Sign up for the inaugural Edelman Digital Bootcamp!

Where: University of Georgia

When: Saturday, March 1

Why: To gain practical, hands-on experience with researching, planning and executing a social media communications campaign.

The cost is minimal ($25 for students, $40 for educators) and that goes to cover the costs of materials and food — both of which will be provided at the event. Attendance is limited, so I encourage you to register online today! (Ahem, I don’t see any Auburn students signed up yet. I’m just sayin’.)

Okay, now that all those essentials are out of the way, I can talk about what this event means to me and why I’m so excited to be a part of it …

Right at the end of 2007, I had the pleasure of having lunch with Kaye Sweetser of UGA. We had a great conversation — chatting about social media best practices, the challenges of practicing and teaching online tactics, and some interesting case studies. We also talked about how GREAT it would be to do some sort of “social media bootcamp” to expose students and educators to social media and teach them the basics. Well …

A few short months later … here we are!

I think it’s clear that it’s a passion of mine to further the adoption of new media in the public relations curriculum. That’s why I started Forward. And even though I’ve been too busy to contribute as I should (sigh), I still think the great work that Paull and Luke do with the podcast contributes to the site’s mission. The PR blogosphere as a whole does an excellent job of evangelizing social media best practices. There are numerous events every year that serve to educate communicators on this new and growing medium. I hope that the Edelman Digital Bootcamp serves to advance this larger movement, as well.

I encourage you to visit the event’s site to learn the whole story about the event, grab a badge or widget to show your support, read the blog (written by students - so drop in and say hello!), and see who’s going to be there — both as leaders and participants. Oh, and don’t forget to join the Facebook group.

But I’d like to close this post giving kudos to the top-notch group of students working on this event. Dr. Sweetser set me up as a “client” for her campaigns class, so we’ve had a group of students working to plan and execute the logistics, publicity, Web strategy — everything! They’ve done press releases (both traditional and social), a media plan, communication strategy, arranged for lodging, the venue for event and reception, created the Facebook group, set up Flickr and Twitter, drafted Web copy and blog posts … you name it … they did it or are doing it!

So kudos all around. Just a few more days till the big event. If you know any students or educators who might be interested, pass it along.

Technorati Tags: pr, public relations, pr students, edelman digital bootcamp, uga, edb, ugaedb08

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Forward Podcast 39 is a conversation with Bruce Brodoff, recently named Assistant Vice President of Marketing and Communications for the Alliance for Downtown New York. Bruce Brodoff is a multiple-award winning communications professional who has extensive experience in communications, public affairs, marketing and advertising, and television news writing and production.

Bruce, formerly the Director of Public Affairs for the Alliance, started his career in Los Angeles seeking fame and fortune, but his interests and skills eventually led him to the communication field through many trials by fire. He worked for the Giuliani administration in New York City as the Director of Public Relations for the Mayor’s Office of Emergency Management. He transferred to the Economic Development Corporation’s marketing and advertising division, where he created advertising and marketing plans and materials that helped attract and retain companies in New York City as well as promoted City property, markets, and business assistance programs and services. Bruce was Director of Communications for the American Red Cross September 11 Recovery Program and subsequently worked as a Public Affairs Officer for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s FEMA Region II office during the Hurricane Katrina crisis.

Bruce keeps an excellent online portfolio (hint, this is a great idea folks) of his current projects, past experiences, job history, successes and contact information. You should spend some time reading more about him, his case studies and learning from this brilliant man and this site.

Show Notes

00:13: Intro by Luke Armour

01:00: Welcoming Bruce Brodoff

01:14: Who is Bruce?

03:12: The Alliance for Downtown New York

05:00: News Junkie heads to Hollywood

07:40: Trial by fire: Office of Emergency Management in New York

08:17: Writing skills are important?!

09:28: 2 years later – economic development corporation

10:42: Coming to communications from other disciplines

13:24: Networking

16:07: Personal Branding - Get an online porfolio

17:24: A News Junkie in 2008

21:00: Ideas from the unlikeliest of places

24:27: Setting yourself apart

26:08: Success Tips!

