Friday, February 27, 2009
Don't Overlook the Future of Facebook
This is a great article on Facebook posted on February 19 that showcases the value and importance of Facebook. Facebook is everywhere, and while many might assume that it is only for kids, that could not be anything further from the truth. Businesses, human resource people, the media, and adults (parents), and even senior citizens (an important voting block for levies!) are using Facebook as part of their every day communications. This is a must-read article!
Check it out here
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Schedule Finalized for Conference Activities
THURSDAY, MARCH 12, 2009
Social Media Boot Camp – 1:30pm-5:00pm
Social "Networking" Event – 5:30pm – 7:00pm
FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 2009
Continental Breakfast – 8:30am
Breakout Learning Sessions – 9:00am-12:00 noon
Achievement Awards Lunch – 12:30pm
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Breakout Learning Sessions Announced!
“Broadcasting Your Message Through Podcasting”
Description –The traditional tools of communication remain relevant, but not as relevant as in the past. Print media, television news, and radio are all facing problems reaching an ever-fragmenting audience of constituents that a school district must reach. Podcasting is one of the forms of new media that can help reach a new generation of listeners. In this session you will explore how school districts can utilize podcasting to get your messages across, while also learning the best techniques to easily and effectively create them.
Facilitators - Tom Burton (Administration-Cuyahoga Valley Middle School), Margaret Bierman (PR-Bedford City Schools), Lisa Riegel (PR-Delaware Area Career Center)
2. “Keeping Your Troops Motivated in Tough Times”
Description - How to inspire your staff and strengthen staff morale even in the midst of tough economic times.
Facilitators – Debbie Alberico (PR-Middletown City Schools) and Julie Powell (SPONSOR – Metrics Marketing)
3. “Navigating the Social Network Obstacle Course”
Description – While even the Pope has called social networking a “gift for all humanity,” there are problems and concerns faced when utilizing the internet as a tool for marketing and communications. Many negative situations have developed within school districts related to the use of these social media tools. This session will discuss the potential problems that could arise and look at how to overcome them. Which social medium is right for your district’s communications and marketing plan?
Facilitators – Shane Haggerty (PR-Ohio Hi-Point Career Center) and Patti Grey (PR-Ohio Dept. of Education)
4. “Cleaning up the Mess Hall”
Description – Share the challenges that your district has faced and how you have met these challenges head on.
Facilitators – Ellen Ondrey (PR-Chardon Local Schools) and Melissa Fowler (PR-Dayton Public Schools)
5. “Generations”
Description – Every generation has its own way of communicating - whether it is smoke signals, postal pigeons, letters or email. With the rise of social networks, You Tube, chat, text messaging etc - we see new trends and thus a new "language" which raises the question - "how should you communicate– remember we were not all born in 1956!
Facilitators – Patti Koslo (PR-Nordonia Hills City Schools), Lee Cole (PR-Pickerington Local Schools) and Kari Basson (PR-Kettering City Schools)
6. “Facing the Media Who Are Entrenched in Social Media”
Description – You’re on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and You Tube. You’re embracing social media to publicize your school district and accomplish your communication goals. But where are the reporters who cover your schools? Are there newspapers, radio, and TV stations using the same social media to deliver your news to their audiences? Can you reach the reporters and help them cover your schools using the same social media tools? Tips and ideas for doing just that.
Facilitators – Chris Celek (Former Managing Editor for Cox Ohio Publishing’s Community Newspapers) , Jenny Birtle (PR-Mad River Local Schools) and Erika Daggett (PR-Sycamore Community Schools)
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Blogs in Plain English
This week's "Plain English" video is about blogs and blogging. At the conference, our day one boot camp will provide some insight into blogging and how it can be utilized within your districts.
Enjoy!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Follow NSPRA/Ohio on Twitter!
Twitter is one social media tool that has grown by leaps and bounds in 2008 and continues to gain notoriety for its micro-blogging, 140 character only "tweets," brief messages read by those who choose to follow you. The above video from Common Craft helps you understand the purpose of Twitter.
