Holidays Promotions Go Digital November 20, 2009

Darlene Sanguenza's photostream on Flickr

Every year, the holiday season starts earlier, bringing with it gifts that all of us can appreciate: the sales, the deals, the promotions. And with an ever increasing portion of the population becoming involved in social media, companies are shifting their holiday advertising budgets into online interactivity.

My favorite holiday social media campaign at the moment is SephoraClaus. Sephora, the high-end European cosmetic company, is granting the cosmetic wish of one Twitter user per day. In order to be entered, Twitter users need only enter their wish, any item from the Sephora, which will then be posted on their Twitter account with the hashtag #SephoraClaus. One winner per day is selected, and their wish is granted.  On the SephoraClaus website, you can even scroll down and see all the wishes that have been made (a great way to get ideas).

There are several reasons why I see this as the perfect holiday campaign.

First of all, it perfectly targeted its audience. Sephora’s target audience is predominantly young, female, and trendy, which, aside from the female aspect (55% of social media participants are female), although males tend to be the main influencers), is a solid description of social media participants.

Secondly, the campaign builds on itself.  It was designed in a such a way, through Twittering, dialogue, and the hashtags, as to expand the company’s online presence. I myself learned about the promotion not through Sephora, but through the Tweets of my fellow Twitters. The more people to make a wish, the more people hear about it.

Finally, there is an innate genius is giving people the chance to “wish” for their dream product: they’re going to look through all of your merchandise. If you’re presented with the opportunity to win a free gift of your choice, you’re going to dive through the company pages looking for the most expensive and exciting product. That time spent on the Web site makes the SephoraClaus partakers more familiar with the merchandise, and all the more likely to make a purchase.
So SephoraClaus, may you bring many a wishful woman their dream products, and congratulations on your masterful social media strategy. And for the record, I’m still keeping my fingers crossed for my Burberry Brit Sheer Glaze Set

Floundering Skittles March 11, 2009

As a child, I would do anything to ge my hands on sweets

Last week, my childhood was revisited in a peculiar manner; the present me, the social media fiend and student blogger, and the old me, the sugar-toothed 3 year old, came into collision. The result was not pretty.

Skittles' failed attempt at Twitter

On Monday Skittles decided to be a revolutionary amongst candy companies, and switched their homepage to a Twitter feed. Anything that was said about Skittles was posted for the world to see. This may indeed have been a great move, except that people found out about it.

If anyone checked the Skittles homepage Monday afternoon, all they saw was a stream of Tweets bashing Skittles. People eager for their 10 seconds of fame (Most were inappropriate, many were hilarious, and almost none of them offered any positive feedback. As far as generating publicity, the stunt was a huge success. However, it generated more animosity than support.

By Tuesday, the Skittles homepage was changed to a Facebook group.

To be honest, the Facebook group annoyed me far more than the Twitter feed. While the Twitter feed was new, experimental, and provided “lively” feedback, the Facebook page felt like a flop. As Shiv Singh posted in his blog:

“I want to feel enticed when I visit the Skittles. Seeing a Wikipedia page does not create a craving for me. And I can’t imagine it does much for the teens who are Skittle’s core customers.”

This generic layout and color scheme fails to highlight Skittles' colorful products

Instead, the Facebook page used the same colors and layout as every other Facebook group, which effectively drained all the personality out of the Skittles brand. All that was left was an unsuccessful PR effort.

Currently, the Skittles homepage is set to a YouTube video of a Skittles commercial.

Like most people out there, I’m put off by Skittles’ overly eager attempt to enter into the world of social media. A strong YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter presence may have helped their company, especially as most of their customers are preteens and younger and likely to be tuned in online.  However, this aggressive social media ploy has created a mockery rather than any foundation of support. And because Skittles is no longer generating its own materials for the homepage, an age restriction has been imposed.  Why would a company risk sending away its strongest brand endorcers?

While parts of it induced laughter from viewers, I know most of the reaction I saw was less than friendly. Yet unlike most outrageous publicity stunts, Skittles is not lacking in name recognition.  People already know about the company, and seeing it mocked on its own website is hardly beneficial to ones brand image. Additionally, Skittles’  attempts to demonstrate its social media presence has eliminated all two-way discussion, except by creating unity amongst the brand mockers.

In my mind, it serves as another perfect example of “What NOT to do.”

