prOFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

NOW it’s Christmastime

geoffkoehler — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:23:07 +0000

Happy Holidays,

I say now because they have officially begun.

I’m not Scrooge or the Grinch but I have a hard time accepting the Christmas marketing machine before early December.

I know that the day people start returning their Halloween costumes to the rental shops Santa suits are already on display. GIVE US A BREAK. I know that November isn’t a month full of holidays but that doesn’t mean we need St. Nick and the gang shoved down our throats.

So I’ve come up with a checklist. Not until every item is checked is it officially Christmas in my books.

- Has Hanukkah started? (How can you say happy holidays without more than one being in effect?)- Has a snowflake fallen. (I only require one and it doesn’t need to maintain form upon hitting the ground.)

- Have you already gotten sick of Christmas music and then, about halfway through the month, heard a song and started to feel whistful?
- Has someone you know already thrown an ugly sweater party?
- Did you watch the claymation Rudolph on TV?
- Is egg nog on sale? (With this year’s expiration date on it… I won’t be making that mistake again.)
- Have you or a friend already been asked to be Santa for a group of children?
- Have you made at least 3 references to cousin Eddie and watched National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation at least once?

Yes? Congratulations, it’s officially Christmastime.

Merry Christmas

Hashtags worth using

geoffkoehler — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 20:28:36 +0000

I had NO clue about any of the Twitter terminology before September, although I had a pretty good idea what a retweet might be. The most perplexing term of all was hashtagging.

Once I got over the nomenclature, to my instructor’s credit, I found these little doodads make searching and scanning the endless Twitterverse significantly easier. I’ve especially enjoyed participating in or simply following chats on Twitter.

For those unfamiliar with the concept, Twitter chats bring together people with a shared interest from across the Twitter community for a discussion.

These #chats and #topics are perfect for someone just starting to come up in the world of communicators. The #topics are constantly checked by most interested individuals and are essentially discussion threads that anyone can access easily. The #chats occur live but serve as discussion threads even when the actual chat session has ended.

There are an abundance of people ready to answer your questions and pose questions to you. Whenever I need a question answered I can post it with the appropriate hashtag(s) and the response will come swiftly.

My favourite #chat is definitely #PRStudChat. This group is full of students dedicated to learning and professionals committed to helping the next generation of communicators. The hosts @ValerieSimon and @dbreakenridge come up with unique ways to keep the format fresh.

Many of these hashtags possess Linkedin groups where individuals can network and build stronger connections. ie) #PRStudChat’s LinkedIn group.

Such groups also provide you with a great opportunity to find professionals and students whose answers/questions you like and, thus, make your base stronger by following quality individuals on Twitter.

Other hashtags that I would definitely reccommend everyone in public relations follow are:

I’ve only been with Twitter for a few months now and am sure there are several others that I’ve missed. These are simply the ones I’ve come across so far and enjoyed.

Managing all these tags can seem daunting, but I find TweetDeck pretty good. If you don’t want to download anything, TweetGrid is a website that you can seach/follow up to 9 separate hashtags at once. And you can share your TweetGrids. ie) Here is an example of one I’ve used.

I’m always looking to develop as a communicator and I’ve found hashtags to be extremely helpful.

If you have any hashtag suggestions for me, please let me know.

Creative ‘Licence’?

geoffkoehler — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:34:34 +0000

The Ontario government promised to donate a portion of sales from “Support our Troops” provincial licence plate sales. Sounds like a great initiative right? And they unveiled it on Rememberance Day; perfect timing!

The donation from the sale of yellow ribbon plates will go to the Canadian Forces Personnel Assistance Fund (CFPAF), which provides help to current and former members of the military and their immediate families.

However, opposition parties criticize the move as an ‘offensive gimmick’ citing the minimal percentage distributed to the fund.

Progressive Conservative critic Bob Runciman says he was surprised to hear only $2.25 from each set of plates costing $77.75 will go to the CFPAF.

“It sounds like an offensive gimmick, you’re playing on people’s affection for the military and their families, and you’re using it for a revenue source essentially for government coffers,” said Runciman.

You can see the full Globe and Mail article here.

To start off… I have to admit, love the word “coffers”.

But what I really love (read: hate) is when two political parties debate about one another’s impact on another group; especially when neither side bothers to bring that group into the discussion.

It’s not difficult to argue that the CFPAF is a significant stakeholder in this issue.

Why did neither side bother consulting the CFPAF when this ‘story’ broke?

Why, before this debate ensued, had neither side collected statements from the group they were so interested in protecting (read: grandstanding for)?

Whether the percentage is a significant enough or it should be higher, the CFPAF should have been included in the story and discussion. Their take on this debate is is the only opinion I’m interested in.

What I take from this is that we should all strive to remember our stakeholders and always involve them in the discussion.

Allstream Centre is Canada’s Greenest

geoffkoehler — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:51:53 +0000

I was in attendance Thursday, Oct. 22 at the Allstream Centre‘s grand opening.

I had a great time taking in all the modern amenities the historic building had to offer. This centre is the greenest and most energy-efficient conference centre in Canada and is an amazing testament to both Toronto’s and Exhibition Place’s growing amount of green initiatives.

A complete overhaul of the 1929 Automotive Building was needed to make the dream a reality. And what a dream it is. The ballroom has a seating capacity of 3,000. The conference rooms are stunning and state-of-the-art. Many traditional art deco elements have been restored in eco-friendly ways. And the environmental focus is inspiring. The centre’s 100 per cent Green Power purchase agreement is the equivalent of removing 168 cars off the road per year, and offsets the same amount of carbon dioxide as 422 acres of planted trees annually. It’s the only conference centre in Canada targetting LEED Silver Certification.

I’m proud to have been there for the opening and am prouder to be living in a city where initiatives like this are celebrated.

Developing a personal brand

geoffkoehler — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 21:13:57 +0000

I’ve been required to develop my personal brand as a part of my studies. I completely understand how such a task is effective for a new public relations professional. As the times change it will become even more important that I have an understanding of new social media tools and can use them effectively.

My difficulty is not realizing the importance of developing a brand through new media but determining what it is I am and what elements of my personality I should be sharing.

I hope that through feedback and advice from others, I will not only find the right balance but will become a well-rounded PR practitioner.