SEO… Why should I know how to use this?

 

Are you asking the question, “What is SEO?” There are many ways that SEO can be defined. According to the lecture in Dr. Heflin’s class, SEO can be defined as, “the art and science of ensuring that the words and phrases on your website, blog, and other online content are found by the search engines and that, once found, your site is given the highest ranking possible in the natural search results.” To break this definition down, when you type in a search engine for something you are looking for typically you click on a result that is within the first or second page. In order for these search engines to find your website and (love it) and to place you higher on these pages, you must provide strong, relevant, frequently updated content as well as a well structured site architecture and intelligent linking.

Some of the key strategies to think about when using SEO are the following:

1. Think about your goals
2. Do your keyword research
3. Incorporate keywords
4. Get indexed
5. Develop and execute link building strategy
6. Create and execute content development strategy
7. Repeat 

You will notice that in two of these strategies, keywords were mentioned. Keywords are extremely important in developing content that search engines will love. When generating and using keywords you want to use them high on the page within the first 100-200 words. Variation of keyword phrases is important to provide content that isn’t being consistently repetitive. While using these keyword phrases you typically want to keep the keyword density between 3-5%.

These are just basic steps on how to start developing content that will attract these search engines to your site. For a very detailed explanation, I recommend visiting this video. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hF515-0Tduk) It provides step-by-step information on what SEO is, how to use it and how to use it your advantage. 

Social Networking In Our Hands at All Times

As I walk to class, I glance around at all of the other students walking also. If I could guess I would say 90% of everyone walking to their next destination was gazing down at their phones. While I know, I myself do this, it made me become curious as to what everyone was infused with on his or her phones. I started to become more in tuned with this and found that before I realized everyone else doing it, I was completely zoned into my phone also. As I walk to class, I usually am catching up on Twitter, emails & Facebook from the night before. I made it a personal goal to try to stop gazing down into these social networks and enjoy what was around me. I made this a test to see if I could do it. It started as me being able to do it half the walk but the part of the walk I wasn’t looking at my phone, I realized just how beautiful my surroundings were. Especially with graduation approaching, I needed to take a moment to step back and look around.

After testing myself with this little challenge, which essentially worked but let’s be honest as a public relations specialist, we are always in tune to what is going on via social media, emails and other Internet sites. Our job is to constantly be monitoring these sites for anything unexpected. Since I will be graduating with a public relations degree and know that social media is important in various ways, I began wondering what everyone else who wasn’t a public relations student was constantly doing on their phones. I began asking different people that I knew when walking to class what they were doing on their phones. 15 out of 13 of them were on a social networking site. Its hard to believe what we would do without our phones to provide us with apps and these social networks in our hands at all times. We almost feel disconnected or that we are missing out if being without a phone for several hours. Do you think this is becoming the norm? If so, should we embrace it or take a step back? 

Social Media is Important for YOU and YOUR Company!

Monitoring social media is extremely important for individuals as well as companies. Monitoring social media gives you the opportunity to find out who is talking about you and who is talking about your company. You are also given the opportunity to understand prevalent opinions about your organization and identify and address potential issues before they become problems. It’s not only important to monitor your individual social media accounts or organization’s accounts but also research on these social media sites to see what other people are saying about YOU and YOUR company.

Being in tuned to what people are saying about your company is very important due to how quickly word spreads through people communicating on social media. An example of the importance of monitoring your company on social media is through the video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YGc4zOqozo). This video is a demonstration on how important customer service is especially with the availability of social media to anyone and everyone. This man was flying United Airlines for a musical performance he had in another state and once he landed and picked up his luggage he claimed that his guitar was broken. He said that even after many complaints and asking for the money to fix his guitar, he received very poor service. This man felt as though no one was listening to him at United Airlines therefore he created a YouTube video about his experience with United Airlines. As of right now, this video has received 11,637,535 views.

This is a great example of how important it is for companies to be very conscious of their customer service and also the importance of monitoring social media. Poor customer service results in the “talking” of many people through social networks, which essentially could display companies in a very negative light. Consistently monitoring social media gives companies the advantage of fixing issues before they become large problems and also offering customers solutions that will help develop positive buzz about the company.

What Are Social Networks All About?

A social network can be defined as a social structure comprised of individuals who share similar interests or common bonds. The amount of people using social networks is increasing at a rapid rate. Wondering some statistics about social networks?

• Four in five Internet users visit social networks
• 73% of teens and young adults are a member of at least one social network
• Nine in ten U.S. Internet users belong to one social network

Do these statistics shock you? At first, they shocked me but as I thought about it more and how many social networks there are out there, I started to believe it! As I mentioned in the previous blog post, there are many social networks that one can join and be apart of which makes these statistics even more realistic.

