Corinne Weisgerber :: Blogging & Managing your Personal Brand

Here is an excellent slideshow for exposing students to their first taste of online activity.

Gee Ekachai, of Marquette University, linked to the author of the slideshow - Corinne Weisgerber, of St. Edwards University.

Both are involved with PROpenMic, by the way. Visit their profiles in PROpenMic: Corinne Weisgerber and Gee Ekachai.

Truly a great, simple slideshow that all educators should use, IMO. It drives home the point of personal brand management. Some of the better quotes, “Google is the new resume” and “Find the Skeletons in your cyber closet”. You’ll enjoy this one. Read more

Edelman Studios :: CGM as Classroom Project and more

A recent video post to PROpenMic drew my interest.

Luke Walker shared a video he created for submission to the Edelman Studios project.

Read more

Invisible Children :: Nonprofit Video for Social Change

This post has two parts, actually. First, we’ll discuss a good CGM video shared recently in PROpenMic. Then, we’ll look at how the person that posted the video entered the social network and started to engage with people.

First, the video. Read more

Three Links :: Excellent Posts and a Video For You

Still exploring the Revolution theme and the featured posts capability. So, this week, I’m sharing three posts from great people. You’ll enjoy them, I’m sure.

First, we find an article about social media perhaps producing social change and helping someone with a terminal illness. Then, we learn that the SEC has recognized the spread of online / web communications (particularly social media) and they’ve now updated guidelines for publicly traded companies with regard to their Web sites and (if you read it into the speech) social media. Finally, we find the most wonderful video. You’ll want to watch it. Look to your right and you’ll find it is our featured video today. Read more

Allison Wetherbee on Fox 6 in B’ham :: Absolutely Alabama :: Another Reason I Go On and On About Camp ASCCA

I think that anyone who ever meets Allison Wetherbee comes away with a clear realization … she is a terrific person. Having her return to Camp ASCCA, as the director of public relations, may go down as one of the brightest decisions ever made for camp. I think this video proves that.

Allison was recently interviewed by Fred Hunter, Fox6 News in Birmingham, for their Absolutely Alabama series.

Allison shares how camp helped her over the years, trying anything new that she had her heart set upon doing. Since being a camper, Allison has gone on to earn a masters degree in counseling and served for almost 13 years in practice, before returning to Camp ASCCA.

I have to admit, I got a little tear thinking about Allison as a camper and now - the ASCCA PR director. It is a sweet story. She is the spokesperson for camp, and does a terrific job.

Watch the video now. (Click image below for a popup.) I have to say, Fred and the videographer/editor do terrific work. A great video. Thank you Fox6!

Now do you understand why I can’t help but talk about Camp ASCCA?

Can Involvement in PROpenMic Lead to a Job? :: Allie Osmar’s Success Story

Shared from my post to the front page of PROpenMic

My goal in starting PROpenMic, the social network for students & faculty, was to provide a resource that would help all of us.

I’m happy to report one particular success story from that site. I’m looking for others, too. So, if you have such a story, please share it in the comments or write to me. See the post and video below. Read more

Using ChipIn and Sprout Builder for Nonprofits

Nonprofits are turning to the Web more and more often to get their message out and to raise money.

As you likely know, I’ve been involved with Camp ASCCA, Alabama’s Special Camp for Children and Adults, for many years. Yes, I was a counselor there 27 years ago. I was also their first PR director. In fact, I’m the one that bought their domain name and give it to the camp years ago, even building their first site.

Yes, to me Camp ASCCA is the center of the universe. They are open year-round and serve thousands annually. I love the camp. So, now I’m helping them with their Web site (again), developing a social network and trying to raise funds online, too.

In case you hadn’t noticed yet, the economy stinks right now. Yep, and Camp ASCCA - like so many other nonprofits - needs to find new ways to raise money.

We’ve launched widgets on the Camp ASCCA site and their social network, ASCCA Friends. These tools come from ChipIn and Sprout Builder. They are free and pretty easy to implement on Web pages.

Sharing is important. The widgets have the potential for a viral campaign. Supporters can email the link to friends and even embed the widget in their own site.

