That title was actually supposed to read "PR on Facebook?" but honestly how many times do you get to see you favorite team that you have been following religiously all year win 7 straight game to take their 2nd WS title in 4 years!
Now on to PR.
In this recent blog post PR Squared.
The author describes a PR mistake that an employee recent made. This mistake involved an employee sending a journalist a very vague pitch via Facebook. I feel for this person because it is always nerve racking when your first entering a business because all you want to do is make a good impression. I know, I'm going through the same thing currently.
I'm sure this employee learned her lesson and will never send another vague pitch. Whenever I have to send out a pitch to a journalist (which is a lot recently) I always try to ask myself what do I need to do to inform this person of my message and how can I get them excited in as few words as possible.
Finally, this is the first time that I have ever heard of pitches being sent to journalists via Facebook. Personally, if I were a journalist I would not want to receive information through Facebook because I feel like it is my personal space and don't want it to be flooded work related pitches from strangers.
Out of curiosity, has this method been successful and do people respond to it well?
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Ducks Facing PR Problem?
During the USC vs. Oregon game this weekend there seems to have been a grim encounter in the press boxes of Autzen stadium. Reports say that Colleen Bellotti (Mike Bellotti's wife) confronted John Canzano about a recent article he wrote about Luke Bellotti (kicker for Oregon), have received two DUI's that have been covered up. In this encounter it is said that Colleen Bellotti smelled of alcohol and was yelling profanities and threatening to slap John Canzano while in the presence of her family and children. More details- Canzano Blog
First of all I believe that Canzano has done nothing wrong. It is his job to present the truth to the public. But my question is should the University of Oregon athletic program just told the truth from the start. I think YES, It would have been better to tell the press. Inform them that Luke Bellotti has received two DUI's and would be suspended for the first three games of the season (which he was, but no one knew why) and tell them that he would be helped through this process and take a rehabilitation class. It would have stopped the problem and showed the public that you were devoted to fixing the problem.
Also, I have to wonder how this situation has failed to make it into any of the big time media. Is this an example of the PR team for Oregon athletics fixing their mistake our covering it up further?
First of all I believe that Canzano has done nothing wrong. It is his job to present the truth to the public. But my question is should the University of Oregon athletic program just told the truth from the start. I think YES, It would have been better to tell the press. Inform them that Luke Bellotti has received two DUI's and would be suspended for the first three games of the season (which he was, but no one knew why) and tell them that he would be helped through this process and take a rehabilitation class. It would have stopped the problem and showed the public that you were devoted to fixing the problem.
Also, I have to wonder how this situation has failed to make it into any of the big time media. Is this an example of the PR team for Oregon athletics fixing their mistake our covering it up further?
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Response: 20 reasons why a business should NOT blog.
In this blog posting the author list his 20 reasons that he thinks that a business should NOT blog.
http://vaspersthegrate.blogspot.com/2007/10/20-reasons-business-should-not-blog.html
I think that this author makes some valid points but personally I think that the overall idea can be boiled down to fewer points. While reading through some of these points I found myself thinking that, "if a company can't do these things on a regular basis, they aren't operating a good business and blogging is the last thing they should worry about."
For example:
(1) Doesn't need customer feedback, and doesn't value their suggestions.
Consumers are the foundation of any business, if there is no one to buy their product then they have no company. Therefore, company should always be interested in what their consumers are thinking.
(20) Cannot commit to being truthful, transparent, and trustworthy, by displaying corporate values and goals in a public forum.
Any company that cannot be truthful or trustworthy will fail in a matter of time. Inevitably, dirt will always come out and if your entire business is based on lies then you will go under, take Enron for example.
Those are the two biggest comments that really stuck out to me while reading this list of Twenty. Overall, I feel that the message and concepts behind the top 20 list was great but I feel that some ideas may apply to the entire company rather than just blogging
P.S.
THE RED SOX ARE HEADING TO THE WORLD SERIES!!!!!
(Kelli I many be sick on any day that we have class and there is a game *cough* Thursday *cough*)
Just kidding the game starts after class is over.
http://vaspersthegrate.blogspot.com/2007/10/20-reasons-business-should-not-blog.html
I think that this author makes some valid points but personally I think that the overall idea can be boiled down to fewer points. While reading through some of these points I found myself thinking that, "if a company can't do these things on a regular basis, they aren't operating a good business and blogging is the last thing they should worry about."
For example:
(1) Doesn't need customer feedback, and doesn't value their suggestions.
Consumers are the foundation of any business, if there is no one to buy their product then they have no company. Therefore, company should always be interested in what their consumers are thinking.
(20) Cannot commit to being truthful, transparent, and trustworthy, by displaying corporate values and goals in a public forum.
Any company that cannot be truthful or trustworthy will fail in a matter of time. Inevitably, dirt will always come out and if your entire business is based on lies then you will go under, take Enron for example.
Those are the two biggest comments that really stuck out to me while reading this list of Twenty. Overall, I feel that the message and concepts behind the top 20 list was great but I feel that some ideas may apply to the entire company rather than just blogging
P.S.
THE RED SOX ARE HEADING TO THE WORLD SERIES!!!!!
(Kelli I many be sick on any day that we have class and there is a game *cough* Thursday *cough*)
Just kidding the game starts after class is over.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Why Sports Teams Need Good PR People.
Over the past two days I have come to the realization that no matter what you say or how you say it, somebody will take it the wrong way. After the Red Sox lost a tough game four in the ALCS on Tuesday, Manny Ramirez spoke to the media for the first time all year. This alone is a big story because the relationship between Manny and the Boston reports (some of the toughest in the nation) is not a good one and anytime he talks it turns into a huge story. Even though Manny is regarded by most experts as one of the best pure hitters of his era let alone one of the best right handed hitter of all-time he is still scrutinized for every little thing he does.
