CorporatePR

Thinking Back 5 Years: Global PR Blog Week

John Cass has asked alumni of the first Global PR Blog Week to answer some questions.  I find it impossible that it has been five years since that great event!

1) What was the significance of the Global PR Blog Week for you?

It was the first time the nascent PR blogging community came together to work on educating our peers.  Those of use who were early bloggers saw the potential of all the emerging conversational media, and were eager to share it, as well as frustrated by the huge amount of skepticism we were running into every day.  Now, five years on, our enthusiasm has been vinidicated.  But there is still lots of work to be done!

2) What were the lasting effects of the Global PR Blog Week?

Many fruitful collaborations were birthed as we all got to know each other and met new people.  I think we made a read impact on the global PR community, and many of us continue to strive to educate, encourage, criticize our peers.  The spirit of open collaboration and open learning continues.

3) How did the Global PR Blog week influence you and the industry?

I'd like to think it was successful in opening people's eyes to the possibilities of social media (before that term was widely used).  As I review what was written, much of it remains valid today.  Certainly we have seen changes, successes and failures, as well as a myriad of new tools, but many of the fundamental attributes -- or perhaps I should say attitudes -- of the online world haven't changed at all.

4) Reviewing the post(s) you wrote for the Global PR Blog week what has changed? What has not changed, since you wrote the post?

Certainly I think that people have become more sophisticated in their knowledge of how social media works, how to successfully use the various tools and so on.  But I think the emphasis on a human-centric approach has not, and will not, change.  That is the most important, and most difficult thing about communicating with people.  We still have a long way to go in loosening control and changing our mindsets about our "audiences".

5) Give an update on what you've been doing in the last five years, and what you are doing now?

The biggest change for me has been becoming a mother.  My daughter was born 2 1/2 years ago, and you can see the dramatic downturn in my blogging frequency since then!  I use Twitter and Facebook to fill in the gaps, but time for the type of writing I do has been difficult to find.  I miss it very much, but Ellora takes precedence.  The other big change has been my becoming a teacher.  I teach at two schools in Paris: ISCOM, which focuses on marketing and communications, and the Paris School of Business.  I really love it and feel like I am making a positive impact on my students' lives.  I keep a hand in by consulting, and I finished my master's degree and am working on my PhD.  No wonder I don't blog as much these days!

The Case of the Disappearing Comments

In a sign of things to come, I fear, a brouhaha has bubbled up over missing comments to a book review I wrote back in 2005 for the New Communications Review.  Author Gerry McKusker first commented to the review, then later sent me an email asking why his original comments to the review were not appearing after the site was redesigned.  Not being responsible for the site myself (I simply write for it from time to time), I passed on the request to the editor, Jen McClure.  Apparently, the issue has not been resolved over the past month since I passed it along.  For this, Gerry has the right to be irritated!

While this is getting resolved (as I am sure it will), I would advise Gerry to write another comment to the post addressing my criticisms.  I have no way of knowing if the original comment still exists in an archive somewhere, so in the interest of time -- even though it might be a bit of a pain in the butt -- I hope Gerry you can re-address the criticisms now, together with an explanation of why you are doing it again.

Why is this a sign of things to come, as I stated above?  Because linkrot and commentrot and trackbackrot are real problems as people move to new blog and publishing platforms over time.  The movement of past content from one to another is far from a seamless process (one reason I stay here on TypePad, I must admit).  The comments and trackbacks can be the trickiest parts. 

So, brilliant tech folks - help solve this problem!  In the meantime, I hope Gerry follows up with a comment to the review.

What Are Your Dreams?

That was the second question I got during a brief phone call with a prospective employer today.  (The first was, "When are you available?")  I admit it, I was thrown!  I babbled something in reply (she says with a bit of a cringe) because I really didn't have the perfect answer prepared.  I admire him for asking the question like that, as it surely creates an impact and probably gives him a basis of judgment for future employees.  A unique first contact, for sure.

