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Monthly Archives: February 2009

Community PR Strategies: 9 ways to keep events alive with social media

Posted on February 27, 2009

Ever go to an event, have a fantastic time and wish you could keep the experience going?

When you move the experience online, the event takes on an afterlife of its own.

Community PR Strategies: 9 Ways to Keep Events Alive Online – Even After They’re Over 

1. Assign a twitter hashtag for the event.

A “hashtag” is a simply a word or group of words with the # character in front of them in any twitter update. Assigning this code organizes conversations and collects all of the updates in a twitter search.

2. Tell people what tags to use.

Sites like technorati, a blog search engine, and flickr, a photo-sharing site, give you a place to “tag” your content. Suggested tags: location, group name, your name, subject and keyword terms.

3. Take pictures – lots of pictures and post them right away.

This is one time when it’s okay to be a poser, both in pictures and as a photographer. Just make sure that people are okay with being photographed, they like the pictures you take and you let them know where you’ll post them online. If someone objects, be respectful and don’t include them in any group shots. Then, post your pictures on Facebook and tag people. No matter how small your event is, ask someone to take pictures if you don’t want to do it yourself.

IMG_2509

This image is from Social Media Club Chicago’s “Social Media Meets Chicago Media” event.

4. Search for your tags and connect with the people how posted the information.

For an example, go to flickr and search for smccchicago. You’ll see a few photographers. Find someone’s work you like? Be sure to contact them and let them know you’d like them to snap your next event.

5. Turn on two video cameras: one live and one recording.

If you’re broadcasting live your camera may not be able to record so set up another one to capture and store the video. A service like ustream lets you set up your own channel and it stores your shows. If you don’t want to broadcast the event live, consider sharing a best of highlights short video or interview people on their way out about the event. You could almost post a mini-series of shows from different perspectives. Here’s the video from last night’s Social Media Club Chicago chapter’s meeting. It was really noisy and hot at 312 Chicago, but you’d never know it from watching the video.

Live Video streaming by Ustream

6. Give people a place to get back together online.

A dedicated event URL can be redirected to a Facebook site, a blog post or become a sort of landing page that consolidates all of the links, both in and out.

7. Recognize ambassadors.

When you see people raving about how much fun they had online, gather their comments and thank them, either individually or collectively on your event site. This works really well for repeat events.

8. Track the talkers.

Listen into the conversation with Google alerts, twitter search [see #1] and check out these tools for reputation management.

9. Be a news breaker.

Send out a press release that announces your success, findings or news that came about as a result of your event. Include a link to your press page that includes event audio, video and photographs.

What keeps an event alive for you?

 

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Branding and Social Media Opportunities

Posted on February 25, 2009

Here’s a quick video I found today on iMedia from their Brand Summit. You can show this to those who wonder if social media is valuable or watch it yourself for ideas on how social media might work with your branding. Key: it’s all about community.

The interview features:

Go directly to the video about branding and social media opportunities.  What do you think? How do branding and social media mix?

The greatest social media opportunities for brands – iMediaConnection.com

“”
Although social networks are more popular than ever, the jury is still out on the role brands should play in these portals. iMedia asked leading brand marketers to discuss their strategies for making a splash.
View >>

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Marketing to Women| Report: Snacking on Inspiration and Information

Posted on February 24, 2009

IMG_0883 What are women snacking on these days? Hint: it’s not chocolate, strawberries or cupcakes. According to MediaPost’s Online Video Insider, more women are snacking on inspiration in the form of online videos.

Although 77% of viewers watched 34% more video than they did last year, the comScore report’s biggest ah-hahs come from women.

Women spend an average 227 minutes, up 46%, watching 79 videos, up 33%.  Women watch videos with an average length of 2.9 minutes versus 3.4 minutes for men.

Other findings. . . .

 they crave content that transports them mentally away from their daily routine and reality. They also look for “information & inspiration” from relatable “sisters & situations.” Video content that gives women real information, but that also allows for aspirational narratives, is particularly compelling.

My take . . .

Wow! That’s a lot of time watching online videos. I can see women watching videos with the family. [In my case, mostly movie trailers and skateboarding videos.] What do women watch and where do they go for “information & inspiration?” Who do they see when they get there? I think I have at least one answer to that, but before I reveal it, what’s yours?

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Answering Speaker FAQs for Meeting Planners

Posted on February 24, 2009

business-communication-speaker-rozgonyi

Today I’m testing out a new way to communicate for speakers: a question and answer page that conveys who you are while answering the basic FAQs to save the meeting planner time. Let me know what you think . . . . and feel free to adapt this format to fit your speaker profile page for meeting planners.

Hi there! My name is Barbara Rozgonyi [roz-go-knee]. Yes, that is Hungarian. If you’re on this page, I gave you the link, someone else passed it on or you landed here because a search engine told you I must be who you’re looking or. So, thanks for stopping by and checking out Barbara Rozgonyi’s speaker Q&A page.

By the way, that’s me speaking at the Apple store on Michigan Avenue. My only slide was my image and bio. This was sort of a screen side chat for women business owners.

I know what you’re thinking: this page looks a little different than a professional, razzle dazzle motivational speaker’s site. That’s because it really is a page on my blog, called Wired PR Works. You see, I’m so passionate about helping people and businesses achieve their highest communication potential that I started writing down what I thought people needed to know in June 2006. Over 550 entries and a few years later, my vision of sharing my knowledge with the masses has become my personal brand, Wired PR Works.

Let me ask you a question: What’s your vision – for your group? What do you want them to take out of the room after the presentation?

You have a vision for your group. I want to help you make that vision a reality.

