Category Archives: Adjunct Desk
The Delicious and Intriguing, Meatball Sundae
Today’s post comes from Reina Woodruff, a student in Eva Keiser’s PR Writing and Campaign Tactics class. Woodruff reviewed Seth Godin’s book, “Meatball Sundae.”
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I recently took the time to read Seth Godin’s book, Meatball Sundae. I was pleasantly surprised and intrigued by his wisdom and the information he had to share about the new world of media marketing.
In Meatball Sundae, Godin uses the analogy of a “meatball sundae” to represent the business of marketing. The meatball represents “the basic staple, the things that people need, the stuff that used to be marketed quite effectively with TV ads and other mass-market techniques”. The sundae toppings represent “New Marketing. Myspace, websites, YouTube, permission marketing and viral techniques.”
“The trends of new marketing require a new kind of organization and a new way of doing business,” Godin writes. Read more »
Are you listening to your Twitterverse?
By Kelsey Tape
Think back to the 2008 presidential election. Did you see Tina Fey’s numerous “Palin” skits aired on “Saturday Night Live?” Were you one of Barack Obama’s five million friends on Facebook? Did your friends direct campaign news your way via Facebook or Twitter?
Twitter. Facebook. YouTube. FourSquare. Social media has transformed communication between individuals and companies.
“It’s a people-drive economy stupid,” said Erik Qualman, author. And that’s exactly what is explored in Qualman’s book, Socialnomics: how social media transforms the way we live and do business.
Social media can be intimidating, especially with the numerous platforms, and deciding which will benefit you or your organization most. Steve Kaufer, corporate executive officer of TripAdvisor described Qualman’s book as a “must-read for anyone trying to leverage the social graph rather than be squashed by it.” Read more »
Why Public Relations? A College Student’s Perspective
My journey to the public relations profession took a meandering path. Turned off by PR students who thought the profession was about “being a people person” or “event planning,” I had set my course for a career in advertising. Fortunately, I found my way to public relations through a gubernatorial campaign. I knew instantly that public relations was the career I’d been looking for.
However, many people still have the perception that public relations is all about being a “people person” who loved “party planning.” Public relations is so much more than that! And it has been my personal quest to help change that perception – especially among college students and recent grads pursuing a career in public relations.
That is why the first question I ask any college student/grad who connect with me for networking or job hunting is ”Why Public Relations?” For me, the “why public relations” comes down to the being able to bring different tools together to solve a problem or address a challenge. I am a problem solver who strives to connect people through stories. I’d love to hear your answer too – so please share!
I recently asked the juniors/seniors in my PR Writing and Campaign Tactics class that question as well. I think you might be surprised by the some of the responses and for others you’ll be nodding your head. Read more »
Seth Godin’s Tribes
Today’s post comes from Andrew Laubmeier, a student in Eva Keiser’s PR Writing and Campaign Tactics class. Laubmeier reviewed Seth Godin’s book, “Tribes.”
Is social media’s value to organizations overrated? This is a question often asked by companies who are new to the social media phenomenon. However, after reading the book Tribes by Seth Godin the answer to this question becomes incredibly obvious.
The book highlights the immense power a well-connected group of individuals can have when they feel passionate about something. Godin discusses the impact social media is having on the way tribes operate today, providing instant, two-way communication between companies and consumers. Read more »
New Rules for Old Ways
Today’s blog post comes from Sean Bestor, a student at the University of Minnesota. Bestor reviewed David Meerman Scott’s ”The New Rules of Marketing and PR: Version 2.0″ for an assignment in Eva Keiser’s Fall 2011 PR Writing and Campaign Tactics class.
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The New Rules of Marketing & PR: Version 2.0 is not only a comprehensive view on new social media techniques, but also introduces public relations professionals to the world of advertising, and vice versa.
Ina world where consumers want their information quick and make judgments quicker, the importance of integrating social media into the public relations professional’s daily business practices becomes crucial, if not necessary.
Luckily, David Meerman Scott’s The New Rules of Marketing and PR: Version 2.0 will help even the most social media-savvy practitioner develop habits that will not only increase the SEO of their respective businesses, but also enable their company to interact with the consumer. Read more »
Social Media and the Job Search (+ How to Find a Job Using Twitter)
One the first day of class, I had a student come up to me afterwards and ask advice on how to use social media to find a job. More precisely, how to apply for a job using social media. Apparently, the job she was applying for required she submit materials using social media.
We brainstormed how to turn a blog into an online portfolio, embedding video to showcase her confidence and communication skills and the use of Twitter to “distribute the link.” She definitely has a head start on many college juniors and seniors.
Huh… this was an interesting question but more so, it illustrated how important social media is becoming in the job search process.
Using social media as part of the job search process is no longer like the fabled tales of eager young communication professionals sending their resume to an ad agency taped to the inside top of a pizza box (with pizza inside) or Peter Shankman’s sandwich board stunt he speaks about.
Using social media as part of the job search is essential. For those who haven’t started using these tools, the best place to begin is with Twitter. Here’s a video my pal Jared Roy (@jaredroy) shared on how to use Twitter’s Advance Features for Job Hunting.
What is PR? A college student’s perspective — Take III
Last week was the start of another semester of teaching Public Relations Writing and Campaign Tactics at the University of Minnesota SJMC. And continuing my tradition, on the first day of class I ask the students (juniors and seniors on the Strategic Communication track) to answer to the question “What is PR?”
I first asked this question with a group of freshman honor students in their Mass Comm 101 class a year ago and then with juniors/seniors last fall. What I’ve found is a trend towards more enlightenment on what public relations is and isn’t. My hope is that this trend of “understanding” continues.
The responses from this first day of class have me excited for the semester to get going and for the future of each of these young soon-to-be public relations professionals.
I believe that PR is a field where organizations/corporations want to make their image better to customers/audiences and to build a positive relationship with them.
Here are the student’s responses: Read more »
Where’d you find out about that? Part 3
If you’ve been reading the RMPR Highlighter, you know that several of us are adjunct professors so teaching is central not just with student in the classroom but also with agency team members and clients.
Perhaps you also know that intellectual curiosity is one of our RMPR core values. We believe in offering insightful perspective by being in the know on current issues and trends impacting business and public relations. This means we’re always teaching, always learning, always sharing. Read more »
Managing Millenials continued
Always a lively discussion in any setting.
Here is another good article on the topic from Fortune entitled “How to manage the millenial.” This time the author dips down in the teenage worker.
Where’d you find out about that? Part 2
During informational interviews, the aspiring public relations practitioner frequently asks something along the lines of what do you like best about your job (specifically, working at an agency). Among the many answers to that line of questions, I generally comment that I like the variety. And, then I follow up and say something like, “Often, I learn about something new that I never thought I’d be interested in.”