What are the advantages & disadvantages of a Social Media News Release?
The main advantage of using a SMNR is of course the fact that technology today is so advanced and the use of the Internet and mobile Web is greatly used. The speed at which a SMNR can be sent to a client is within seconds. Many organizations and businesses today are utilizing social media, blogs, and online networking profiles. For profit organizations using SMNRs, they are reaching out more to people who are technology- and Internet-savvy, those of which who tend to be the innovators and leaders on the purchasing scale.

Also, using a SMNR rather than a traditional press release that is nearly totally text, the creator is allowed to be much more creative and give the viewer of the SMNR a much better visual than a few paragraphs can. And with the use of video and audio, a SMNR can go long ways. It is more attractive and perhaps entertaining for the viewer. On the other hands, some disadvantages of SMNRs are that they are more time-consuming and in some ways more costly. In some cases, a videographer, photographer, graphic designer, and much more might need to be hired. And there is no guarantee that your SMNR will be viewed by every person you send it to unfortunately.

When should a PR practitioner consider using a SMNR?
A PR practitioner should think about using a SMNR when they are trying to target an audience that is savvy with technology and also when they are trying to have competitive advantage over their opposers.

Links to websites that will help you create a SMNR:
1. PRWeb News Release Template and Creation Tool: http://www.prweb.com/pr/features/online-news-release-builder.html And here is the article I read about it! (PRWeb Launches Tool to Help Pros with Multimedia News Release)

2. PRX Builder: http://www.prxbuilder.com/x2/ Here is a wizard that shows you step-by-step how to create a social media news release.

Link to a SMNR that an organization has created:
1. Porsche – http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/porsche/40096/ It has its logo, contact information, headline and sub-headline, text, photos, a video, and links – all the things that make up a social media new release!

2. Listerine – http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/listerine/40239/ The same goes with this SMNR from Johnson & Johnson.

3. Pepsi – http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/pepsi/40085/ And doesn’t this make you thirsty for a Pepsi?

Link to MY social media news release:

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Tips for SMNR creation:
1. Use good quality photographs with high resolution.

2. Use bullet-points, shorter paragraphs, and quotations. These are easier to read than bulky text.

3. Embed the SMNR in the e-mail message instead of sending it as an attachment. Some people might think it is risky to open attached files because of spam and harmful viruses.

4. Use the inverted pyramid technique when writing.

5. Test all of your links, spell check, and generally review your SMNR before submission. A release with errors loses much credibility.

6. Utilize a boilerplate at the very end to give the reader of the SMNR a little more background information on your company.

7. When typing the Subject Line if sending the SMNR via e-mail, be creative and make sure it is relevant to the client and sounds interesting.

“No matter how much technology you employ to help make your message stand out from the crowd, if the message doesn’t resonate, the photos, links, and videos won’t help it.” –Michael Pranikoff, PR Newswire

Sources:
Wilcox, Dennis L. (2009). Public Relations Writing and Media Techniques, 6th edition.  Boston: Pearson Education.

Great list! I didn’t think to choose Times Square for NYE, entering a triathlon, and learning to sing, but I would have now that you mention it! Good luck with your book-writing and charity-starting; those are also two goals I have. Anyway, good luck on finals and have a great summer!

Comment on Kelly Dale’s post @ http://kmdale.wordpress.com/2011/04/25/my-bucket-list/

Geez! Everyone’s list included many, many things about traveling! But I think yours has the most from what I’ve browsed through so far. I just love how we all want to travel and learn more about different cultures, landscapes, languages, and food! I can’t wait. Thinking I’ll go ahead and join the military and knock out the traveling aspect of my bucket list! Good luck on final exams and have a great summer!!

• Visit my mom’s home – Koror, Palau
• Adopt a child (after having two or three of my own)
• Travel Europe (I’ve seen Germany at a young age but I’d love to visit Paris, Italy, Spain, etc.)
• Sky-dive (if I really do build up the courage to do so)
• Take surfing lessons/scuba dive while on vacation
• Go “down under!” (Australia)
• Ride an elephant or camel – that would be cool!
• Go to an Outkast concert and meet them backstage
• Finish learning the French language, far beyond the three years I took it in high school
• Go to a Carnival parade!! -wow
• Shake President Obama’s hand – I’d settle for just making eye contact with him!

I am also obsessed with my phone. I thought I was addicted to my BlackBerry when I had it. But I’m a new owner of the iPhone 4 and I must say that I really enjoy being able to do 50 things on my phone all at once. You know, “the only network that lets you talk and surf at the same time.” (Lol at that commercial). Anyway, I am also careful of where I’m walking because I’d hate to get hurt/killed, or worse get laughed at because I tripped on campus…. Ha!

Comment on Sullivan’s post @ http://symonesullivan.wordpress.com/2011/04/22/maam-youre-being-cited-for-texting-while-walking/

No one has ever walked into me because they were texting and walking; however, a guy on campus was riding a bike (!!) and texting and almost came pretty close to hitting me. Shame!

From my knowledge, walking and texting can be just as dangerous as driving and texting. It’s ridiculous but sad that some people have been hit by cars and fallen into potholes because if this. Sone people have even died from these tragedies unfortunately. Yes, I am guilty of walking and texting; but if I’m in an area where I need to ne aware of my surroundings (I.e. in a crowd, crossing the street, going down a hill lol), I will stop texting so that I can pay attention to where I’m going. A good PR strategy to try and get text addicts’ eyes off their phones when they should be paying attention to where they are walking or driving is to make people first aware that this is a potentially serious problem. For instance, not everyone knows about the news stories in which people have been injured or killed. So maybe making these news clips viral through heavy promotion could help make people more aware of this issue. Also, a funny television commercial or radio commercial can be used to catch the attention of teens (since they are probably the most likely to be in danger via texting). A logo could even be made to be put on a catchy poster for distribution at high schools and colleges that are similar to “no smoking” symbol. But instead it would be a “no texting and driving/walking” sign that is colorful. Also, a goofy mascot can be created that is some animal, creature, or person that is always in bandages and on crutches. This is a funny way to get young people’s attention but for a serious issue.

