Our Modern Lives: Tune In or Turn Off?
This is a post I contributed to my friend Chris Lynn’s blog, socialTNT.
With Blackberries and iPhones keeping us constantly connected to an online IV stream, it’s becoming increasingly more difficult to disconnect. As of late, discussion around the problems of our “always on” lifestyles seem to be popping up everywhere. Last month, the Churchill Club held a panel on the issue of information overload. And, even more alarming, The New York Times recently chronicled the health problems–and two deaths–resulting from the demands of round-the-clock blogging. While not as severe as those tragic cases, I recently came face-to-face with my own info-addiction.
Click here to read the rest of my post on socialTNT.
[The above photo, “Streeter Seidell, Comedian” by Zach Klein on flickr, is used under Creative Commons]
PR Students, Teachers, Pros Step Up to the PROpenMic
I just joined PROpenMic yesterday, a community for PR students, educators, and pros to convene and share information, questions, and wisdom on the industry. It was created by famed PR educator and blogger Robert French of Auburn University, and from my experience so far is a great resource for PRs across the board to meet others and collectively share information. I wish I had this when I was in college getting my PR degree!
The community is a helpful training ground for students and young PR pros, and is also a great way for seasoned PR practitioners to mentor the newbies. I’m a huge fan of the site already from the little I’ve tinkered with it. I look forward to getting involved and meeting new people in the industry, as well as hopefully contributing some worthwhile info to the community.
Check it out for yourself and get signed up! And while you’re on there, go ahead and add me as a friend. 
Why (Good) PR Will Never Die
I’ve been reading a book on media relations that’s been a great resource for me: Media Training 101 by Sally Stewart. It’s a good primer on smart PR tactics when working with press.
The interesting thing about the book is that it’s primarily geared toward executives and business people. Not PR pros.
Why is that funny? Having worked with quite a few execs throughout my career, I can’t imagine them having the time to read a book on media relations strategy.
Many of my clients can’t find time for a good night’s sleep, let alone the 4-6 hours it takes to read a 300-page book. You understand this when you get e-mail responses from your CTO after 10 p.m. at night and realize they’re still hard at work.
Which is what led them to hire a PR firm or consultant in the first place. The reality is it takes quite a bit of training to develop smart communication strategies for your brand.
That doesn’t even take into account the man hours needed to implement the plan once you put it together.
Reading through those pages is a reminder of how much training good PR pros need in order to prove their worth as true experts in communication. This now includes knowledge of traditional media outlets, key audiences, social media platforms, and any other new communication tools pop up along the way.
PR is a lot of hard work and the bar of excellence is high. If you’re a PR pro, you know how tough it is, and if you’re a journalist or blogger, you value the good PR people that are out there.
If it wasn’t challenging for companies to communicate effectively to their various audiences, the need for PR wouldn’t exist. And that’s why good PR, the kind that uses communication tools intelligently and gets results, will never die.
