In Case you Missed It: September Meeting Photos

Meet Scott Sameroff

Company: Luck Media & Marketing
Birthplace: Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
College: McGill University (Montreal, Quebec)

What is your role at Luck Media? I do a bit of everything. I spend a lot of time bringing in new clients, tons of internet research, writing/formating press releases, collecting client articles, meeting with clients

What has been your favorite PR moment? Writing my first press release and reading it in the gossip column of a major newspaper the following day.

What do you think your next career move will be? I'll probably start applying to MBA programs in the next two or three years.

What advice can you give to current students? Recent graduates? Work hard, don't be afraid to start off as an intern or at the bottom of the ladder, no matter how qualified you think you are. Also, be proactive, don't sit around the office and waste time. Look around your office for things that need to be improved/completed and do so.

In Case You Missed It: March Meeting Recap

Breaking News - Effectively Using Emerging Media

Over twenty young professionals attended the March 21 meeting at MWW Group, which focused on how to integrate new media into PR campaigns. The expert panelists defined the most popular forms of new media, shared their experiences on how to effectively use each medium and discussed the future of new media in the PR industry.

Jennifer Dekel of Schwartzman Public Relations agency presented an introductory overview of new media being used by PR professionals:

• Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – The process of making Web pages readable to search engines and emphasizing key topics within Web pages. Example: A Southwest Airlines press release distributed via a wire service included three phrases throughout the release, such as “discount air fares.” This increased the likelihood of the press release appearing at the top of Google and other search engines when consumers entered “discount air fares.”
• RSS Feeds – Subscription-based “feeds” (distribution or syndication) of Web content, such as news headlines and podcasts, from an online publisher to Web users. Example: The RSS feed used for one of Jennifer’s client’s podcast was used by The Hollywood Reporter Web site. Visitors to that website could click on the link to listen to the podcast.
• Social Bookmarking Web sites – Sites in which people can store, classify, share and search links. Example: Popular social bookmarking sites include Del.icio.us, and Digg.
• Blogs – A frequent, chronological publication of personal thoughts and Web links. The three most popular blogs currently are Engadget.net, BoingBoing.net and Gizmodo.com. Each has more unique visitors than USA Today and Wall Street Journal.
• Mobile Marketing - Marketing on or with a mobile device, such as a mobile phone.

Mike Hudson of JMPR and Michael Ball of IPG Emerging Media Lab offered other practical tips on how new media can attract consumers to your company or brand:

• Creating a company blog is great for creating buzz about your company. For example, several corporations have successfully maintained a blog designed for their CEO's messages.
• Your PR team needs to align with a top blog that focuses on your industry. Form relationships with the top bloggers and keep them informed, offer an exclusive interview or consider becoming a sponsor of the Web site.
• Always remember that successful online PR campaigns invite consumers to participate. For example, Nike used mobile marketing to send text messages to Brooklyn young adults to invite them to join a scavenger hunt. Participants had to follow instructions then text back to find out their next destination.
• Your company’s messages on the Web space should reflect its messages in the marketplace.

In Case You Missed It: February Meeting Recap

Media Myths & Realities: A Comprehensive Media-Usage Survey

The first official YP meeting of the year took place on February 21st at Ketchum and explored an important question PR professionals have been asking recently: is traditional media dead? Media experts Jerry Swerling, USC Professor of Professional Practice and Director of Public Relations Studies, and Sean Fitzgerald, partner and managing director of Ketchum’s California offices, discussed the realities of consumer media usage today using a study USC Annenberg School for Communication and Ketchum released in December. The study found that traditional media is not dead, debunked other communications myths, discussed how consumers are using media to fit their needs and provided tips for PR practitioners to better reach their target audiences. Here are the ten key learnings of the study:

1. All Media is Local and Personal
Consumers rely heavily on their local newspapers and TV news because they widely believe these sources are credible.

2. The Human Channel is Critical - Especially Word of Mouth
Advice from family and friends is used by nearly half (43.7%) of consumers and they rank this group's credibility high. This is the reason social networking websites are popular.

Practical Tip: Since word-of-mouth influence ranks high among consumers, PR campaigns should consider avenues for developing programs that influence – whether through grass-roots marketing, free product samples and coupons, or other approaches.

3. Consumers Use a Multi Channel Approach
Traditional media continues to be used by a majority of consumers as they are also trying emerging new media.

4. Media Use is Generational
Not surprisingly, younger consumers are more well rounded when it comes to media use. However, older consumers still regularly rely on traditional media.

Practical Tip: Practitioners must be mindful of the media interests of the age groups they are communicating to since their interests vary. Specific “age group specialists” may become an industry trend.

5. Corporate Communicators Rely Too Heavily On Their Company Websites
Consumers report low usage of company's websites for information, ranging from 7 to 22 percent, depending on what type of information they seek.

6. Corporate Communicators Should Use All Media When Spreading Their Message
Consumers are looking more toward a mix of traditional media and in some cases news Web sites to get information. Young adults seek instant news.

7. Timing Matters – Corporate Communicators Must Place Consumers’ Needs Ahead of Company Schedules
Consumers reported that "back to school" time was the number one time they seek out information.

8. Celebrities Should Be Used Strategically and Cautiously
Celebrity endorsement doesn’t rank very high among consumers (13.8%) as a direct influence and has low credibility.

9. Influencers Devour All Media All The Time
Influencers are society’s informational editors and “multi-media-minders."

10. Influencers Adopt New Media Earliest
Compared to other consumer groups, influencers are more influenced by new media and tend to be early adopters to these new communications channels.

Your Responses to the Topic
What key learning do you most agree with? Are you incorporating this insight into your communication plans?

January Mixer

YP kicked off the year with a mixer at El Cholo in Santa Monica. More than 30 young professionals met to share tacos, margaritas and unwind from a day of work.