ChipIn even allows you to create your own page on their site.  Think of it as a blog, as you can add new entries.  Here is the Camp ASCCA ChipIn page.

Sprout Builder allows you to embed almost anything in the presentation. You can have video, photo slideshows, information, and even embed the ChipIn widget to facilitate giving. Scroll down to see both the widgets in action.

The giving function is tied to a PayPal account. You can offer a pretty easy way for supporters to give online. The cost per gift (a fee to PayPal) is rather small. I tested it with a $10 donation and the take from PayPal was 57 cents. That’s not too bad for something that really doesn’t have a high cost for the nonprofit organization.

Now, this just launched on Friday evening. Please read the following and make suggestions and comments below. I’d love to hear from you. This is essentially what I shared on the ASCCA sites. You can always go there, too. Visit the Camp ASCCA site and ASCCA Friends. Their blog, filled with videos, photos and more, is located at the Camp ASCCA Journal. Interns are always filling the blog with news from ongoing sessions.

Something You May Not Know :: ASCCA’s Funding

Yes, Camp ASCCA is an Easter Seal affiliate. But, did you know that ASCCA does not receive any funding from Easter Seals? Sounds strange, I know, but it really isn’t. ASCCA is owned by Alabama’s Easter Seal Society. As the flagship facility, ASCCA is expected to raise their own funds. ASCCA receives no money from either the state or national Easter Seal societies. So, please consider the following.

As an Alabama Easter Seal facility, the Camp ASCCA staff and board are responsible for generating, locating and developing all needed funding for all expenses related to Camp ASCCA programs and facilities. Currently Camp ASCCA operates on $1.5 million dollars annually.

Camp ASCCA affiliates with Easter Seals. In return for our Easter Seal affiliation, Camp ASCCA is able utilize group discounts for facility and employee insurance and employee retirement plans offered through Easter Seals Alabama parent organization. However, we cover the costs for all of our programs and activities. About 90% of the people attending Camp ASCCA require some help from us … well - actually, you … in covering their camp fees.

Camp ASCCA serves thousands annually. This campaign is just designed to help us cover the fees for 100 campers. Have you priced a camp, lately? Camps for non-disabled children cost two to three times what we charge. So, as you can imagine, we’re just talking about the fees we charge - not the costs we actually face daily.

So, now that you know what Camp ASCCA’s responsibilities are, please consider supporting the kids and adults that want to go to camp - but are held up by a lack of funds. Make a donation and help send a camper to ASCCA!

For more information about Camp ASCCA, Read more

Meet Danielle Warby :: Most Recent Member of PROpenMic

Yes, I’m still focusing on the work we’re doing at PROpenMic, the social network for PR students & faculty. Bear with me for a bit, please.

I’ll admit, all of the people signing up are my favorites. I’m still kinda stunned by the turnout we’ve experienced. We surpassed the 500 members mark in just 3 weeks.

Today, however, a new truly favorite member signed up. Look at her work and her involvement online. She’s remarkable, and I haven’t even met her, yet.

Meet Danielle Warby at PROpenMic (free signup required). But, you don’t really have to go there. Trust me, there is much more out there online.

templatedata - The web at www.usyd.edu.au

“This blog is based at the University of Sydney. It is written by members of the Digital and Print Media team. Other university staff members with ideas for articles are most welcome to contact us about writing for Templatedata. Readers and comments from the general public are most welcome. The views expressed on this blog are those of the respective authors and not those of their employer.”

Oh, to be sure … there’s more: Danielle’s DesignDyke’s bookmarks on del.icio.us, her Flickr: Photos & Video from danyell.com.au, even a MySpace.com account - Design Dyke, not to be outdone … she’s into video, too. YouTube - LesbianIntent’s Channel.

Staff - The University of Sydney

“Danielle is the Web Support Officer for the Faculty of Economics and Business. Danielle’s responsibilities include website content management and production of marketing materials for print and web. Her main interest is in the area of Social Networking and other Web 2.0 technologies such as blogging. Danielle is also a qualified graphic designer.”

From there, we find Danielle engaging in all manner of social media sites, like Twitter / designdyke … Danielle Warby - FriendFeed … and her personal blog at Vox.

