Imprv Ur Wrtng in a Txtng Wrld

In a world ruled by SoMe (social media) and txtng (texting), it can be easy for public relations professionals (or anyone) to slip in their writing skills and abilities. Since deciding to go into public relations as a profession, I have had an internship and two jobs where most of my work revolved around social media.


That’s not a complaint. I love social media. But when my work is focused on keeping all my writing to 140 characters for Twitter, or 400 for Facebook (often using shorthand), it is easy to see how my other writing may suffer as a result. This is a huge problem since writing is a valuable horcrux of any public relations professional: if destroyed, our entire “public relations soul” is diminished greatly.

So, what can we do to keep up on our writing? Well, here are a few ideas I am currently using to keep up, and even improve, my writing skills and abilities:

1. Keep a blog. All you need to do is create an account with Blogger or WordPress and then start typing. And it doesn’t really matter what you write about (though I would strongly counsel against writing anything that could harm you professionally!). You could blog about your family, your dreams, your favorite restaurants, your thoughts on national or world politics, events or issues. The most important thing is that you write, and in the process, you will begin to see where you can improve or correct your writing, especially if you allow others to view your blog and leave comments.

2. Practice writing press releases (or other industry deliverables). This is especially good for those who may not have a lot of opportunities to do such writing in their current jobs or classes. As I mentioned, I had an internship where I mostly did social media. I didn’t write a single press release the entire six months! Needless to say, when it came time to write a press release again, I needed to freshen-up. Thus my recommendation: whether you’re a student or professional, continue practicing writing press releases and other client deliverables, especially when you’re not currently doing it for school or work. And don’t worry about what to write about, just pick a topic or product and prepare a press release for it. I recently wrote a press release about the discovery of eggs as food from the perspective of the chicken, who was trying to get humans to stop eating live chickens and just eat the newly laid eggs. Sounds silly, but it allowed me to practice my writing with a little bit of light-hearted fun. If you have any friends in journalism, you could ask them to let you pitch the story and see if they would write a story based on your pitch and press release.

3. Write short stories. This is my personal favorite. I know it is a different kind of writing, but it is still writing. And I think by doing a little creative writing, you can find your voice in a way that is hard to do when you write only professional documents. I have already finished one story, and am currently working on a couple more. My first short story was about 5000 words. They don’t all have to be that long (or short). Writing short stories can help you not only improve your writing, but also your editing, which you can do once you’ve finished a first draft of a story.

4. Keep a journal. This is very much like a blog, but most likely won’t be shared publicly, though you may decide to share it with family or a significant other. Keeping a journal can help you learn to organize your thoughts and feelings, putting them into coherent ideas and phrases on paper (or computer screen). As you go back and read, you will not only find your writing style, but you will also discover how our writing changes based on our moods and life experiences. This can be valuable when you are expected to write professional documents for work or school. Understanding how your moods affect your writing will help you be in control of your writing, which will make you valuable to your employers or clients.

Keeping up with our writing in a social media and texting work is very important, especially in the field of public relations. If you have any other ideas that you or others use to keep up with your writing, I would love to hear about them! Feel free to leave a comment below.

Sincerely,

Parrot Tongue

Getting Quality Twitter Followers Takes Work

Let’s face it; we all get excited when we get more Twitter followers. But have you ever stopped to see who’s following you? Many of the followers we get are just spammers looking for followers themselves and don’t actually care about what you or I have to say.

So how do we get quality followers? Here’s 7 basic principles to getting good Twitter followers:

1. Say something interesting. Just giving a play-by-play of your daily activities probably isn’t enough to get quality followers, unless you’re a celebrity. Instead, provide something interesting that people would want to read, and will make them want to see what else you will write in the future. You can talk about yourself, but don’t just talk about yourself.

2. Include links. Twitter is a great tool for directing people to blogs and websites. Share with others what you find. The best way to share links without taking up too many of those precious 140 characters is to use a third-party site built for that. I recommend Hootsuite .

3. Retweet others. Retweets are the prize in the box of CrackerJacks. We all love them. So, if you like being retweeted, then retweet others. But don’t always just retweet exactly what others say, it’s usually good to retweet with a comment, if space allows.

