Obama administration is sorry they're not sorry about Obamacare mishaps

The American people are losing patience and the Obama administration is losing credibility, and it all has a little something to do with the PR crisis that is the Affordable Care Act, or "Obamacare" as many call the new healthcare law.

Since the launch of the healthcare.gov website on October 1, the Obama administration has faced PR mishap after PR mishap, but it still seems little has been done to correct Obamacare glitches. President Obama and his administration have issued countless speeches in the past two months explaining malfunctions and answering questions about the new healthcare program. But time and time again, the administration has broken a cardinal PR rule: they are over-promising and under-delivering.

The Obamacare website still cannot handle more than 50,000 users at once, and the administration has missed its self-imposed deadline to fix these glitches.  Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius recommended to users earlier this week to visit the site during "off-peak hours" when there is less traffic, but answer this: Would you visit a website at inconvenient, "off-peak" hours to shop for a product you are being forced to buy (or face a penalty if you opt out)? This is the case with Obamacare, and many users are becoming frustrated. The Affordable Care Act is requiring people to get covered, but officials are telling people they can't even sign up at convenient times because the administration hasn't quite figured out how to keep the website from crashing.

A fellow blogger put it perfectly earlier this week: "Your actions speak so loudly that I cannot hear what you say." The Obama administration is making all the right promises ("Obamacare will be successful," "Give it time," etc.), but they have yet to fulfill these promises. The administration has also been caught in a few dishonesties regarding Obamacare; for example, saying they were not aware of the website glitches prior to launch and Obama's "If you like your health care plan, you can keep your health care plan" promise. But the public is starting to realize that the administration's actions are not lining up with their words, and this has been a big hit to their credibility.

We learn in PR classes that in the midst of a crisis situation, it is important to assume full responsibility and do your best to fix the situation, even if it isn't your fault. Instead of accepting responsibility and apologizing, the Obama administration just keeps making excuses and new promises (that haven't been met). As the days go on, each of Obama's "sorry not sorry" Obamacare speeches are meaning less and less to the American people.

Thanksgiving break - just what the doctor ordered!

Thanksgiving break was restful and refreshing. I spent more time with loved ones than I did with my laptop and textbooks, and I don't feel the least bit guilty about it!

Family time has been extra important to me lately, and this break from classes was the perfect time to pause, reflect and thank God for the special people He's placed in my life. I spent the past week enjoying delicious food and enjoyable conversation with cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents, movie marathons with my parents and sister, date nights with my boyfriend, and a girls' night with some of my best friends from high school. Even though I live at home and I see these people more often than most college students see their loved ones, Thanksgiving break allowed me to give friends and family my full attention without the distraction of schoolwork.

After such a relaxing break, I'm feeling ready to wrap up final projects and study for exams. I'm pretty sure the next few weeks will consist of late nights in the PAC lab and too many cups of coffee, but I'm ready to power through the last couple weeks of the semester.

I hope your Thanksgiving break was as refreshing as mine! To all my fellow polar bears: I wish you the best as we enter some of the most stressful weeks of the school year, and may the curve be ever in your favor!

Measuring relationships in the not-for-profit world

In nonprofit world, not measuring is not an option according to Katie Paine in Chapter 13 of Measure What Matters. We know relationships are the foundation for success in any business, but good relationships are especially important for nonprofit organizations, because nonprofits rely on volunteerism, goodwill and word of mouth to raise brand awareness.

Paine lists several steps for measuring the strength of a nonprofit organization's communal relationships. The first is using your mission to define your objectives. Measure What Matters mentions Habitat for Humanity, a nonprofit that works to build houses for underprivileged people. The success of Habitat's mission significantly depends on the help of volunteers. So rather than simply measuring the amount of money they raise or the number of houses they build, Habitat must also measure the strength of their relationships, specifically with volunteers, to determine success. With this in mind, Habitat may establish the following objective for measurement: Increase volunteers by a certain percentage over the coming year.

The next step involves identifying and prioritizing target audiences. In the case of Habitat for Humanity, volunteers would make up one of the most important audiences. Nonprofit organizations must remember that these target audiences can make or break the organization; making sure target audiences receive and understand your key messages is vital to their support and your success. It's important to prioritize these key audiences by measuring their impressions, awareness and understanding of your organization's mission. The next steps in measurement for nonprofits include establishing benchmarks, choosing measurement metrics, picking a measurement tool, and then analyzing the data and using the results to make changes that will improve the strength of the organization's relationships.

Thanksgiving origins

When people think about the origins of the Thanksgiving holiday, they typically think of North American settlement, the pilgrims and the Mayflower. Today in church, I learned a little bit more about the true origins of our national Thanksgiving holiday. Every fourth Thursday in November, we celebrate a day of thanksgiving and prayer (and often, an abundance of delicious food) because some of our nation's greatest leaders and presidents found it fitting for Americans to collectively thank our Savior for the blessings, protection and favor he has so bountifully given our nation.

The following proclamation was issued by President George Washington in 1789:

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor, and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me "to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness."

Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks, for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation, for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.

The following is an excerpt from President Abraham Lincoln's Thanksgiving proclamation in 1863:

It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and voice by the whole American people. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and Union.

Thanksgiving has been observed annually since Lincoln's proclamation in 1863. 

In celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday this Thursday, I hope you take time to remember these proclamations of our Founding Fathers and greatest leaders. These men faced some of our nation's greatest struggles, in settlement, wars and development, but still understood the importance of thanking God for his faithfulness and hand of protection through it all. Today in America, more than ever, we have so much to be thankful for and to pray for; the Thanksgiving holiday is a time to do just that. Unfortunately, like the majority of Christian holidays in America, I think Thanksgiving has become a very secular cultural tradition, but the day was always intended to be a day of thanks to God. 