NSPRA/Ohio is using Twitter to post frequent updates about the upcoming conference to be held in Columbus on March 12 and 13, 2009. You can sign-up for Twitter and have an account in just minutes! Our direct link to Twitter is http://twitter.com/nspraohio. You can also sign-up at http://twitter.com and then search for us by typing in @nspraohio. The "@" symbol helps Twitter identify people or companies directly.
Twitter is not only a great place to communicate with friends, it is also a place people are conducting business, making connections, and growing professionally. Many corporations, politicians, non-profits, small businesses, and media members use Twitter. Barack Obama successfully utilized Twitter during his campaign. Airlines like Southwest and JetBlue utilize it to communicate flight status updates and other information to customers. Media types use it to get story ideas and to provide direct links to stories in their newspaper or television station or website. Schools are also using it, along with Education Week magazine and other educational resource providers. Want to follow some Ohio school districts? Check out these three to see how they use it for communications:
Once you sign-up, the easiest way to understand it is to start following others and see who they are following and who is following them. Start following some of these people. You will be surprised who is on Twitter! Following people in a career field or subject matter that you work within is certainly a great way to find professional resources and connections. Search for your local newspapers, TV stations, and websites, and you will likely find them on there. The Columbus Dispatch, Dayton Daily News, Cleveland Plain-Dealer, and Cincinnati Enquirer are just some major Ohio newspapers that utilize it.
Give it a shot and give it some time. Twitter is not easily understand at first. It might even seem like a waste of time, but sticking with it and increasing who you follow will help you learn why Twitter has become such a popular and useful social media tool.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Social Media in Plain English
As we prepare for our conference on social media, these videos, made popular by a company called Common Craft, make it easy to get a basic understanding of social media the various tools available for usage. We will post a new video each week that can educate you about all things social media.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Presenters announced for day one workshop
Here's more about Siefer and Seguin:
Angela Siefer envisions a world in which all members of society have the tools and the resources to use the Internet for the betterment of themselves and their communities. Angela is the founder and trainer at Shiny Door, providing social networking workshops and guidance. She specializes in assisting those who are hesitant of social networking’s value. Angela has a varied history of working within the start-up world and the nonprofit world. Angela was VP of Business Development at Lumifi, Executive Director of Grassroots.org, and Executive Director of the Ohio Community Computing Network. She is also a co-founder of Cbus Tech Life.
Nick Seguin is strategist and PM at dynamIt, a web engineering and design firm based in Columbus, Ohio. Nick manages web projects of varied scope for local, national, and international clients. Though he drives a technical firm, his background in marketing allows him to address the anthropological aspects of web and leverage technology to increase engagement and experience. Social/new media at it's core is about strategic and convenient communication. Nick works hard to both stay on-top of new tools and lead clients to their end-goals utilizing appropriate solutions. Nick studied and lived in Europe, is on the programming advisory committee at TechColumbus, is a Startup Weekend facilitator, and is one of the founding group members at Cbus TechLife. He speaks and consults on social media, blogs at www.nickseguin.com and can be found "tweeting" @NickSeguin.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Social Media's Rise & Influence
- 394 million people watch video clips online
- 346 million read blogs
- 321 million read personal blogs
- 307 million visit a friend's social networking page
- 303 million share a video clip
- 272 million manage a profile on a social network
- 248 million upload photos
- 216 million download video podcasts
- 215 million download audio podcasts
- 184 million started a blog
- 183 million uploaded a video clip
- 160 million subscribed to an RSS feed
Had enough? Or still not convinced of the power of social media? Here are some stats about online/social media trends:
- Blog reading has risen 66% on a global scale in a year
- 60.3 million Americans have read a blog
- 36% of consumers will think more positively about an organization that blogs
- 32% of consumers trust bloggers' opinions on products and services
- 43% of online consumers belong to a social network
- 74% of social network users message friends as part of their daily routines
- 64% of teenagers ages 12-17 engage in at least one type of online content creation, up from 57% in 2004
- 87% of parents of teenagers are online
- More than 40% of women in their 40s have social networking profiles (it's not just for teens), with more than 70% of women with children ages 13-17 engaged in discussions on social networking
These are statistics and figures compiled by Universal McCann, Pew Research Center and SheSpeaks about online trends and social media usage. It is clear that social media has been embraced by teenagers and is now becoming more and more common for adults, especially parents and women. It is not just a fad, but a new form of communication. How do school districts become a part of the online conversation in effective and safe ways? These issues will be discussed during our Annual Conference.
