Many people talk about New Year’s resolutions as they pertain to their personal life or even professional life. But, what about New Year’s resolutions for your business? As a business owner or senior executive, now is the best time to get your business in shape to take advantage of 2013. Here are a few quick suggestions for committing to these changes to set your business up for success in the new year.1. Stop Working. Stop working on the things that don’t contribute directly to the success of your Read more [...]
There have been so many of these gaffes in Twitter’s short history that I am still surprised that organizations, or entire countries, are willing to allow a few individuals to permanently damage their reputation and image in the name of ‘democracy’ on social media. VisitSweden, a communications company that promotes the “brand of Sweden, Swedish destinations and experiences,” developed the idea behind Curators of Sweden to enable the official @Sweden twitter handle to be handed over to the people Read more [...]
Recently, we worked on a submission for a Social Media Crisis Guidebook that will be published in a few weeks. One of the issues we discussed in our chapter deals with the timeline of a social media crisis and how quickly companies need to respond. Before the advent of social media, a crisis situation typically had some early warning signals but now when something breaks in the twitterverse, you have little more than a few moments before it’s all over the ‘net. Advance preparation is key to ensuring Read more [...]
Earlier this week I gave a workshop of Google+ & PR for PRSA-NY. The class was particularly timely due to the expected announcement in the very near future, of company or brand pages on Google+. Public relations professionals have seen the rise, and fall, of a variety of social networks over the last four to five years but there has never been a social network that was initiated by a company with so much clout, such a significant user base, a global presence and as deep pockets as Google. It’s Read more [...]
When we sat down to watch President Obama last night in his speech on the American Jobs Act, my husband and I knew that we had different views on his politics, but we both agree that he is an outstanding orator. President Obama is undoubtedly one of the best speakers that has graced the White House in decades. Regardless of your views on the content of his speech, there is no doubt that he captures the attention of his audience, that he is a dynamic and charismatic speaker and that he knows how to Read more [...]
This one is personal for me. My daughter had been talking for weeks about a special teacher that has been helping her fifth grade class, and many others in our school district, prepare for the state-administered exams, NJ ASK. As a reward for their great work, this staff developer (not her regular teacher) promised the children that Lady Gaga would visit the school via videoconference and talk to them. Since the staff developer claimed that she had worked for MTV and knew Lady Gaga personally, Read more [...]
Sometimes you attend a conference and attend a keynote session. As someone in the session tweeted, “once in a while that keynote becomes a key moment.” That’s how I felt after attending Jennifer Aaker’s session at the Web 2.0 Expo in San Francisco yesterday. Jennifer is a social psychologist and marketer and Professor at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. Her topic yesterday focused on ‘The Dragonfly Effect’, the title of her new book, that examines how can small acts create infectious Read more [...]
As a public relations agency, we are often approached by smart marketers on the hunt for a public relations firm. Typically, we have a wonderful first meeting; exchange information about our business and experience, learn about the prospect’s challenges, understand their business objectives and get to know each other’s work style and personality. We usually take a little time to conduct some independent research, a quick competitive analysis and develop a proposal for services for our contact. Now, Read more [...]
For anyone traveling over the past week – or hoping to travel – chances are the snow storm interrupted your travel plans even if you were no where near the snow. Our team at Affect had one person stuck in California, one in Florida, one in New Orleans and myself in Canada. (Oh, and one in Brooklyn.) I had the good fortune of going to Mont Tremblant in Canada over the holiday - and the misfortune of traveling with Continental Airlines. Although I arrived on the 23rd without incidence, my Read more [...]
After a long day at the PRSA International Conference’s Leadership Assembly, I wanted to share a few thoughts on PRSA. I know that few folks outside of PRSA understand the value of the organization. However, for the lucky few that come to these meetings, you understand. When you are in the room with the nation’s brightest, most dedicated and talented PR folks – you want to be in their company, you are inspired by them and you challenge yourself to be the best PR practitioner possible. Through PRSA Read more [...]