Measuring what matters during a crisis

"All business in a democratic society begins by public permission and exists with public approval." - Arthur W. Page

In Chapter 11 of Measure What Matters, Katie Paine mentions this quote and describes the importance of measuring public approval of your organization in crisis situations. The public's approval and trust in your organization is comprised of three key elements: 

1. Competence - Do publics believe your organization will effectively compete to survive in the marketplace?
2. Integrity - Do publics view your organization as fair and just?
3. Dependability - Do publics believe your organization will consistently do what it says it will do?

A high degree of trust among publics will help cultivate a business's relationships with customers, stakeholders and others who are invested in the organization's success. In turn, those relationships can have a measurable effect in helping the organization defend its reputation against crises.

Katie Paine says, "Thanks to the economic collapse of 2008, people trust corporations less than at almost any other time in our history" (p. 171). This means that building up relationships before a crisis is essential to a business's financial health and survival, because strong relationships can reduce the expenses that typically follow crises situations, such as lost revenue, regulations, litigation and pressure campaigns. 

Measure What Matters gives seven steps to measure the strength of an organization's relationships and the level of trust among publics, during and after crises:

1. Define a specific desired outcome from the crisis
2. Define your audiences and what you want your relationships to be with each one
3. Define your benchmark
4. Define your measurement criteria
5. Select a measurement tool
6. Analyze results and make actionable recommendations
7. Make changes and measure again

Reading this chapter, I was surprised to see Katie Paine's "seven steps to measure crises and trust" are very similar to the previous measurement plans she touched on for customer relations, sponsorships, events, community relations and employee relations. I know crisis situations often require quick reactions and decisions, but I hadn't thought about the extensive measurement processes that are still important. However, as Katie Paine noted, if an organization is able to work through these seven steps before a crisis occurs, it makes the measurement process much easier when they are under fire.

US Airways - say it like you mean it!

An investigation is underway after US Airways recently kicked a legally blind man and his guide dog off one of their flights. A flight attendant asked Albert Rizzi to stow his guide dog, Doxy, under the seat, but Rizzi was unable to comply due to his dog's size and the space available to him. After a delay on the tarmac, Doxy became disturbed and frantic and the pair was ultimately asked to exit the plane.

Passengers refused to sit by and accept US Airway's bad-mannered actions. Instead, they rallied behind Rizzi and Doxy; some even tweeted what was happening in real-time.

Passengers were so upset that the flight crew made the decision to return to the gate and cancel the flight. Since the incident, US Airways has received a great deal of social media backlash criticizing their treatment of Albert Rizzi and his guide dog.

In response to the public disapproval, US Airways issued the following statement:

"US Airways transports more than 80 million customers each year and ensures that all customers, including those with disabilities, are treated with dignity and respect. We're particularly sensitive to those customers who travel with service animals since we partner with Assistance Dogs International (ADI), an organization that trains and places assistance dogs around the world. US Airways employees volunteer to travel with and work with assistance dogs in training to help them prepare for travel with disabled partners. Over the past 10 years, US Airways employees have participated in transports everywhere from California to Croatia. 

In this instance, Mr. Rizzi became disruptive and refused to comply with crew member instructions when the flight attendant asked him to secure his service dog at his feet. As a result of his disruptive behavior, the crew returned to the gate and removed Mr. Rizzi and his service dog from the flight. The flight eventually cancelled and we transported Mr. Rizzi, his service dog, and the rest of our passengers on the flight to ISP by bus. 

We apologize to the customers of the flight for the inconvenience. We are continuing to investigate the incident." 

Is it just me or was this statement completely insensitive to the issue? Instead of sincerely apologizing for their actions, US Airways bragged on their partnership work with the Assistance Dogs International program and slated Mr. Rizzi.

I hate to break it to you, US Airways, but at this point the public couldn't care less about your charity work. Your mistreatment of a disabled man and his guide dog offended many people and tarnished your company's image. Placing the blame on Mr. Rizzi in your apology has not changed public perception of the issue, but has more than likely worsened people's opinions of your organization.

This incident was poorly handled. If US Airways wants to make things right and restore some sincerity with publics, they should issue a genuine apology to Mr. Rizzi and the rest of the flight's passengers, with no boastful remarks or excuses. US Airways - say you're sorry, and say it like you mean it!

Measuring employee relations

In previous chapters of Measure What Matters, Katie Paine has focused on measuring relationships between businesses and their customers, stakeholders and the communities in which they interact. In Chapter 10, Katie Paine addresses measuring employee morale. Positive employee sentiment is crucial to business success because employees are the backbone and the face of any organization. Happy employees tend to be more productive and committed to their organizations. If employees are happy with their place of work, they are more likely to advocate for the business and recommend the organization as a great place to work. 

As an employee (for more than one organization) I've experienced both constructive internal communications and a lack of internal communications. I know firsthand how frustrating it is to feel out of the workplace loop. There have been times when I received critical information from sources outside of our organization; this lead to confusion and irritation toward my superiors. On the other hand, I have worked for an organization with effective internal communications, weekly checkups and one specific and exclusive channel for coworker communication. The presence (or lack) of effective internal communication practices within my workplaces do in fact influence how I feel about working for the organizations.

Paine notes multiple ways to measure the strength of employee relations, such as monitoring local media, social media, internal blogs and online communities, conducting focus groups, studying intranet log files and distributing surveys. If the organizations I work for have conducted any of these measurement tactics, I have not been aware. If given the opportunity, I would surely participate in an employee focus group or survey in order to share my thoughts and hopefully improve the internal communications within my workplaces. 

For businesses measuring employee relationships, Paine says it's important to remember that employees will expect internal communication practices to change. It's important to post your data and findings where all employees can have access to comment and provide interpretation feedback as soon as possible. This type of two-way communication will ensure future participation in employee research, while improving employee sentiment at the same time.

I heard Jesus drank wine, so is it wrong for the Robertsons to sell it?

The Robertsons from Duck Dynasty announced a new business endeavor last week: Duck Commander Wines. Consequently, the Christian organization Family Ministries has canceled a Duck Dynasty fundraising event which would have raised money to update facilities for the children served by Family Ministries.

Some see the Duck Commander wine partnership as a PR crisis. Others see the wine endeavor as a great business opportunity. I can understand both points of view.

