Believe it or not, I am writing a post advocating not using social media. If you bear with me for the entire post, you’ll see that I’m a proponent for students using social media to advance their careers. But, like misguided companies who sign up for Facebook “just ’cause,” students shouldn’t sign up for various social media “just ’cause.”

Without further ado, here are five reasons students should not be using social media:

1. Don’t use social media if you see it solely as an opportunity for shameless self-promotion. Trust me when I say you’re not making any friends if the only thing you post on Twitter or Facebook is links to your blog posts, announcing who you’ve met and other content that generally inflates your ego. Self-promotion needs to be done very carefully and strategically. I recommend focusing on building relationships with those you meet and adhere to the 70/30 rule: share 70 percent content from others and around 30 percent of your own.
2. Don’t use social media if you only want to complain, talk about what you’re eating or hate on everything. “Ugh, I HATE my professor!” “OMG, FML. I have a paper due tomorrow and I haven’t started .” If this is you and if you see a lot of it in your stream, avoid it. Sure, it’s OK to be human and complain, but no one likes a Negative Nancy. Think before you post and you’ll thank yourself later.
3. Don’t use social media to talk about how drunk you are. If you want to post how drunk you are on Facebook… don’t. If you want to post on Twitter how many shots you’ve had… don’t. Honestly, it’s just not worth it. Even if you’re 21, it overall reflects poorly on your character and might offend those in your network.
4. Don’t use social media to replace offline networking. This is my biggest pet peeve. Social media absolutely does not replace the value of in-person networking. Make sure to stay active in associations and go to conferences–that’s where you meet people.
5. Don’t use social media for the sole purpose of getting a job. You can tell who’s using social media to get a job and who’s using social media for its real purpose. I think it’s great to participate in #HAPPO and #PRStudChat, but once those chats are over, try to avoid constantly advertising yourself as a job seeker.

Looking at what I’ve written above, it makes me sound like a social media elitist. And I’m not. I think social media is a great place for you to show your genuine personality and to build relationships with others. These are things that will not help you do that. In fact, you’ll probably be ignored and unfollowed if these are the only things you use social media for. All in all, just be smart and use your best judgment.

So, what do you use social media for? Anyone have any interesting perspectives they would like to share?

Photo by woodleywonderworks on Flickr.

Continuing with my recap of the Chicago PR: Get in the Loop posts (recap of the keynote here) , I attended a session hosted by Amber Naslund on “Measuring and Analyzing Social Media.” I’ve been following Amber for a while on Twitter and read her blog religiously (check both out).

Even though our session was only 45 minutes, I could tell Amber could lead a conversation about measurement for hours. In mostly Amber’s words, here are some of her tips:

• It’s critical to set measurable objectives. Your objectives should relate to reputation, awareness, money, engagement, education and entertainment. Find out what’s measurable for these subjects and get to work.
• Start with benchmarking. It’s easy to set a goal or objective, but it’s important to have an understanding where you are at this second before setting goals.
• The ultimate metric is how much money you make through business efforts. The best digital efforts are the ones who are actually making money through online strategies. Remember to be strategic and not just hop on the tactics bandwagon.
• ROI is only one measurement. Executives are looking to see if their investments are worth it, but there may be more to the picture than just measuring ROI. I came in to this session thinking that it’s all about ROI. Amber told me no. I believe her. What comes after ROI isn’t totally clear and you need to guide the measurement beyond just ROI.
• You should always be learning something new through measurement. You can easily get lost on mounds of data, but if you’re not analyzing what’s being said about your company, you’re missing a huge opportunity to engage your community.
• Sentiment is a good guide, but a bad metric. It’s important to understand sentiment in posts but quantifying other things is more important.

Below is the slide show, courtesy of Radian6′s Slideshare page:

Overall, I really enjoyed the presentation. Amber is wicked smart and she made us think big in terms of how we can apply these measurement standards in social media. However, I left with more questions than answers. I suppose that’s both good and bad. I know I have a lot to learn on the subject, but it is so subjective.

How can you learn more about measurement? Any practical advice out there?

Like many people, I’ve been reading a few articles here and there surrounding NBC’s decision to replace Conan O’Brien (or Coco, for those who are particularly close to his show). While Conan may not have been bringing in the ratings NBC was looking for, it appears the influence value Conan brings to the table is far greater than strictly traditional television ratings. To me, this is another example of incorrectly applying traditional measurement techniques in order to measure success.

