“Everything you do or say is public relations”

Just heard the above quote today - so simple, so true - especially in today’s real-time broadcasts through social media.

PR hashtags for Twitter

A short list of Public Relations hashtags to follow on Twitter - please add any additional you may have!

• #PR
• #blogchat 
• #journchat 
• #PRpr 
• #PRintern 
• #PRjobs 
• #PRadvice 
• #pr20chat 
• #Solopr 
• #PRTips 
• #prstudchat
• #publicrelations

Follow Mynt PR on Twitter here!

ANX Nominated for 2011 Hot Companies and Best Products Awards

Network Products Guide has named ANX a finalist for the 6^th Annual 2011 Hot Companies and Best Products Awards in both the Hot Companies and Hot Technologies categories. These industry and peer awards from Network Products Guide are the world’s premier information technology awards honoring achievements and recognitions in every facet of the IT industry. Winners will be honored in Las Vegas on Tuesday, May 10, 2011 during the 6^th annual dinner and presentations.

ANX products and solutions enable over 16,000 organizations, scaling from SMBs to global enterprises, to secure and exchange information, while meeting complex compliance requirements. With the finalization of three major business acquisitions, ANX maintains strong momentum through customer and overall business growth. Through its most recent acquisition of governance, risk and compliance (GRC) solutions provider TruArx, ANX has also been selected as a finalist for TruComply, ANX’s flagship GRC technology. TruComply is an easy-to-use software-as-a-service GRC application. The solution enables organizations to quickly implement and continuously review control status to improve protection and reduce the cost of risk and compliance.

For more info click here.

(Source: marketwire.com)

LinkedIn Reaches 100 million members and counting…

Today, LinkedIn announced that the business social networking site has reached 100 million members worldwide.  

I love statistics about membership, growth and trending.  According to this LinkedIn post , they are growing at roughly one million new LinkedIn members every week, the equivalent of a professional joining the site at faster than one member per second.  With 44 million members within the U.S. and 56 outside the U.S.  

See LinkedIn’s infographic below for a breakdown of member status, which includes 74 Elvis Tribute Artists and One ‘Invest in Cheese’ group - which sounds like a good investment to me.

Keep networking and find me on LinkedIn here!

image courtesy of LinkedIn

The Most Socially Networked Cities in America

by Ronnie Manning

As social media becomes more and more intertwined with PR strategy and planning, I found a recent article in Men’s Health listing the Top 100 Most Socially Networked Cities in America of great interest.  Due to the fact that as of late I’m regularly deep in the trenches of social media, I was extremely surprised at some of the findings - especially how low on the list San Diego was listed (#27) and that Silicon Valley wasn’t listed as the number one city.  As social media and networking continues to evolve, I’m sure that we will see cities continue to rotate in lists such as this. 

So how did Men’s Health develop the listing in the first place? According to the magazine – “We started by calculating the number of Facebook and LinkedIn users per capita, followed by overall Twitter usage (NetProspex). Then we looked at traffic generated by the major social networks, including Myspace, Friendster, Reddit, and Digg (analyzed by ad network Chitika). Finally, after factoring in the percentage of households that check out chat rooms and blogs (SimplyMap), we had the results you see below.”

To view the entire listing, please visit http://bit.ly/guo9SE 

The Top 10 (with my old stomping grounds coming in at #1) and some numbers that surprised me are below…

Most socially networked

1 Washington, DC    
2 Atlanta, GA    
3 Denver, CO    
4 Minneapolis, MN    
5 Seattle, WA    
6 San Francisco, CA   
7 Orlando, FL    
8 Austin, TX    
9 Boston, MA    
10 Salt Lake City, UT    

Surprising results

25 Las Vegas, NV
27 San Diego, CA 
33 Los Angeles, CA
36 Miami, FL
39 Chicago, IL 
58 Baltimore, MD
70 New Orleans, LA

And the least socially networked on the list goes to…

100 El Paso, TX

Speaking of being socially networked, feel free to follow me below and help get your city higher on the list!

Writing Well.. excerpts from Feb. 2011 PRSA PR Tactics

Highlights of this month’s PRSA PR Tacticsvia successofkimball - view the original post here.

“I received the current issue of PRSA PR Tactics this week and I found a particular article quite interesting. I thought I would share some of the tidbits of information for those who don’t subscribe. Enjoy.”

