Maddy's Blog

Blogs: The Secret Social Media Weapon

Blogs are webpages that are dedicated to a specific topic written by a specialist on the topic. There are a hundreds of different blog topics on the internet, anyone can make a blog on anything they want. Blogs are great for PR and can be used in numerous ways to promote product as well as personal brands. This is discussed in the following article: https://problogger.com/7-ways-to-build-your-brand-in-the-blogosphere/. I agree with the ideas that asking bloggers for direct feedback not only gives you a chance to improve your brand but also get exposure. Bloggers are also so specific in their brands that there is a perfect blogger for every product/brand it just needs to be found.

Blogs are also excellent for the average person trying to build a brand/reputation for themselves. They are so great because they are low cost and very effective if done correctly. This is discussed in the following article: https://domain.me/key-strategies-for-using-blogging-to-build-personal-brand/. When you create a powerful blog with great content that will attract viewers the result can be amazing. It is even a good idea for companies to create blogs, it creates a personal feel to the company. Blogs can give people a chance to make money, spread awareness, and more.

As discussed in the following article: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/why-do-people-blog-the-be_b_8178624. People blog for a number of reasons. Blogs are such a great tool for professional growth because they give the chance to demonstrate knowledge and expertise while being relaxed. Blogs can be set up in as little as 20 minutes and create an instant reach for entrepreneurs, brands, and more. Overall, blogs are an underrated tool in growing and expanding a companies image, or even one persons image.

Twitter Scavenger Hunt

This week, we were tasked with completing a twitter scavenger hunt around Seton Hall University. We needed to talk to people around campus using several given prompts. The twitter scavenger hunt gave us both the opportunity to learn more about our school and come into contact with different students with different opinions. For example, our “Student on the Street” revealed that she only gets her news on twitter. This goes to show how modern day the average young adult/teen tends to rely upon social media for information. Interestingly, this was a contrast to the way the professor we interviewed saw social media. We both also enjoyed asking students about their school spirit and how they support the basketball team. One student discussed Bounce n’ Trounce, the 24 hour pep rally. Another student gave us his opinion on the men’s basketballs historic season. Seeing how excited students get over school sports gave us a different perspective on how the school comes together to support Seton Hall. We also learned how the Seton Hall community engages with students through extra curriculars. This activity allowed us to learn new things about our peers and our campus, and provided a new perspective on how students view Seton Hall as well as the surrounding area. One of the top tweets from the class was Catherine’s concerning the tunnels on campus. People seemed to engage with the tweet more, probably because it is an interesting subject. Another class highlight was Liam’s tweet about the leprechaun because he represents the same passion we saw when interviewing people for our hunt. Liam’s other tweet about the music and economics major at Seton Hall, this was something we chose to respond to as the topic seemed so interesting. All of Liam’s tweets had interesting introductions followed by compelling quotes. Kassidy’s tweet about Mooney Hall was an interesting fun fact about the University that many people may not have known. This exercise was fun; we got to learn new things and engage with new people. It was also challenging, as sometimes certain quotes were not as compelling as they should have been.

Social Media: The Instant Fixer-Upper

With social media becoming a critical part of the PR world modern day, its true power is finally being recognized and more importantly utilized. Years prior in times of crisis companies and PR firms were forced to wait days to put out responses in news papers or public service announcements. This allowed for anger to grow and even more issues to arise. As discussed in the article, https://www.earnedmediarising.com/?p=5425, having a timely appropriate response to crisis is what saves a companies image. It is drastic that the public is informed on what truly is happening and is also given a smart, fair solution. When a company works together and creates a timely well thought out response to crisis not only will it save their reputation but it will also improve it.

Social media also allows for companies to see instantly what is being said about them online and allow them to respond directly. For example, I received a bag of Lay’s chips with only 3 chips in the bag. I was shocked and angry so I tweeted them, not really expecting a response. I was shocked that within minutes I heard back from them and they agreed to send me coupons. This made me look at Lay’s as a company that is very one top of their customers complaints and thoughts. This real-time communication is explained further in this article https://www.huffpost.com/entry/realtime-social-media-cre_b_4102446?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly9zb2NpYWxzaHUuaG9tZS5ibG9nL3BhZ2UvMS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAImcupy4zq4sc3oaaAPby_s2O9Ql4QpSjIk2lNlSxlfXLBgWSog9AKxGlZFjI7emEyVorm56ERGF3iQ8CzApSUQdHayoi11jSD3v1ZTv6rlkeBlzH6WGYDuklTv02R9ZGMztFaF72KizFV5DUUf9RBavYb4ncihoqxtl85lVfvhF. I agree with everything the article is saying, if companies are not on social media directly responding to customers in real time they are missing out on a massive opportunity to make themselves more appealing in the public eye.

Overwhelmingly, social media has taken over the PR industry. Social media can save situations and facilitate positive reputations for brands. Having a well equipped team who understands how to properly respond to customers wishes and complaints is essential and can really save an organization.

Social Media: The New Power House of the PR Industry

As technology and social media further consume peoples lives the impact on related industries has been questioned. The industry that seems to be most affected is journalism/public relations. It is imperative that these industries learn to grow with social media rather than fight it and end up dying out. In the following article, https://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwynne/2014/12/09/the-future-of-public-relations-three-forks-in-the-road/#c65f443544ef

The author does not seem to see just how powerful social media is. Social media today spreads word like wildfire and is constantly updating, while newspapers are not at all as fast. Today, the average person consumes the majority if not all of their news through social media. It keeps one up to date in a way that written articles cannot.

On a different note, in the following article: https://www.economist.com/special-report/2011/07/09/the-people-formerly-known-as-the-audience the power of social media is recognized. I agree with the author on the idea that social media has broadened the amount of people who pay attention to news and actively attempt to learn more. On social media it is difficult to avoid massive trending topics. For example, I did not research the royal families dispute over the prince leaving the family. But, I ended up seeing it on a number of social networks and figured out what happened. Social media keeps the average person updated on trending news with minimal effort. This is what makes social media so unique, it makes it impossible to ignore the news. When newspapers were relied upon solely, far less people were informed because it is so easy to avoid.

In a different article, https://www.prdaily.com/5-ways-social-media-has-reshaped-the-pr-industry/ it is detailed how social media has reshaped the PR industry. I agree with the author on a lot of their points, one being how social media has increased crisis with brands. Social media can result in easy mistakes being made by brands that damage their reputation overnight. At the same time, social media then aids in this crisis communication through giving companies a chance to reach the masses and explain themselves through a number of platforms.

Social media has entirely changed the PR and journalism industry. It now controls the way these industries function and has taken away the old ways of solely using press releases. It is so important that these professionals learn social media and instead of fighting the change, embrace it.