For another analysis of the Skittles media strategy, check out David Armano’s blog post.

Happiness in a Cup March 11, 2009

First of all, I’d like to apologize for the break I took from blogging: unfortunately there are times when real life must draw bloggers away from their computers

And on that note, I would like to say Congratulations to Paul & Priscilla Yates!! I couldn’t ask for a more incredible sister-in-law.

Now, you might ask, how does this relate to PR?

Aside from the occasion ringing of wedding bells, family celebrations and upcoming graduation parties, there has been increasingly little to celebrate. If it isn’t your retirement fund, it’s the housing crisis. If it isn’t heated political debate, it’s the plummeting economy and growing unemployment rate.  When you take in the grand picture, it’s hard to be optimistic.

That is why I would like to take this time to highlight a company that is taking the initiative to serve its employees.  Despite the economic turmoil it’s facing, this company continues to offer the training, wages, and benefits that other companies are slashing daily.

Last week we gave presentations in my Advanced PR Writing Class on CSR (for a brief overview of the topic, check out my previous post). Our assignment was to give a presentation about the CSR efforts of one of CRO’s Top 100 Companies for 2008. I jumped (literally) at the chance to write my presentation about a company I have grown to know and love.

It’s a company that I am sure you are all familiar with:

Starbucks.

Copywrite Starbucks Coffee Company

I’ve been an avid coffee addict since I was 5 and began stealing my mom’s coffee mug whenever she left it unattended. When I found out a Starbucks was being built across the street from my high school, my world found a new level of previously unexplored elation, and I proceeded to spend insane amounts of money and gain 10 lbs. from white chocolate mochas. The world was right.

These days, with the economy gone sour and my expendable income down to $0, it is a far rarer occasion that I get to enter into a Starbucks and savor my beloved latte.  However, I can now take pleasure that my latte is serving not just a company whose products I enjoy, but also my community as a whole.  Now that’s Happiness in a Cup!

I decided to focus my research not on their fair trade coffee, which is what they receive the most recognition for, but for their employee policies. Here are some aspects that impressed me most:

Titles: In all company, employees are referred to as “partners,” emphasizing their beliefs that each employee has something of value to contribute to the company.

The Benefit: If employees feel that they matter to a company, they are more likely to take pride in the work they do. They are also more likely to remain loyal to the company, reducing costly turnover.

Benefits: Starbucks offers health, dental, and vision benefits to all employees who work more than 20 hours a week. Additionally, they get paid sick days.  As a student, this particularly impressed me: I know people who have worked for a company for years, have dangerous jobs, and occasionally work more than 60 hours a week, but they are not given health benefits. When health care costs increased dramatically in 2006 and 2007, Starbucks shouldered the extra financial burden instead of passing the expenses onto their employees. Additionally, the benefits are not just treatment oriented; employees are offered discount gym memberships and other incentives to lead healthy lifestyles.

The Benefit: Again, worker satisfaction. Not only are workers going to feel like they matter to a company, but they’re receiving benefits that most companies are cutting.

Competitive pay: As a graduating senior about the face the onslaught of student loan payments, I’m hoping to land any job after college, gladly accepting minimum wage as long as it means a steady paycheck. Starbucks pays its employees higher than minimum wage, helping them to support themselves and, once again, demonstrating employee appreciation.

The Benefit: Aside from generation high employee satisfaction, this helps widen the applicant pool. If people know that the job offers high pay and benefits, more people will apply. I’m willing to bet that Starbucks receives more applications per opening than, say, KFC.

Opportunity for Advancement: Not only does Starbucks thoroughly train all of its employees, but it offers them the opportunity to advance within the company. Whether they seek out management or corporate positions, the opportunities are there for the desiring worker.

The Benefit: One of the great desires of the European Socialist party was for “meaningful work”.  This includes, not only adequate pay, but chances to move up and accomplish something.  Companies benefit when their managers and corporate planners have worked in multiple positions throughout the company; they have the experience and the perspective that allows for necessary changes.

Employee Input: Every 2 years, Starbucks issues a survey to their employees to assess both employee satisfaction and how the company is living up to their mission statement. Of the 172,000 employees worldwide, over 100,000 submitted their opinions.

The Benefit: As the people who interact most with the customers, the employees have the best perspective as to how the company is meeting the needs and demands of its customers. By listening to the employees and getting regular feedback, Starbucks has been able to improve both their employee satisfaction (and thus retention rates, etc.) while improving their overall image. If customers know that the company is working to serve its employees and greater community, they will be more likely to continue to purchase their products.