Of course, when I hung up, I thought of the perfect witty rejoinder, "world peace" and a chuckle, then a more polished reply along the same lines of what I did say, which was (roughly) to work with a fantastic group of interesting people implementing social media projects in conjunction with traditional PR programs, across borders and disciplines. (I said it a bit more - well, wordily - than that, but you get the picture.)  But would that have been true?  Did he really want to hear standard interview "dreams" or something different?

Here's what I wish I had said:  "I dream of making a difference."  Then, more... "I'd like to work with people I respect and who respect me, a place I can continue learning and sharing the knowledge and wisdom I gain with others.  I want to do work that is interesting and that pushes the frontiers of communications practice forward.  I want to have fun doing all of this!"

So, now you know.  And now I need to translate that into French!

So You ARE Reading

For some odd reason I wasn't getting an email telling me about comments that I had received here.  When I checked my stats today, imagine my surprise when I had a bunch of them.  The problem is now resolved.  It is nice to know you are still reading my blog!  I was worried when I didn't hear anything.

Global PR Blog Week 3.0 In the Works

I was happy to read this morning that Constantin Basturea has decided to organize version 3 of Global PR Blog Week.  I participated in the first two, and believe that each made an important contribution to understanding the rapidly evolving world of PR.  Constantin is looking for ideas about what version 3.0 should look like.  Please drop by and let him know what you think.

The More Things Stay the Same

I have been dusting off my handy dandy RSS newreader for the first time in quite awhile, getting up to speed on what has been happening in the PR blogging world.  I have been really off line for a couple of months, so I was a bit afraid.  I shouldn't have been.  It seems like nothing has changed much...I've been reading the same old conversations about the same old companies.  There are a ton more widgets, gadgets, and gurus, not to mention the latest greatest Demoers/Crunchers. But the underlying stories are pretty much interchangable from 2007 to 2006.

Some random thoughts about this sameness:

• It tells me that most businesses are still trying to figure out this social media thing, and are nowhere near maxing the opportunities of Web 2.0.  For all the buzz and movement on top, the actual full-scale adoption of these new technologies is moving slowly.
• The same questions are still being asked, and there aren't a lot a new, solid answers.  (There is still the lack of good solid results-based case studies.)  This is probably one reason why things are moving slowly. 
• All of this is not necessarily bad.  At least I don't feel out of date!  But seriously, real world adoption always falls behind the hype.  There are tons of opportunities for improvement out there!

Of course, there are some companies that have done rather well in adopting the first social media technologies (I am using the term loosely here).  And this brings me to the question I have been thinking about over the past few days.  What comes next?  Once a company is providing a variety of RSS feeds, a series of blogs, a forum, a regular podcast and so on, what should they start to think about moving forward?  Microblogging? Virtual worlds?

I think the answer to that question has to be examined through the lens of network building.  As I have written and stated in multiple arenas, I believe that the role of public relations today is to build and facilitate networks of people connected to a company, both strongly and loosely.  I also think we need to empower these people to speak on behalf of the company.  This being said, when we evaluate the plethora of new tools becoming available, we have to figure out if they will work for our specific organization's network building activities.

One area I think is relatively unexplored is cultural activity.  What is possible beyond a photo in an employee magazine of a gifted employee's painting or cultural event?  As our work and personal lives are ever more intertwined, is there a way to encourage the sharing and expression of culture on a corporate website via social media tools?  Maybe it would be easy to start with a photo sharing/comment platform where employees, customers, visitors comment on cultural events (a play, a painting, a wine tasting, etc.)  Sure, one could argue that these types of commentary are superfluous to one's core business.  And yet, by knowing each other better as human beings, wouldn't this create trust and connections?  There are already successes in this area through companies who have let their employees blog about whatever they want.  But I think there are ways to do this beyond the blog.  And it might just make the world a little bit brighter.