30:35: Crisis communication, “it’s cool”

35:33: Front seat to the greatest show on earth

37:37: Wrap up
Bruce has agreed to answer questions left in the comments here or you may feel free to contact him directly through his site. Thanks for listening to Forward Podcast 39.

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Forward Podcast 38 is an inspirational story of connection as Paull Young takes a look at the Frozen Peas Community that has risen up in support of Susan Reynolds.

Susan blogs at Case Notes from the Artsy Asylum and is recognized as one of the ‘most loved’ members of the Twitter Community. In December Susan was diagnosed with breast cancer - a journey she has been tracking at a new blog, Boobs on Ice and via her extensive Twitter network. As Susan began her personal battle, a remarkable story of connection and community sprung up as her online friends activated a support network through Twitter and other blogs in solidarity with Susan.
This resulted in the Frozen Pea Fund, a fundraising effort to support breast cancer research. If you’re new to this story, it has already been told better than I am able in the Washington Post. The author of that Washington Post piece, Craig Colgan (who also blogs at The Municipalist), joins us for this podcast as he discusses how he found this story through social media, took it through the editorial process and then joined the Twitter community (as @ccwriter) to follow the story even further.

It’s an inspirational story of the power of connection, caring and community. The story still continues and you can be a part of it by supporting the Frozen Pea Fund in any way you are able.

Show Notes

00:15: Paull introduces the podcast.

01:30: The interview begins as Susan Reynolds and Craig Colgan introduce themselves and share where they can be found on the web.

05:10: Susan, Paull and Craig explain what Twitter is (and Paull points to our earlier podcast on Twitter with Doug Haslem.)

06:30: Susan tells the story about the growth of her online community through Twitter and other social media venues.

10:30: Susan shares the back story that leads to her diagnosis with breast cancer and the story of the day she was diagnosed.

14:30: Susan continues to tell the story of the day she was diagnosed, including how she was Tweeting from her phone at the Dr’s surgery, without being able to see her friends response.

17:40: Susan tells the beginning of the PEAS as an emblem for her fight and her community.

20:30: Susan and Paull chat about the rise of the PEAvatars as the Twitter community showed their support for Susan by changing their avatars to feature peas as a symbol of support.

23:00: Paull asks Susan about how the rise of the Frozen Pea Fund came about through the work of Connie Reece, Cathleen Rittereiser and others.

25:45: Paull asks Craig how he first came across Susan’s story and how the story developed into his Washington Post piece.

29:30: Craig and Paull discuss the fluid relationship between traditional and social media that occurred around Craig’s WaPo story and Craig explains how the story grew extra legs through the support of the online community.
33:40: Craig shares his thoughts on the power of connection that are highlighted by Susan’s story.

35:50: Susan shares some of the things she has learned, along with some touching examples, from her journey with the PEAS so far.

40:30: Susan provides a call to action, highlighting some of the important ways she sees that people can help.

42:30: Craig points to the lesson he has taken from Susan’s story: “People are looking for reasons to connect, to help each other. People enjoy it, they love it. We forget this… but this shows us that people want to participate and do good”

Listen Now:

 Forward Podcast 38 - Susan Reynold's and the Frozen PEAS Community [48:16m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (3475)

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Hard to believe that another year has come and gone. As we kick off the new year, I suggest you take some time and reflect. Review 2007. Plan for 2008. It will help you start the New Year with a renewed sense of purpose, and joy for life!

1. Celebrate the best. Bury the worst. Take some time to remember the great things that happened to you in 2007. Celebrate them. If you had a hard time this year, or had a certain thing occur that really caused you pain, learn from it, then bury it and move on. Use the start of a new year as a reason to move forward. Stop looking over your shoulder and look straight ahead instead.
2. Renew old acquaintances. Find five people you want to get back in touch with and contact them this week. Old friend from college? Teacher/mentor? In this age of social networking, there is no way you can’t track them down. Say thank you. More importantly, tell them about you and learn about them. Renew the relationship.
3. Commit to doing less, better. In a column on to do items, this will sound funny, but make a don’t do list. Commit this year to do less, and to do those things better. Concentrate on what you really want to do, and say “no” more often to the things that distract from those goals.
4. Schedule at least one mental health day each quarter. Do it now. With the rush of the season, it’s hard sometime to plan ahead. Take time to figure out one day every three months that you can take off – just for you. Holidays don’t count! Taking this time can make you a better worker, colleague, partner. It’s a valuable investment.