As you can see, Starbucks has made a strong effort to give back to and improve the lives of their employees, and they have done so in a very real way.  Additionally, they have managed to do so in a sustainable manner that benefits both the employees and the company as a whole, making it both a fiscally and socially responsible choice.

Finally, I would like to congratulate them for once again making it onto CRO’s Top 100 List for 2009.

So sit down, relax and savor that latte and know that your hard earned coffee money is going towards a company that’s giving back to the American people. And that is  something to smile about.

Complimentary Outlets called into Question March 10, 2009

Copywrite Warner Brothers Pictures

As many of you know, especially those that follow me on Twitter, the opening of the movie Watchmen has sparked great debate. Critics have scathed it (check out A. O. Scott’s hilariously witty critique) while some viewers have raved about it. Regardless of the viewers opinion, nearly every review cites the same fact: it was based off a graphic novel.

The reviews for the movie have little to no consistency, but two patterns can be derived:

Pattern 1: Viewer saw Watchmen without reading the book and [loved the movie so much/hated it with such a fiery passion/enjoyed the cinematographic to such a level that] he/she went out and [bought the book and has done nothing but read it since/bought a copy of the book just to be able to burn it and has been posted blogs and Tweets about how horrible the film was since the moment they got out/watched every other Zach Snyder film].

Pattern 2: People saw Watchmen having read the book and [loved the movie for having captured so much of the original book/hated Zach Snyder for failing so miserably/hated Zach Snyder for even trying].

While I have yet to see the movie, I have thoroughly enjoyed following the debate. Indeed it is familiar debate between movie goers and readers. The primary problem is that, regardless of the fact that it was based on a book, the movie fails to stand on its own two feet. The movie has requires supplement from the book to be considered at all tolerable by the majority of viewers.

And naturally, my ever inquisitive mind has drawn this topic back to public relations.

When a variety of media outlets is being used by an individual or company, a great deal of effort must be made to ensure that they are both free-standing and complementary. I have grown tired of reading a blog or following a company on Twitter and having to do a lengthy Google search to figure out who it is that I’m reading.

When using a variety of media, be it TV shows, podcasts, websites, blogs, Twitter, or whichever the individual or company has deemed appropriate, they need to be congruent. This includes not only the messages being conveyed, but the format as well.

Here are 5 basic tips I’ve compiled for making sure that your media outlets being used are complimentary while being able to stand on your own:

1: Have an established plan and purpose for each outlet before creating it. Each separate outlet needs to contribute something new for it to be of value. Is it’s purpose to reach out to a different age group? Or does it exist to engage viewers in discussion? Whatever it may be, it needs to have a point and purpose, adding its own value.  Additionally, if the purpose is not established before the outlet is being utilized, a great deal of ambiguity and wasted time can result.

2: Have contact information available on all outlets. This is something I feel strongly about. It is both discouraging and annoying when I come across a blog or a Twitter that doesn’t provide me with any means of getting in contact with the individual or company it represents. Part of the horrors and opportunity that the Internet provides is that people no longer have to search for information; it comes to them.  This means that public expect for information to be provided before they even have to ask. Don’t make a potentially engaged reader have to search Google to figure out who you are, but tell them before they ask and offer them the opportunity to learn more.

3: Provide links to all your media outlets. This may be more difficult on some outlets, such as Twitter with its strict character limit, but this is an easy step that directly increases credibility. However, on websites and blogs this should be common practice. Simply by providing the links, you’re making it easier for individuals to become more deeply invested in your media presence. Even if they don’t start following you on every outlet, it is still an easy way of demonstrating your commitment to reaching out to publics.

Starbucks uses a consistant interior decorating scheme to promote brand recognition and image.

4: Consistency, consistency, consistency. This includes everything from the main messages being conveyed to the voice being used, the information being provided, and even the color palette. These seemingly minute details make a huge difference in perception.  Would Starbucks be as memorable it if Consistency sends a positive message to publics and can increase consumer confidence, while not doing so can lead to anything from confusion to distrust.