Update on the Social Media Front

You might be wondering, "Where in the world is Elizabeth?"  Yes, I admit I haven't been blogging much lately.  I had a huge project with a very tight deadline for the last three weeks in October, so blogging really took the back seat.  In addition, I am working on several papers for my master's degree, so I have spent more time reading philosophy then blogs.  But I am thinking about digital identity a lot!

So what has been happening lately?  First, the SNCR held its first annual Research Symposium in Boston last Thursday/Friday.  Congrats to Jen McClure for organizing another great event.  I was unfortunately not able to attend (my travel schedule has been severely curtailed by my doctor for the next few months as I am awaiting an exciting new addition to my family!), but it sounds like our 2007 research schedule is shaping up to be ambitious and relevant, with a particular focus on measuring online influence.  Sally Falkow has taken over for me as Research Committee Chair, given my time is going to be limited during the first half of the year.  (Thank you so much Sally!).

The 2006 SNCR Awards Winners were announced at the event (press release) - congratulations to all!  You can read their case studies here.  The first issue of the Journal of New Communications Research was also published.  You can download or purchase a copy here.  I have an article in it which lays out my network model for communications that I have been talking to audiences about for a year.

In other activities, back in September, I wrote an article on RSS in Corporate Communications for PRSA.  You can read it here.  I have another article appearing on comment platforms, like Digg.com, Flickr, YouTube, etc. in the print version of PRSA's Tactics, but I am not sure if it is published yet, as they don't list their table of contents (that I can find, anyways).  Please let me know if you see it!

The next Delivering the New PR conference takes place in London on November 10.  I will not be able to be there (as explained above), but I wish my fellow presenters, Stuart Bruce, Neville Hobson, Tom Murphy, Chris Rushton and Philip Young all the best! [Speaking of Philip, the EuroBlog 2007 Survey started yesterday. If you are a PR person in Europe, please spend 10 minutes answering the questions, as it will provide us with valuable insight into how things have changed over the past year.]

That is it for now!  I am forgetting to mention a variety of things, I am sure, but I'll be back...

Advice for Bloggers on Approaching Companies

Mike Manuel has published a must-read post for bloggers who are trying to get information, product etc. from companies.  He offers a few simple tips that would make life easier for everyone involved.
As PR people, we are constantly being lambasted for our inefficient, badevilhorribleunethical ways by bloggers.  While, unfortunately, there are some folks out there practicing bad PR, most of the people in the profession simply want to do a good job.  But in order to do that job, we need some pretty basic information, provided by the blogger (or journalist for that matter), such as your name, purpose of your blog, what you want from the company and why, and some contact information. 

While it would be nirvana to the PR person for you to explain your biases, your opinion of the company and other such items, we honestly don't actually expect you do to so. (We'll figure that out as we read your blog, etc.  Sometimes we'll be burned, sometimes we won't, that is all the nature of the game.)  But it isn't too much to ask for some information so we can get you the right data, line you up to talk to the right person, and so on.  If you provide all that, and we screw up, shame on us (and I'm sure you'll let us and all your readers know!).

Commenting on This Blog

I have moved to comment moderation on this blog starting now.  Last week, I mentioned that I was starting authentication, using TypeKey, but I decided that requires too many steps from readers.  I don't want to dissuade commenters.  Therefore, to combat spam, I am now moderating comments.

I will delete comments that are spam or clearly have nothing to do with the discussion at hand.  I won't delete comments that disagree with me, but please use appropriate language.  I don't like lots of profanity and nastiness.

I will do my best to approve comments quickly.  With time differences, however, please be aware that some of you might see a significant delay if you post something during my night!

Please do let me know what you think about this.  I really didn't want to have to do this, but sadly, it is pretty much a necessity these days.

Comment Authentication

Given how much comment spam I have been getting lately, I have made Typekey authentication mandatory.  I haven't gone to moderated comments yet, but I will if that doesn't help.  I do apologize for the extra step for those of you without TypeKeys, but once you sign up, you will see your comments appear immediately. Please let me know if you experience any difficulties.