While reading for class this week, I came across this quote in Paul Gillin's book called The New Influencers, "The irony of the New PR is that it's not anything new, it's just the industry adapting to new forms of communications - which is something that our industry has always been able to do." This quote was stated by Jeremy Pepper, a big-time PR blogger. This quote made me stop and think. To many different types of fields and professions, the world of social media can seem intimidating, uncontrollable and appear to be someone of a risk to dive into. However, PR professionals viewed social media as an opportunity to better connect with target audiences and publics, which I find to be fascinating.
PR professionals dove head first into the world of social media and the majority of them have been extremely successful. It appeared Gillin felt the same way when he wrote, "The opportunity is to raise the profession's visibility at a time when market trends are clearly headed their way." People in the public relations field attempt to connect with customers, consumers and their audiences through establishing a social media presence.
Another interesting point Gillin makes in this chapter is about communities on the Web. He states, "people will belong to dozens of them, some more important that others, but all receiving a slice of their attention." Gillin also states that, "there is no reason those communities can't be operated by corporations." This is a great point. Target audiences belong to professional and social communities and by creating a social media presence in these particular areas could benefit the relationship between the consumer and the corporation.
All in all, I have very much enjoyed this book. Each time I pick it up, I learn something new. The world of social media is constantly changing and growing, which for me, are reasons it is so intriguing. However, as a somewhat new blogger, this book helped me understand the in's and out's of creating a presence through the use of social media.
Showing posts with label social media. Show all posts
Showing posts with label social media. Show all posts
Monday, May 9, 2011
Monday, May 2, 2011
It's All About the Buyer
In chapter ten of David Scott's, The New Rules of Marketing and PR, a quote on the second page of the chapter really caught my attention.
Scott wrote, "Standard marketing education still talks about the four P's of marketing - product, place, price, and promotion - as being the most important things. That's nonsense. In order to succeed on the Web under the new rules of marketing and PR, you need to consider your organizational goals and then focus on your buyers first."
When I first read this, the first thought that popped into my head was, "Duh! Why wouldn't the focus be on buyers first?" However, I got to thinking and for many organizations, it is all about the product and customer satisfaction. Scott uses Starbucks as an example. Yes Starbucks coffee is good, and yes most of the workers are fun, upbeat and approachable, but is there more to it? There is and Scott points it out. It could be the atmosphere that people like, or the convenience of a stores location or that it is a place to go relax with a cup of coffee without the hassle of brewing some yourself. It is clear that Starbucks is appealing to what the buyers want and need, not just ranting and raving about how good their caramel latte creamice is (which is spectacular!)
Scott then goes on to talk about the buyer persona profile. As a public relations student, during any and all campaigns you take time to do this when you are focusing on target audiences. What is the target audiences demographics, typical behavior, needs and wants, and use this information to determine the most effective media outlet to use to reach them. After reading this section of Scott's book, when you are applying this evaluation portion to buyer for a market, different questions are asked. Marketing professionals ask themselves questions about the goals, aspirations, problems, what is important, what images appeal to them and what types or words and phrases do they use? Although these approaches are similar, the differences between the two was something I had not known.
Scott ended the chapter with an interesting statement that I think is applicable to all organizations, companies and individuals. Scott said, "remember, on the Web, you are what you publish." This sentence is completely true. Social media is an extraordinary tool for the marketing and public relations fields, however, if used improperly, could be the death of a company. Also, with social sites like Facebook, Twitter and MySpace, individuals reputation could also be tainted because of improper or inappropriate use of social media outlets. This truly is a key statement to keep in mind whenever someone is posting information online.
Scott wrote, "Standard marketing education still talks about the four P's of marketing - product, place, price, and promotion - as being the most important things. That's nonsense. In order to succeed on the Web under the new rules of marketing and PR, you need to consider your organizational goals and then focus on your buyers first."
When I first read this, the first thought that popped into my head was, "Duh! Why wouldn't the focus be on buyers first?" However, I got to thinking and for many organizations, it is all about the product and customer satisfaction. Scott uses Starbucks as an example. Yes Starbucks coffee is good, and yes most of the workers are fun, upbeat and approachable, but is there more to it? There is and Scott points it out. It could be the atmosphere that people like, or the convenience of a stores location or that it is a place to go relax with a cup of coffee without the hassle of brewing some yourself. It is clear that Starbucks is appealing to what the buyers want and need, not just ranting and raving about how good their caramel latte creamice is (which is spectacular!)
Scott then goes on to talk about the buyer persona profile. As a public relations student, during any and all campaigns you take time to do this when you are focusing on target audiences. What is the target audiences demographics, typical behavior, needs and wants, and use this information to determine the most effective media outlet to use to reach them. After reading this section of Scott's book, when you are applying this evaluation portion to buyer for a market, different questions are asked. Marketing professionals ask themselves questions about the goals, aspirations, problems, what is important, what images appeal to them and what types or words and phrases do they use? Although these approaches are similar, the differences between the two was something I had not known.