Whether it’s being found faster and better on the Web, getting more media attention, figuring out which social media tools will work or even how to write better online, I’ve got years of client and personal experience that I can share with your group.

But, I don’t know it all. That’s why every program I present is first customized for the audience and then remixed in delivery with an exceedingly generous amount of time for questions and answers. You’ll find, as I have, that community dialogue enriches every presentation. Because every single person in the room has a story to tell, it’s important that we know that going in.

You may be looking at other speakers for your event, so to save you some time and help you decide if we’re right for each other, here’s a . . . 

Professional Speaker FAQs for Meeting Planners – What You Get When You Engage Barbara Rozgonyi

Question: Barbara, what’s your fee?

Answer: In truth, this is never the first question asked, but let’s get the answer out in the open: it depends on your group. Each month, I give at least one free community speech like “Life-giving Storytelling: The C-P-R Method” that’s popular with civic groups. And, every presentation has its own set of parameters. For my current fee schedule, email connectATcorywestmedia.com or call me at 630.207.7530.

Question: Can you do last-minute presentations?

Answer: Absolutely, as long as my schedule permits.

Question: What’s your specialty?

Answer: In a nutshell, motivating business communications with specific areas of interest like:

LinkedIn 101: Building Online Connections

The Social Media Sampler: Taste What’s New in Marketing

Virtual PR: Own Up to Your Brand

Writing Writing: Adapting Old School to New School Media

Wired PR Works: Getting New Media to Work for You

Question: What kind of a speaker are you – really?

Answer: In a recent survey, my clients see me as a harmonizer and I see myself as an entertainer/storyteller. I like to get groups going.

Question: How do you motivate groups?

Answer: Make people accountable to each other and give them check in dates.

Question: Do you do any promotion on your end or is it up to the group to do it all themselves?

Answer: Every speech is promoted to the Wired PR Works-CoryWest Media network via our community communications, twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. We may issue a news release and there is almost always at least one article written about the event that’s posted on Wired PR Works so attendees can comment and get a link back to their site.

Question: What qualifies you as the best speaker for our group?

Answer: Experience, real life experience, and a true passion for evangelizing about how communications can change your life. When I left the corporate world, I exited as a national sales trainer. Knowing how much people can improve their performance with motivational guidance, I developed courses like the Success Summit Series that teaches branding, public relations and marketing with an online entrepreneurial accent. In the classroom, I created a 300 level marketing execution class for nonprofits and I taught over 40 art appreciation lessons for K-5 elementary school students. Every presentation is interactive. People say I’m funny, but you’ll have to decide for yourself.

Question: What do you do in real life?

Answer: As the founder of CoryWest Media, I manage creative accounts along with client and media relations. I write. I think. I make things up. As an advisory board member of the global Social Media Club’s Chicago chapter’s 500-member community, I’m responsible for Facebook community relations and programs. Three creative teenagers and a purring tabby call me mom. I’m married to a 74 time marathon runner who likes to take me hiking to high places. Recently, I completed a two-year term as my church’s administrative council chair. I love art, photography, entertaining [although I don’t do it nearly enough], gardening and reading.

Question: Do you have any presentations up on the Internet?

Answer: Yes, you can view them on SlideShare. Keep in mind that these are generic backdrops to show you how I think, not necessarily how I present.

Question: Do you have any awards or recognitions?

Answer: Yes, you’ll find a list of my achievements on the about Barbara Rozgonyi page.

Question: Where else can I find you on the Web?

Twitter – @wiredprworks

Facebook

LinkedIn

SlideShare

Flickr

Passing the screen to you . . . any more questions or comments?

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Improve Community-Public Relations – 9 Hearing Aids

Posted on February 23, 2009

Leave it to Chris Brogan to write what I’ve been thinking about. In his post, Grow Bigger Ears in 10 Minutes, Chris walks you through a process for listening to conversations online. You need to do this. It takes a surprisingly short amount of time to tune into online conversations – using Chris’ system.

And, you need to do something else: talk to people. In person – about what’s important to them and how you and your organization connect with their life.

Talk to lots of people, face to face, on the phone or via skype – especially if you rely on members or donors for their volunteer and financial contributions.

One person may give the impression that everything’s almost okay while another in their circle will give you the real story. And then, a third person will add their perspective from the organization’s point of view. You need to hear all of it.

In my corporate life we used to have focus groups. Several people would come in for lunch and a few dollars. We’d sit around a table and have a kind of contrived conversation. We didn’t really know what was on their mind, we only recorded what they told us.

Here at CoryWest Media, we tell our clients to let us talk to their best customers – when we want success stories.

But, the loudest stories we want to hear the most are the quietest and the least trackable: people who say they like you, but don’t want to offend you by telling you why they really don’t like you.

Tracking conversations online is huge, but for organizations who don’t have a place for online conversations, commentary comes out at the fitness center, in the grocery store, at the coffee shop and my favorite place – a friendly family room. If you want to know what people are saying about your organization, test out these hearing aids.

Hearing Aids to Improve Community Public Relations 

1. Call people you miss – ask them where they went and why.

2. Find out what people are looking for – exactly – before you invest time and effort in anything new.

3, Look for patterns and holes in your process. Where do people tend to drop off?

4. Is there a problem with conveying your message – or how it’s being delivered?

5. How can you get closer? Where’s the living room?

6. Put on a pot of coffee or set out a cooler and invite people over to talk regularly.

7. Detect where your people are talking online and unlock their keyword codes. They, go back to Chris’ model and add that information in.

8. Appoint or recruit ambassadors to represent your organization in the community.

9. Be a face people recognize and connect to something you stand for: your business, your family and your communities.

10. Let’s keep the list going – add your ideas in the comments and I’ll bring them back up here in the post. 

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