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Seriously? What are are you doing to address globalization? 2008 is right around the corner and so is graduation or your next job or both. Chances are, as the world grows increasingly smaller, globalization will play a part in your career - and soon.

And to shake things up a little bit. Forward Podcast 37 will broadcast LIVE from BlogTalkRadio at 7 p.m. GMT / 2 p.m. Eastern / 11 a.m. Pacific on the Forward Podcast Channel. Since it’s live, we’ll be taking your calls at US +1 (646) 716-9941.

Who: Richard Bailey, Robert French, Paull Young, Luke Armour and YOU.
What: Forward Podcast 37 Live
When: Saturday, December 15th 7 p.m. GMT / 2 p.m. Eastern / 11 a.m. Pacific
Where: Forward Podcast channel on BlogTalkRadio

Tentative topics of discussion:

• Learning of languages
• Work experience overseas and in minority communities
• Issues like trade, aid, labor, climate change and religious fundamentalism
• What are you reading and watching?
• Whatever’s on YOUR mind

Don’t miss this special live show. Help us make history by making this the best first live Forward Podcast ever! But on the off chance you do miss it, you can catch the archive on the Forward Podcast Channel archive or through the Forward Podcast RSS feed, which I imagine all of you are subscribed to. Hear you then.

Listen Now:

 Forward Podcast 37 Live :: What Are You Doing to Address Globalization?: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (557)

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The 36th Forward Podcast is an interview with Penelope Trunk, author of The Brazen Careerist, Yahoo Finance columnist and popular blogger.

Penelope’s funny and insightful take on the evolving world of work has made her a sought after resource and in this interview we’ve taken the opportunity to make the most of her advice for twentysomethings in the workforce - the precise audience of the Forward Podcast.

Penelope covers a wide range of issues that the new generation of workers will be dealing with on a daily basis. Her no BS approach, sense of humour and hands on experience in the area seperates Penelope’s thoughts from the norm. It’s widely different advice to what you’re likely to hear from your parents, boss or university lecturer - but that’s precisely why it should be helpful.

As always, your thoughts and comments are welcome - we’d love to hear from you in the comments below.

Show Notes

00:14: Your standard ludicrous Forward intro

04:17: The interview with Penelope begins

Topics Discussed on the Podcast

• Opportunities in today’s workforce for young people and the myth of a job leading to happiness – “happiness comes from relationships, not jobs”
• Things young people might be doing wrong, including an over reliance on parents and taking the wrong expectations into the workforce
• Penelope discusses what she has learnt from starting a business alongside a pair of twenty year olds
• Penelope says that young people shouldn’t cater to a boss who doesn’t understand their different perspective and desires
• Young people struggling to adapt to a workforce that is not structured for their skill sets, goals or experience – “People spend their 20’s worrying that any misstep will mean they’ll miss out on the perfect life with a great job, great personal life and fulfilling relationships – the reality is this life doesn’t exist”
• The difficulties in the changes to social/personal life when you enter the workforce – “it leads to conflict when you are from the most socialized generation in history and you enter a workplace which doesn’t have a social life”
• The strengths young people have in working in teams, but the difficulties young people have when they must work as individuals in the workplace – “trying to translate your skill set to work can make young people feel really lonely”
• Penelope outlines the thinking behind her new company and her goal to allow young people’s voices to spread further and increase their authority – in short change the voice of Generation Y online
• Penelope discounts the concept that experience is the most important factor defining authority “
• The conservative nature of Generation Y, and why this is not a negative

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 Forward Podcast 36 - Penelope Trunk on Twentysomethings in the Workforce [41:13m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1453)

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Tuesday, Nov. 20
1:30pm ET
Listen here

For those of you who don’t know, our very own Luke Armour likes to spread his podcasting talents around … and he has his own weekly podcast at BlogTalkRadio. “The Rundown,” as it’s called, airs live every Tuesday afternoon and features Luke — entertaining as ever — and a guest or two discussing topics relevant to PR, marketing, the Web, etc.

