Welcome to PR OpenMic

And here is another social networking site...they just keep a comin'. PR OpenMic is different in that it is meant solely for PR students, faculty and practitioners. It's purpose is to connect and inform. It gives members the chance to interact with others and share learned PR knowledge. Currently, the site offers advice from Oklahoma State PR students and allows for feedback and interaction between the OSU students and the rest of the sight members. This is gives us all a great opportunity to learn from each other.

I also really like that the site provides information about news in the Pr world and even lists other sites that are helpful in understanding the PR world. They also seek to help members find jobs and internships. I like that the site is not self-promoting and looking to gain money, it seems like it honestly just wants to help. I look forward to really taking advantage of all that a PR OpenMic membership has to offer.

And the Thunder Rolled...

I must say that I thought the 2009 Athletic Auction was a smashing success! Not only was there an excellent turnout and around $40,000 raised, but we also had a great time. Our class worked so well together and I think we all had a lot of fun throughout the auction process. I can only hope I will be so lucky with co-workers in the future!

I think working on the auction has given us a great example of how to plan an event from start to finish. There are so many pieces that have to come together for a big event like this. The world of PR is oh so wide. I thought we did a really great job on the press releases and getting them publicized (thanks Claire!). The posters around town were also a great addition to our publicity campaign. Everyone's talents came together so well and we were able to put out the best materials possible!

I find that I really enjoy being on the other side of events, on the staff rather than a guest. I like to feel like I am in the know and am somewhat responsible for something that others can enjoy. I have always wanted to be the personnel with cool i.d. tags. I definitely think that I would like to do something with the event planning side of PR if at all possible.

Twitter + Google

I read in a recent article that Google is in the process of trying to acquire Twitter. Twitter had previously turned down an acquisition by Facebook, so it will be interesting to see if Google will succeed in owning one of the fastest growing social media networks out there. What made Twitter so appealing to Google was the search feature that Twitter added over the summer. People are looking to hear and learn about brands in real-time as other post about them on Twitter. At search.twitter.com people can search for news and companies can search for feedback about their brands.

Google knows the value of search and they see what Twitter has done and can do. It is amazing to me how fast this idea of social media is growing. Because now, companies would be foolish not to take advantage of outlets like Twitter to promote their products. It seems like only yesterday that Facebook was a network only for college students to keep in touch and now it has expanded to everyone. The PR world has had so many doors opened with these networks, it will be interesting to see how far they can go with this and what will come next.