Family Ministries canceled the event because they felt endorsing a family/business involved in the alcohol industry would have sent mixed messages to their youth audience. The young people served by Family Ministries typically go through a drug and alcohol awareness program, so it makes sense that the Christian organization would want to be clear in their position on alcohol consumption. The cancellation obviously drew attention to the Robertsons' new business venture. Because the famous family is well-known for their devotion to the Christian faith, their alignment with the alcohol industry and the cancellation of their Christian-oriented event has offended some of their fans and stirred a minor PR mishap.

On the other hand, I wonder if Family Ministries drew more attention to the issue than necessary. Yes, the Duck Dynasty family is about to enter the alcohol industry, but I highly doubt Willie Robertson, Duck Commander CEO, would have spoken on his recent business move or his support for the alcohol industry at the event, knowing Family Ministries' values.

I think the number of fans the Robertsons have alienated and offended with this new business venture are outweighed by the success that Duck Commander Wines will bring the company. The wine endeavor will expand the multi-million dollar Duck Commander brand that is already known and loved for its hunting gear, books, apparel and other novelties. As already-successful business people, I'm positive the Robertson family strongly considered their options, key messages and target audiences before making the decision to dive into the alcohol industry.

In my opinion, this venture by the Duck Dynasty gang is more of a good business move than a PR crisis. I don't think Duck Commander Wines will tarnish the Duck Dynasty brand, which has always been solidly based on family and Christian values; after all, I heard Jesus drank wine?



Food for thought: Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that God favors what you do. Ecclesiastes 9:7

Joy comes in the morning!

What a whirlwind this week has been.

Monday morning I posted a blog about living in the moment. Monday night my family was slapped in the face with the reality of this concept. A moment is really all it takes for your world to change completely.

On Monday, November 11 at 8:22 p.m., my uncle Zach VanAtta unexpectedly went to be with Jesus. He was 41 years old and left behind a lot of family and friends who loved him very much, especially my aunt Amy and my cousins Emma and Mason.

I've spent the entire week with family - crying, reminiscing, laughing and hugging (lots of hugging!) - and I really cherish the recent moments I've had with them. These unfortunate circumstances have reminded me how important it is to live in the moment, because life can turn upside-down in the blink of an eye. Such a sudden and tragic loss has also reminded me to tell my family how much I love them, and to tell them often.

I'm sad that Zach is gone. He was a great guy; his big heart, witty sense of humor and reliable work ethic touched many lives for the better. He will be deeply missed by everyone who had the chance to meet him and spend time with him. But as a good friend, leader and fellow believer told me earlier this week, my family will spend a lot more time in eternity with Zach than we will spend missing him here on earth. This is something I already knew deep down in my heart, but it was so comforting to hear from someone else, especially when I was solely focused on the heartbreak of the situation.

These words have been in my heart all week: We will spend more time in eternity with Zach than we will spend missing him here on earth. Thank you Jesus!

To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8). I find great comfort in knowing that Zach is in Paradise with Jesus, and I know the rest of my family does too. It may not make missing him any easier, but because of Jesus, we don't have to say goodbye forever. In the blink of an eye, we will see Zach again in a place where there is no heartbreak or sadness.

I know God has great things in store for my family (Jeremiah 29:11) and he will continue to bless us and provide for us in every way imaginable. Losing Zach sucks (I'm not going to sugarcoat it), but we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him (Romans 8:28).

To my aunt Amy and cousins Emma and Mason: you guys are so abundantly blessed because of what Jesus has done for us and you are so loved by everyone around you. I pray you never forget how loved and blessed you are!

You will be missed uncle Zach, but we will see you again someday!


Food for thought: Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. Psalm 30:5

Overcoming the "I'll be happy when..." attitude

I've been really busy lately. I know I'm not the only one, because I've been noticing a lot of other people talk about how stressed they are with school, work and various deadlines. Recently I've heard a lot of people say things like, "I just need to make it through this week and I'll be happy," or "I'll feel so much better once I finish this." I'm often guilty of feeling this way too, but I'm starting to see a problem with this "I'll be happy when..." attitude. Once you get in this cycle it never really ends. You'll make it through your busy week and then a new project with tight deadlines will be thrown at you, and the vicious cycle starts all over again.

As a college student, it's easy for me to get wrapped up in thoughts of the future. I look forward to finishing big projects, to holiday breaks from classes, and too often, to life after graduation. The problem with these thoughts is that I'm completely robbing myself of today's joy, today's lessons and today's blessings. When I think about it, I've wished big chunks of my life away by saying, "I'll be so much happier when this is over." 

Some days I feel like my life really hasn't started yet - like it will when I graduate, when I get a grown-up job or when I get married and start a family. Isn't it sad that I spend so many of my days wishing I could fast forward? I know this is not how God intended me to live, so why is it so hard for me to focus on being completely satisfied with where I'm at and what I'm doing today? Life is happening right now; am I missing it?

I'm confident that big things are ahead of me, even if I don't know exactly what they are yet (Jeremiah 29:11). But to overcome the thievery of an I'll-be-happy-when attitude, I think it's also important to be confident of the big things that are in store for me today.

Today I'm going to focus on present blessings rather than future anxieties. I'm going to make a conscious effort to find reasons to be happy today, now, in the moment. I hope you do too!

Food for thought: Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34

Measuring success in a social media world

"The difference between PR and social media is that PR is about positioning, and social media is about becoming, being, and improving." - Chris Brogan

Katie Paine begins Chapter 5 of Measure What Matters with this quote. For those of you who regularly read my blog, I'm sure by now you understand how technological advances and social media have completely changed the world in which we do business. Social media forces companies to truly live and breathe the images their PR departments work so hard to create and communicate to publics.

From Katie Paine's measurement perspective, this social media revolution requires a three-part shift in our thought processes:

1. Redefine "now" 
2. Redefine PR, advertising, marketing and corporate communications
3. Change how we quantify success

Timeliness and PR have been redefined with the growth of social media, and in turn, measuring impressions and overall success has become nearly impossible. Paine argues that perfect measurement of success doesn't really matter. Too often, PR departments measure success by the number of media impressions or "eyeballs reached" when it needs to be more about measuring engagement and relationships.