5: Be complete. This goes along with having all of your contact information on the same page. Each media outlet should provide all the information one might need. After coming across one outlet, one should have no question about the nature of the brand, the purpose, or the messages. An identity needs to be fully established with each outlet, or else it loses credibility, and in the end is a waste of time to readers. If you don’t provide the information in an easily accessible manner, people won’t ask for it.

These five simple steps, though not fully comprehensive (what a long blog post that would be!) can help bring a sense of unity to a brand image, be it for an individual or a company, while giving each outlet a sense of purpose. The variety of the outlets being used should not jeopardize the unity of the message or brand, yet each outlet must add value.

For more information on building consistency of your brand image, check out the Personal Branding Blog.

Just remember, you don’t want your brand image to be the next Watchman!

My Conversion February 25, 2009

Veronica Corningstone from the movie "Anchorman"

Anchorman touched me in a way that few people can relate to; it was like a beacon of hope, for growing up I too dreamt of one day becoming a TV news anchor.

It was probably due to the fact that my family never invested in cable TV or bought a lot of movies.  My nightly entertainment was the news.  TGIF was followed by 60 Minutes, and I would hang on to Barbara Walters’ every word until my parents caught me and inform me that it was hours past my bedtime.  I watched news anchors with a raptness bordering on reverence.  When we did school career projects, I would immediately be at the TV stations interviewing television broadcasters, astounded by my luck at sitting next to and conversing with my Good Day Oregon and KPTV Fox 12 idols.

In my eyes, the news was the very representation of democracy.  Every anchor held equal opportunity to attract my attention,  depending on their nightly performance and story content.  It seemed the purest method of information-transfer, with knowledge and intellect being shared by our trusted news anchors. I would ask to hear over and over stories of Walter Cronkite, who was able to change the course of the Vietnam War simply by sharing his thoughtful opinions with his loyal viewers.  As I grew older, I also became true convert of the Church of New York Times, with Nick Kristof serving as my inspiration.  By the time I was in college, I was a full-blown news junkie.

Then everything changed.

Gradually, the news industry started talking about something called ‘citizen journalistm’.  Few words could convey my horror at this development.  My TV anchors and newspaper reporters were being replaced and thrown into the mix of ordinary people.  Reporters weren’t people, they were gods among men! They were specially trained to follow each lead, to deny any personal bias and to convey their stories with an eloquence and twist of phrase that I refused to believe any citizen capable of.

TIME magazine cover December 25, 2006

My initial belief was that this was some ploy by the news industry to bring back viewers.  By that time the newspaper industry was already slipping and news outlets were struggling to incorporate traditional media outlets with the opportunities and threats of the Internet. I assumed it was like reality television, the Survivor of the newspapers: citizen journalists were cheap, often free.  They weren’t necessarily making quality news, but they could do it for far less than I assumed any experienced reporter would charge (this was before I took the time t newspaper salaries). TIME Magazine hailed the movement by making EVERYONE the person of the year. I merely rolled my eyes and waited for it to end.

I can honestly say that I began to lose faith.  As blogging caught on, I became even more disheartened and annoyed.  Suddenly everyone had something to share, yet I stuck to my belief that only the highly trained had opinions worth noting.  To top it off, I had just learned about the tactics of Fox News and other blatantly biased news stations.  Coming home from college was a slight relief, where I briefly returned to the trusted news anchors who had lead my through my childhood.  “Why, Wayne Garcia?” I’d ask, “Why is this happening to me?”  Invariably, the anchors would then feature their “Your News” segment, and I would turn off the TV.

Gradually I was able to find solace through education.  In my PR training, we discussed and partook in the ‘citizen journalism’ development that  I had previously hoped was a mere fad.  I came across the blogs of other writers and PR practitioners who not only have something to say, but often do so in a more entertaining and enlightening manner than traditional news could offer.

However, I am notoriously stubborn.  I was not ready to drop my deep held, though muted, hatred of citizen journalism.  I even went as far as mentally associate the downturn of the news industry as, if not the cause, at least the warning signs of the current recession/depression.

And then when I woke up this morning, I checked my inbox.  There sat an email was from my sister, whom I regularly call and rant on and on to about exciting developments in social media, though  most of the time she probably has no idea what I’m talking about.  The email contained an article from CNN about how Twitter was, once again, the first outlet to inform the public and even publish pictures about a plane crash in Amsterdam.  Suddenly, my eyes opened up.

