UW Oshkosh’s PRSSA chapter is currently involved in preparing their event and awareness campaign for the National Organ Donor Awareness Competition (NODAC).
NODAC, which is sponsored by Rowan University’s PRSSA chapter, is an annual competition held to spread awareness and promote family discussion about organ donation.
This year, UW Oshkosh PRSSA members chose to focus on the liver. This organ helped sparked an array of creative ideas that will prove beneficial in spreading awareness about organ donation to the UW Oshkosh campus community.
On Thursday, April 15, the team will host a dodgeball tournament to promote liver donation to the college campus. This event, the Live’R Die Dodgeball Classic, is being promoted various ways using the clever slogan, Dodge the Ball – Not the Dot, referring to the donation sticker placed on driver licenses’.
The NODAC team has set up a Web site containing more information regarding the tournament and explains tournament rules, outlines prizes and shares key facts about liver donation.
In correlation to organ donation, the team has also decided to highlight a local child’s gift of organ donation at their dodgeball event; Caleb’s story can also be found on their Web site.
Numerous other tactics are being implemented to spread awareness about organ donation and will be seen throughout campus in the upcoming weeks.
For more information about liver donation, the dodgeball tournament or to register, check out the Web site: dodgeballclassic.weebly.com.
Also, if you plan on attending the tournament, please find the Live’R Die Dodgeball Classic event on Facebook and RSVP.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Sunday, March 14, 2010
A Glimpse at Agency Life
Shoe allowance. The only two words that needed to be said during our Red Shoes PR, Inc. tour this past Friday to make me become a fan of the organization. I mean, don’t get me wrong, the company as a whole has certainly found its niche and has been running with it (in red shoes might I add), but offering employees a shoe allowance? What shoe aficionado, such as myself, could image anything better? I was hooked the remainder of the visit.
On March 12, PRSSA members were given a tour of the small, full-service public relations agency, located in Appleton, and was able to see not only the perks of being a Shoes employee, but also what the organization offers its clients. The agency focuses on content development, media relations and social media and by the looks of it, is doing so quite well. Started in 2008, the company is on the fast track of success. Just take notice of the Starbucks coffee machine in the corner; a sure sign you have made it.
The agency visit was a beneficial event for PRSSA students, allowing us to learn about the agency life. The informal visit gave students the opportunity to ask questions and discuss public relations with two friendly, knowledgeable public relations professionals, Karen Buckoski and Rachel Wollersheim.
The discussion sparked great conversation about the public relations field and allowed for the Shoes women to pass on some insider knowledge. A great tip they shared was to ensure that we, as public relations professionals, keep up to date on national news, as it can be beneficial to clients locally. Also, they advised us to Google ourselves. A somewhat strange tip, but proved important after the women explained the importance of search engine optimization (SEO) not only as a tool for public relations professionals, but employers as well. Making ourselves easily accessible on Google shows that we are familiar with the magnitude of SEO. Two very sound pieces of advice.
The agency is also very receptive to mentoring students. They welcome anyone interested in job shadowing and invited us all to keep in touch. You can become a fan of the agency on Facebook: facebook.com/redshoespr and follow them on Twitter: twitter.com/redshoespr. For more information about the organization, visit their Web site http://www.redshoespr.com/.
Red Shoes PR will also be visiting UW Oshkosh PRSSA on April 1 to give a presentation on social media. I hope to see you all there.
On March 12, PRSSA members were given a tour of the small, full-service public relations agency, located in Appleton, and was able to see not only the perks of being a Shoes employee, but also what the organization offers its clients. The agency focuses on content development, media relations and social media and by the looks of it, is doing so quite well. Started in 2008, the company is on the fast track of success. Just take notice of the Starbucks coffee machine in the corner; a sure sign you have made it.
The agency visit was a beneficial event for PRSSA students, allowing us to learn about the agency life. The informal visit gave students the opportunity to ask questions and discuss public relations with two friendly, knowledgeable public relations professionals, Karen Buckoski and Rachel Wollersheim.
