At one time or another you’ve met someone that you instantly liked. You laughed at what they said, agreed with their opinions and were eager to see them again. And no, it wasn’t a date. It was a conversation where you just clicked with the other person. That person had charisma, and most likely, you aren’t the first person they made that type of connection with.

Great leaders often have that same penchant for connecting with another person. And because of this, they’re quite successful. But how can this observation help you and your company? Assuming your company is engaging in social media, you actually have the opportunity to be charismatic in each and every conversation. Virtually.

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In August, Inc. magazine published an article titled “11 Reasons a 23-Year-Old Shouldn’t Run Your Social Media,” and I took serious offense to it. Firstly because, while I may look young, it was a reminder that I’m not the 23-year-old newbie being referred to anymore (ugh!) and secondly, as a supporter of the young workforce, I truly think the most recent set of college grads are the employees with the best handle on social media and all its capabilities. So then why shouldn’t we let the young 20- something with a Facebook page, an Instagram profile, a plethora of Pinterest boards, two Twitter accounts (one for work and one for personal use) and an active blog on, say, “tips and tricks for city living on a budget” (I’m sure there’s someone that fits this profile) run a client’s social media campaign? They’re clearly an expert on how to do it all, but as Inc. explains, a social media expert needs to be versed in much more than just social platforms. Read on …

http://www.inc.com/social-media-dont-put-intern-in-charge.html

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What makes a good conversationalist? I’ll give you a hint: it has nothing to do with how well a person can deliver a punch line or how well read they are.

A good listener makes the best conversationalist. That’s right, more important than witty banter or animated storytelling is the art of listening. Think about the last truly good conversation you had. There was an open exchange of dialogue, your points or arguments were thoroughly considered before you received a response, it felt like you were really being heard and that what you had to say mattered and it left you eager to speak with that person again.

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Public Relations is a difficult thing to define – there are so many aspects and components – it’s hard to nail down one single all-encompassing definition, which makes it very difficult to define public relations success.

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Wikipedia defines Public Relations as “the practice of managing the flow of information between an organization and its publics.”  This sounds pretty simple. But for anyone who has ever worked in public relations, you know that “simple” is not how you would describe your job.

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What is Pinterest you ask? Just another social media craze? Craze – yes. Just another – not exactly. For anyone unfamiliar with Pinterest and how it works, it’s basically a virtual list of a user’s favorite things. TechCrunch calls it a “socially curated shopping catalog” and says, “…it is addictive.” And they’re right – it is.

Just yesterday, comScore reported that Pinterest had surpassed the 10 million visitors mark, attracting 11.7  million unique visitors, and has become a top 10 social media site. It received 40 times the number of visits during the week ending December 17 than it had received during any single week in the prior six months. That’s a 4,000 (FOUR THOUSAND!) percent increase, making it the fastest-growing social media site EVER. 

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So, you deleted your MySpace account, finally got the hang of another “new” Facebook layout, and now you’re hearing about Google+. In the world of social media, the only constant is change so get ready to embrace it, because Google+ is most likely here to stay. Comparing Google+ to Facebook isn’t exactly comparing apples to apples. Facebook is pegged as a social network, ideal for sharing photos, news and chatter among friends. Google+ is being looked at as a social media tool better suited to business, but the extent to which it may evolve is yet to be seen.

Why Sign Up?

Why NOT sign up? Get on there and check it out. For the most part, people are going to sign up – after all it’s Google. People like Google, people are familiar with Google, Google has a lot of money and a lot of expertise, and Google+ is already growing…rapidly. (continue reading…)

It’s not something you can easily say to a client, but “adapt or die” is a very true statement when it comes to social media. Most likely, your client made his or her way in the industry through forward thinking, willingness to change and a little bit of risk. And it shouldn’t be any different now. Social media requires all of those things – and then some. When your CEO balks at the social media tactics you suggest, ask him the 6 questions below from JeffBullas.com. Hint – the current research appears after the question.
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The most effective way to increase your Facebook and Twitter followers is to provide valid and useful information that your fans may not have seen otherwise. As a PR pro, I’m constantly staying on top of current events and reading the news – on my computer, on my cell phone and in the newsfeed of my Facebook and Twitter accounts. Some of the most interesting news I see only because someone I follow posted it.

By being a dialed-in, finger-on-the-pulse-of-your-industry PR professional, you have the opportunity to share breaking news with your fans first. Post a recent article on a relevant topic or ask your followers a question about a hot topic. The beauty of social media, especially now with all of the changes to Facebook, is that every friend of your followers can now see most of their activity. So if they comment on a post on your wall, it will appear in their newsfeed and will ideally inspire someone else to click on your link, find your page interesting – and voilá – you’ll have a new follower.

This method of attracting followers is not guaranteed – in public relations there’s very little that is – but it’s a way to be recognized as a valuable and forward-thinking participant in your particular industry.

Kate Toy is a Senior Account Manager at Domus, Inc., a marketing communications agency based in Philadelphia. For more information, visit http://www.domusinc.com. For new business inquiries, please contact CEO and founder of Domus, Inc. Betty Tuppeny at betty.tuppeny@domusinc.com or 215-772-2805.

Measuring Public Relations has never been simple. It’s difficult to tie it directly to sales; unless glaringly obvious it’s tough to determine a hard and fast public opinion of your company; and without a consistent measurement tool or equation your public relations ROI can differ depending on who you ask.

For example, in public relations we measure a total number of impressions by multiplying a publication’s circulation number (which in itself can be unreliable) by a specified number. This is known as the “pass along rate.” I stick with the number 2. Meaning, for every person that subscribes to the publication, there’s one additional person reading it. Some folks are not as conservative and will use a pass along rate of 2.5 or 3. By using “2” I may err on the conservative side but at least I’m not making any false promises. The pass along rate is justified for many reasons; dentist and doctor’s offices often have magazines in the lobby so several people are reading them, there’s usually more than one person in a household reading a magazine that’s delivered there, and in other cases people will share magazines or interesting articles with friends and colleagues. Regardless of the ways to justify it – there’s no exact science to it.
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