This was not the first time I’d seen something like this happen.  A few weeks ago I was on Twitter and noticed several posts about a plane crash in New York that had taken place a few hours prior.  When I checked www.nytimes.com, they had yet to publish anything about it.  Only the AP made any mention of a place crash.  My teachers had shared similar stories about how Twitter had informed them about earthquakes in Indonesia and other similar catastrophes that the news had been slow to publish.  And suddenly, it all clicked.

Photo provided by DrPhibes on Flixster.com

It was just like in How the Grinch Stole Christmas.  Suddenly my heart expanded the three sizes it had been lacking, and my mind embraced the idea of citizen journalism.  It isn’t incompetent people just wanting to get their name on paper, but a way of real people sharing the things that actually affect them.  And with the vastness of the Internet and social media outlets such as Twitter, the news has become an instantaneous feed; I no longer have to wait until tomorrow to learn about what’s happening today, right now.

It all came back to why I fell in love with the news in the first place: as a child, I was seeking any source of knowledge I could get my hands on, and my trusted anchors were always there to inform me, to fill my eager mind with all the latest information of the day.  Now that I’m older, I have Twitter and some brilliant blogs to keep me informed in real time, giving me a depth and variety information than traditional news outlets cannot realistically provide.  And so I came to recognize social media and citizen journalism as the revitalization that our news industry needed.

How has citizen journalism and the growing influence of social media changed your perspective of the news industry? Have you had a similar “conversion” moment?

Astroturfing: Yet Another Marketing Method to be Avoided February 24, 2009

Similar to the grass substitute, 'Astroturfing' coats the internet with phoney reviews

Earlier this week, Ann Stofflet wrote about an incident of “Astroturfing,” or “orchestrat[ing] phoney grassroots enthusiasm for products or services.”  In this case, a Belkin employee had written a blog post offering $0.65 to anyone who would post a positive review about a Belkin product on Amazon.com.

Here’s why I don’t understand how this employee believed this would be a good idea:

If the people who responded to the blog had never used a Belkin product, there is no way that they would be able to write a credible review. Between that and the fact that the request for participants and a financial incentive were published in a blog means that the employee’s plot was bound to be discovered quickly and revealed.

Personally, I am a review fanatic. It doesn’t matter whether I’m buying a new computer or simply looking for a new fun book to read; I will spend days, if not weeks, pouring over editorial reviews and user feedback. I’ve even compulsively woken up in the middle of the night to find more review websites. To me, it is glaringly obvious when a reviewer does not know what they’re talking about. Their reviews are full of useless adjectives rather than substance, exclamation marks rather than commentary, and, more often than not, gross misspellings.

Compare these two reviews for the Zune 8 GB Digital Media Player:

Submitted by R. L. Lewis:

I have a couple of Zen MP3 players that have worked well for me for a couple of years now, but both have begun to have problems and I decided to take a chance on the new V2 Zune. It was a good decision. This is a great product. All that comes in the box is the Zune, a sync cord, earphones, and brief documentation. You need to go online and download the Zune software to a PC and then hook up the player before you can get it to do anything. This doesn’t take too long and the Zune will provide you with some sample content to try out as part of this process. The Zune sounds great, with plenty of volume and a decent set of earphones. The click wheel is intuitive and masterable in just a few minutes use.

As nice as the Zune is, a pleasant surprise is the Zune software. This is really more than just a tool to sync your tunes with your Zune. It is an attractive, intuitive, easy to use full fledged media player as well. It can easily replace Windows Media Player and is better looking than any other offering out there- Apple included.

Submitted by Goobarking:

this thing rocks i got it for my birthday. i was tring to decied between this and the itouch and my friend told me that it suckes compared the zune now i laugh at the crapiness of the itouch ZUNE ROCKS

There is a very distinct difference.

When I had my brief job as a canvasser (not one of my prouder moments in life), one of the first things that my employer asked me to do was simply tell him what I thought about the topic I was to discuss with voters. He wanted to see that I knew what I was talking about and that I had genuine passion, enthusiasm, and well-thought out ideas that I had formed myself. He understood that this was the only way to get effective advocates. Belkin completely failed to grasp this; by commissioning people with no expertise or even experience with the product, all that was generated is the internet noise that consumers are so desperate to avoid.

Phoniness and sales pitches are some of the most effective turnoffs for consumers. There is a reason that advertisement and public relations are considered branches of journalism: they’re supposed to report the truth and use honest and ethical means of doing so. As far as I’m concerned, Belkin has broken that code of ethics.