For example, let's imagine I see a post on Facebook about new deals at my favorite local coffee shop and I "like" it. What does this tell the coffee shop? How many "likes" does the post need to get before the coffee shop can consider the post successful? Facebook likes, as measurable as they may be, do not signify success. What matters to the coffee shop's social media and PR department is the number of times I share or comment on the post, or the number of times I click through the post to claim a coffee coupon. This type of action and engagement on the Facebook post can be quantified as success for the coffee shop, because I am fostering the consumer-business relationship and promoting the brand.

Social media specialists can no longer assume that hits or page views equal success. Instead, we need to focus on measuring social media engagement to determine success.

Guns & Ammo for gun-control?

Guns & Ammo readers were stunned to find an editorial titled "Let's Talk Limits" printed on the back page of the magazine's December issue this past week. Dick Metcalf, the editor behind the controversial editorial has been fired. Guns & Ammo has issued a public apology and hired a new editor to take Metcalf's place, but many readers are understandably still upset. Some of them have taken to the Guns & Ammo Facebook page to voice their disgruntlement.

While Metcalf may have provided valid and informed arguments in favor of gun regulations, Guns & Ammo readers were still displeased, unsurprisingly. The magazine and its content has always supported the Second Amendment, in turn attracting pro-Second Amendment readers who strongly believe any gun regulations encroach on their rights to bear arms. What were Guns & Ammo editors thinking when they published the editorial publicizing gun regulations?

Editor Jim Bequette claims he believed the editorial would generate healthy debate. Instead, the piece generated a great deal of unhealthy backlash for the Guns & Ammo organization. From a PR perspective, it appears Metcalf, Bequette and the rest of the editorial staff lost sight of the No. 1 communications rule: know your target audience. 

Taking the politics out of the situation, this is like Country Living magazine writing about the best cities to live in or Fitness magazine writing about new delicious deals at McDonald's. They wouldn't (or at least they shouldn't). Why? Because these topics completely defy what the publications stand for. Country Living readers don't live in cities. Fitness readers don't eat McDonald's. Guns & Ammo readers don't support gun regulations. Guns & Ammo let their readers down this week because they lost sight of their audience's interests and values.

Measuring what matters

Each of the social media books we've read so far have focused on similar key messages: the growth of social media, social media engagement and real-time social media use. I'm excited to dig into a book with a different focus. Katie Paine's Measure What Matters is all about measuring in order to prosper and continuously improve your business.

I've worked for my family's excavating company for a little over two years now. When I first started working for the business I did a lot of job tracking - recording stone quantities, fuel quantities, equipment usage and labor expenses. This job was frustrating to me because I spent many hours a week plugging these numbers into a computer but no one really used the data for anything; it just sat there. In Chapter 1 of Measure What Matters, Katie Paine says "It used to be that 'he or she with the most data wins.' But today nothing is cheaper and easier to come by than data–especially useless data. It's having the right data that counts" (p. 4).  Since I've taken over new duties for the family company, we've added a new position and a new software system that allows the company to track all of these quantities, analyze the data and estimate job costs. As the family company continues to grow and improve, measurement becomes more and more important.

The same can be said for social media use within a business. We know how important it is for companies to have a social media presence - to listen to what stakeholders are saying about them and engage in conversation when appropriate. But how valuable is social media to your business if you're not measuring the results and evaluating what your market is saying about you? How do businesses grow and improve their social media presence if they are not measuring the data?

Measurement is about more than counting. Measurement takes data, evaluates the data's meaning and uses the evaluation to improve business practices. According to Measure What Matters, setting up a measurement program for your business can save time and money, help allocate budget and staff, give you a better understanding of your competition, assist in strategic planning and reveal the strengths and weaknesses of your business.

The Qatar 2022 Women's Soccer Challenge

One thing I love about the PR program at Northern is the opportunity we have to gain real-world PR experience through our student-run PR firm, True North PR. Each semester our firm takes on multiple clients, projects and competitions and students are able to research, plan and implement PR campaigns on a variety of topics. This semester, I've been working on a project called the Qatar 2022 Women's Soccer Challenge. This project has been interesting but also pretty challenging so far, because I am not very familiar with the sport of soccer or Qatari culture.

In 2022, Qatar will become the first country in the Middle East to host the FIFA World Cup. The Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee hopes to use the tournament as a catalyst to accomplish other national goals, such as developing businesses, promoting Qatar for global investment and improving international perceptions of the small Middle East nation. A large-scale event like the World Cup can create drastic changes for host nations in terms of economics and culture and the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee intends to take full advantage of this opportunity for change.

True North PR is participating in a case study challenge that will help the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee accomplish their goal of increasing the global success the Qatar women's national team. Our team is creating an integrated marketing communications (IMC) plan that will inform and influence Qatari girls ages six to 17 and increase their interest in playing soccer. So far, our team has focused heavily on researching the success of American soccer teams and programs and brainstorming ways to apply these successful practices to Qatar.

Through our team's research, I've learned a lot about Qatari culture and the sport of soccer - two things I knew very little about prior to this project. Although we've faced some challenges in researching and creating our plan, I am confident our team will put together quality work, because in Northern's PR department we have the brain-power, resources and faculty to help us do so. Being involved in such a hands-on PR department has been really beneficial for me. True North PR firm projects have given me the opportunity to dive right in and gain real-world PR experience.

Oreo does it again

When I saw an article on PR Daily about Oreo winning big again on social media, I had to read more. We've used Oreo as an example in social media class numerous times because they are one of those brands that just get it. Their social media team is creative and engaging and they understand how to successfully utilize several platforms.

To celebrate their 100th birthday in 2012, Oreo launched a 100-day Facebook campaign called The Daily Twist where they shared a daily photo of Oreos that represented a historical or current event. Here are some of my favorites:

Oreo also made history during Super Bowl XLVII earlier this year when they posted this tweet just a few minutes into the power outage:

Oreo has done it again, this time using Vine, a newer social media platform that allows users to share six-second videos that run on a loop. The six-second limit requires users to be brief, but also creative and original, which Oreo has proven to be time and time again. 

