‘Loonie’ Farm

While watching my local news tonight, they discussed a very gruesome finding today in Savannah, Ga. Animal Bones and carcasses were found scattered around Loonie Farms – a place that was supposed to be a shelter for helpless animals. You can read more about the subject on WSAV.com website. I’m going to warn you in advance that some of the images are disturbing. It is just ureal that someone can treat animals like this, I guess the name “Loonie Farms” suits this place well.

Helpful Tips for Bloggers

At first, blogging can be a bit intimidating but once you get the hang of things you will be blogging everyday! I have provided a top ten list of advice I would offer to PR students who are new to blogging.

1. 1. Don’t be intimidated by your blog. When you first get started using WordPress it can be a little confusing, but you will catch on in no time!
2. Be creative. Nobody wants to sit and read a boring, plain blog. Add lots of color, pictures, and videos to make your blog more appealing.
3. Always proofread you blog before creating a new post. Try to type your blog post into Microsoft Word and check for errors before publishing your post.
4. Be open to blog about a wide range of topics. Blog about stuff you find interesting, strange, or unusual. There are tons of bloggers eager to read your opinion on certain topics.
5. Leave comments on other blogs. Leaving comments is a good way to meet other people on WordPress. Comments also provide bloggers with a source of feedback for their blog post.
6. Check your blog daily. If you are blogging for an online class it can be easy to fall behind. Check your blog often and keep up on assignments.
7. Don’t be afraid to give your opinion. When you create a blog, it is YOUR blog. Write whatever you want, just try to do so in a friendly manner.
8. Get to know other bloggers. Once you communicate with others they will read your blog and leave you helpful, informative comments.
9. Post your blog on other websites you are part of such as Twitter and Facebook. By doing this you will have more followers and interaction with your blog.
10. Lastly, just have fun! Blogging should be a fun experience so make the best of it!

Multimedia Storytelling

The Five Steps to MultiMedia Storytelling course at News University was a great course for any journalism and public relations major to take. This course provided a lot of information that would be useful when writing a story.

One topic it discussed was choosing a story. It states that before you venture into the field, gather as much information as possible and put together a rough storyboard. A storyboard is simple a story outline that lays out all of the multimedia possibilities. When gathering information you should get a basic idea of what to expect in the field. Collect things such as photos, videos, maps, and different sources from the web to get a better idea about the story.

When you make a storyboard it helps to define the parameters of a story with all of your available resources. It also helps to organize and focus the story. This is a very important task to complete when writing a story. If your story is not organized, readers will get confused and may even stop reading your story altogether.

This course also states that once you’ve finished researching for your paper, refine your storyboard. Evaluate all of the information you’ve gathered and figure out what has changed from your original story. Map out all of the media that you have that should appear on each page. If creating a video, keep the video short. If using the web, be sure to include images for a visual element.

Overall, I believe this was a pretty good course. I am not really a huge fan of taking these courses but they are somewhat beneficial especially since I am a majoring in public relations.  This course would be helpful for anyone who has to create some type of multimedia story.

In a coma for 19 years?!

While watching television today, I came across a show about a man who had been in a coma for 19 years and then woke up. Although doctors told his family he only had a 2% chance of waking up, they remained determined that Terry Wallis would one day wake up.

Although his speech is slurred and he has little muscle control, Terry is a live miracle. I thought this story was definitely worth sharing. I couldn’t imagine going through something like this and I think it’s amazing that Terry’s family stood beside him during all these years.

Terry’s story is truly remarkable. Do your part in helping out Terry and his family by donating here: http://www.theterrywallisfund.org/

Don’t be Annoying

I came across AB Words Blog, which provided some great examples of how PR practitioners annoy journalists. Since I am majoring in public relations, it is important for me to learn what to do and what not to do when I enter the professional world. I’ve compiled a list below of how PR peo

ple can drive journalists crazy.

 

 

 

 

1. Failing to keep your press release short and sweet. When sending press releases it is important to be concise and to the point. Nobody has time to sit around all day reading a press release jam packed with information.

 

2. Not supplying journalists something when they need it. If you have the ability to offer a person information without it harming you, do it. It will

only take a few seconds of your time and you will also be helping someone else out.

 

3. Failing to follow up on face to face meetings. Nothing seems more unprofessional than saying you’re going to do something and not doing it. If you plan a face to face meeting, go to it.

 

4. Using quotes without using names. It is very important to always cite your sources. If you don’t do this you could be falsely accused of plagiarizing someone else’s work.

 

5. Sending out irrelevant press releases. Make sure you send press releases to only people who are interested in them. IF you are just sending out random press releases, a majority of the people you send them to are not going to read them.

6. Sending files improperly. If you constantly send out improper files, journalists will eventually stop reading your emails altogether. Nothing is more annoying than opening an email that you can’t properly download.

7. Difficult to contact. Make sure you provide all the ways someone can contact you. Facebook, twitter, & cell phone numbers are all great ways to contact a person.