4. Join the conversation. A great way to get followers is to find a topic or issue being discussed on Twitter and join the conversation. This is an opportunity for you to apply suggestions 1-3 above. You can say interesting things, offer other links about that topic or issue that haven’t been used, or take the time to retweet some of the comments you like.

5. Participate in a tweetchat. Tweetchats are a great way to converse with others about a topic, issue, hobby or career. You can find a whole list of tweetchats on a public Google Doc with times and hashtags here . May I offer a suggestion with tweetchats: be sure to tell your followers you plan to participate in a tweetchat. You can even suggest they use a tweet-muting site so they don’t get annoyed with your continuous tweetchat tweeting.

6. Mention others. This is a lot like retweeting. However, instead of just repeating what others say, you can say something to them or about them by inserting an @ symbol and their username, like  @byuboston  (which is my Twitter username). This will show up under their ‘mentions’ and will show them you are talking about/with them.

7. If you have a blog, keep it updated. You can probably tell I am not very good at this. I only update my blog every month or so. But if you want followers, you most likely have to give them something more than a few fun tweets a day. People like substance. So if you have a blog, keep it going, and use Twitter to let them know about your updates. Also, use Twitter to find topic ideas, see what others are saying about your articles and invite people to read them.

There you go. Seven tips to getting quality Twitter followers. If you have any ideas that I have left out, please let me know. Also, I love comments, so feel free to leave some!

Thanks!

Sincerely,

Parrot Tongue

Learning to Blog from a Renaissance Philosopher

I recently read a few Essays by Michel de Montaigne, and while reading, I came to the conclusion that Montaigne was a Renaissance blogger!

Seriously.

As I read, I marveled at how different Montaigne’s writings were from his contemporaries, but how similar they are to the mommy-bloggers (and other bloggers, of course) of today. Many of the writers of the medieval period wrote emphatically and definitively. They didn’t leave anything open to argument. They didn’t allow for ‘comments.’ But that is what Montaigne’s writing was all about. In fact, he says from the get-go that his writing is meant to be his opinion, and is open to criticism. But that isn’t the only thing that makes his writing a medieval blog. In fact, I found a whole slew of reasons:

1. Montaigne isn’t writing as a know-it-all. Many bloggers today use blogs as a form of expression, a ways to present some ideas and join a conversation. Montaigne writes as if he has just entered an ongoing discussion on a topic or issue, listened to what others said, gave his thoughts, received feedback, then left before the conversation concluded.

2. Unlike writers of his time, but very much like bloggers of ours, Montaigne brings himself into his writing. Instead of only writing his conclusion, Montaigne brings his readers into his mind. He writes like he thinks. In fact, he will even tell his writers if he was about to tell them something but then suddenly forgot.

3. Montaigne didn’t just write about philosophy or religion, he wrote about what was happening around him. Most blogs I read are written by people who want to share what is going on around them and what is happening in their world and sphere of experience (I apologize for the passive sentence, but this is blogging, I can do what I want). Each of Montaigne’s essays is basically a blog post about something he has witnessed or heard about and wanted to add his thoughts and opinions on the subject.

4. Montaigne used more than just his random thoughts or personal beliefs when sharing his opinion on a subject. He used research. Most bloggers today who share thoughtful opinion and discuss current trends and issues need to do some research in order to be a real part of the conversation.

5. Montaigne understood the importance of writing about things he cared about. He didn’t just think of something people would want to hear and then write them. He wrote about the things of his heart, the things he was interested in learning more about and having a conversation about. Any blogger today will tell you it is difficult to write about things you don’t care about. If the writer doesn’t care about what he or she is writing on, it is hard for the readers to care as well.

6. But while Montaigne was writing about what he cared about, he was also being sure to provide people with something useful and educated. This is why research and writing on what he cared about were both so important. By doing both of these things, he was able to provide an intelligent opinion on a subject and allow his readers to then accept or reject it.

7. One of the most important things Montaigne did, and which most bloggers do (I mentioned this in an earlier paragraph, but it is really important as a blogger), was make his tone and words conversational. He was adding to a conversation. He wasn’t just providing his opinion as definitive truth, but as a part of a continuing conversation about an issue or topic. This is Blogging 101.