The discussion sparked great conversation about the public relations field and allowed for the Shoes women to pass on some insider knowledge. A great tip they shared was to ensure that we, as public relations professionals, keep up to date on national news, as it can be beneficial to clients locally. Also, they advised us to Google ourselves. A somewhat strange tip, but proved important after the women explained the importance of search engine optimization (SEO) not only as a tool for public relations professionals, but employers as well. Making ourselves easily accessible on Google shows that we are familiar with the magnitude of SEO. Two very sound pieces of advice.
The agency is also very receptive to mentoring students. They welcome anyone interested in job shadowing and invited us all to keep in touch. You can become a fan of the agency on Facebook: facebook.com/redshoespr and follow them on Twitter: twitter.com/redshoespr. For more information about the organization, visit their Web site http://www.redshoespr.com/.
Red Shoes PR will also be visiting UW Oshkosh PRSSA on April 1 to give a presentation on social media. I hope to see you all there.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Brushing up on Crisis Communication
Could you image being Tiger Woods’ public relations representative, or what about Toyota’s? Both the man and the machine have made some unfortunate mishaps the past few months that have not been handled appropriately by their public relations representatives. As a future public relations practitioner it is imperative to learn from these communication mistakes.
This past Thursday, James (Jim) Streed, APR, a member of Integrys Energy Group’s Corporate Communications staff and public relations professor at UWO, shared his experiences and reiterated the importance of crisis communication to PRSSA members.
First and foremost, Streed stressed that having a plan is crucial to handling any crises efficiently and effectively. Crises can happen to anyone, at anytime. It is important to be prepared and follow through with a well thought out plan.
Putting the plan into action is equally important. First, you must assess the employee impact caused by the crisis. Next you must communicate the event and future action to stakeholders in a timely manner. This can be done through multiple venues (i.e. face-to-face, on the companies Web site, over the phone or through e-mail). An effective public relations practitioner must also allow business to continue to run smoothly and address human needs simultaneously.
According to Streed, half of organizations do not have a current crisis communication plan. Of those organizations that do have a crisis plan, one-third do not practice them.
Crisis communication planning involves four steps. Below is a brief review of these steps:
This past Thursday, James (Jim) Streed, APR, a member of Integrys Energy Group’s Corporate Communications staff and public relations professor at UWO, shared his experiences and reiterated the importance of crisis communication to PRSSA members.
First and foremost, Streed stressed that having a plan is crucial to handling any crises efficiently and effectively. Crises can happen to anyone, at anytime. It is important to be prepared and follow through with a well thought out plan.
Putting the plan into action is equally important. First, you must assess the employee impact caused by the crisis. Next you must communicate the event and future action to stakeholders in a timely manner. This can be done through multiple venues (i.e. face-to-face, on the companies Web site, over the phone or through e-mail). An effective public relations practitioner must also allow business to continue to run smoothly and address human needs simultaneously.
According to Streed, half of organizations do not have a current crisis communication plan. Of those organizations that do have a crisis plan, one-third do not practice them.
Crisis communication planning involves four steps. Below is a brief review of these steps:
- Assess the risk.
- Develop the plan.
Compose strategies that will identify risks ahead of time.
Define clearly what is considered a crisis.
Decide who must be notified first.
Form a Crisis Management Team (CMT) and choose a location that will be used as the Emergency Operations Center (EOC). - Respond.
This is the execution phase.
Communicate with the public within the first hour – even if you just plug important information into a template press release. - Recover.
Don’t simply relax; use your time directly after responding to a crisis effectively by completing an evaluation that can help you in the future.
Not all crises must end in a public relations disaster. Take Haiti for example. Social media has aided the Red Cross in raising millions of dollars of charitable funds. This new media has allowed public relations practitioners not only communicate faster – but also learn about crises quicker.
All in all, the measure of a good public relations practitioner is that they are able to learn and grow from the mistakes as well as triumphs of others.
For more information about crisis communication, check out the article titled, “Flirting With Disaster: How to Take a Public Relations Crisis by the Horns.”
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