Cranial Corporate Ink Makes a Comeback February 19, 2009

The Pink Ribbon Campaign worked to raise awareness about breast cancer

A primary goals of PR and advertising is simply to raise awareness. Action, such as switching brands, trying a new product, or recycling your pop cans instead of throwing them out cannot take place until awareness has been achieved. Regardless of what you’re trying to increase awareness of (a new product, an event or a competitor’s weakness) advertising seeks to attract attention and convince people that something is worth their time, energy, and/or money. This is why companies are constantly looking for new ways to shock, surprise, and engage consumers to attract their attention.

Jimmy the Corn Man. How far would you go for unlimited free lunches? Photo courtesy of Eric Slatkin

One of the more outrageous publicity stunts that graced the late 90’s and early 2000’s was corporate tattoo advertising. The oldest and still most common type of tattoo advertising is for gangs, but companies found their own opportunities in body art. My favorite story is from 1999, when Casa Shavez, a restaurant in San Francisco, offered free lunch for life to anyone who got a tattoo of their logo, Jimmy the Corn Man. So many people volunteered that the restaurant limited it to only 50 participants, allowing the restaurant owners to screen out people they believed would eat too much. Campaigns such as Cunning Communications Inc.’s promotion of FHM, helped this PR stunt increase in popularity. Numerous people have offered space on their body for tattoos to the highest bidders on Ebay.  Businesses were created trying to help people lease their faces for advertisers. Even Fox’s television show “The Loop” featured an episode about tattoo advertising.

The reason these types of publicity stunts work is because of the shock they incur. Two of the most common pieces of advice people hear about tattoos is to think long and carefully before getting one and that, ideally, tattoos should have some deeper meaning behind them. Permanent tattoos are just that: they’re permanent. This makes having a tattoo of a brand or company logo that much more abnormal and bewildering (who would sell their body life that?). Whether it generates disgust, awe, or amusement; it still catches people’s attention and generates awareness.

Courtesy Edward Carreon for Air New Zealand, Copyright New York Times

The most recent tattoo advertising campaign is from Air New Zealand; Thirty people were paid to shave their heads and have a message written in henna on the back of their heads reading “Need A Change? Head Down to New Zealand. www.airnewzealand.com.” Participants were offered either $777 in cash, alluding to the Boeing 777, or a round trip ticket to New Zealand.

Here’s why I think this will be a much more successful campaign than past tattoo campaigns:

Participants volunteered, not just for the publicity stunt, for the company.

Unlike people who were selling tattoo space to the highest bidder, many of these participants specifically volunteered for Air New Zealand. Half the participants chose the round trip over the cash incentive, and many of those had either visited or were from New Zealand. When people ask about their tattoos (which was bound to happen), they will be able to share their experiences and promote New Zealand through their stories, not just by the writing on the back of their heads.  Additionally, if they have traveled internationally, they probably are friends and interact daily with other travelers, making their efforts that much more effective.

As I discussed in a previous post, word of mouth is one of the most effective forms of advertising. By combining the shock value of the “cranial billboard” with the personal stories of the participants, I believe that Air New Zealand has created an ideal combination of shock and credibility through the experiences of the campaign participants.

On a final note, I would like to commend them for donating the shaved hair to Locks of Love.

For a great read and more crazy (and highly entertaining) PR stunts, check out Peter Shankman’s book. Also, for more current PR and social media developments, check out his blog.

Logorrhea Finds its Following February 17, 2009

Dilettante. Defenestrations. Perturbed. Loquacious. Brobdingnagian and Lilliputian. Indubitably. Biscuit; These are just a sampling of some of my favorite words in the English language.

But my absolute favorite? Logorrhea.

Logorrhea is precisely what it sounds like: word vomit. It is the act of spilling out whatever comes to mind, letting the words flow without any thought or care of the jumbled mess they land in.

And finally, I have found someone who agrees with me about the importance of logorrhea.

These emotions are WAY better out than in

Several years ago I discovered the joys of what I called free-flow writing; I would simply grab a pen and write. Emotions, epiphanies, ideas I didn’t even know I had stored in my brain would suddenly sit before my on paper, scrawled without my hardly even knowing it. The result would be some backlash-less venting, a bit of wholesome verbal practice, and a sigh of relief.