Ernest Hemingway’s tips for writing well

1. Use short sentences.
2. Use short first paragraphs.
3. Use vigorous English. Vigorous English comes from passion, focus and intention.
4. Be positive, not negative. Since Hemingway wasn’t the cheeriest guy in the world, what does he mean by be positive? Basically, you should say what something is rather than what it isn’t.

~Source Copyblogger

Top 10 overused buzzwords in Linkedin Profiles 

1. extensive experience
2. innovative
3. motivated
4. results-oriented
5. dynamic
6. proven track record
7. team player
8. fast-paced
9. problem solver
10. entrepreneurial

A no-brainer tip for writing email from Fortune magazine contributor Mark Solon:

 “Use spell check. Seriously.”

Foursquare sees 3,400 percent growth in 2010

Foursquare has become an important PR tool for hospitality, social and business connections.  Not surprisingly, the company most recently posted that it saw a 3,400 percent growth in 2010.  Throughout 2010, Foursquare received 381,576,305 check-ins which included one check-in from outer-space (thanks NASA).

For the athletic type, California ranked highest for Gym check-ins at 2.48% - narrowly edging out Illinois, Minnesota, New York and Washington.  

It will be interesting to see how Foursquare’s growth continues in 2011 as more competition, including ‘check-ins’ via Facebook, comes into play.

Check out Foursquare’s 2010 statistics chart below and feel free to follow me at http://foursquare.com/rmanning_mynt

image courtesy of Foursquare

#PR140 - Defining Public Relations in 140 Characters or Less

By Ronnie Manning

It happens often, you tell someone that you work in public relations and it seems that the question that comes back is “So that’s advertising right?” or “That’s interesting, what exactly does that mean?”.  Public Relations can carry a broad definition depending on what types of clients you are working with, the type of campaigns you are executing and the markets that are being targeted.

According to PRSA, “The formal practice of what is now commonly referred to as “public relations” dates to the early 20th century. In the relatively brief period leading up to today, public relations has been defined in many different ways, the definition often evolving alongside public relations’ changing roles and technological advances. The earliest definitions emphasized press agentry and publicity, while more modern definitions incorporate the concepts of “engagement” and “relationship building.”

Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and other social media platforms have become major components in today’s PR plans and strategies.  Twitter saw massive growth during 2010 and according to Mashable, Twitter claimed that more than 100 million new accounts were opened in 2010.  Today as PR practitioners, we are speaking in 140 characters or less to cultivate relationships and communicate our clients and/or company messages. 

It’s the combination of the Twitter phenomenon and the constant evolution of PR that I asked my fellow PR professionals and peers “How would you define the practice of Public Relations in 140 characters or less?”  A difficult question with almost every reply being different, but with similarity in the core definitions.  I thank all who provided the great insight below to provide modern definitions to our age old practice.

• “PR is not rocket science! Keep promises, exceed expectations, collaborate w/ team mates AND clients, and have fun!” Teri Morris 
• “Circus poster: Advertising. Put poster on elephant & walk through town: Promotion. Elephant tramples mayor’s rose garden & he laughs: PR.” Brenda Christensen  
• “PR: Being sure of a message, connecting with the right ones, communicating in format received, and being a pit bull about staying on course.” Richard Laermer 
• “Building public/consumer trust in your clients’ brands and/or messages through repeated positive editorial coverage in the media.” Lizzy Shaw
• “Know your stuff. Be relevant. Be timely. Be helpful. Be a human being. Tell good stories. Make relationships real. Don’t be a jerk. Hustle.” Dave Clarke 
• “Your brand is the story of your company, well told. Know your story, tell it well.” Ford Kanzler 
• “Telling your story and sharing your news with internal and external audiences to build trust and ties.” Jason Mudd 
• “A management tool to build positive relationships with constituencies that matter to your business or cause.” Mark Grimm 
• “Awareness. Understanding. Use. Bottom Line. Growing them all!” Jolene Loetscher
• “Bridging the gap between perception and reality. You can’t tell the “Real Story” without Public Relations.” Kevin Mercuri 
• “PR is authentic, ad-free communication to build brands & create awareness. Coupled with social media, PR promotes & manages a company, person or brand image.” Molly Lynch 
• “The art of conveying a brand’s key messages through news, events & communications to establish, enhance or repair the brand’s image.” Laura Crovo 
• “PR is perceived and proven image of a person or business, and ongoing communication to consistently guide opinion & shape attitudes.” Gail Sideman 
• “The space between your brand and its biggest critic/cheerleader.” Erin Schorr 
• “Getting ink, enhancing profiles and when the stars align, increasing a client’s bottom-line.” Robert Martinez 
• “Strengthening relationships!” Taylor White 
• “PR is using strategic communications to engage, educate, inform or persuade different publics utilizing a variety of tactics.” Jason Gerdon 
• “PR is in the midst of a major collision w/digital media; This major paradigm shift challenges communication pros to adapt or fail in 2011.” Ray Young
• “P.R. influences an audience to trust you, your product or your service through truthful statements & reliable testimony.” Jim DeLorenzo 
• “Creating mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and the groups upon which their success or failure depend upon.” Julie Heidelberg 
• And my definition would be  “Increasing brand awareness through communications – maintaining a strong image – building relationships – evolving… not Advertising.”