Design Dyke at Vox. Danielle is a student, too.

“I’m an independent, creative woman and I know what I want from life but I’m usually too busy enjoying myself to get my shit together. I have my own graphic design/digital marketing business, I work at Sydney University on their online marketing communicatiions [sic] (specifically social media) update a few of their websites and design the occasional logo. I’m studying Post-Grad Marketing at Sydney Uni… all which leaves me with little to no social life but plenty of time in front of the computer. In my spare time I sleep.”

She’s also a business woman. LinkedIn: Danielle Warby. And that brings us to her business. Design.

Yes, I saved, perhaps the best for last. warbyweb: graphic design web design

Visit and look at Danielle’s work. The level of broad interests at work here is quite simply amazing. She’s even “in the process of setting up an online lesbian magazine that focuses on art and design. I am here to check out what the dykes are doing.” (Source: YouTube)

Now, I ask you. When would I have ever been able to meet someone like Danielle without the advent of social networks? Never. I’m very happy we started PROpenMic. Danielle, you’re pretty damn cool. We must ask her to chat with our class next semester. Hope she’ll agree.

Admit it. You love her. I know you do. Yeah, and a bit of jealousy, too, I think. Yep, I hear ya’.

Crowdsourcing II :: DOs and DONTs of Online Reputation Managment

Christi Eubanks, of my PRception, asks me and dozens of PR educators and practitioners to share our “top 3 DOs and DON’Ts for personal online reputation management.”

That’s a good question. We talk about it in class from time to time.  Jeremy Pepper just wrote an interesting post on this very topic - Reputation - Both Corporate and Personal -  at Pop PR!

That’s also a tough question. Only three? I’m going for three of each. I’ve seen some of the other answers, so I’ll try to hit some areas maybe not covered there, yet key beginner first steps to online reputation management. You may post your comments here, but really … the best thing (I believe) would be to post in your blog and ping Christi of my PRception.

Read more

The Real Driving Force Behind Social Media :: Might Surprise You

Previously, I mentioned the question I received during the HighEdWebDev conference. I was asked the always difficult question, “So, what’s next? What is the next thing on the horizon?” Again, if I knew (if any of us knew), we’d invest in it and reap the rewards. I did not have the answer, because I don’t know what is next.

It did remind me of something that I’ve thought about for a long time. The relatively unsung true driving force, in my opinion, of social media’s growth. Surely, the overall contributors are the users. But the initial force was (and continues to be) a relatively small group of young people that had an idea, a lot of curiosity, and the ability to write code.

The developers of the various open-source platforms would be excellent candidates for honors as The Real Driving Force Behind Social Media. Most were college students when they spawned their ideas.

I’m talking about the people that launched WordPress, LiveJournal and CivicSpace, for instance. Aside from Tim Berners-Lee, who did start it all, these people have been the agents of change: Matthew Mullenweg of WordPress, Brad Fitzpatrick of LiveJournal and Zack Rosen of CivicSpace Labs (blog) are the best examples.

Another is Drupal. and the remarkable story of then-student, Dries Buytaert. Read more

New Rules of Marketing and PR :: Students Feeling A Buzz

Fall semester brings more blogging and social media exercises to my classrooms. This semester, as with all in the past, I’ve tried to do something new with the hope of catching the imagination of each student.

I have a story, but first - some background.

The PR Writing class is reading David Meerman Scott’s book, The New Rules of Marketing and PR. Then, they are writing about it in their Fall 2007 class blogs. Along the way, the students are also exploring social media releases, online release portals and more. You’ll be happy to know that they are doing a lot of other writing, too. Releases, features and more are weekly exercises. Finally, they will create an online newsroom for a nonprofit client … a real client.

I’ve never said, and never will say, that social media will replace tried and true public relations practices. It does offer a new way, sometimes a more appropriate and successful way, of serving a client’s interests and those of their stakeholders. And, developing an understanding of online release writing and delivery is certainly useful.

So, the story is that - as usual - many students are skeptics. Jackie is was one of them. But, she recently had an ah-ha! experience. Read more

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