies talked about in class. And that’s part of what makes me a valuable employee. That’s why I will be one of the few who is paid more for doing (what feels like) less.

Before my internship, I did not realize that a lot of my value already resided in my mind. I thought I would never have a good understanding of how PR works, and that I would always be playing catch-up with my superiors.

I did not realize how well my classes have prepared me. Yes, I still have a lot to learn, and yes, I will make a lot of mistakes. But the seeds are sewn that will allow me to face new professional challenges, and I will be able to do my job well. And I will love it.

The dark side of social media marketing

In my Marketing class- Consumer Behavior- one of my classmates did a presentation over the benefits of Twitter as a marketing tool. Those of us interested in marketing and PR know that Twitter is a great way for companies to reach opinion leaders, to listen to and engage with their customers. 

The presenter cited a personal experience he’d had with Twitter when he posted that he hated the way his ink pen smudged and made his tiny writing illegible. Within minutes, he got a reponse from a Uniball executive telling him about a new product they’d just released- a strong pen with a fine point to prevent smudging. My classmate said he went out that day and bought the pen.

From a marketing/PR standpoint, that’s a perfect example of how brands should be taking advantage of this social media network, but I started to wonder, if every brand contacted people whenever they mentioned an issue with a product, would the consumers grow tired of the outreaches? I don’t want 50 paper companies contacting me next time I say that my printer’s out. 

How can brands/companies take advantage of Twitter without overdoing it? Or, will it never get to the point where so many brands are using it regularly that the consumers actually start to hate both Twitter and the brands that use it?

A wiki-wiki wik, wiki-wiki wik…

In class we talked about how to build a wiki. I found the video Wikis in Plain English extremely helpful- even though I had used a wiki a little before, I wasn’t sure on how it worked.

I didn’t know that any member of the wiki group could edit what appears on the page.

Wikis seem most effective for group event planning. As a student, the way group planning appears in my life has to do with classes- studying for tests, asking questions on homework, planning projects, etc.

Really, I’m wondering why wikis are not developed for each class at the start of the semester as a regular practice. I guess because most students are not familiar with them yet. We can change this.

Step 1. Education- I think we, the social media students should spread the knowledge about wikis- at least around the JB building- and encourage students to start these Web pages by showing them how useful they can be. I mean, we’ve got advertising and PR students. We’re good at campaigns like this, right?

Step 2. Designate. Who should start the class wikis? I’m afraid that, left up to the students, the bystander effect would take place and, assuming someone else will do it, no one will take it upon themselves to get the job done. I think instructors should therefore start the sites and talk about them in class, but that the students should keep them up.

Step 3. I’m hoping this is where the wikis will take off on their own, after everyone realizes how useful they are. Of course, a group of students has to be engaged in order to keep the site going.

My hope is that student interaction will improve both outside and inside the classroom as a result of having a distinct place to go to ask questions, get and post notes, and form study groups. If student interaction increases, so will performance, and that’s good for the students, instructors, the JB school, and OSU. And parents of students. Etc. etc.

With widespread wikis, we all win!
(How’s that for alliteration? Being snowed in must really be getting to my head…)

Here’s a martini- from the man in the black shirt.

I’m hardly a barfly (thanks to having a heavy schedule and being somewhat of a homebody) but once a week or so I will go out and have a few drinks with friends. We are restricted to places with “ladies night” specials because we poor, working college girls can not afford the heavy price of mixed drinks- and of course, as luck would have it, we’re not big fans of beer. 

When telling my mom about the situation, she asked me why I didn’t just go out and wait to have drinks sent to me from guys. As if it’s that simple! 

I find that in a college town, this is highly unlikely. Unless the “guy” is someone you are already dating. In Stillwater bars at least, strange men are more likely to try to grab your thigh than to buy you a drink (another reason I don’t go out much…) 

Is it because we’re all broke in college, and no one can afford to buy each other drinks? (I guess I would have better luck if I liked cheap beer…)

I thought that had to be the reason, but after what happened last night, I’m not so sure if it’s a matter of money…

Last night, I was in line at a bar to get some water to wind down the night, and the man next to me (he looked about 10 years older than me and probably had a good job) let me go in front of him and chatted me up all the way to the register. When we got to the front, he asked what my favorite shot was. Naturally, I assumed he was trying to buy me a shot. I told him I don’t do shots, but I might accept something else small. And you know what his response was? He said, “No, not for you- I meant for me. What shot should I get?”

I was caught off guard. I always understood that it was polite to buy a lady a drink if you are getting to know her and ordering one yourself. At the very least, I would expect him to leave me out of his decision-making process completely- that would have been fine. But to ask me for input and not even refill my $2 drink? (Not that I wanted one, I was done- but the offer would have been nice.) 

Is it because women can have their own jobs these days? That never seems to stop men of my mother’s generation. So when did those nice dads stop teaching their sons bar manners?

Or maybe times have changed, and I’m just out of luck? What do you think about this?

It’s not that I’m completely sexist. I think if I were making enough money, I would be quick to buy my own drinks and even drinks for others I was associating with- but I would expect the same treatment from anyone else who could afford it. 

What about you?

Women in Politics

Just before Spring Break, Dr. Diane Bystrom spoke in JB 101 about women in politics as it relates to the last presidential election.

Dr. Bystrom said that sex is still a barrier for women seeking the highest positions, but much less so than it has been before.

She brought up how Clinton was referred to in sexist terms, quoting “white bitch” from a news station. There were stories on her cleavage and her “cackle.”

I was appalled that such terms are still considered acceptable by such a great number of people. But when I thought about it, would I have been that surprised if I’d heard it? Probably not. We are used to such language. Why? It has to stop.

Dr. Bystrom showed statistical evidence that stories about Obama tended to focus more on issues, whereas stories about Clinton focused on strategy, which is usually a more negative topic.

I preferred Obama over Clinton from the start, but I never talked about Clinton the way I heard my friends talk about her. I actually had someone- a young woman who was a friend of mine- say to me “I just don’t think a woman could be president. Men are better leaders. If I were president, I would probably cry all the time and freak out for no reason or something…” Um…excuse me?

It’s statements like that that make me realize the sexism in this country is at least as prevalent among women as it is among men. We are both to blame. It is something that is rooted deep within our culture that we ignore simply because women can have jobs and vote. That does not spell equality! Why do we settle for this? Why do so many of us still believe this crap?

Dr. Bystrom recommended the article “Our Racist Sexist Selves.” I have yet to read it, but I’m going to check it out, and you should, too.

Finally, Dr. Bystrom offered advice to women going into politics:

1. Be involved in student government
2. Work on a campaign (one that you believe in)
3. Choose a party
4. Go to a campaign school

I feel like I benefited a lot from Dr. Bystrom’s presentation and I was sad that more students did not attend.Where was PRSSA? Where was AWC? All members were notified of the event. Frankly, the lack of student attendance was embarrassing to the JB school (especially because Dr. Bystrom seemed to like OU anyway!)

Thanks, Dr. Bystrom, and everyone who attended!