So the next time someone asks you to define Public Relations, feel free to borrow one of the many definitions above and if you would like to add your own, we would love your comments below!

The Top 5 Publicity Stunts of 2010 - via eReleases

Mickie Kennedy, founder of eReleases just published the top Five publicity stunts of 2010.  I enjoyed the article and wanted to repost a few of my favorites. And I still can say I haven’t tried the KFC Double Down, as tempting as it may be.

Enjoy

————

via eReleases - This past year wasn’t the most prolific year for stunt publicity, but some good stories did crop up this year, including a truly cheeky ad from KFC and Vladimir Putin pretending he’s Captain Ahab! Here are our top 5 publicity stunts from the year.

1. Assvertise

What better way to advertise an insanely unhealthy chicken sandwich than to show exactly where it’s going to end up? Kentucky Fried Chicken went this route to advertise the Double Down – a concoction made solely out of meat, cheese, and precious bacon – when they asked attractive young ladies to wear sweatpants with “Double Down” on the rear. They handed out coupons to eager young women on college campuses around the nation. The cheeky campaign garnered controversy from women’s groups and the Double Down didn’t quite deliver on KFC’s hopes and dreams for the meaty concoction.

2. Vladimir Putin

Though he wasn’t intentionally trying to sell a book or promote the “Putin Brand,” Putin did use his recognition for some good causes this year. Never shying away from the opportunity to be outlandish, the former Russian president and current Prime Minister helped collect skin samples from endangered whales in the Sea of Japan…the hard way, with a crossbow!

Not only that, but back in April he traveled to the Arctic Circle to, among other things, attach a tracking collar to a polar bear. First, though, he opted to give it a big old bear hug.

3. Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt

The publicity hounds took it to the natural next step – they announced they were divorcing back in July.  But it was all a big hoax – the stars of the reality show “The Hills” later told Life & Style magazine they attempted the stunt to keep Montag’s career going and to make some dough after they blew through all their reality show money. But after a series of deals floundered, they called the split off.

To read the article in its entirity, please visit eReleases.

What was your favorite publicity stunt of 2010?

PR Planning for 2011 - Social Media Comes of Age

Where will PR take us next year, what will be the challenges that we face, and how do we improve performance?

According to the Social Media Comes of Age: The Vocus 2011 Planning Survey, released by Vocus and research partner eirdre Breakenridge, social media, measurement and strategic communications planning are at top of the list for 2011

Vocus surveyed 508 professionals from October 26, 2010 to November 21, 2010 to find out. While about half of the respondents were PR professionals, the rest were comprised of a mix, including social media specialists, advertisers and search marketing professionals.

A summary of the findings from the survey include:

- PR will be more challenging in 2011. Sixty percent of respondents said PR will be more challenging in 2011. The dynamics of social media and budgets were among the top reasons why.

- Budgets expected to improve over 2010. Forty-two percent said they expect budgets to “increase somewhat” or “increase significantly” versus 29% that said the same last year. In addition, 20% said budgets would “decrease somewhat” or “decrease significantly” versus 29% that said the same last year. Search professionals and advertisers were the most optimistic about budgets.

- PR and marketing playing nicer in the social media sandbox. Twenty-three percent of respondents said marketing is leading social media efforts while PR is contributing, while 22% of respondents said PR is leading social media efforts with several other departments contributing. These two categories received the highest rankings among six options.

- High marks for social media maturity on self-evaluation. Organizations overwhelmingly gave themselves high marks for social media maturity, with 67% saying they are participating, sharing and contributing to social conversations.