Monday, January 5, 2009
The Official Conference Blog
- Official conference information and announcements
- Official Achievement Awards announcements and information
- Videos and postings about social media
- Postings about school PR case studies and school PR in the news
- Other information and resources to prepare you for the conference and to help you in your job as a school PR professional
Sunday, January 4, 2009
2009 NSPRA/Ohio Annual Conference March 12-13
NSPRA/Ohio’s 2009 Annual Conference & Achievement Awards Luncheon:
Social Media Boot Camp
Save the dates now: March 12-13, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio
School public relations professionals and educational leaders must keep current with changing practices and strategies. We need parent involvement and we need public engagement. To do this, we need clear communication to get the message heard and strengthen the connections between schools and the community.
During this day and half workshop you will connect with others and learn innovative ways
to deliver key messages about your schools. With skill-building sessions rich in resources
and ideas, the NSPRA/Ohio Conference, "Social Media Bootcamp," will provide you with cutting-edge communication tools and deal with issues such as using blogs, the benefits of podcasting, determining which social medium is right for your district, how the media is using social media, best practices for communications and marketing in challenging economic times, and more.
EXTEND YOUR LEARNING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT BY PLANNING TO COME FOR BOTH DAYS!
Thursday, March 12
Social Media Workshop 1:30-5:00 p.m.
Attend this practical and motivating half-day workshop and walk away with a strategy for how to incorporate blogging in your district’s communications plan.
FOCUS: Social media overview, blogs and blogging, myths and fears of social media, strategies for your district, RSS Feeds, and more. The workshop will be led by two social media experts from Columbus, Ohio. Angela Siefer is the chancellor at Shiny Door Consulting, a social media training and consultancy, and Nick Seguin, is web strategist at DynamIT Technologies, LLC, a a web engineering, design and development firm focused on creating usable, efficient web sites and applications. Both have been frequent presenters to businesses and organizations on the topic of social media and are well-known bloggers in Central Ohio.
Networking Social Event 5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
After you learn about social media in the workshop, get social and network during our evening event! Join us for food and drinks!
Friday, March 13
Breakout Learning Sessions Starting at 9:00 a.m.
Take your learning one step further on Friday with our morning Breakout Learning Sessions! You will have six different sessions to choose from and will be able to attend two of them and walk away with practical information and strategies on topics like the media using social media, podcasting in schools, social media strategies, best practices and challenges and more.
Annual Achievement Awards Luncheon 12:30 p.m.
Enter your school district’s best PR, multimedia and marketing practices in our 2009 awards contest and join us as we honor the winners during our luncheon. Winners will be announced in categories ranging from PR plans and photography to e-newsletters, websites and more! Visit www.nspraohio.org for complete information on the Achievement Awards, categories, requirements, and to download entry forms.
Full conference registration information is available on the NSPRA/Ohio website. Download the form and send in your registration.
IF YOUR REGISTRATION IS POSTMARKED ON OR BEFORE FEBRUARY 4, YOU WILL BE
ENTERED INTO OUR PRIZE DRAWING TO WIN ONE OF THE LATEST MULTIMEDIA TOOLS ON THE MARKET TO USE IN YOUR SCHOOL DISTRICT’S MARKETING, PR AND SOCIAL MEDIA EFFORTS!
The 2009 NSPRA/Ohio Annual Conference & Achievement Awards Luncheon will be held at the Embassy Suites Hotel at 2700 Corporate Exchange Dr. in Columbus, OH 43231. You can receive a special conference room rate of $125 when you reference NSPRA/Ohio. Rooms must be reserved by January 25, 2009. Call 614.890.8600 to make your reservation.