Well, tomorrow, I will be Luke’s guest as we chat about Forward, PR, things I’ve learned during my first few years as a professional, and whatever else Luke chooses to ask me about. So if you’d like to listen in (and surely hear some audible LOLs from me, as I tend to laugh a lot when speaking to Luke), join us at 1:30pm ET tomorrow.

updated 11/26 with audio

Technorati Tags: pr, public relations, pr podcast, the rundown, blogtalkradio, luke armour, erin caldwell

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 The Rundown with Erin Caldwell: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (3569)

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Guest post from Auburn grad, Evyan Mischke …

Last Monday marked my second month at Evins Communications and looking back, I can’t believe I’ve only been here for 60 days. I feel like the advice I’m going to give to college students I heard over and over, but never listened to. The best word I have for the last two months is “whirlwind.” I thought I knew so much after my internship this summer, but that internship only skimmed the surface of public relations in NYC.

It’s important to keep in mind that the agency I’m at is small and my role here is a little untraditional. Technically, I’m supposed to work 50 percent on clients and 50 percent on social media. Finding the balance of this has been a little more difficult that I had anticipated. I’ve been thrown pretty quickly into two accounts and have been working on social media things on the side. However, my focus lately has been a lot more on social media and the company plan for 2008.

What does this mean for students who are about to be young PR professionals? To me, it means to give it all you can give. One thing I have learned is that it’s ok to be wrong, and it’s ok to ask questions (actually, a tip: I think they like it when you ask questions).

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Forward Podcast 35 hearkens back to Forward Podcast 26 :: A Tour of the PR Podosphere where Paull and Luke discussed other valuable podcasts for young PR pros. Forward Podcast 35 brings you Young PR Pros (YPRP), an online community of over 3600 young (and young at heart) PR professionals at all levels, in all industries, all across the world. Hmm, sounds a bit like Forward, doesn’t it?

Well it is similar, but different in technology and community. But it is another online place that PR students and professions should know about. YPRP started in 2001 as a Listserv (ask your parents) and is now a Yahoo! Group, a MySpace group, a Facebook group, and a MyRagan group. Not all are equally active, but all represent the same community of professionals sharing insights, advice and woes. Also, kickball, happy hours and successes, but you’ll have to listen for more.

Kevin Barry, moderator for all four groups, is a freelance writer, communications consultant and Facebook addict currently living in West Hollywood after numerous years working his way across the world. He is a testament to the YPRP community in action. He joins Luke to talk about what YPRP was, what it has become and how Forward helped.

Show Notes:

• 00:14 A warm welcome
• 01:25 Housekeeping:
• Paull phoned in from Atlanta from the Executing Social Media Conference for PR, Marketing and Communications at which he presented on Second Life.
• Luke spoke with the Bad Pitch Bloggers this week.
  
• 04:52 Interview with Kevin Barry

Please leave your comments for Kevin, Luke or Paull and be sure you’re subscribed to blog’s RSS feed as well as the podcast RSS feed in your podcatching program of choice.

Update: the original file had some audio overlap. This new one is clean. Sorry about that.

Listen Now:

 Forward Podcast 35 :: A YPRP Online Community: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (4753)

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At one point in time, I’m sure each of us has been victim — yes, victim — to a really, really baaaad handshake. Did you know … employers are more likely to overlook body piercings than a bad handshake? Seriously.

Personally, I’m not very forgiving of poor handshakes. There’s a broad range: too strong, too tight, too flimsy, too long, and everything in between. Mediocre handshakes are just … mediocre. But they’re somewhat more forgivable that the extremes of too aggressive or too weak.

I guess I have little patience for poor handshakes because it’s SUCH an easy thing to address! And the benefits of nailing a good handshake can be huge. Don’t you want someone to shake your hand and literally think to themselves, “Hmm, good handshake. I like this person so far.”? (Yes, I’ve literally had that cross my mind when meeting someone new before.) So what makes a good handshake? I would describe it as … firm, but not too strong, a brief pause without lingering, one or two small and solid shakes (from the elbow, not the wrist), with confident and friendly eye contact. It’s also good to step toward the person and lean slightly forward as you extend your hand. (By the way, I learned this from a workshop session with a career and etiquette coach. I’m not just pulling this out of my arse!)

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