Twitter is most definitely an overload of information! But I do hope that everyone in our class continues to use it if they weren’t already doing so before this assignment. It’s a great way to network with other PR students and professionals.

Comment on Blane’s post @ http://bhumphries.wordpress.com/2011/04/15/twitter-not-such-a-fail-whale-after-all/

Love the post! I was also sucked into the Twitter thing a couple years ago. I wasn’t going to fall for all the hooplah (sp?) and jump on the bang wagon like everybody else was. But the buzz was going crazy and I got a little curious. And then before I knew it, I was a major Twitter fanatic! But hey, I, like you, am glad I finally gave it a chance. There’s great entertainment, interaction, and networking going on at this site.

I find value in continuing to use my Twitter account (www.twitter.com/whomovdmycheese) because I have seen that it is a great tool to network, especially in this job industry of public relations where social media is exceedingly relevant. By the way, I chose that Twitter name from the title of a book I had to read for L.E.A.P. I know of people who have graduated from Georgia Southern that have gotten connected with public relations persons and firms via the use of Twitter. Besides just being able to search profiles and share links, you can engage in #PRstudchat, or PR student chat. This is a really great way to network with other students and professors in PRSSA across the country. It’s a good opportunity to ask questions, get advice, and meet new people in our field.

I will definitely continue to use Twitter. I enjoyed this assignment because, like having to comment on each other’s blog posts on a weekly basis, I was able to connect more with my classmates because we had to follow each other and had the opportunity to be able to tweet each other, share information, and see what other students had to say in their tweets. Actually, I think this assignment should be three weeks if not a semester-long, just like the blogging is. I say that because with our field, Twitter, as well as other social media network sites and apps, is way too relevant as I said before. Plus, it creates a sense of community with our class, especially since this course is online and we might not get to meet each other. Plus, some students might not continue to use if after only one week of getting to know the site. And they definitely should utilize such an awesome, easy-to-use tool such as Twitter! (Especially if they plan on being a public relations practitioner).

FUN TWIT FACTS:

• I got sucked into the site on May 2009
• I LOVE UberSocial app (fka UberTwitter)!
• But I now use Echofon since I don’t have a Blackberry anymore to be able to use the previous said apps
• The iPhone’s Echofon app is ONLY cool because of the Emoji app (which has the coolest emoticons ever)
• I have 1,423 followers on my personal Twitter account, yeah I’m a Twitter fanatic/addict
• I follow about 1,020 people – friends, news, celebs, etc.

What are your thoughts? Do you think their public relations team acted fast enough regarding the “event”? Why/why not? What, if anything, would you suggest they do differently? What is the main message Southwest Airlines is sending to its various publics?

The PR job did respond to the event by giving information and letting us know that they are in the process of inspections. However, I was actually surprised that there was no concrete apology in any of the news releases. I am currently taking Crisis Communication with Professor Muller. And the first thing that an organization or company should do is respond immediately of course but show some sympathy to the people who were inconveniently in a horrific situation. Were they refunded? Were they given a personal apology from the president of Southwest? Do they get discounts on flights for a year? What? Some persons (if not all) were on that plane as it plunged downward thinking they would lose their lives. The only main message to me that they were trying to pose was that they are in the process of inspecting all the planes so it doesn’t happen again. But it already did, so I think they should be kissing butt to the lucky passengers who survived. Maybe I just feel this way because I have spent all semester so far tearing apart press releases that are responses to crises (i.e. Tylenol, BP oil spill, KFC, etc.)! The releases weren’t apologetic. They simply stated the same information that the journalists gave us about the flight and what happened.

JASMINE STEWART

I love the approach you took with this post. I like that you wouldn’t reveal much to the 17-year-old you. And I guess life is best that way I’m opposite you though. I am totally opposite, just kept the same good qualities and enhanced them. I was a pushover and was scared and shy. So anyway, that’s my little two cents! You sound like a fun gal.

Commented on Khrys’s blog post @ http://iamkhrys.wordpress.com/2011/04/08/high-school-reflection/

You’re awesome! I love your persona, from what I have read on your blog. Oh and I’d have to agree on being at a confidence level now where what people say does not matter. I struggled with that so badly in middle school and high school. I felt that it was so important to be accepted and I was so shy and I wasn’t my own person at times… Lol at the “myspace” pic (I do not miss those days, haha)! It’s all about Twitter now! And lol at ISS. I went in there once because my older brother were skipping class goofing off :-p

Wow. Great question. What I think about high school Jasmine is that she was a naive, push-over who was scared to talk to people and who most importantly did not respect her parents. So in other words, I was a geek at school but a rebel at home. I just didn’t know any better. Those things have totally changed. I am now a confident communicator and a highly social person. I have a little more common sense and street smarts than I did back then. And I also have a really great relationship with my parents! Almost nothing is the same about my personality compared to now! If I could say something to myself, I would tell myself that my parents in fact DO know what’s best for me and that I should listen to them. I would also tell myself that I should not be afraid to tell people how I feel and to not let someone belittle me. I’d tell myself that those people will be a thing of the past and most of them are barely making it back home, so lift that head up and tell them to stop picking on me. Because one day I am going to bloom beautifully from that ugly duckling geek body and most importantly will have a college degree then an awesome career and they won’t be able to say a word!!