It’s a little late to take back all the legal issues and settlements. However, some important lessons were learned. Besides never making a comedian mad, NBC [hopefully] learned never to miss out on a huge opportunity with community. A colleague, Rebecca Denison, asked on her blog how to quantify the measure of influence. It appears that Conan wasn’t big on TV ratings, yet he leads an enormous groundswell online. Instead of giving up, NBC should have found another way to capture Conan’s community. With a few witty tactics, Conan single-handedly armed millions of people against the network. He could have done the same, but instead arming millions of people to support NBC.

Where is Conan’s blog? Is he on Twitter? Does he have a YouTube channel? It appears Conan was not part of the groundswell until after NBC was talking about getting rid of him. In looking over the POST model from Groundswell, NBC broke the first part. P – People. Conan is popular among 18-34 year-olds. This demographic is active on social networks, yet the Tonight Show isn’t. It was only a matter of time before someone harnessed the power of this groundswell; Conan managed to after NBC wanted to get rid of him. Even though Conan is out of a job, guess who lost a lot of loyal stakeholders?

Even so, Conan is still out of NBC. I think it’s best to cite “irreconcilable differences” for this divorce. So, what’s next for Conan? I just read a piece in the New York Times recommending Conan skip the time slots and make the Internet his time slot. If I had to guess, I think Conan will continue to harness this groundswell online. Whether he joins another network is up in the year, but his Internet presence is here to stay.

So, until NBC figures out what they’re doing, I’m with Coco. I wish him the best of luck with his $30 million and his next oppounity online. Are you with Coco?

Original photo with more “I’m With Coco” swag can be found here.

About one year ago, I wrote a post talking about what the public relations industry would look like in 2009. I also took a look at some other posts and I was surprised at how much I learned since I started blogging in September 2008. It’s interesting, to say the least.

Anyway, did what I “predict” come true? For the most part, I discussed some macro trends that were bound to impact the profession; nonetheless, most were pretty relevant in 2009. Here is some discussion on then vs. now:

Diversity of the industry

Has the industry really focused on diversifying itself? I don’t believe this was one of the overarching trends of 2009. My perspective on the issue has changed a bit, especially after more professional experience. I think what’s doing the best job of diversifying the industry right now is the rise of social media in public relations. Most people don’t have a degree in social media, so many people jumping on the PR ship have backgrounds in Web development, advertising, marketing, writing and consulting. All of these add a great amount of depth to the industry as a whole.

New standards in PR education

In the past year, I’ve been doing a lot of research on PR education; specifically, I’ve been assisting developing a course. I’m proud to say I’m going to be an assistant instructor next semester in new media relations course. When I simply stated last year that PR education needs to change, it was a shallow statement. Perhaps professionals need to be more in tune with the academic side of the profession, especially in terms of digital research. In any case, PR academics and professionals should find more ways to collaborate. Social media is one of those things that practitioners and academics can work together on to set metrics and evaluate trends.

Is PR social media?

A lot has happened in 2009 relating to social media, but one thing is certain: social media, by nature, is part of public relations. Case studies are emerging. Digital practices within public relations agencies are expanding. Unfortunately, those claiming to be social media experts continue to become more numerous. The point is that social media is part of public relations strategy. As many have said before, signing up for a Twitter account and making a Facebook page are tactics, but it’s important for social media to be part of your overall communications strategy. More streamlined social media efforts will definitely be a theme in 2010.

Advocacy for the profession

Lucky for me, PRSA launched the Business Case for Public Relations, and no, I didn’t know they had this in the works. While this is a great start, it’s up to the practitioners to take it to the right people and demonstrate the business outcomes of public relations strategies. If you’re a young pro, it’s a worth reading through. It even helps in describing public relations tos a friend or family member. This is so important for the profession and I hope the discussion occurs beyond our own industry.

The new wave of professionals

I’m still a proud member of this group and I believe in what my generation brings to the table. Many of my fellow PR student bloggers raise issues, lead deep conversations and improve the profession, as well as those offline folks. I’m excited to see this generation obtain leadership positions and make an impact on the industry.