8. Montaigne was willing to change his opinion, and he often did, even in the middle of a thought. That is something that makes blogging so successful. It is new and fresh. It isn’t the same old writing. People read blogs because they get to be a part of the conversation and they see into the life of the blogger. When we read Montaigne, we see who he was. We get to know Montaigne because he tells us who he is, he didn’t just wasn’t us to figure it out on our own.

So you see, we can learn something useful for out time from people who lived about 500 years ago. We also learn that blogging really isn’t ‘new media.’ It’s as old as the Renaissance. But that’s okay. Because it is something that we want and love. Blogging has been alive since the 1500s, and will continue well into the future. For that I am grateful. As a blogger and as a reader. So let me know what you think. Do you agree with this assessment of Montaigne? Why or why not? Do you have another opinion to offer that may change what I think? Let me hear it. Like Montaigne, I want to be part of a conversation. So let’s talk.

Until next time,

Parrot Tongue

Learning How to Fail as an Intern

There are many reasons to participate in an internship: experience, networking, resume building and learning. As an intern I have learned and experienced many things I just simply couldn’t get in the classroom. But there’s one primary reason I think it’s important to participate in an internship before hitting the job market:

Learning how to fail.

Seriously. Think about the last bad grade you got in class. Who did that grade affect? Most likely the only person other than you who was affected by that grade was your mother. There isn’t much consequence to failing in college except your GPA may suffer a little. But as an employee with a company, failure has a much greater affect – it affects the bottom line.

Internships help students learn to bridge the failure-in-the-classroom and failure-in-the-workplace gap. As an intern, most students aren’t given as much responsibility as other employees. So when they fail, it isn’t as detrimental. But it does hurt both the company and the student. The intern can learn from this. And since most internships allow an employee to mentor the student, the student can get direct feedback on how to improve.

This has personally been a very important aspect of my intern experience. My boss has a rule that has helped me learn how to fail in the field of public relations without sinking the company: I am allowed to make mistakes, but not allowed to make the same mistake twice. Because of this simple rule, I have gained a skill that will benefit me as I move from student to work horse. I understand how to predict failure, what to expect when making decisions, how to measure my work and how to press forward when I do fail and fall short.

So remember, when considering how to make your education better, think about all the important aspects of an internship. Better to learn certain aspects of a job, like failing, in a somewhat forgiving environment than putting your first job on the line.
Thank you for reading.
Sincerely,
Parrot Tongue

Everyone Should Have a Twitter Account

Should you be on Twitter? Short answer: Yes.

Why?

Three reasons: networking, conversing, updating.

First: networking. While all social networks are important for networking (I cannot believe I just said that…networks for networking), Twitter possesses a certain ‘introducing’ quality that is hard to find in other networks, even LinkedIn. Twitter is really about making connections, though it is possible to have strong, deep relationships with people via Twitter. The networking on Twitter gives users an opportunity to meet and greet new people without being creepy or weird. Once these connections are made, they can then flourish through the simple conversations of 140 characters.

Second: conversing. This comes once those connections have been made (as I mentioned previously). Twitter allows users to hold simple conversations that aren’t too intimidating. Twitter is helpful in keeping conversations to the most important information, which means most conversations are meaningful (that is, if users know how to write efficiently in the character limit, because if they don’t, their tweets are far from meaningful). Once great thing about Twitter is users can come into a conversation right in the middle and be totally comfortable being there.

Another important aspect of Twitter conversations is the hashtag tweetchats. I recently discovered a few of these chats happening in the field of public relations and have been greatly benefited from participating. I have had the opportunity to meet new people by joining weekly conversations on various public relations topics. I read and send tweets by using and following a particular hashtag (i.e., #prstudchat). I have made new connections and started new personal/business conversations through these chats.

Third: updating. This is a two-way street. By using Twitter, we can both stay updated on other people/organizations and keep others updated on us. To be honest, this isn’t as exciting to me on a personal level (unless I converse with close friends via Twitter), since I usually use Facebook for personal online conversations. But it is very beneficial for business/profession updating.

