Advance preparation is key to ensuring your brand is able to respond to a potential crisis quickly and effectively. Whether you are starting a crisis communications plan from scratch, or already have one in place, you must incorporate social media as part of your readiness as well as response.

• Consumers expect to receive information quickly, which is often best accomplished through social media. Getting approval on a press release or working through IT to have a statement posted on the corporate website can often cause costly delays.
• Many stakeholders receiving the bulk of their information through social media or online channels rather than through traditional media or your company’s website. Responding to a crisis situation directly in the medium in which the story broke is important to get ahead of the situation or prevent it from escalating.
• Social media channels allow you to respond with your own messages and convey exactly what you want to communicate without the filter of a reporter or blogger.

In order to effectively communicate through social media during a time of crisis, your brand must already have an established presence on your platforms of choice and be prepared to start communicating quickly so you can participate in the conversation. Needless to say, if you aren’t monitoring social media, you may be completely unaware of the crisis situation that is brewing. Even if your organization hasn’t fully embraced social media as a communications channel, it is the PR practitioners responsibility to be monitoring social media channels in good times, for the potential opportunities, and in bad times, to forewarn executives and help prevent further damage to the company’s reputation.

The competition was intense this year, but Katey started down the road to success early when she submitted a compelling and professional video that included recommendations from fellow students and faculty. Her video was one of a kind compared to the other submissions. Katey also campaigned hard and attracted 1,205 out of the 15,935 total votes in the contest, which led her to become one of the semi-finalists for a Skype interview.

The NYIP judges and team members at Affect were impressed with Katey during the interview process as well, and we were happy to offer her the coveted paid, three-month internship that will prepare her to start her career in the industry.

This is the second year Affect has used a social media contest to recruit top talent for our intern program. Leveraging a creative recruiting avenue that encouraged a high level of participation from candidates was not only fun, but it also gave us multiple opportunities to interact with the contestants, get a good understanding of their strengths and personalities, and more easily identify the frontrunners. The contest also helped us differentiate Affect’s internship program from the many others taking place around the city this summer, which is key when competing for great candidates with other, potentially much larger, PR and social media firms.

Online contests can bring new life to recruiting efforts, build buzz around your brand and jazz up your internal team, but there are a few simple tips to follow to make sure your contest is a success:

• Plan ahead: Lack of planning is one of the most common reasons promotions fail. Do your research and plan ahead as much as possible.
• Don’t over-complicate: The simpler, the better. Have a clear message and a concise call to action so as not confuse or deter participants. Simple concepts are also better for marketing initiatives, since the message doesn’t get lost.
• Leverage partners: Marketing partners/sponsors can expand the reach of your promotion and provide additional marketing channels.

We’d love to hear your examples of successful online contests or innovative recruitment tactics. Please share your ideas in the comments section!

If you’re interested in hearing more about how to developed and implement an online contest please contact me at: bthomlison@affect.com or @techaffect.

Source

Over the last 10 years, the line between journalists and readers has grown significantly shorter. From blogging to commenting to online sharing, the swift rise of the Internet and social media has allowed the consumer to be the producer in a way that was never before possible. The line between editorial and advertising has also always been a sticky area, and as a PR professional I’m trained to view pay-for-play media opportunities with a bit of a wary eye.

Social media enables the proliferation of news at the speed of light, which is a great thing. But now, media outlets are recognizing that readers often find their stories through a friend’s tweet or Facebook post, and they are looking for ways to capitalize on the trend.

A few weeks ago, The New York Times Co. announced it was closing the gap between editorial and advertising / journalist and consumer even further by launching Ricochet, a program that the WSJ says “lets marketers pick a select number of stories from Times Co. properties…that are relevant to their social media audiences and create special links for sharing those stories. Anyone clicking on the social media links will see the marketer’s ads next to the stories for a specified period of time.”

This new ad program has raised a few eyebrows, but NYT has assured everyone that they will keep the barrier between editorial and advertising strong by using a few stopgaps.

1. Advertisers have to wait seven days before sharing any stories about themselves.
2. Advertisers won’t be able to share negative stories about their competitors.

The program is aimed at enabling brands to connect better with their consumers, and truthfully users may not notice much of a difference at all.

The question now is, as the media world becomes ever more connected, will programs like Ricochet enhance the experience for everyone, or further blur the roles between reporters, consumers and advertisers? Only time will tell.