'Tis the season for scary movies. Just in time for Halloween, Oreo used their cookies to recreate scary scenes from "The Shining," "The Exorcist" and "Frankenstein."

<iframe class="vine-embed" src="https://vine.co/v/hDEiwJBm7I1/embed/simple" width="600" height="600" frameborder="0"></iframe><script async src="//platform.vine.co/static/scripts/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Oreo continues to showcase their delicious cookies in ways that engage and interest social media users around the world. With their recent content on Vine, it's clear Oreo is one of those brands who will  continue to search for new platforms and new ways to connect with fans. Not only is Oreo known for creating America's favorite cookie, but they are recognized for creating one of America's favorite brands to follow on social media.

Olivia Pope, PR rock star

Olivia Pope is a (fictional) PR rock star. For those of you who don’t know who Olivia Pope is: you’re missing out on one of the hottest political dramas on television. Kerry Washington plays Olivia Pope in ABC’s “Scandal”, which airs every Thursday at 10 p.m. Olivia and her team of “fixers” or “gladiators in suits” live in D.C. and work for Olivia’s crisis management firm, Pope and Associates, protecting the public image of politicians and celebrities.

I’ve been watching this show since it first aired in April of 2012, but I just recently found out that Olivia Pope’s character is based on a real-life PR rock star named Judy Smith. Similar to the fictional character Olivia Pope, Judy Smith has worked as Deputy Press Secretary for President George H.W. Bush and offered communications advice, legal advice and crisis management services to Fortune 500 companies, athletes, celebrities, public officials, federal agencies and foreign leaders all before starting her own strategic and crisis communications firm, Smith & Company.

“Scandal” has easily become my favorite show on television because it is exciting and edgy each week. Each member of Olivia’s team has an interesting backstory that contributes to the complicated plotlines. Olivia and her team fix the problems and restore the images of some of D.C.’s biggest names, but Olivia’s clients aren’t the only ones with secrets. The employees at Pope and Associates are often key players within the show’s many ongoing scandals, which involve rigged elections, an affair with the President of the United States and a secret branch of the CIA called B-613, to name a few.

If you haven’t seen the show yet, I urge you to check it out. The show’s political corruption is sometimes disheartening (because who’s to say this kind of stuff isn’t happening in real life), but I love Olivia’s talent for digging up information and communicating her way out of any scandal. Even though it’s just a fictional show, “Scandal” has reinforced my interests in PR, public policy and politics, and every Thursday night I find myself wanting to be a PR rock star like Olivia Pope when I grow up (minus all the corruption, the affair with the president and the crazy CIA director for a father). 

Women take the wheel in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabian women grabbed the attention of international media today as they participated in a campaign to protest a ban on female drivers. While no law in Saudi Arabia specifically prohibits women from driving, women are banned from receiving drivers licences and religious decrees discourage them from operating vehicles. Saudi Arabia is currently the only country in the world that does not allow women to drive.

Saudi women have become very active on social media in the past few months, raising awareness for their campaign and urging other Saudi women to get behind the wheel on October 26. Nearly 17,000 people signed an online petition in support of the campaign for change. The site has since been hacked, but that didn't stop Saudi women from taking action. According to CNN, at least 35 women posted YouTube videos of themselves driving on the streets of Saudi Arabia today.

I think this campaign was remarkable and extremely brave. Several women were issued warnings by local police and had to sign a pledge promising they would not drive again, but I think they were successful in raising awareness and support for the lifting of the ban. The number of women who actually drove today may have been small, but the social media activity was obviously enough to grab the attention of Saudi Arabia officials as well as international media. I believe these women have sparked a necessary conversation around the globe, which is the first step to initiating reform. 

#ONUPRSSA Storified

The Ohio Northern University Public Relations Student Society of America is a pre-professional organization for college students interested in pursuing careers in public relations and communications. Our organization encourages students to gain a greater understanding of the field and practices of public relations by attending weekly chapter meetings, which usually involve a guest speaker or a workshop of some sort.

Last Thursday I had the pleasure of live tweeting our meeting. Madison Bender came to speak about integrated marketing and her role as the social media specialist for an agency in Cleveland called thunder::tech. As an ONU alumna, Madison also offered a lot of valuable advice for her fellow PR polar bears. I tweeted the highlights of Madison's speech with the hashtag #ONUPRSSA so followers could keep up with the event in real-time. After the meeting, I used a site called Storify to compile all the #ONUPRSSA tweets and make a story out of the event. Check out my Storify here!

In addition to my live tweeting, I looked at how the official ONU PRSSA social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook and Blogger) promoted the meeting. The night before our meeting, ONU PRSSA posted promotional messages on the Facebook and Twitter pages, but the accounts did not post during or after the meeting to recap for those who couldn't make it. The blog has not yet posted a recap either. 

Live tweeting was a little difficult for me because I was constantly torn between giving Madison my full attention and giving my Twitter followers an update on what Madison was telling us. I was ONU PRSSA's social media director last year, so I know what a challenge it is to keep our followers up to date in real-time. As we've learned from Groundswell, Share This and Madison Bender last Thursday, effectively running social media accounts for any organization takes a great deal of time, effort and commitment. We've also learned from Real-Time Marketing & PR that social media users want their information instantly. The longer we wait to relay information to followers the less relevant that information becomes.

Taking all of this information into consideration, I think it would be beneficial for ONU PRSSA to try to live tweet our Thursday meetings more often. ONU PRSSA could then recap the meeting and live-tweet session by creating a Storify for those who weren't able to follow the live tweeting.

Is Anybody Out There... who can help Maroon 5 and Coca-Cola come up with a new song?

Wikipedia, one of the greatest examples of a crowdsourced project, defines crowdsourcing as "the practice of obtaining needed services, ideas, or content by soliciting contributions from a large group of people, and especially from an online community, rather than from traditional employees or suppliers."