Although there are many social networks out there, there are five that are categorized as “The Big 5.”

The Big 5 include the following social networks:

1. Facebook (171 million unique monthly visitors)
2. Google + (49 million unique monthly visitors)
3. Twitter (40 million unique monthly visitors)
4. LinkedIn (24 million unique monthly visitors)
5. Myspace (21 million unique monthly visitors)

These are the top 5 social networks that are utilized by social network users. Although these are the top 5 social networking sites, when you look at each of them closely, it is obvious that each of these social networks serve a different purpose to its users. Which social network do you belong to? Do you belong to more than one? Have you found these different social networks to be useful in their purposes?

If you don’t use these social networks, you might ask yourself, “why should I use social networks?” I’m fairly sure people who are unfamiliar with social networking sites have asked this question. Here are a few reasons why social networks can be beneficial to you!

Social networks allow you to participate in conversations and build and maintain relationships. For example, when using LinkedIn, you have the opportunity to have conversations with potential job employers and develop relationships with these connections that could be beneficial to landing your future job. Traditional marketing is expensive therefore marketing through social networks is a more inexpensive route as well as giving you the chance to build loyalty by solving customer problems.  

I found that this video demonstrated the importance of utilizing social media as well as the power companies could gain through being active on social networks. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOqRjNXxXBA&feature=related

What Social Networking Sites Are Out There?

As most of us know, social media is the way that people are communicating whether it is with family, friends, potential employers or clients. The list of connections people make through social media could go on for hours. This is becoming the place for many people of all ages to connect with others.

Here’s a little bit of history for those seeking the background information of social media. One of the earliest presence of social networking is dated to 1979, Usenet. For those of us who are newer to the social media era we might be more familiar with early social networks such as Dating sites, Online forums, Six Degrees, Live Journal and World of Warcraft. Each of these social networks allows people to communicate with each other through a variety of platforms and with people who share similar interests.

It wasn’t until 2002, when there became major advances in social networking. These major advances in social networking include, Friendster (2003), LinkedIn (2003), Myspace (2003), Facebook (2004-2005) and Ning (2007). The list doesn’t end there. Additional social networks include, Napster (1999), Photobucket (2003), Youtube (2005), Delicious (2003) and Twitter (2006). Each of these social networks serves different purposes from connecting with businesses, file sharing, photo sharing, video sharing, social bookmarking and communicating with friends and family.

As you can see, there are many different social networks that have become available to us. Not only are they available but we must take the time to learn how to operate these different social networks in order for them to provide us with opportunities and advancements in the work place as well as branding ourselves.

This video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SuNx0UrnEo) is a great depiction of the social networking advancement and also the communication opportunities that are within social media networks.

What APR 332 has taught me

From taking APR 332, I have learned anything and everything there is to know about public relations. Not only have I learned about public relations but also about finding a job in public relations, tips and techniques to interviewing and techniques to remember when being interviewed by the media. This class has given me knowledge in all aspects of public relations.

Some of the main PR tactics I learned are as followed:

• Grammar and AP Style
• PR Writing
• Public Relations Planning and Research
• Search Engine Optimization and public relations
• Public Relations Blogging and Social Media
• How to correctly write press releases
• Media Kits, Fact sheets, Pitch letters
• Public Relations Event Planning
• Features

These are few of the public relations tactics that I have learned from taking this class. I am confident that going into the public relations field that I will be experienced due to the knowledge I gained in APR 332. We were taught topics throughout the semester and asked to apply what we learned to our semester long project. This project is one in which we have to develop a relationship with a client of our choosing and work with this client to develop a SWOT analysis and plan of action as well as a press kit.

For my project, I choose Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Throughout the semester I have been developing a SWOT analysis and plan of action as well as a press kit that would be suitable for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. From working on this project, it has helped me apply what I am learning in class to a potentially real project that could be asked of me in the future work field.

PR Crisis Control

A crisis can happen at any time but are is your PR team ready to take crisis control?

On Feb. 16 news broke about Harvey Almorn Updyke, the man who poisoned Toomer’s corner in Auburn, Alabama.

“The weekend after the Iron Bowl, I went to Auburn, Alabama, because I live 30 miles away, and I poisoned the Toomer’s trees,” the caller told The Paul Finebaum Radio Show, saying he was at the Iron Bowl.

This news was portraying The University of Alabama in a very bad light since Updyke ended the phone call with “Roll Damn Tide.” As the investigation proceeded, it was found that Updyke has no ties to The University of Alabama but his actions were still reflecting the University of as a whole.