8. They don’t know when to take ‘no’ for an answer. No means no, so don’t harass others when you don’t get your way.

9. Not respecting their time. Just like you, other people have busy schedules also.

10. Saying you’re going to do something and not doing it. If you give someone your word, stick to it. If you constantly let people down they will eventually stop asking you for help.

Coming up PR

This week I listened to Episode 12 on Coming up PR hosted by Mary, Cheryl, & Mike. In this podcasts they addressed some of the comments listeners had left in previous weeks. One of the questions that stood out to me was on left by a guy named Mitch. Mitch asked if recent college graduates should ask about salaries when they are applying for jobs. Since talking about salaries can be an uncomfortable subject, especially when applying for a job, I though the hosts’ response to this would be interesting. Mary, Cheryl, & Mike were all for it!

Another question this podcast addressed was once graduating, what was the biggest shock you experienced in your first public relations job. Cheryl discussed that your lifestyle completely changes, especially if you work in a fast paced industry.  All three hosts stressed that it is extremely important to keep in touch with contacts. In college you are already developing contacts when you meet with advisors, teachers etc. In the PR industry, people are pretty welcoming so keep in touch and don’t hesitate to ask questions.

One of the last topics they discussed was something they addressed as the ‘Netflix debacle.’ Netflix is currently expanding into Canada, so to promote their product; Netflix hosted an event in Toronto. A street was even shut down for the public to come to the event. During the event, Netflix supposedly hired extras to do interviews with the media to promote their expanding business. Once the news about ‘extras’ was found out by the public, many people disapproved of Netflix’s PR strategy. Eventually, Netflix publically apologized and everything is going fine in the Netflix world.

Overall, I believe that this podcast was okay. I am not a big fan of podcasts so it’s hard for me to take the time to sit down and listen to them. Podcasts could somewhat benefit new pr practitioners or students, but in my opinion I would rather just read.

Infographics

 According to www.noupe.com, infographics are defined as, “visual representations of information, data or knowledge. The graphics are used where complex information needs to be explained quickly and clearly, such as on signs and maps and in journalism, technical writing and education.” Infographics or “information graphics” combine text, images, and data to illustrate information that would be too broad in text form.

 Using infographics can be extremely helpful in a story for a client especially if you’re trying to get a point across quickly. When creating an infographic it is important to display a clear vision of what you want your audience to see. Infographics should be clear, to the point, and easy to understand. The main purpose of an infographic is to express an idea in a simple way.

 When creating an infographic, it is important to make it so that is easy on the eye for your audience. Although many infographics include charts and graphs, make your infographic appeal to people by using your artistic side. Below are a few examples of very creative infographics.

 

You can visit www.vector.com to learn how to create an outstanding infographic. When creating an infographic, keep in mind the reason you are creating it. Make sure your data relates to your cause and helps you to better explain your reason you made the infographic in the first place.

Blogging Stats

Blog stats are very beneficial to every blogger. By viewing your stats, you are able to see how many people view your blog posts and when. You are also able to tell what topics people are interested in, depending on what posts they read. It is very important to view your stats so yu can determine what kinds of posts your blog readers are interested in.

PR practitioners would definitely benefit from stats pages. By viewing stats, practitioners can see what topics readers are interested in. If blogging for a company, this would help practitioners post blog posts that their readers are interested in. Without a stats page, pr practitioners would have no idea what their readers would want to see.

According to WordPress, every time a visitor views a URL on your blog, the visitor’s web browser loads a small smiley face image from our stats system. The action is logged and the logs are summarized every few minutes to update the statistics, graphs, charts, and lists. WordPress also creates a bar graph for you to see what days people view your blog. The image below is an example of what a WordPress stats page looks like:

 

Overall, stats are a very crucial feature in blogging. If you blog for a business, or just personal pleasure, viewing your stats can give you a better idea of what types of blog posts to create. One of the main reasons of having a blog is so others can read about your ideas. If no one is interested in what you have to say – why create a boring blog post?

Chapter 14 Reading Notes

E-mail bulge is overwhelming many organizations and individuals. Use wikis, text messaging, RSS, and applications such as Twitter to reduce the flow.

E-mail is rapid and cost efficient. It is not, however, a substitute for personal one-on-one communication.

Memos should be one page or less and state the key message immediately.

Information overload is pervasive in our society. You can help reduce clutter by keeping your messages simple, short, and to the point.

E-mail is less formal than a letter, but more formal than a telephone call.

Information received from: Public Relations Writing and Media Techniques

Chapter 13 Reading Notes

An editor must balance management expectations, employee needs, and journalistic standards.

A publication’s format and content should reflect the organization’s culture, goals, and objectives.

There are various grades of paper, each designed for specific kinds of jobs.

Black ink is the most popular and readable color. Use spot color to make your publication more attractive.

It pays to prepare a dummy or mock layout of the brochure before you begin writing.

The most common mistake of novice writes is to write too m uch copy for the space available.

Information received from: Public Relations Writing and Media Techniques