Crowdsourcing is an excellent tactic in real-time PR because it allows publics to contribute to projects that would normally be handled by a handful of company executives: for example, having fans vote on their favorite name for a new product via social media. Crowdsourcing is beneficial to both the company and the publics because it eliminates the extra work for executives and allows the community to get involved.

In 2011, Coca-Cola partnered with Maroon 5 to successfully crowdsource material for a new song. Fans were able to weigh in on the composition of the song by sending in comments, lyrics and pictures via interactive technology, Facebook and Twitter. The recording session was streamed live and fans were able to constantly chime in on the project conversation and ask Maroon 5 questions. Here is the final product:

For the first 100,000 downloads of the song, "Is Anybody Out There", Coca-Cola made a donation to the Coca-Cola Africa Foundation's Replenish Africa Initiative with the hopes of providing clean water to thousands of people in Africa. This was just another way for Coca-Cola to make participants feel like they were making a positive difference. 

By getting their fans involved in this project, Maroon 5 and Coca-Cola created a surprisingly catchy song in just 24 hours. More importantly, they connected with their fans on a new level and allowed them to feel like they were a part of something big. According to Chapter 9 of Real-Time Marketing & PR by David Meerman Scott, "When people help you answer a question via crowdsourcing they feel a sense of ownership. Participation turns spectators into supporters" (p. 102). This was especially true for the Coca-Cola and Maroon 5 project. People didn't want to just watch the live feed, they wanted to support Coca-Cola and Maroon 5 and help them create a new song by providing input via social media.

At the end of the day, crowdsourcing is a win-win for real-time marketers and PR people because it allows companies to speed up the pace of business and connect with customers in real-time.

Happy birthday B!

My little sister celebrated her 17th birthday this Thursday on October 18, so this is going to be a corny post about how cool I think she is (even though I don't tell her that very often).

My sister Britnee and I are four years apart and we are complete opposites. I have curly blonde hair and hers is straight and brown. She's tall and darker-complected like my dad and I am short and pasty like my mom. I care about school and she cares about sports. I am a perfectionist and Britnee is happy-go-lucky. I am often quiet and reserved and I care about what other people think of me. Britnee has always been the wild child who tells people how she feels. She doesn't hold back... ever.

Britnee is loyal; she is the first person to defend the people she loves. Britnee is hardworking; she has such a strong passion for volleyball and softball and I've loved watching her become a superstar the past couple years. Britnee is strong and independent; she's never been one of those girls who acts superficial to fit in with a certain crowd. She stands her ground, even if she is standing alone, and for that I admire her.

Living at home, Britnee and I argue quite a bit. She leaves the bathroom a mess, steals my clothes without asking and for some reason still has not grasped the concept of cleaning up after herself. But the older I get, the more I realize Britnee is one of the few people I know I can always count on to listen to me, stand up for me and make me feel better when I'm sad.

God has blessed me with a beautiful sister and I don't tell her often enough how thankful I am for her support and friendship. 

Happy birthday, Britnee! I love you.

Real Simple makes Pinterest look real simple

Pinterest has easily become my favorite social media platform. The pin-sharing website allows me to collect and organize photos I like and links I find helpful all in one place. I think Pinterest was initially geared more toward personal use, but with the site's growth in popularity more and more businesses are beginning to utilize the social media platform.

Real Simple, the magazine and online source for "creative, practical, and inspiring solutions that make life easier" has become a popular brand on Pinterest and one of my favorites to follow for a couple reasons.

Real Simple obviously understands how to reach their target audience. The same people reading Real Simple's monthly magazine are the people who visit Pinterest daily: women. Real Simple tends to their audience by pinning recipes, hair styles, fashion trends, inspiring quotes and tips on organization, cleaning and decorating. Real Simple focuses on pinning content that interests women and they pin a lot of it. Real Simple currently has 113 different boards with 7,200 pins. They've added three new pins since I started this blog post. By consistently updating content, Real Simple keeps followers engaged and looking forward to new content. Real Simple also attracts Pinterest followers by pinning sharp visually appealing photos. High quality photos and links compel users to click through the page and engage.

It is important for organizations to carefully consider their audience and their messages before they decide which social media platforms to dive into. In my opinion, the decision to utilize Pinterest was a no-brainer for Real Simple. Living up to their name, Real Simple successfully uses Pinterest to share daily finds, tips and solutions that help simplify women's lives.

In a real-time media world, silence is not golden

PR people used to have days, a week even, to research, craft responses, meet with senior executives, make final decisions and respond to threatening situations or crises involving their organization.

Not anymore. According to Chapter 7 of Real-Time Marketing & PR by David Meerman Scott, "In the real-time media world, a week is the same as a century. The moment is lost. You've completely blown it! #Fail" (pg. 54).

Amazon.com provides a great example of a company that took too long to respond to a threatening situation. In the summer of 2009, George Orwell's 1984 and Animal Farm were for sale as Kindle e-books even though the publisher did not have copyrights to these titles. When this was found out, Amazon.com decided to remove all copies of these books from users' Kindle accounts and refund customers' money, without notifying them in any way. Kindle users around the globe were upset when they realized their e-books had simply vanished with no warning or explanation from Amazon.com and they took to Kindle forums, Twitter, blogs and other forms of social media to express their complaints. 

The story was eventually picked up by mainstream media outlets, still with no comment from Amazon.com. Kindle users were upset that the company could take away these books without user permission or without offering any kind of explanation. The company also failed to timely respond to forum discussions, social media activity or customer service related emails, which infuriated the Kindle community. Finally, a week after the news story broke, the CEO of Amazon.com posted an apologetic statement on the Kindle forum. He accepted full responsibility for the issue and promised to make better decisions moving forward.

This simple apology was all Kindle users wanted. The tone of the real-time conversation about Amazon.com and Kindle changed as soon as CEO Jeff Bezos commented on the issue. Had the apology happened a week earlier, as soon as the issue arose, Amazon.com could have prevented a great deal of negative dialogue from customers and the negative story in the mainstream news. 