There are indeed benefits to throwing whatever emotions or thoughts you might be having onto paper. It’s the only release I have ever known to be consistently effective, and it has virtually no negative side effects.

To share a snippet of Sonia Simone’s post:

“Embrace the horrible. You’re de-gunking, remember? There’s going to be yukky stuff in there. Racist, homophobic, heterophobic, boring, immature, petty, mean-spirited, cruel, violent, bitter, self-pitying. downright evil. Name any quality you don’t want to have, it’s gonna come out.

What you find out when you do this is that you can write the words

I wish a nuclear bomb would destroy all life on earth so my assbag neighbor would melt and die

and nothing bad happens. No nuclear bombs. No destruction. No lightning bolt smiting you dead.

Plus, the feeling goes away. Or at least it eases up a little. You may find yourself starting to laugh about how out of proportion it all is.”

This is a practice that I highly recommend to everyone. Not only does it provide that breath of fresh air from any pent up emotions or stress that only a punching bag could offer, but there is no better way to get used to thinking and writing than by actually doing it. The words don’t have to be thought out, the ideas don’t have to be coherent, you just have to be used to having your own ideas and being comfortable with knowing and writing down what you’re thinking.

So with that all said, I hereby give you:

4 Tips for Successful Logorrhea:

I couldn't leave Austria without it

1: Love what you do; Love what you do it in: I never feel comfortable disclosing such deep thoughts and emotions in a journal unless it is a book or spiral that I specifically picked out for that purpose. I have to flat out adore it. I’ve used everything from moleskin notebooks, spiral notebooks, elegant journals, even a sketch books I paid an exorbitant amount for and carried back from Vienna just because it depicted my favorite painting on the cover (if you’re looking for a particularly high quality spiral, this is my personal favorite ). Whatever you use, it ought to have some sort of significance to you; this practice is actually how I became so neurotic about office supplies. Doing so not only helps you feel more comfortable revealing your inner thoughts on paper, but you’ll be more like to develop a habit. It’s simply one way of personalize and owning your work.

2: Don’t think, just write: this is one of the times in your life where the less thought you put into it, the better. Diving for the right thoughts is far less useful than allowing the thoughts and emotions to come as they choose. Prod them out with your pen, not with the desire to write something deep, elegant, or meaningful.

3: Be careful when using pencil: I can’t tell you how many pieces of writing I have lost because I used pencil. Pencil lead (at least the type I use) smudges. I’ve had everything from fictional writing to journals to class notes become utterly illegible because I wrote in pencil, and the simple rubbing of the pages against one another caused the sheets to become an indecipherable shade of gray. If you want anything you write to be preserved and remain legible, use pen.

4: “Keep it secret, keep it safe”: Pardon my use of a Lord of the Rings quote, but this especially true in this case; like anything that may contain private, potentially harmful or damaging information, do NOT allow the wrong people to get their hands on it. I do not need to tell you the havoc created when my significant other found a small section in my writing journal; it’s been almost a year and he will still give me flak for it. The worst part: since that happened, I have never felt comfortable writing in a book, and I assure you my stress level has risen greatly since losing my most effective venting tool. So please, let that cautionary tale be enough for you: these things are better left private and unshared.

Do any of you routinely practice this style of free-flow writing? Has it helped you in any way?

PCs Fight Back, Adorably February 17, 2009

For the past few years I have watched Macs take over the classroom. When I was in elementary school, the Apples still had black screens with green pixels, and the only difference I knew between Macs and PCs was that PCs were never seen outside of school. Everyone had a PC, largely because nearly everyone in my neighborhood was at least related to someone who worked for Intel.

That all changed when I came to college. It didn’t take long to realize that I was no longer in the Intel capital of the world, and that Macs had become a true contender. My roommate had a Mac, my teachers had Macs; my only consolation was that the computer labs were all PCs.

Since transferring to the University of Oregon, it’s become clear that PCs have been losing ground. While I’ve struggled to learn the ways of a single-button mouse and having all my icons on the right side of the screen (I am the only person I know who can consistently freeze a Mac), I have adapted to their presence and on occasion envied those non-PC owners.

And I am convinced that part of the Mac’s forceful take-over has been due to PC’s utter failure at advertising.

It all started with a series of TV commercials.