On Feb. 23, James Fowler, president of University of Alabama student government and Kurt Sasser, president of Auburn University student government announced that each university will plant trees on their campuses in a show of mutual respect. Fowler and Sasser described planting the trees in hopes that it would create a permanent and visible representation of mutual respect between both rival schools.

According to WHNT News, Fowler said, “Although we were terribly disappointed by the vandalism, we’re excited about working with Auburn to underscore the honor of the Iron Bowl. I know this joint venture will be a lasting monument to our rivalry for generations of students, alumni and fans to come.”

I think the actions that were taking from James Fowler and Kurt Sasser will significantly help the rivalry between both schools and help move forward from this the devastating news of Toomer’s trees.

This story demonstrates the PR tactics that were used in order to help find a resolution to Toomer’s Corner. Without the PR team, The University of Alabama could still be heavily represented by Updyke but instead of allowing this man bring the university down, we brought the university back up by making speeches, fundraising and planting trees to represent a mutual respect.

Public relations crisis control plays a major role in helping to make sure your company or organization does not loose their value.

http://www.whnt.com/news/whnt-au-ua-student-government-associations-to-plant-trees-in-showing-of-respect-20110223,0,3342076.story

 

Public Relations Department at The University of Alabama

As I joined the Crimson Tide family, I was unsure as to what I wanted to major in. I started as a Business major and soon figured out that was not the right major for me. I wanted to meet new people, be active and also have the opportunity to make a difference for a company.

As I explored new majors, my advisor recommended public relations. At the time, I didn’t even know what public relations was. As I read through the catalog and finally got a grasp on what PR was, I thought I would give it a try. My first class was Mass Communication and it was great! I found myself being able to relate information that we were learning in class to my every day life. As I began taking more classes within the PR major I knew it was the perfect fit. Each class not only kept my attention but I also found myself very interested in all of the topics.

On March 26, 2010 there was an article realized announcing that the PR Program at UA Ranked Among Top Education Programs by PRWeek Magazine. http://tinyurl.com/2d58qdj As I read the article, I found myself to be extremely proud to be apart of the PR department.

I am now in my junior year and have had the opportunity to intern with companies giving me more experience in the public relations field. Not only give me more experience but also an insight as to what the future holds in a year.

 

PR and Event Planning

 

The best part of Public Relations is event planning! It may just be me and my love for organizing and planning but the joy you feel when an event is successful is unlike any other. To an outsider, event planning could be seen as an easy task but when you think of the reality of planning an event there is a lot more work that is put into it than many think. Planning an event takes much strategizing and A LOT of organization. If you are not organized, planning a successful event will not come easy.

There are many strategies to keep in mind when planning a large or small event. The first step is recognizing the time you want the event, the location of the event and your budget for the event. Depending on the location and the time of day can significantly change how much you will be spending. After considering the time, location and budget you want to make a checklist. This checklist should provide you with a step-by-step guide to everything the event entitles. Having a checklist will help you to make sure that nothing is forgotten or left out. As you complete each step on your checklist, check it off and you will begin feeling accomplished!

After making your checklist, you need to consider whom you are promoting to. You need to think about if you are trying to inform, influence or entertain. This will make a huge difference in the set up of the event. Once your checklist is completed and your audience is recognized, you can sit back and watch your successful event unfold!

 

Social Media and Public Relations

Social media is the new way to communicate. Many companies are beginning to hire employees to work solely on social media. This generation has turned to Facebook, Twitter and Blogging as their way to get the word out. PR practitioners are turning to social media to get press releases noticed and spread the word about different products and events their company is promoting.

There are many benefits of using Social Media and PR. According to Dr. Heflin’s lecture the benefits of Social Media and PR are as follows:

• Saves money.
• Reach customers on their own terms.
• Generate positive recommendations.
• Facilitates 2-way communication/feedback.
• Increase customer loyalty.
• Involve customers in developing new products.
• Useful research tool.

Social media can be greatly beneficial to your company. However, there are some social networking tips to keep in mind. Make sure to always keep your publics in mind. Create groups, fan pages and applications to help engage your audience with your company. But make sure you are engaging publics and not interrupting them. Solicit and act on any feedback and make sure you are consistent with all responses. Always remember to avoid the sales pitch that drives your publics away!

There are many successful social media campaigns. In order for your social media campaign to be successful, you must grab the audience’s attention with a catchy phrase or logo. Something that will make them want to watch or read for more information about your product or event. A few successful social media campaigns are listed below:

• Old Spice http://tinyurl.com/3az36qw
• Skittles http://tinyurl.com/d4tez4
• Evian Roller Babies http://tinyurl.com/lquaov