The PR people at Amazon.com did not have a week or even a few days to craft a response to this situation because Kindle users were posting complaints to the Kindle forum, Twitter and blogs as soon as their books were removed. The week of no comment by Amazon.com gave the impression that the company didn't care about users' frustrations. In a real-time media world, companies have to realize the importance of getting the first word in every conversation with customers. Regardless of whether the conversation is good or bad, companies must learn to respond to customers in real-time, because if they don't someone else will. 

ONU faculty: Caring, supportive and friendly people

The past couple weeks I've realized just how blessed I am to attend a school where my professors, bosses and other ONU faculty truly want the best for me. Going to school at ONU, I am surrounded by friendly people all day long who know me by name. I don't know many college students at other universities who can say the same.

Last week the bosses of my work-study job on campus took me out to lunch at El Campo for my birthday. They even surprised me and invited a few of my co-workers who were excited to help me celebrate my 21st birthday. I am very thankful for the opportunity to work on campus, but I am even more thankful for the people I've met because of this job. David and Kirstin (my bosses) and the rest of my co-workers went out of their way to treat me to lunch and it made my birthday so much more special. 

A few days ago I went to visit one of my professors with a few questions about courses for next semester. I wound up sitting in her office for nearly an hour chatting with her and two of my other professors. My visit quickly went from a talk about academics to a friendly conversation about family, friends and life after college. My professors shared some pretty entertaining stories and provided a few good laughs. I respect my professors both inside and outside the classroom, and I know they genuinely care about my success after graduation.

Tonight while I was working at the McIntosh information desk I had two very special visitors; both knew me by name. (I like to think this has everything to do with my memorable friendly face and nothing to do with the nameplate I have to keep on display while I work.) The first visitor was a custodial worker who really likes to talk. I can usually count on him stopping by at some point during my Thursday night shift and telling me a story about how he and his wife met or about his recent vacation to Montana. The second visitor was the President of the University. He was on his way to the ballroom to address students about the Ohio Northern Promise (a recently announced initiative to keep an ONU education affordable). I told him I was sorry I would be missing the meeting so he took a few minutes to talk to me about what he thinks the Ohio Northern Promise will do for students at our university. Both of these men could have smiled, waved and gone on with their jobs, but instead they took the time to stop by and say hello. When they asked how I was doing, I felt like they really cared.

Because I've never attended another university I can't say for certain that ONU faculty are better than the faculty at other schools, but I certainly feel like they are special. I'm so glad I go to a school where I am a name and not a number. It is a blessing to know that I have professors, bosses and many other ONU acquaintances rooting for my success during and after my time here at Northern.

"Mr. Obama, tear down this website!"

HealthCare.gov, the online health insurance marketplace implemented as a result of the Affordable Care Act, went live last week on October 1. The website is still experiencing many glitches and the unhappy customers have taken to HealthCare.gov’s social media pages to ask questions and express complaints.

Through Facebook posts and tweets this past week, HealthCare.gov has been thanking users for their patience and assuring them that website improvements are on the way. All the while, users continue to complain about blank screens, trouble with login information and a lack of assistance from the HealthCare.gov chat application or Twitter page. However, I did notice HealthCare.gov began responding to certain comments on the Facebook page earlier today.

According to an article from the Washington Post, White House officials were warned about the website’s flaws and technical problems, but the administration launched the site anyway and assured people there was no reason to be alarmed.

In my opinion, the technical difficulties of the website have weakened the image of the entire Obamacare system. Many potential Obamacare consumers are frustrated with the website glitches and have taken to social media to voice their concerns, but have received little assistance. As far as I can tell by HealthCare.gov’s social media, the customer service skills of Obamacare officials are lacking.

How can President Obama and his administration force Americans to purchase health insurance from the government (or face a penalty fee) when they can’t even get their website to function properly? Officials had hundreds of millions of dollars and over three years to prepare for the implementation of this website, yet Americans are still struggling to figure out how to successfully apply for Obamacare via HealthCare.gov.  

What is your opinion? Do you think the technical glitches on HealthCare.gov will negatively influence people’s perception of the Obamacare system?

Hard work pays off

In the spring semester of my sophomore year I began working on a research paper titled "Attribute Agenda Setting and the Framing of Political Messages: A Comparison of the News Media and Presidential Responses to School Shootings" for a PR Research class. At this point, I had never conducted my own research and the task of writing a research paper longer than 15 pages sounded daunting. PR Research was a stressful course and resulted in many late nights and random texts, calls and emails to Dr. Aggie with questions (and complaints) about my research. After receiving my final grade in the class and attending the Ohio Northern Student Research Colloquium, Dr. Aggie and I decided it would be worth it to submit my paper to the Ohio Communication Association Conference.

I was accepted to present shortly after I submitted my paper this summer and I attended the OCA's 77th Annual Conference this past weekend at Marietta College. I presented my research in a panel session alongside a graduate student from the University of Akron and a communication professor from the University of Toledo. I started the session quite intimidated and nervous, but it turned out to be an extremely rewarding experience. For 15 minutes, I was the expert in the room. I was grateful to be able to share my research results and hard work with students, professionals and researchers from all over the state of Ohio. I was even more grateful when OCA President Tim Pollock announced my name as the winner of the top undergraduate research paper.

Not only am I thankful for this opportunity from the Ohio Communication Association, but I am also thankful for the help and encouragement of both Dr. Aggie and Dr. Fleck throughout the entire process. I am proud of my research and this accomplishment and I can't wait to see where my research takes me in the future.

She's gone... but they're hiring!

Marina Shifrin, a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, left her job as a viral video marketer at the Taiwanese Animation Company this past week. She did so via YouTube and the video went viral.

This video paints a negative picture of the Taiwanese Animation Company, a company best known for comedic news videos. In the video subtitles, Marina notes she was working at 4:30 a.m. She says for two years she sacrificed relationships, time and energy for a boss who cared very much about video views and very little about video content. At the end of the video Marina turns out the lights and leaves for good. “I QUIT! I’m gone,” she says.