This year’s survey results are available for download with registration on Vocus’ Website: http://www.vocus.com/resources/public-relations-planning/index.asp

2010 Quote of the Year – South Beach Edition

Looking back on 2010, it’s been a year filled with thousands of newsworthy events.  Events such as the launch of the iPhone4, the World Cup, sports championships, continued economical worry and the BP oil leak have provided many sound bites to remember.  Listed below are a few of my most memorable in random order of importance.

• “We’ve already been to the moon.” – Buzz Aldrin
• “This is a big f##king deal.” – VP Joe Biden to Barack Obama
• “You have the honesty of Abe Lincoln and the charm of the guy who shot him.” – Dane Cook to Simon Cowell
• “Please shave that mustache, it’s disgusting.” – My Mother
• “There is no Antennagate.” – Steve Jobs
• ”If we win the World Cup, I’ll get naked and run around the city’s Obelisk.” – Diego Maradona
• “I think the environmental impact of this disaster is likely to be very, very modest.” – Tony Hayward
• “We’ve got a lot of stimulus going on.” – Warren Buffett

With all of these great quotes, it was still easy for me to decide on the 2010 Quote of the Year - “I’m going to take my talents to South Beach.” – LeBron James

This painful quote to Cleveland Cavalier fans was delivered during James’ hour long ‘The Decision’ on ESPN – a show that ultimately would tarnish James’ image and result in seeing his jersey being burned on the streets in Cleveland. The quote has longevity as you continue to hear it since it was made last July and also a great ‘madlibs’ quality, where you can fill in the blanks for different parts of your day.  “I’m going to take my _____ to ______.” – feel free input your own.  Additionally, the comedic aspect of the quote as it has now received a generation-Y inspired definition which involves a trip to the bathroom. 

Which quotes stuck in your head this year?? And here is looking forward to more great quotes in 2011!!

PR’s Time to Shine

Great article in Advertising Age regarding Marc Pritchard, global marketing and brand building officer at P&G, speaking on the future of PR to the Council of Public Relations Firms Critical Issues Forum last week in NY.  Mr. Pritchard told the PR professionals and corporate communications professionals that the future of marketing is inextricably linked to the future and growth of PR.

“This is PR’s time to shine,” Mr. Pritchard said in his keynote speech. “PR is the key for all marketers looking to build meaningful relationships with consumers. When integrated effectively those relationships turn consumers into customers and customers into brand ambassadors.”

Mr. Pritchard described how PR was essential to the success of 4 of P&G’s biggest marketing campaigns this year. (Winter Olympics effort, Head & Shoulders, the Cover Girl and Ellen DeGeneres partnership and Old Spice)

“These campaigns were all amplified by PR,” Mr. Pritchard said. “PR was able to give our big ideas a megaphone that we used to spur participation that helped lead to spontaneous combustion.”

Read more of Mr. Prichard’s insight at AdAge

Top 25 U.S. Newspapers Ranked By Twitter Followers - via Journalistics

As the world of Twitter grows, many top newspapers have taken to the micro-blog to update their followers of the latest news and stories.  The questions comes - How do you know which newspapers are on, how can I follow them and which are the top? Luckily the good folks at Journalistics  posted a listing of the top 25 (actually 27), complete with Twitter handles for easy following. 

To read to story in it’s entirty at Journalistics, please visit - http://bit.ly/Top-25-Newspapers

The listing is as follows:

1. @nytimes – 2,668,948 
2. @wsj – 464,591 
3. @washingtonpost – 204,514 
4. @latimes – 83,335 
5. @usatoday – 72,929 
6. @newyorkpost – 57,605 
7. @chicagotribune - 34,490 *
8. @denverpost – 32,755 
9. @dallas_news – 24,726 
10. @seattletimes – 22,286 
11. @suntimes – 18,952 
12. @freep – 18,851 
13. @nydailynew – 15,744 
14. @houstonchron – 14,108 
15. @azcentral – 10,407 
16. @oregonian – 10,338 
17. @phillyinquirer – 9,819 
18. @SFGate – 9,508 
19. @clevelanddotcom – 7,943 
20. @MN_News – 7,008 
21. @NJ_News – 6,181 
22. @SDUT – 5,886 
23. @tampabaycom – 3,168 
24. @insidebayarea – 2,810 
25. @cctimes – 2,705 
26. @mercurynews – 2,536 
27. @newsday – 2,302 

Follow Mynt Public Relations on Twitter and have a great Halloween weekend!