Listen to Shia

PR is not only a vast field, but a fun field.  It is not just a job based on work, but based on relationships.  Life is based on relationships.  PR is not just a job, it is a passion and it is something you just have to go out and do.  As the great philosopher Shia Labeouf once said...JUST DO IT.

The PR project of working with the basketball social media was not only a success in my opinion, but a lot of fun too.  I've enjoyed going out and seeing the accounts become more successful.  I've enjoyed getting to have more people interact with the team.  So much of this project was just following through with ideas and I think that that is a lot of PR.  You have an idea? Do it, just make sure it is not controversial or offensive.


David Scott says that one of the biggest things that holds us back from doing PR is fear.  Managing fear is important in any profession, but especially PR.  He said this in his PR book, "The beauty of the web is that you benefit from instant access to conversations you could never participate in before...so not only is fear overblown-it's often dead wrong."  Fear is an insecurity in many, but to be able to take the thoughts you have and put them into action, you need to be able to manage your fears.

We are all unique and we can all come up with something new.  New and fun ideas are the heart and soul of PR.  All of the ideas I've written out in this blog were followed through, and the results have been successful.  I am so happy to be able to say that.  PR is fun if you let it be fun.  Be yourself and help your client look better.

Media Reach

As I have talked about in this blog and my readings this semester have only confirmed, the rules of public relations have changed and are ever changing.  The world changes in a blink of an "i."  A new app is developed, a new phone comes out or a new social media hits the web, it is safe to say that with our ever updating technology, we have an ever updating world.  This is the same case with reaching the media.  The media used to be reached through press releases and through expensive PR firms being hired, but now so much of PR can be done in house.  Our own personal PR or company PR can be shown to more people now than ever before.

One way to reach the media is through blogging.  Anyone can make it mainstream these days.  A 20 year old girl can write a blog about how much she loves Starbucks and thousands of people will share this post and even more will read it.  If just one of these thousands is involved in the media can pick this up.  A radio interview is a phone call
away.  A news station can find this girl and talk to her about her Starbucks addiction.  So many things can trickle down from that one blog post, and this is the same with companies.

We live in an updating and viral world.  The more we do, the more we learn.  The more we share, the more we see.  The media is everyone now and reaching them has never been easier.  Doing something well is the best way to do this.  Excellence should always be demanded and this is true with PR.  The more excellent you are, the more the media will appreciate you.

Video is Worth a Million Words

Video is a great way to improve PR.  If a picture is worth a thousand words, a video is worth a million.  If people can see what is going on they can enjoy it and understand it even more than if they are just told.  Youtube used to own the online video sharing market, but now every social media site can share video.  Vine has proved that these videos don't even need to be excessive.  Simple frames are something that clients love to show and audiences love to see.

One of the best parts about video is that it is interesting.  If done right, a video is very entertaining and can bring much pleasure to a viewer.

I have seen this with my basketball project.  Two of the most trafficked tweets I have sent contained video.  As I have written before, our market isn't very big.  A successful tweet is something that has 8-10 favorites (I refuse to call them likes) or retweets, but one tweet, containing a hype-video for Troll Madness (read one of my earlier posts) received 13 retweets and 21 favorites and had over 900 views.  Another tweet, also containing a video from Troll Madness of a game winning shot, had 3 retweets and 16 favorites.  These were two of the most successful tweets that this account has had and I think that this is because of the videos.

Videos are a great way to show a lot in a short amount of time.  You can get the attention of the customer easily and use less time to do this.  In the world we live in, we no longer need to spend thousands of dollars on video equipment.  Just like image capturing, anyone can pull out a smart phone and take a video that can be used and viewed by anyone.  In the world we live in now, videos are easy to make and almost as easy to share.

"Imag(in)e All the People"

In our ever growing mobile world and our ever growing mobile life, the use of photos and images has skyrocketed.  The increased technology makes image capturing easier than ever before.  The fact that an iphone or other smart phones can now capture great pictures makes image sharing not only easier, but more quality.  Image sharing is a large part of modern Public Relations.

Images are a great way to tangibly show your customers what is going on in your clients word.  You can show products, events or anything that is going on.  Images are a great way to update people.  Instead of taking all of the time to describe something, you can share a picture that the viewers can see the full story.  People want to SEE more than be told.

The best medium for image sharing is Instagram.  I created a basketball Instagram account and so far it has been pretty successful.  It has raised raport for the team and students are enjoying it.  David Scott speaks a lot on how great Instagram is because of how simple it is.  You can show what is going on in seconds. I have really enjoyed this account and it has helped this project a lot.

 Photo sharing is not only helpful, but also fun.  It can help improve PR, but also be something that both sides enjoy.  It is something that is very simple in our modern world and is one way that PR has evolved.