So, where does this bring us to now? I posted some thoughts on the PRSSA Blog about what I think some emerging trends are that will have an impact in 2010. However, it’s tough to predict.

Photo by Optical Illusion on Flickr.

One of the perils of having a lot of PR student connections in my own network, especially lately, is being bombarded with Facebook fan page suggestions for a lot of junk I’m not really interested in. I don’t mean to sound rude, but I think this is one of the negative aspects of having an intern do your social media. I just defriended a connection who invited me to the same lame Facebook page for the fourth time, so that’s what sparked this post.

I know there are two sides to the topic of interns running social media, but when it comes to gathering Twitter followers and Facebook fans, you need to be strategic about your approach. About a month ago, Gini Dietrich posted about the issue of social media interns, and it’s a good read if you didn’t know interns are running a lot of social media programs. If you do have an intern running your social media, here are some tips from me as a human being and a PR student:

• Don’t assume your connections are going to be interested in a local restaurant 2,000 miles away or an organization that means nothing to them. When you are inviting friends, make sure you know something about that person that would lead them to be interested in your cause or company. Even better is to make your organization relevant to other people.
• If someone isn’t interested in that cause of company once, they will not be interested in it a second time. Nor the third, fourth, fifth… etc. When you request something from a connection more than once, you become a spammer. A lot of people don’t like spammers, so don’t be one.
• What’s in it for your followers? Anything? Then no thanks. I rarely follow companies on Twitter; when I do, it’s because they occasionally offer something free or provide me (and the rest of their followers) with exclusive information or content. Social media shouldn’t be another channel for the same message. Pay attention to your audience and know what they are looking for.
• Social media isn’t about quantity, it’s about quality. Just because you conned 1,000 of your Facebook friends to become a fan of your company’s page does not mean it’s going to benefit your company. I would take 50 quality connections who are genuine fans over 1,000 randoms any day.
• Make sure you spend time with your community. In general, you should be simply interacting about two-thirds of the time and promoting your organization the other third.

What do you think? Do you see this problem a lot? How do you respond? Any best practices you can share?

Photo by Mulad on Flickr.

Lately, I’ve been looking for some alternative ways to lighten up my reading load without losing pace on keeping up on news and trends. It’s finals season at MSU and I’ve been reading (and rereading) a lot lately, and I’ve found a nice break in podcasts. For starters, most are free (every podcast on my list is free). Also, the shows are portable if you have an iPod; just subscribe to the shows of your choice through iTunes and download the shows daily.

Here are my five recommended podcasts:

1. New York Times: Front Page. Read by James Barron, this podcast is a daily sample of the items discussed on the front page of the New York Times. It’s a nice way to start the morning and to hear a little bit about what’s going on in the world.
2. NPR: Talk of the Nation.  In contrast to the above NYT podcast, Talk of the Nation is more a more in-depth analysis of issues facing the country. I think this is a great compliment to academic studies because the conversations here are very thoughtful and I’ve noticed some things I learn in class, especially relating to economics and political science, are discussed here.
3. PRSA Conference podcasts. By now, you know the PRSA and PRSSA Conferences are great. If you missed it, or if you were there and missed some of these sessions, these podcasts are great professional development opportunities.
4. The Creative Career. Allie interviews authors and professionals who discuss their careers and give advice for young professionals. This podcast is very helpful and something we all can relate to.
5. Buzz Out Loud. Have you ever wanted a talk show about technology? I know I have. BOL is a great recap of the day’s news on everything relating to technology, the Internet and social media. Each episode is a bit lengthy, but it’s good background noise or exercise entertainment.
6. New York Times: The Ethicist. I love this show. It’s helpful in understanding daily ethical dilemmas we face, but also quite entertaining, too. Read by Randy Cohen, he answers questions from readers about how to resolve situations the ethical way. If you think Randy Cohen is as cool as I do, check out his blog.

What are your favorite podcasts? Anything to add?

In the past couple of days, two articles have stood out that relate to democracy and social media. Maybe it’s constitutional law this semester that has red flagged those articles for me, or maybe it’s my genuine interest in our government. I’ll let you decide.

