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

Share This: Email or bookmark the post

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 (3459)

Share This: Email or bookmark the post

In 2006 Dell had 78,700 global employees, revenue of close to $56 billion and Fortune magazine ranked it as the 25th largest company on its Fortune 500 list and 8th on the top 20 list of most admired companies in the USA. They’re kind of a big deal. So it is all the more noteable that they are having the culture of their organization changed by embracing social media.

In this interview Paull Young is joined by Laura Thomas, Lionel Menchaca, Caroline Dietz, Arlette Salcedo and Jacqui Zhou from Dell’s social media team as they talk in detail about their approach to social media. They discuss how they have used tools like their Direct2Dell blog, IdeaStorm, Studio Dell web videos and a Second Life presence to start a new relationship with their customers through two way communication. They also talk about what they have learned from the process that has seen a shift internally in their company’s culture which has been matched by a shift in online consumer sentiment from 50% negative to 23% negative in just one year.

The Dell team will be paying attention to this post, so please take some time to check out their work and leave a comment - it’s a case study worth learning from.

In other Forward related news - if you are anywhere near Athens, Georgia this coming weekend (October 19-20) be sure to come along to the CONNECT social media and PR conference at Grady College. Paull will be presenting a case study on Forward and also a couple of breakout sessions on Second Life and podcasting.

Also, if you enjoy the Amish portion of our Forward Podcast rambling you’ll be excited to hear that Luke has started up his own show with his employer BlogTalkRadio. It’s called The Rundown, it airs live every Tuesday at 1:30pm ET and I’m sure it will be an enjoyable and informative listen.

Finally, the weekend after next (October 26-27) Paull will be attend Podcamp Boston where he’ll be presenting on a panel about Reputation Management for Digital Natives. The event looks like it is going to be an amazing learning opportunity and I hope our panel will be particularly useful for Forward Podcast listeners - be sure to say g’day if you’ll be there.

Technorati Tags: dell, social media, direct2dell, Ideastorm, Studio Dell, online engagement, online community, online monitoring, conversational marketing, online relationships, crowdsourcing, blogging, corporate blogs, corporate blogging

Listen Now:

 Forward Podcast 33 :: Social Media in Action at Dell [42:31m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (989)

Share This: Email or bookmark the post

Forward Podcast 31 responds to some recent hot debate in the PR blogging space about just how vocal young PR professionals should be, both in the office and offline.

This episode is an interview with Edelman’s Phil Gomes in response to his post about the importance of young PR professionals ‘managing up‘ - talking up to their boss or colleagues when they feel they have a deeper understanding of an issue. Paull and Phil also discuss the debate that has recently sprung up about whether inexperienced communicators could be doing their reputations harm by speaking up online.

The podcast ends with some brilliant thoughts from young PR professional and blogger Kait Swanson. Her thoughts really put Phil’s theory into practice from the point of view of a young communicator. She’s clearly a fair bit smarter than Paull and Luke, so hopefully she’ll start commenting regularly. Of course, you can join the conversation at any time by leaving a comment or sending us an audio file to include.

This episode is the second time Phil has appeared on the Forward Podcast, he was previously the subject of episode #6 on the dark art of podcasting. Paull has a post at his personal blog summarizing the numerous mentions of this debate so far, there are some excellent thoughts across the blogosphere that can teach a lot to young professionals.

In other housekeeping news, Forward will be the subject of a case study at the Connect: PR and Social Media Conference at the University of Georgia, Athens, on October 19-20. The conference is intended to educate public relations professionals and educators on social media and Paull Young will be presenting on the mission and history of Forward as an example of how social media can be used to attempt to help both young communicators and the industry as a whole move Forward.

We strongly suggest you take the time to read through the entire debate - there’s a post covering the conversation from start to finish at Paull’s blog. The discussion to date on this topic, from both experienced and inexperienced viewpoints alike, is really a case study of the power of social media to move our industry forward.

Technorati Tags: Phil Gomes, managing up, decision support, reputation management, pr blogging, young pr blogging, marketing blogging

Listen Now:

 Forward Podcast 31 - Managing Your Voice in the Office and Beyond [38:02m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1332)

Share This: Email or bookmark the post

Forward Podcast 29 is a conversation between Paull Young and Doug Haslam about Twitter and other new microblogging tools.
Doug is a Partner at Boston PR firm Topaz Partners and an active blogger and podcaster, of course, he Twitters like crazy as well.