Marina Shifrin’s video, entitled “An Interpretive Dance for My Boss Set to Kanye West’s Gone,” currently has over 9 million views on YouTube. The video could have generated a lot of negative PR for the Taiwanese Animation Company, but they weren't going to let Shifrin have the last word…

The company’s response is clearly poking fun at Marina’s video, but instead of angrily firing back at her complaints and accusations, the Taiwanese Animation Company wishes her the best and playfully announces, “We’re hiring!”

The Taiwanese Animation Company turned a potentially threatening viral video from a disgruntled ex-employee into positive PR for their own company. Posting a humorous yet tasteful frame-by-frame rebuttal to Marina’s initial video completely flipped the script and restored the Taiwanese Animation Company’s positive image. 

Modernizing public affairs for the digital world

I've said it before and I'll say it again: technology is changing the way we communicate and interact with one another. This holds true for public affairs practices as well. Public affairs professionals are constantly influenced by user-generated content and social media.

According to Chapter 14 of Share This, the old model for public affairs involves pushing policy messages out to stakeholders in hopes of influencing them to adopt your policy agenda. The new model of public affairs is two-way symmetrical (this is what PR is all about!). The new model involves pushing your messages out and pulling stakeholders in at the same time by creating engaging content that compels them to participate in your policy agenda.

For example, President Obama has been heavily pushing his messages supporting Obamacare via Twitter for the past several months. And thanks to the social media site, the American people have been able to engage with this content, share their opinions, and directly respond to the president's messages. Rather than solely pushing his Obamacare messages via traditional media outlets, President Obama is modernizing his public affairs practices with the two-way symmetric model and digital communication. This is effective because people spend more time on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other social media outlets than they do on mainstream media sites like CNN, Fox and MSNBC.

The private policy meetings, networking meetings and lobbying efforts of the past have all become truly public information thanks to citizen journalism and the transparency of social media. Public affairs professionals can now easily research potential supporters and opponents via the Internet. Public officials and the general public alike can easily monitor conversations or create new conversations regarding public policy issues. Social media also provides a platform where public officials can easily respond to crises or controversial issues and reach a large number of their target publics.

The greatest argument against the integration of social media into public affairs is the importance of face-to-face communication and grassroots public policy efforts. Face-to-face relationships are crucial to  public affairs success, but social media can allow public officials to strengthen these relationships and promote more frequent engagement with stakeholders. Social media also has the potential to help public affairs professionals reach much larger audiences than they would by grassroots efforts alone.

Both the National Rifle Association and the Human Rights Campaign are examples of grassroots organizations that have successfully integrated social media into their public relations plans. Check out these links to their Facebook pages:

National Rifle Association

Human Rights Campaign

What I love about Sunday

Sundays were my favorite day of the week when I was younger. In elementary school Sundays meant going to grandma’s house after church and playing in the backyard with my cousins until it was time to go home. Homework on Sundays usually meant finishing a worksheet or coloring something. My, how times have changed.

Now on Sundays I hear a lot of people complaining about the to-do lists they need to conquer before Monday rolls around. I am guilty of this too – anymore, my Sundays are spent playing catch-up or trying to get ahead on homework. Though the evenings are sometimes filled with studying and stress, there are still a few things I love about Sundays.

Church is my favorite part of the day. Being surrounded by my church family, singing praises, and hearing the Word of God every Sunday replenishes my spirit and prepares me for the week ahead.

I can typically count on at least one home-cooked sit-down meal on Sundays, either at grandma’s house after church, with my boyfriend’s family, or at home. During the week it seems my family is always eating on the go, between school, work and meetings. I enjoy Sunday meals when we get to sit down, enjoy the food, and catch up with one another.

Some other Sunday favorites include napping, walking my dogs and watching America’s Funniest Home Videos with my dad. I realize my Sundays are a little atypical because I live at home, and I’m OK with it. I think Sundays are some of my biggest blessings. 

Food for thought: "A Sunday well-spent brings a week of content." - Proverb

#MakeDCListen

Republican Senator Ted Cruz began what the media is calling a fake filibuster – fake because Cruz wasn’t technically delaying a piece of legislation –Tuesday, September 24 in an effort to defund President Obama’s Affordable Care Act. Cruz protested the controversial bill for over 20 hours on the Senate floor. Thanks to Twitter, several constituent voices were heard during the speech as well.

Cruz took several opportunities to read tweets with the hashtags #MakeDCListen and #DefundObamacareBecause throughout his talkathon Tuesday and Wednesday. This may have been mostly beneficial to Cruz because it helped him pass some filibustering time, but I also think his Twitter engagement displayed his interest in listening to constituents and voicing their needs to Congress.

                                  

The hashtags #MakeDCListen, #DefundObamacare and #StandWithCruz became trending topics on Twitter and brought a great deal of attention to the Texan senator’s speech. The hashtag #MakeDCListen in particular was mentioned over 500,000 times from the time Cruz began his speech to the time it ended on Wednesday. Twitter gave all citizens, no matter what political party, a chance to voice their opinion on the Affordable Care Act. The conversation sparked enough interest that The White House’s Twitter account even joined the conversation:

Not only is Twitter useful for easily keeping up to date with news, politics and worldly happenings around us, but the social media site also gives citizens a forum to voice their opinions on issues. Ted Cruz is one of the first congressmen to utilize Twitter on a congressional floor, and I think he did so successfully. It’s safe to say the majority of Americans are not interested or heavily involved in American politics, but Twitter can make it very easy for people to join in on political conversations happening around our nation and around the globe. The trending hashtags like #MakeDCListen grabbed the attention of thousands of Americans Tuesday night; Ted Cruz took advantage of this. By reading the tweets of average American citizens during his filibuster (fake or not), Cruz appeared connected with his followers and his constituents.

Twitter is a great place for the American people to congregate and discuss public opinion. Congressmen work to represent the wants and needs of the American people. Thank you, Ted Cruz for putting two and two together and doing your job this week.