During President Obama’s recent trip to China, he answered a question about Twitter (this made Mashable really excited), but in his answer, he also discussed the importance of listening to both sides. Like him or not, it’s good to see that he values pure freedom of speech. Here’s his exact quote:

“I should be honest, as president of the United States, there are times where I wish information didn’t flow so freely because then I wouldn’t have to listen to people criticizing me all the time. But because in the United States, information is free, and I have a lot of critics in the United States who can say all kinds of things about me, I actually think that that makes our democracy stronger and it makes me a better leader because it forces me to hear opinions that I don’t want to hear.”

Google Scholar also launched a feature that allows users to access full text legal opinions from U.S. courts. First, I ask where this feature was when I spent $120 on my constitutional law textbook that is virtually the same thing. But more importantly, this just goes to show you that government is opening up. Because of the Internet,  you can find for yourself why Plessy v. Ferguson was decided the way it was, as well as case precedents for civil rights, abortion, right to privacy and beyond. You don’t need to be a lawyer or a politician to understand these cases and how it’s impacted American history; you just need the Internet.

Remember that the United States is not a pure democracy; we’re a representative democracy. We hire people (often those who are truly incapable of getting anything done) to make decisions for us. We have it a lot better than many people around the world and we should recognize that, but we should also recognize the opportunity that is in front of us.

Government, like organizations, is slowly but surely opening up. Although I might be biased, I think public relations has the opportunity to be the leaders and counselors of this practice. Public relations practitioners can lead this charge and uphold high values of honesty, ethics and professional behavior. Sure, there’s a lot of optimism here and there will be hiccups along the way, but ultimately, I think society will end up open because of the Internet.

Do you think we will be in a better democracy because of new digital tools? Will government, like companies, open up for people?

Photo by kylerush on Flickr.

I like social media. I keep on top of digital trends and like to play with new tools. I’m even a big fan of things in “real time” and sometimes let it take up too much of my day.

That said, I fear the constant stream. I feel like the constant stream is hard to keep up with and really distracting. If you haven’t read the WSJ piece on the end of the email era, you should definitely check it out. Just as a quick summary, the article talks about how e-mail is slowly but surely being replaced by social media and the constant stream it offers. The article points out that as of August 2009, there are 230 million e-mail users in the U.S., while there are around 300 million social media users.

So what is the constant stream? With such tools as Twitter and Facebook bringing streaming updates to you in real time, as well as RSS feeds, instant messaging, direct messages, social media messages, etc., you can be in constant contact with your friends, family, colleagues and clients. While this might be helpful in business, I think it’s more distracting and has a direct impact on productivity, therefore lowering your business value.

Here’s why I believe that social media should not and will not replace e-mail:

• E-mail is going to evolve. In case you don’t know about Google Wave, it’s a pretty cool idea, though it appears to have some kinks in this first version. However, e-mail is going to change and become something like a Wiki or other collaboration tool. It just has to change.
• People are afraid of working 24/7. With the contant stream, you’ll always be swimming in the river. If you get out, you will get behind. And you might not hear about the Indonesian earthquake. Or that Chris Brown hit someone else. Oh no! Keeping up with this stream is far more useless than helpful.
• It’s not productive. In a river, when can you ever stop and figure out what you’re even working on? I have found that I really need to turn everything off when I focus on something. The constant stream, while helpful at times, can get in the way of more intensive projects. And don’t even think that jumping between projects is really easy — you know it takes time to settle down and get focused on one thing.
• The status quo will reign supreme. I know when I get in a Twitter/Facebook mood, I don’t really get anything else done. Sure, I get caught up with who’s doing what and what cool things are happening today, but what do I actually work on? I think that it’s easy to get stuck doing the same things with the constant stream, especially since it is so hard to keep up with. How will you ever have time to change?
• Can you justify it to your clients? This is a very sensitive subject, especially since there are people on polar opposites of the issue. In public relations, or even with law, business consulting, and freelancing professions, clients are billed for the work you complete. Is keeping up on your own constant stream billable? I wouldn’t think so, and I don’t think companies are going to be willing to pay for things like that.
• I just don’t want to be in constant contact with some people at this second. There, I said it. I don’t want to have a 30-minute instant message conversation when a phone call could resolve something faster or a couple of e-mails at a later time would be just as efficient.
• Other people can’t prioritize for me. If I’m always available, that means I’m leaving my prioritizing up to other people. That usually means everyone is having a crisis, which is usually not the case. E-mail and traditional communication allows me to prioritize my own time, while the constant stream leaves no room for self-prioritization.

