Jonesrac’s Weblog

I am not going to pretend to know a ton about politics. I watch the news and read some Internet articles, that’s about as far as my interest in politics actually goes. I think that’s how most Americans are. There is always so much talk about the younger generation not voting. There are older women who run around my college campus asking if we are registered to vote. I don’t blame anyone for not voting. We turn on the TV and we are bombarded by the candidates throwing accusations at one another. I feel like I’m watching children bicker. Nothing is particularly wrong with any of the candidates, they are the same as all the others. But I don’t want to vote for a candidate who isn’t necessarily wrong for the position as the U.S President I want to vote for one who is right for the position.

With all the qualified people involved in politics I really wonder how we wound up with the three candidates that we have. Besides race, gender and old age there is nothing that sets these three apart. They are just more talking heads saying what they think the people want to hear but there doesn’t seem to be any substance behind any of them. I thought we had one genuine candidate but then he was eliminated. Mitt Romney should have been the next president.

I find it funny how all these companies and political candidates think that they will effectively reach the younger crowd by creating Facebook accounts. Facebook is a social network to find friends, I don’t want to be “friends” with clothing companies or presidential candidates. The older crowd trying to reach the younger crowd through Facebook reminds me of a mother trying to look cool borrowing her daughter’s clothes. There are many ways to advertise to our generation. We’ll respect you more if you leave Facebook out of the mix.

I spent my spring break in South Carolina. My family is considering relocating here from Pennsylvania. After graduation I may move there as well but it does not seem like there is much work there for PR Professionals. Anyone working in the PR field in the Charleston area let me know what you think!

There is all this talk in PR classes in college about these new ways to reach your audience through blogs, websites, Facebook, Myspace, YouTube, Etc. But it seems like when it really comes down to it most companies are still primarily using the old ways; press releases, media clippings, media pitches and so on. So is the old way of doing PR really dying or is it just combining with the new? 

The more I find out about crisis communication the more I believe this is an aspect of PR that I would really enjoy. I know that child services, police departments and other government organizations deal with crisis on a weekly basis. I was wondering if there are any savvy PR people out there that have any info about what qualifications these organizations look for in their PR representatives?

Advertising through blogs seems effective when the blogs appeal to people in the field of marketing, public relations and advertising. But if you aren’t interested in any of these fields it doesn’t seem that you are likely to get responses simply by blogging. At this point blogs are only read by a small percentage of the population. This may change over time but unless your target audience is specifically those who read and post blogs advertising yourself or your product this way won’t work.

So as I’m nearing graduation I’ve been looking at the different aspects of PR and there are sooo many. Crisis communication really intrigues me. A fast paced industry is definitely for me but I wonder what it is really like to work in this field. I would assume that your ethics and integrity are challenged daily and I wonder if I am really up for that.

The 3 rules in the Tipping Point certainly apply to planning a campaign on the Internet. The site must be contagious. I think the best way to get someone to visit a site is to have some type of mystery or humor involved. Humor always seems to be contagious. I know personally if I visit a site that makes me laugh I’ll share it with my friends and family. Also, when advertising a website it’s a good tactic that some companies are using now by not revealing the product in their commercials; this gets people interested.

Gladwell believes that change happens all at once. This seems more true for the Internet than other media outlets. Sites like Facebook, Ebay, YouTube, Myspace, Amazon and Netflix blew up so quickly. I think it is important though that once your site does become popular that you are willing to make changes to improve it based on your audinces’ suggestions or another site will take over.

The final rule in the Tipping Pointis that little causes have big effects.  Reaching the right people, constructing a site that everyone wants to come to and making the appropriate changes all effect the success of your campaign. But even one small story or controversy about your site that gets people talking could be the best thing for your campaign.

Watts’s argument against Gladwell’s theory about influentials makes sense. The real issue here does not seem to be the way in a which a product is sold to the public but what product is being sold. We discussed in class last week “products that tip” and fashion and music were two of them. So when marketing in these fields Gladwell’s way seems best. When buying necessities like home appliances, food, and Internet service it still makes more sense to market to a mass audience as Watts suggests. Every product and service sorta falls on this continuum ranging from trend to necessities. Once you know where your company falls it should be easier to know what kind of campaign you should launch.