Hi TechAffect readers! I’m Katie Koenig, Affect’s newest hire! I was asked to write this blog post to show all NYIP entrants, voters, friends and family a glimpse into our wonderful office. I am currently one of Affect’s PR & Social Media interns and have been here since September 2011. I have loved interning at Affect and am thrilled to continue on as a full time Assistant Account Executive starting this May. Read on to see what it’s like at the Affect office!

When you’re finally done dodging around fast paced New Yorkers on the street, you find the right address: 989 Avenue of the Americas. As you pull open the tall glass doors, you enter the well-lit lobby and are warmly greeted by our security guard Wilma. She directs you to the elevator that will take you up to the 6^th floor.  Once the elevator opens up, you step right into a bright, chic office. Welcome to Affect!

Pat, the 2011 winner of The New York Intern Project and now an Assistant Account Executive, is usually the one to greet our guests. His bright smile and enthusiastic welcome will make you feel instantly comfortable in our office. You scan your surroundings and start to take it all in. The loud sounds of the traffic of Midtown, the amazing sunlight that fills the room, the constant clicking of computer keyboards. So this is what a PR firm in New York is like! You look to your right and you see a glass enclosed conference room. This is where all of our team meetings take place, which range from team lunches from Chipotle to weekly staff meetings. Here at Affect we are always trying to make our daily tasks more fun. A few weeks ago, this is where we had our staff meeting while simultaneously celebrating National Potato Chip Day!

When you look straight ahead, you see a smaller glass enclosed conference room. This is where Affect employees will have their weekly client calls, client team meetings, and brainstorm sessions. If you take a left out of the elevator, you’ll see our comfortable seating area with an extensive display of awards. Your eyes widen as you read the trophies: PR News Top Place To Work In PR, Inc. Magazine America’s 5,000 Fastest Growing Companies, Bulldog Reporter Small Agency Of The Year? This must be a fantastic place to work!

On the left side of the office you’ll encounter more work areas, offices, smiling faces, and the office kitchen. We work hard here at Affect, so sometimes you need that extra caffeine boost to get you going. You’ll always hear the coffee machine brewing around here!

Here at Affect, we love our beautiful office space as much as we love our jobs. The Affect Team is thrilled to pick our next rock star intern from The New York Intern Project. Keep racking up those votes, and this summer it could be YOU entering our home on the 6^th floor!

It’s ok not to have all your information updated by March 30. Brands will still be able to modify a timeline, however make an internal schedule with a deadline to have all the information updated as quickly as possible.

1. The more history you can include the better. Filling in as much detail in your timeline showcases the brand’s dedication, enthusiasm, personality and drive to your fans, which will ultimately lead to more engagement on your page.
2. Make sure to include photos and videos. We think this is an obvious point, however not all brands will have photos dating back to the beginning of their timeline. Try using Google images or downloading logos or linking to videos. As always be sure to review any copyright issues when using outside resources.
3. Try to change up the cover photo. If your brand is not very active on Facebook, be sure to update or regularly change the large cover photo so that fans visiting your page can see something fresh when they enter.
4. Only three applications are immediately visible. Applications have now replaced the tabs that ran down the left hand side of the old Facebook page. Since the applications are now at the top of the page it’s one of the first things fans will see and they will only see three at a time, unless they expand the panel. Be sure to highlight your key applications, as well as change them out when new applications are created.
5. Default landing pages are gone. If your brand relied on a landing page to make a good impression, make sure to look into Facebook advertising. Along with your creative use of the top messages in the Timeline, the only way to control a users experience is through advertising. Your ads will promote your campaign or application, which will generate more clicks.
6. Use your pins in a strategic manner. The new “pin” option will allow brands to showcase key postings. Be sure to pin a posts that will create engagement, like a call-to-action or statement about a product. Remember a pin only lasts seven days.
7. Respond to direct messages. Brand pages can now send and receive direct messages. Be sure to respond to these messages in a customer friendly manner and in a timely fashion, as you want to reduce any potential backlash or negative postings.
8. Be sure to check your analytics. Facebook has made several great updates to their analytics, for example you can now see real-time engagement or even see how many times people are clicking on your applications from day-to-day. Your analytics will help determine what is working for your fans and what needs improvement to increase engagement.