Every day I follow and read the latest news, rumors, updates, crises, tidbits and happenings in the world of public relations. I have been able to get more of the information I want than through any other channel, including Facebook, LinkedIn, blogs or RSS feeds on their own. Twitter is the gateway to the best and brightest of each of these other online entities. I also get connected with the most recent articles on various topics on my field that interest me. And the best part? I can read a simple 140 character blurb about the article, blog, etc., to decide if I am interested before I ever go to the site to read it. Twitter has been crucial in helping me sift through all the clutter to find those golden nuggets of information that help me keep up-to-date on all the latest about public relations, find the best internship/job opportunities, and discover which industry leaders I should pay attention to and rub shoulders with.

So, basically, while Twitter is more beneficial as a professional/business network than a personal one, the benefits are positive enough that I feel everyone should have a Twitter account. And should use it regularly – it won’t be beneficial unless used on a daily basis. As users get more involved, they will begin to have the same experiences in networking, conversing and updating that I have had, and they will be so much better for it.

Making Social Media a Strategy for Business

Can social media really cost a company more money than it brings in? Absolutely. Here’s how:

Social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) is a communications function just like ads and press releases. However, many organizations don’t treat social media like it is a communications function. They simply jump on the social media bandwagon without putting any strategic thought into it. They start a Twitter account because everyone else has one, and just start spouting out information. This is wrong. Some companies can get away with doing this and make a profit, but many cannot. And those that are gaining revenue because of social media probably aren’t getting as much cash as they could from it.

So, what can an organization do to change this? How can a company use social media properly to find customers, engage in discussion and make money? Easy: strategy.

There are four parts to creating a successful social media strategy:

     1. Know your publics. Most companies have a good idea (or should have a good idea) of who they are trying to reach. Often we define our ‘publics’ as our customers, but this doesn’t necessarily have to be true. Our publics can be customers, shareholders, employees, government officials, media reporters, and so on.

     2. Know what you want to tell them. A social media site is a communications medium. Companies shouldn’t idle away their time sharing things via social media that aren’t going to benefit the bottom line. Messages shared via social media should be carefully crafted the same as a press release or CEO speech. Time is money in the business world, so any time spent doing something pointless is just wasting money. However, if messages distributed through social media channels are carefully considered and prepared to match the messages intended for those publics, the results can be substantial.

     3. Know what media your publics use. If a company’s current or potential publics aren’t using social media, then why would the company waste the effort? Make sure to choose media based on your publics, not publics based on the media you want to use. If your public is women between the ages of 25 and 50, then Facebook would be a great choice.

     4. Create a plan. Once a company knows its publics, knows what it wants to say to them, and knows the media they use, then it is ready to create a social media plan. All that’s required here is to combine each of the previous three points effectively to get the most response for the smallest effort.

I understand that the idea of doing these things may seem like a lot of work, but when done properly, can bring about great results. Besides, since many companies are already putting time and effort into social media, they might as well make that time and effort count.

Please feel free to leave comments about this or any other blog posts. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Parrot Tongue

Why my blog is named 'Parrot Tongue'

Why would I name my blog 'Parrot Tongue?'
To be honest, the name 'Parrot Tongue' just came to me. I have been thinking about doing a blog for some time, but didn't know what to write about. I finally decided to write my commentary on the world around me, specifically those things I am most interested in: public relations, pop culture, social media, news, religion.
As I considered the fact that I wanted to do commentary, the first thing that came to mind was a parrot. I find it fascinating that a bird has the ability to mimic the sound of human words. I realized that by sharing my opinions and talking about things being discussed and observed around me, I am doing exactly what a parrot does.
So why parrot tongue? Well, many blogs have interesting and catchy names. I wanted mine to be the same. I liked the idea of a parrot, but parrot by itself wasn't compelling enough. And I didn't like 'Parrot Voice Box.' So I decided on 'Parrot Tongue.'
Before I assigned this name to my blog, I decided to look up that phrase to see if there was anything else with the name 'parrot tongue.' I didn't find any blogs or websites, but I did find an article that describes a study done at a university in the Netherlands where researchers discovered that parrots, like humans, use both their voice box and their tongue to speak. (Here's the link in case you are interested: http://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/1604.html). After this discovery, I spent the day mulling over the name, and the more I thought about it, the more I liked it. I liked it so much, in fact, that I skipped doing some homework to sit down and start my blog.
This may not ever become a world-famous blog, but I hope it does provide entertainment and discourse to all those who venture through it. Thanks for reading.
Sincerely,
Parrot Tongue