On to the real news though. In his post-game interview when Manny is asked about the Red Sox current attitude being down three games to One in a best of seven series he said, "It doesn't happen, so who cares?" Ramirez said then. "There's always next year. It's not like it's the end of the world."
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=mlb&id=3069942
Everyone in the baseball world know that for many die-hard Sox fans it is the end of the world. When you first read this you many think that the guy is just counting down the seconds until he gets to go sit on a beach with a margarita but after seeing the video of the interview and hearing commentary from baseball experts it is clear that the real point that Manny is trying to convey is that the team is still confident and loose rather then playing uptight. Some of this gets lost in the language barrier and in ability to hear his tone on paper.
This isn't the first time that a situation like this has happened to the Red Sox. You see this situation all the time in the sports industry and and I makes me wonder why teams don't hire larger Public Relations staffs. After working for a minor league baseball team over the summer and seeing first hand the amount of work that these PR professionals go through I truly believe that it would be in the best interest of the teams to upgrade this department. These situations can lead to image problems that can effect the teams ticket sales (Jail-Blazers) or even on field distractions that affect the quality of play.
From my personal experience sports teams are generally understaffed in order to save money and 3-5 guys are doing the work of ten. The PR people generally handle the media relations of the team; sending out and writing all the press releases and media info while coordinating all the press conferences and prepping the speakers. Plus, these officials act as the team publicist so they have two or three people overseeing atleast 25 players. This is arguably the most important area because it is extremely important that teams monitor the comments of their players as the comments above show.
Most sports teams including the Red Sox have a extremely large fan base and make a significant profit throughout their season. As the media gets better and better at scooping up any and all dirt that they can find, no matter how large or small, it because increasingly more important that these teams manage their image as well as their players since they have so much money invested in them.
On to the real news though. In his post-game interview when Manny is asked about the Red Sox current attitude being down three games to One in a best of seven series he said, "It doesn't happen, so who cares?" Ramirez said then. "There's always next year. It's not like it's the end of the world."
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=mlb&id=3069942
Everyone in the baseball world know that for many die-hard Sox fans it is the end of the world. When you first read this you many think that the guy is just counting down the seconds until he gets to go sit on a beach with a margarita but after seeing the video of the interview and hearing commentary from baseball experts it is clear that the real point that Manny is trying to convey is that the team is still confident and loose rather then playing uptight. Some of this gets lost in the language barrier and in ability to hear his tone on paper.
This isn't the first time that a situation like this has happened to the Red Sox. You see this situation all the time in the sports industry and and I makes me wonder why teams don't hire larger Public Relations staffs. After working for a minor league baseball team over the summer and seeing first hand the amount of work that these PR professionals go through I truly believe that it would be in the best interest of the teams to upgrade this department. These situations can lead to image problems that can effect the teams ticket sales (Jail-Blazers) or even on field distractions that affect the quality of play.
From my personal experience sports teams are generally understaffed in order to save money and 3-5 guys are doing the work of ten. The PR people generally handle the media relations of the team; sending out and writing all the press releases and media info while coordinating all the press conferences and prepping the speakers. Plus, these officials act as the team publicist so they have two or three people overseeing atleast 25 players. This is arguably the most important area because it is extremely important that teams monitor the comments of their players as the comments above show.
Most sports teams including the Red Sox have a extremely large fan base and make a significant profit throughout their season. As the media gets better and better at scooping up any and all dirt that they can find, no matter how large or small, it because increasingly more important that these teams manage their image as well as their players since they have so much money invested in them.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Intro Time!
Hey everyone,
Looks like it's intro time. My name is Sean and I am currently a senior at the University of Oregon (Go Ducks!). I'm a PR major and for my final term of my college career I am participating in a fairly new program called the Portland Experience. This "experience" entails taking your final set of classes at the satellite campus in Portland while working as an intern in the local market. This is a great way of building connections and get your foot in the door in Portland but there's one major downfall... WE CAN'T GET STUDENT TICKETS TO FOOTBALL GAMES ANYMORE!!!
For my internship I'm working at a PR agency called Media Cabin. This has been a great experience thus far and I really enjoy the work because I'm getting to work with companies like Wilson, Suunto, Salomon and Atomic skis. If you can't tell I love sports and the outdoors. I'm a die hard Sox fan who can't wait for the ALCS to begin on Friday. I also love skiing and I can't wait to hit the slopes this winter. It looks like this year has the making to be a great snow season and it's definitely a perk to be so close to Mt. Hood now.
Well, that's about all I got for now so in closing I would like to say... Go Sox!!!
Looks like it's intro time. My name is Sean and I am currently a senior at the University of Oregon (Go Ducks!). I'm a PR major and for my final term of my college career I am participating in a fairly new program called the Portland Experience. This "experience" entails taking your final set of classes at the satellite campus in Portland while working as an intern in the local market. This is a great way of building connections and get your foot in the door in Portland but there's one major downfall... WE CAN'T GET STUDENT TICKETS TO FOOTBALL GAMES ANYMORE!!!
For my internship I'm working at a PR agency called Media Cabin. This has been a great experience thus far and I really enjoy the work because I'm getting to work with companies like Wilson, Suunto, Salomon and Atomic skis. If you can't tell I love sports and the outdoors. I'm a die hard Sox fan who can't wait for the ALCS to begin on Friday. I also love skiing and I can't wait to hit the slopes this winter. It looks like this year has the making to be a great snow season and it's definitely a perk to be so close to Mt. Hood now.
Well, that's about all I got for now so in closing I would like to say... Go Sox!!!
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