Do you have any quick tips to add to our list? What are some interesting details that your company added to the timeline? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

As a PR professional, it’s not uncommon for me to hear any (or all!) of those statements from both current and prospective clients – regardless of how big or small the company may be. Enter a little something called “Story Hijacking.”

Story hijacking may seem like a simple enough concept (you may have heard it called Rapid Response or Proactive Pitching), but I’m always surprised at how often companies ask me about it. Basically, it’s the art of monitoring for breaking news that may not be directly related to your client, and “hijacking” it by taking over the conversation and offering an immediate response (or a counter opinion) that adds richness or depth to a reporter’s story. It takes a popular story and adds the “this is what it means” for a target audience.

Here are a few quick examples of “story hijacking” in action:

• Caron Treatment Centers, a provider of drug and alcohol rehabilitation services was able to jump on a recent CDC report on binge drinking, garnering this coverage in Newsday
• When Yahoo scrapped 10 of their mobile apps, Kony Solutions, a mobile platform provider, was ready to provide their opinion to Mobile Marketer
• When rumors began to swirl regarding the release of Apple’s iCloud, Absolute Software responded with how it would affect their enterprise customers, getting ink in top Apple blog Computerorld’s Apple Holic

Story hijacking should be a fundamental element of any PR program. Here’s a few tips on how to get it up and running at your business:

• Set Up Google Alerts – for any and every topic related to your company, under the “as-it-happens” code
• Be Ready to Have An Opinion – float trend ideas or news stories by stakeholders to get their pulse on key issues (and keep their thoughts on file for when the moment is right)
• Have A Rapid Response Plan in Place – know who your spokespeople are, have access to their calendars, and be ready to get them on the phone when a story breaks
• Cultivate Relationships – build credibility with writers through an ongoing PR program, so that they’ll trust your opinion during a breaking news situation

Would love to hear other stories of story hijacking success in the comments!

1. Infographic of Infographics

If you’re not familiar with infographics, this example helps clarify the subject. If you want to know the most popular chart style for infographics or the number of sources typically used, this will help clear up all of those questions.

2. Should I Send This Email?

Managers spend about 20 hours a week reading emails, with the average employee receiving 200 emails a day. To help determine if an email is worthy of sending, OnlineITDegree.net created an interesting infographic that guides you through the process.

3. Have An Interest in Pinterest?

Pinterest has been a recent social media hit, but there are still a lot of mysteries about the company. Did you know that 97% of Pinterest’s Facebook fans are women? To get all the details and determine if this website is a good fit for your client, check out the infographic.

If you happen to find any other industry infographics that you’d like to share, reach out to us in the comments section.

Vlog Views

ThomasNet

Page One, which premiered in 2011, takes us behind the scenes with reporters from the Times’ Media Desk (home to reporters like David Carr and Brian Stelter), revealing the following truths:

1. Reporters are expected to do more, with less. Still.
   In the movie you see writers conducting interviews, typing up notes, negotiating quotes and tweeting away frantically. With budget cuts a central theme of the movie, it’s clear that reporters are tasked to do as much as they can – and that includes social media. The more you can provide a reporter to assemble a full package for a story (spokesperson, customer, artwork etc.), the more helpful you’ll be.
2. Just because a reporter likes the story, doesn’t mean their Editor will. Or their Editor’s editor.
   Editors play a major role in the documentary, and as a viewer we’re even invited in to one of the two A1 meetings that happen everyday at the paper. In these meetings, all of the section reporters pitch their pieces directly to the Executive Editor. It’s no surprise that some of the stories just don’t make the cut. So it’s important to realize that there’s an entire chain of command happening behind the scenes every time you pitch a piece to a reporter.
3. Reporters are tired of hearing you say what everyone else is already saying.
   At one point in the movie David Carr is conducting an interview over the phone, and he says “Okay, but everyone says that.” I think this is along the lines of saying, “We’re so thrilled to partner with…” or “We’re the leading company in the space…” To me, this is another lesson in why it’s so important for companies to truly differentiate their interviews with fresh content and real opinions – even if they’re controversial.

I highly recommend the movie, which also goes into detail on the plight of the media industry (filmed in 2009, the movie chronicles the industry during a time or major cutbacks and layoffs.) Check it out and let me know what you think!