Fact: one of the largest consumer segments of computer buyers is incoming college freshman. I have gone a year without a fully functional computer, and let me assure you that these days it is virtually impossible for a college student to not have their own computer. According to the US Census, approximately 20 million people are currently enrolled in college or a university. Even if you account for large portions of that number deciding that they do not need their own computer or use one that is previously owned, there are still millions of incoming freshman each year who are looking to purchase their own computer.

So how do you target those students? You use an icon specifically targeted at them.

What better way to target teenagers than by using one of their own?

Enter Justin Long.  Justin Long is a character that defines the cool teenage dork, someone who nearly all social groups can relate to. Between his roles in Dodgeball, Accepted, Waiting, and countless other movies and TV shows, nearly every teenager can recognize him and relate with him at some level. He was such a hit as an Apple promoter that websites were featuring where to purchase his clothes. Especially when you place him next to the older, “square,” slightly overweight and clearly uncool PC-counterpart, of course students are going to side with the trendy, casually good looking and well-known Justin Long.

So what did PC do when it saw its share of the market slipping through age-directed marketing? Nothing. They stuck with the idea that were they to acknowledge their competitor’s attacks, they would only lend them further credibility. For two years Apple’s campaigns went unquestioned, until PC decided to fight back.

This is when we all met the ill-thought out “I’m a PC” campaign.

Potentially clever, but far from straightforward. The first time I saw this commercial, I had to think about what the message actually was and whether it was in favor of PC or Apple.  Needless to say, this is was probably not the reaction the marketing department wanted.

So now PC is finally stepping up, using the old technique of what I like to call “Adorability.” Their secret: Children.

The unfortunate PC counterpart

Like sex and freebies, children are (almost) always well received.

PC is trying to show up Apple by showcasing their own adorability (PC’s children vs. Apple’s movie star) combined with ease of use. If a child can do it, any adult can (notably I still have no idea how the second girl combines all of her pictures like that, and I’ve watched it at least a dozen times). It’s a cheap shot, but so was Apple’s portrayal of “your typical” PC user.

While I love the commercials and can honestly say that I get giddy every time I watch them, my concern is that this commercial was simply produced too late. Apple has had nearly 3 years of unquestioned PC-bashing, which has clearly shifted the computer markets and hurt PC’s image. Especially when taking into account consumers’ poor reception of Windows Vista, PC’s refusal to acknowledge Apple’s commercials may have hammered the nails into its own coffin.

I don’t believe that Apple is yet in a place to take over as the dominant player in the computer market, but I’m predicting that its market share will continue to increase. Because of the PC market’s refusal to counteract Apple’s commercials, they are going to have to fight to maintain the portion of the market they have left. While these PC children may help to lighten consumers’ image of PCs, can it really undo years of Apple’s cruel, yet effective advertising?

*Update Feb. 17: formatting errors involving picture captions have been fixed

February 11, 2009

There’s a simple rule you have to follow if you ever want to be taken seriously: Know what you’re talking about.

We’ve all listened to speakers who initially came off as highly competent and knowledgeable, yet upon listening to them realized that they have only minimal knowledge of the subject matter they’re speaking on. Knowledge is one of the things that can’t be faked.  Despite what many of my fellow students believe, it’s actually not that hard to see through BS.  While eloquence has its well-deserved place, sustenance is what makes quality.

How does this apply to PR? Simple: you need to know your clients.  I mean truly know them.  And often times, this brings us back to the basics that school taught us: do your research, study, and knowing the facts.

Reading Leo Bottary’s blog helped to show just how well research can pay off.  Not only does preparation make you look good to clients, but it drastically reduces the amount of work you have to do later (particularly important when deadlines are rapidly approaching).  In addition, it’s always an added bonus when a clients knows that they’re a priority and worth that extra effort.

With clients paying large amounts of money for each hour of a PR specialist’s time, they want to know they’re getting their money’s worth.  I can’t count the number of times I tried writing a paper without doing my preliminary research, and had to go back and scrap large chunks of work that I’d already written. Not doing thorough preliminary research is ineffective. It wastes money, it wastes time.  Furthermore, you could lose credibility if the you have to backtrack because of knowledge gaps you failed to fill earlier.

Informational interviews, while it has its benefits, is increasingly becoming a thing of the past.  With all the resources out there, PR agents no longer have an excuse for being unprepared.  LexisNexis, JSTOR, and other databases have made so much easier that there’s no longer an excuse for ignorance.  Though when you think about it, when was there ever?