I do believe a lot of good can come out of a constant stream, but because tools and technology is changing so quickly, it’s incredibly hard to keep up with. The constant stream is a shiny object we all stare at, but we have to remember the pile of paperwork on our desk we need to get done, too.

What do you think? Is the constant stream really this bad or am I just full of resentment? Any ways to make the constant stream more efficient?

Photo by somegeekintn on Flickr.

As if the ad industry hasn’t seen enough bad news lately, a new study found that two-thirds of Americans polled don’t agree with advertisers tracking their online habits. Here are some of the key takeaways from the research (as reported by the New York Times):

• 66 percent of Americans believe tailored ads are “not OK”
• 7 percent said such ads are not OK when they are tracked on a site
• 18 percent said ads are not OK when they are tracked by another site
• 20 percent said it is not OK to be tracked offline

In addition to the bad news for advertising, the research showed that 51 percent said tailored discounts are OK and 58 percent think customized news is OK. The article then went on to discuss several forms of online privacy legislation that could be introduced soon.

So, to sum up the research, Americans don’t want to to be tracked online for data purposes, yet a majority still want free stuff and tailored news. It doesn’t make much sense to me, mostly because I’m looking at it through a marketing eye and know that online content isn’t even sustainable with this kind of advertising, let alone advertising that is not tailored. This research is interesting because younger generations seem to have a more liberal perception of online privacy, while older generations are cautious with anything out there. No matter what, it seems this is just the beginning of the age of anti-advertising and it probably will be around for a while.

People have always wanted stuff for free and the Internet conceptualized people’s wildest imaginations in terms of information access. However, we’ve become so used to free that it will be hard to wean off, especially since the imminent rise of paid content and the limited access Web is beginning to emerge.

In terms of the legislation, it’s bad news for news outlets if it passes. Even though the industry is trying to self-regulate, the research shows people are more concerned about the idea of being tracked online. While many Web sites like the Times itself are free, this will probably have a negative effect on online ad sales. The free Internet model will once again come into question and unfortunately, it will most likely make Rupert Murdoch look really smart.

So, what’s next? Where will advertising turn next in the age of anti-advertising? How does this impact public relations?

Photo by Alejandrooo on Flickr.

Lately, it seems everyone is looking for black and white rules when it comes to students and recent graduates trying to use social media in the job search. As such, a ton of advice is being thrown around online, both good and bad. I’m not going to link to any specific post, but I think you’ve probably read articles that fall in these criteria.

There are some who believe you should never post about your personal life. There are some that use social media exclusively for their personal life. There are some who don’t use foul language. There are some who won’t tweet about personal interests, like Harry Potter (I”ll never be one of those people). The list can continue, and it seems more and more restrictions are emerging. So how do you know the best way to use it?

My thought is there is no best way in using social media for your job search, but I recommend a hybrid of personal posts and professional posts, especially if you are looking to break in the public relations field.

From my own experience working in digital media, I’ve found it’s not only acceptable to use social media for personal things, but it’s encouraged. Think of it this way: Public relations practitioners, like Ari Adler, often used to work in the newsroom as a journalist and because of that, they are much more skilled in media relations. Journalists know and understand pitching best practices, so if he would join the PR field, he would be able to bring a unique skill to the company. It’s the same for using digital media. If you are a blogger and are all too familiar with bad pitches and have a strong network, you will be much more valuable to your company.

Having an online network is key in this emerging era of public relations. That means not everyone is going to read post after post of articles on trends and career advice if that’s all you’re sharing. I’m even starting to balance out my Google Reader with more blogs about my personal interests and less career-focused blogs. In general, people are personable and want to get to know each other, so make sure that you are leveraging social media to network and understand the community you’re in.

Why is it inappropriate to talk about going to the bar to grab a drink with some friends if you are of legal age? Is in a bad idea to tweet about waking up late for work? That said, there is a fine line between networking and being ridiculous. It’s still important to be aware that what’s online is accessible to everyone, so talking about your recent intervention probably won’t be a good idea.

The truth is there are no black and white rules. What one employer finds appalling and unacceptable another will find it to be great. If you can take away one thing, know that you might have to answer a question in an interview about your social media use, so be ready and be aware of why you’re using social media.

Photo by rachelvoorhees on Flickr.