Comments on Peers Blogs

In Katerina Torres’ blog she notes how qualitative research can be conducted on social media websites, more specifically, Facebook. Torres writes that Facebook offers many different elements to the website that would allow a public relations professional to engage in legitimate research. Torres mentions that Discussion forums on the popular website can be an excellent approach for PR pros to actually understand their publics and target publics opinions, likes/dislikes, etc. Torres also notes that these forums offer a duel opportunity for a PR practitioner to not only engage in qualitative research, but unobtrusive research as well. When a person posts on a Facebook wall, newsfeed, discussion, etc., they really have no concept of how many potential people can reach this message. Therefore, it would seem natural that PR pros could use these posts to unobtrusively study their targets. 

                Francesca’s blog also mentions how social media websites are quickly becoming an important research tool in the public relations industry. She notes how many companies, more specifically in the film industry, will post videos on YouTube and other sites to examine how their potential targets have reacted to a video, trailer, etc. Researchers can then wager what is the best approach to further disseminate their information into the media. Social media websites also offer the positive aspect of often being free, while other forms of research, such as focus groups and interviews, can often be extremely costly for a researcher or firm. Because of this financial save, it would seem like a “no brainer” for researchers and agencies to use social media websites as a main source of research.

Social Media Breakfast: The Present and Future of Social Media

                Quinnipiac’s Social Media Breakfast took place on October 15 and was led by Phil Simon, a Quinnipiac Graduate Communications Professor. The panel consisted of local Communications professionals, including Dan Weingrod, Kevin Downs, Kristen De Ferraro and Ben Kunz. The panel chose to focus specifically on four aspects of Social Media:

·         Social Media and Advertising

·         Returns on Social Media Campaigns

·         What strategies can Social Media Experts use to reach specific audiences

·         What’s in store for the future of Social Media

                Kristen Del Ferraro is a representative from Humongo, a digital marketing agency. Del Ferraro noted that Social Media has forced Media, as a whole, to be a much more cohesive entity. “Ads on TV and Billboards now have Facebook and Twitter tags,” said Del Ferraro.  “Media hasn’t changed. The way it’s produced and distributed has.”

                Throughout the seminar, all four representatives noted that a Social Media campaign is a necessary strategy for all members of the Communications field. Social Media is such a novel idea as a legitimate form of Communications, that many professionals have had difficulty adjusting to Social Media, as well as learning how to implement it properly into a campaign. “A lot of marketers don’t understand how to use Social Media,” said Dan Weingrod, a rep from Cronin and Company. “PR pros recognize that things change, and we have to deal with it. PR has reacted more favorably to Social Media than Advertisers and Marketers.”

                So what’s in store for the future of Social Media? Has it grown so quickly that soon it will be so common that it will become overkill? All of the members of the panel agreed that Social Media will become an extremely valuable resource in the Communications field as long as professionals know how to accurately and concisely reach their targets. If the professionals are not pursuing the interests and concerns of their target markets through their Social Media campaigns, there is chance that the followers will reject the outlet as a viable source to receive information.

Target Feedback: How Social Media Can Trump the Rest

The introduction of social media as a viable tool in public relations has forced pros to adapt to writing for the web. In her article “Writing a PR Plan to Incorporate Social Media,” Mary White does an outstanding job of highlighting the most essential differences in writing for online. White notes that public relations writing in the past focused on having your information “outbounded” to traditional mediums like newspapers and magazines. Writing for a social media campaign facilitates information directly to your targets on your social media pages like company websites, Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, etc.

White highlights that the most significant and important aspect of a social media campaign is the ability for the target audience to give direct feedback about the company’s product, service, etc. White writes, “Simply having a presence in social media outlets is not sufficient. You need to actively participate them [the audience].”

Public Relations is often defined as a means of two way communication between a company and their targets. However, traditional means of public relations often don’t allow for necessary feedback, or rather, communication, from your audience. While using traditional media sources, like newspapers, is a means of reaching your target, the feedback you will receive from the audience is minimal. One would need to read an article, and then go out of their way to contact a company about their responses. Articles, posts, links, etc. that are displayed on social media websites for a company usually have an option attached for reader commentary. This accessibility will often prompt most readers to give his/her response to the announcement. The heavy amount of feedback is without a doubt a strong component in future decision making.

 In a suffering economy, every company needs to be able to hear the wants and needs from their targets directly. I believe that social media often offers a duel pro for companies: It is often more cost effective than traditional media forms and offers an opportunity for audiences to give more direct and specific feedback.

QU Social Media Breakfast

Social media has become such a prevailing tool in the world of Communications that it is becoming a necessary component of education. For example, a major component of our Public Relations Research course is dedicated to weekly blogging, one of the most dominant forms of social media. The social media trend that is currently dominating the public relations industry has not gone unnoticed by educators in the field, specifically, here at Quinnipiac.

The graduate interactive communications program is co-sponsoring a Social Media Breakfast with Cronin and Company and Mediassociates. The event is scheduled to begin on October 15, and will continue to be held every six weeks throughout the remainder of the school year. The Social Media Breakfasts will consist of panel discussions by leading professionals in the Connecticut area, talk backs, presentations, etc. The main goal of this conference series is to establish discussion of how the emerging tool of social media can be viewed as a more permanent and respected aspect of PR, advertising, etc. in Connecticut. Cronin and Company, one of the sponsors, have used multiple forms of social media, like Facebook events, Twitter, etc. to gain more publicity for the conference.

It is essential for all PR programs and educators adapt to the constantly changing medias available. Students hoping to have a career PR need to have the appropriate skills to work in the multiple channels that have not only existed in the industry, but are beginning to emerge. “Our students are studying social media and to hear professionals discuss how it is used day-to-day is invaluable,” said Phillip Simon, director of Quinnipiac’s graduate interactive Communications program.

The first conference in the Social Media Breakfast Series will take place October 15^th at 7:30 AM. The series will be held each week in the Mancheski Seminar Room of the Lender Business Center.