Finally! A Worthy Picture Goes Viral

Hello friends,

The time comes every week when I have to blog about something I find related to public relations. I normally find great articles on PR Daily. Today was nothing different. There was an article entitled "Candid picture of NYC police officer goes viral on Facebook." I thought that this article was so appropriate for this time of year. Christmas is just around the corner, and everyone is getting in the giving spirit. The article was about an officer in NYC that was photographed giving a pair of boots and socks to a homeless person.

If that isn't an act of selflessness, I don't know what is. A woman from Arizona visiting New York took the photo of the officer. Several weeks later she shared the photo with the NYPD and included a note.
She wrote:

      "The officer said, 'I have these size 12 boots for you, they are all-weather. Let's put them on and take care of you.' The officer squatted down on the ground and proceeded to put socks and the new boots on this man. The officer expected nothing in return and did not know I was watching. I have been in law enforcement for 17 years. I was never so impressed in my life."

This picture was posted to Facebook, and in a few days, there had been more than 500,000 likes, nearly 187,000 shares, and tens of thousands of comments. The story has also been featured in publications like The New York Times and USA Today. Social media is the reason why this picture and this heart warming story have gone viral.

I think that this is what social media should be used for. Lately, social media has been used to launch stupid YouTube videos and careers of music artist that only care about themselves. Police officers devote their lives to society and get little thanks. I'm so glad that this man's act of kindness was recognized and shared with millions of people. 

Until next time,

Katie

36 Rules of Social Media

Hello friends,

I was on PR Daily News and found this wonderful graphic that contained 36 rules for social media. How appropriate right? I was really excited because all of the rules are things we have discussed in class and I didn't have to type out every rule in my blog. Take a moment to look over the graphic.

For those in my social media class, many of these rules are review. I will not talk about each one, but I will mention three rules that I liked the most.

#17. Update your page or delete it.

In the words of Michelle Govekar, "Duh!" What is the point of having a webpage if you do not actively use it? I get frustrated when I go to sites that have outdated content. It shows that either the company doesn't have the time or resources to update the content, or they don't care. If you want the target audience to actively engage with your company, your website must be up to date.

#19. Last year: pump out content. This year: optimize content.

This is such a great rule. How many of you get annoyed with a company that constantly pushes information at you that blows up your news feed, email, or Twitter feed? I know I do, because most of the time the information is of little value to me. You can reach your audience much more effectively if you send out less content that contains information that is valuable to the customer. Quality trumps quantity any day.

#32. Pinterest works.
I love it!! For those who know me, I am obsessed with Pinterest. I have also been conducting my research on a company's use of Pinterest so I completely agree with this rule. Whether people like it or not, Pinterest is a great way to engage your target audience and create brand and product awareness.

I hope that everyone enjoyed these rules as much as I did. Are there any that you disagree with?

Until next time,

Katie

Random Tweets from Dead Presidents... Say What?

Hello friends,

Random question, but does anyone follow a dead president on Twitter? I know that this is a strange question for more than one reason, but I found an article about this subject on the PR Daily website.

The article discussed ten random tweets from dead U.S presidents. Obviously I was intrigued, so I read the the article. Apparently there are some people that have enough time to post hilarious tweets from the perspective of previous U.S presidents. At first, I thought that this idea was a little disrespectful, but after reading some of the tweets, I was laughing out loud! I'll give you a sample of some of the Twitter handles and tweets.

George Washington@Pres_Washington

So hungover. I don't know how @PresidentAdams can cope with so much drink.

John Adams@PresidentAdams

I often wished for a Mitt Romney type hairline. That would have assured me a second term.

Millard Fillmore@fillmoremillard

I've been thinking, the Binder Full of Women probably needs an anatomy lesson in there somewhere.

Rutherford B Hayes@PresRBHayes

Tried to vote in Ohio. They asked to see my drivers license.#ninteenthcenturyproblems

I'm not sure who updates these Twitter accounts, but I'm glad they do. With the 2012 election coming to an end and the candidates make a finally push to gain voters, U.S citizens are starting to get overwhelmed with all of the media. Tweets from dead presidents brings a few laughs to a situation that has been stressful and intense. I don't care who you are, that's funny!

Until next time,

Katie

Beware of what you post...they are watching!