Here Paull and Doug explain what Twitter is, why they like it, how it can be used for business (both for clients and personally) and share some thoughts on what young professionals have to gain from getting involved. More widely, they touch on the importance of networking both online and off.

Read the rest of this entry »

Listen Now:

 Forward Podcast 29 - Microblogging and Twitter [20:56m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (2545)

Share This: Email or bookmark the post

Forward Podcast 28 geeks out with Peter Shankman, CEO of The Geek Factory, a full-service PR entity with roots in the tech sector and a penchant for tossing people out of perfectly good airplanes. Peter is an outstanding PR professional with more experience than his young age belies.

Author of the recent book Can We Do That?! Outrageous PR Stunts and Why Your Company Needs Them, Peter detailed some fine points for young PR pros and students. Luke Armour and Peter chatted about how “different” can be good, how exercise is still a great creative jump start, and how karma just might be more than one of Peter’s cats.

Please leave comments for Luke or Peter below. Also, remember that Paull and Luke are still looking for your comments regarding the Forward podcast. Keep them coming.

Listen Now:

 Forward Podcast 28 - The Geek Factory CEO Peter Shankman [20:14m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (2669)

Share This: Email or bookmark the post

Episode 26 of the Forward Podcast is an interview with Mitch Joel, President of Twist Image and host of the superb Six Pixels of Separation podcast, about the importance of personal branding.

Mitch is one of the best people on the planet to talk to about personal branding. He is a highly sought after speaker and is currently writing a book on this very topic.

After listening to this interview you will understand what your personal brand is, the process you can use to start shaping and extending your brand and have some concrete steps spelled out for you to get started with YOU inc.

Read the rest of this entry »

Listen Now:

 Forward Podcast 27: Personal Branding for Students and Young Professionals [26:17m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (3731)

Share This: Email or bookmark the post

OR ‘why you shouldn’t listen to the Forward Podcast’.

In this edition of the Forward Podcast Paull Young and Luke Armour take you on a tour of all the best podcast sites for PR up-and-comers. They have both been plugged into the PR podosphere for some time and here they share their thoughts on which podcasts hold the most value for PR students and young professionals.

Podcasts mentioned in the podcast:

• For Immediate Release
• Inside PR
• Trafcom News
• New Comm Road
• Comms Cafe
• Six Pixels of Separation
• PR Junction
• Across the Sound
• Marketing Over Coffee
• On The Record Online
• Managing the Gray
• American Copywriter

To close the podcast, Luke and Paull ask for your feedback on the Forward Podcast - what do you think of it? How would you like to see it change? How can it better serve you? Please leave comments below.

Read the rest of this entry »

Listen Now:

 Forward Podcast 26: A Guide to the PR Podosphere [32:34m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (2831)

Share This: Email or bookmark the post

Forward Podcast 22 is an interview with Stephen Davies of prblogger.com about his experiences as one of the world’s first student PR bloggers and the young PR professional who has been blogging continuously for the longest period of time.

Stephen studied at the University of Sunderland in Northern England  and became one of the better known UK PR bloggers during his time there. His blog led him to a move to London for his first job with Edelman and he has since moved to leading UK Consumer agency Frank PR. 

In this podcast Stephen looks back at the history of his blog and gives insights into his success. Stephen’s experience with prblogger.com is a great example for other young PR pros and students considering entering the blogosphere to follow.

Read the rest of this entry »

Listen Now:

 Forward Podcast #22 - Young PR Blogging: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1452)

Share This: Email or bookmark the post

Forward Podcast 20 features a conversation with one of the world’s most experienced PR pros with online communities - Neville Hobson.

Neville is Vice President of New Marketing at crayon and is one half of For Immediate Release, the premier PR podcast. For this podcast he outlines his lengthy experience with online common interest communities and the relationships he has formed within them.

Read the rest of this entry »

Listen Now:

 Forward # 20 - Online Communities and Relationships: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1821)

Share This: Email or bookmark the post