Scott ended the chapter with an interesting statement that I think is applicable to all organizations, companies and individuals. Scott said, "remember, on the Web, you are what you publish." This sentence is completely true. Social media is an extraordinary tool for the marketing and public relations fields, however, if used improperly, could be the death of a company. Also, with social sites like Facebook, Twitter and MySpace, individuals reputation could also be tainted because of improper or inappropriate use of social media outlets. This truly is a key statement to keep in mind whenever someone is posting information online.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Engage in the News
This week I was was looking for something to write about for our "PR in the news" blog. I started researching and came across an article about one of the books we are reading in class, Brian Solis's Engage. The article focused on what the book was about and also asked readers to "engage" and comment with suggestions that Solis is going to use in another edition of his book.
The version we are reading in class was released one year ago, and is referred to by many PR professionals as a "guide for brands and businesses to build success and measure it on the 'new Web." During an interview that is mentioned in the article, Solis pointed out some changes he made after receiving feedback about his book. He used social media, such as Twitter and blog posts, to listen to what his audience had to say. Scott used this research and made changes. He cut 35,ooo words from the original book, wish turned out to be roughly 40 sections in the text. Pretty significant. He also used what his viewers had to say to create new sections and tweak certain chapters.
Solis stated, “It was less about worrying about people’s attention span and more about trying to revise the flow of how I wanted people to experience the book. It wound up being shorter, but I introduced new topics to improve that experience and add more value."
In my opinion, this was a great example of a PR professional at work. He listened to his audience and made adjustments in order to make his product fit to their demands and needs. So far, from what I have read of Engage, I enjoy it and find the information educational, interesting, and helpful. While reading this article, I also checked out Solis's blog. Let me say, as a recent blogger, I found his blog to be somewhat extravagant and fancy. However it was, like his book, interesting. If you have not checked out his blog yet, you definitely should.
The version we are reading in class was released one year ago, and is referred to by many PR professionals as a "guide for brands and businesses to build success and measure it on the 'new Web." During an interview that is mentioned in the article, Solis pointed out some changes he made after receiving feedback about his book. He used social media, such as Twitter and blog posts, to listen to what his audience had to say. Scott used this research and made changes. He cut 35,ooo words from the original book, wish turned out to be roughly 40 sections in the text. Pretty significant. He also used what his viewers had to say to create new sections and tweak certain chapters.
Solis stated, “It was less about worrying about people’s attention span and more about trying to revise the flow of how I wanted people to experience the book. It wound up being shorter, but I introduced new topics to improve that experience and add more value."
In my opinion, this was a great example of a PR professional at work. He listened to his audience and made adjustments in order to make his product fit to their demands and needs. So far, from what I have read of Engage, I enjoy it and find the information educational, interesting, and helpful. While reading this article, I also checked out Solis's blog. Let me say, as a recent blogger, I found his blog to be somewhat extravagant and fancy. However it was, like his book, interesting. If you have not checked out his blog yet, you definitely should.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Me Me Me...MEMES!
This week, our readings focused on podcasts. I was excited to learn more about podcasts because this is one area that is new to me. Reading The New Rules of Marketing and Public Relations by David Scott helped me gain a grasp on what exactly a podcast is, why it is useful and how to create one.
According to Scott, "a podcast is simply audio content connected to an RSS feed." Scott alost pointed out that "podcasts were created because of two developments. The first development was the ability to add audio feeds and notifications to RSS. The second major development was the availability of those podcast feeds through iTunes." I found this to be fascinating. Podcasts have created a way for organizations an outlet to place information that audiences can reach easily. Podcasts allow audience members to download the information and listen it to it when it is most convenient for them.
Scott stated a number of reasons why podcasts are helpful. One way that stuck out to me was "how-to" podcasts. Companies and organizations have created series of podcasts for customers to use that explain how to use new products. These have been proven to be helpful for customers and clearly informed them of proper use of the product.
The readings this week were interesting and helpful. To my surprise, the books we have been assigned to read are enjoyable. I feel like I am reading leisurely, not studying a textbook which is great. The deeper we dive into the readings about social media, the more engaged I am to participate.
According to Scott, "a podcast is simply audio content connected to an RSS feed." Scott alost pointed out that "podcasts were created because of two developments. The first development was the ability to add audio feeds and notifications to RSS. The second major development was the availability of those podcast feeds through iTunes." I found this to be fascinating. Podcasts have created a way for organizations an outlet to place information that audiences can reach easily. Podcasts allow audience members to download the information and listen it to it when it is most convenient for them.
Scott stated a number of reasons why podcasts are helpful. One way that stuck out to me was "how-to" podcasts. Companies and organizations have created series of podcasts for customers to use that explain how to use new products. These have been proven to be helpful for customers and clearly informed them of proper use of the product.
The readings this week were interesting and helpful. To my surprise, the books we have been assigned to read are enjoyable. I feel like I am reading leisurely, not studying a textbook which is great. The deeper we dive into the readings about social media, the more engaged I am to participate.
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