Hello friends,


I was surfing the world wide web today and I stumbled across a wonderful article on Ragan's PR Daily that I thought would be perfect to share with everyone. The title of the article was "5 Types of Social Media Posts that Recruiters Hate."

The article discussed how recruiters do use social media to research prospective candidates. A Jobvite survey was conducted to determine the top five types of content shared on social networks that created negative reactions among hiring managers. I will share the results, but while you read them, try and think if any apply to you.

References to doing illegal drugs- 78 percent of recruiters reacted negatively.

Posts/tweets of a sexual nature- 66 percent reacted negatively.

Profanity in posts/tweets- 61 percent of recruiters reacted negatively.

Spelling/grammar errors in posts/tweets- 54 percent reacted negatively.

Pictures of consumption of alcohol- 47 percent reacted negatively.

As a college student about to graduate in May, this article really resonated with me. Some times I don't think about the impact my social media activity can have on my future. I don't normally post super inappropriate things on my Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, but they are not bullet proof. My mom has been after me for a while to take down some pictures that I have up on Facebook, and I think that it's probably time to do a clean sweep. I don't know why the thought of this makes me sad. I think it is because that cleaning up my social media means that I'm officially a grown up and can no longer afford to literally be "young, wild and free." (I will always be at heart though).

So next time you go to post pictures from your crazy weekend or rant about something that made you mad, think about if it is worth losing a job opportunity over.

Thankfully I don't have to worry about poor spelling or grammar because my grandmas are always looking out for me :)

Until next time,

Katie

10 Signs You're a Real Social Media Jerk

Hello friends,

I hope that everyone is having a fabulous Monday. So I was perusing around on the internet and I came across and article on PR Daily entitled, "10 signs you're a social media jerk" and I thought it was pretty interesting. There are people that I follow on social media and they drive me crazy. Sometimes the subjects they post about are ridiculous and I just want to delete them. This article provided guidelines to detect whether or not you behave badly on social media.

1. Post anonymous comments. If you contribute to a conversation, tell people who you are. If you remain anonymous, it appears that you have something to hide.

2. You're attached to your smartphone. There is a time and a place to post updates and tweets. When you are talking to someone, put the phone down. 

3. Faking authenticity. If you tweet or post under the guise of, “I’m just trying to be real,” or “I want to be honest,” you’re not. You’re trying too hard. If you want to be yourself, be yourself. Just don’t preface it that way. 

4. Blatant self-promotion. Don’t clog your social media channels with your product or brand information. People can see right through it. You want to be “authentic,” right? 

5. Referring to yourself offline by your Twitter handle. When you attend social media events, do you put your Twitter handle on your name badge, instead of your real name? Ugh. Remember, you are a person. A real, honest-to-God person. You are not your Twitter handle, even if it’s your first and last name. 

6. You publicly correct people. We’ve all made grammatical errors or accidentally tweeted the wrong links. It’s embarrassing. What makes it worse is when someone points it out publicly. If you feel the urge to correct someone, send the person a DM. If you can’t, well, at least be subtle: “You might wanna check your last tweet.” They’ll see it as an act of kindness, not as one of humiliation. 

7. You tell people your Klout score. This is tragic. You are a person. You are not a number. Why not tell people your SAT scores, too? 

8. You’re a Facebook addict. No, seriously; it’s a problem. You’re constantly updating your status, playing Farmville, and sending messages to your high school boyfriend. Every fleeting thought is written down in a post. As you pose for pictures, you’ve already decided which Photo Albums they will go in. 

9. You name drop Twitter handles of people who follow you. Just because you follow someone, you don’t actually “know” each other (most likely). It’s OK to say that you follow certain people on Twitter, but you’re mistaken to think you are actually friends with them. You actually have to meet a person before you can say you “know” them. 

10. You refer to yourself as a “social media ninja.” Well, I guess it’s better than referring to yourself as “Anonymous.” And you’d better have the Klout score to back it up, Grasshopper. 

I definitely think that there are some people that could benefit from these tips. The problem is, we are online so often that it creates more opportunities to make mistakes. If you read these guidelines and determine that you are a social media jerk, take the necessary steps to ensure you are not that person that everyone wants to delete from social media sites. 

Until next time,

Katie