Today’s guest post is authored by Katrina Dene, the Bateman Group’s summer intern and a third-year journalism student at the University of Oregon. Katrina looks at how the use of technology and recent emergence of social media have impacted both the practice and study of PR in equally significant ways.

As I enter my third year of college and take my first steps toward a career in public relations, one thing became abundantly clear to me during my summer internship at the Bateman Group — technology has had equally a profound impact on the study of PR as it has on the practice of PR. The senior PR practitioners at the Bateman Group were quick to point out when they were in college; the majority of academic programs geared towards the study of PR were woefully out of touch with what was being practiced in the field. They were genuinely surprised when I informed them that the classroom experience has evolved dramatically in 20 years. To say it’s taken a quantum leap since the members of Generation X were college students would be a huge understatement. Gone are the days when students showed up to class with just a pen and a notebook, furiously taking hand-written notes as the professor lectured or worked the chalkboard. Today, I still show up to a lecture with my pen and notebook, but also with my laptop, BlackBerry and, of course, my i>Clicker.

i>Clicker Remote

The University of Oregon, along with many other schools, has implemented the i>Clicker system in quite a few of its lectures. For those unfamiliar, an i>Clicker is a remote control-driven auto responder device that allows professors to ask multiple choice questions and instantly present a graph of the results. Amazing what technology can do, right? It’s an instant progress report for the teacher to determine if they’re getting their message across by quizzing the students in real time.

As far as student/teacher relations go; however, this is actually a little troublesome. I am no longer Katrina Dene, third-year student. I am now a serial number with 89% accuracy for in-class pop quizzes. I become an arbitrary number on an arbitrary scale. While this new use of technology has its advantages, particularly within large classes of 100+ students, professors should not lose site of the importance of building true relationships with their student and finding new ways to engage them both on- and off-line. Interestingly, the emergence of social media has helped.

In another one of my classes, the structure of our lectures was impacted directly by social media, perhaps to an extreme. Instead of the traditional lecture, questions and response format, our class added video chat and instant message via Skype along with Twitter micro-blogging to the mix. As an alternative to listening to lectures on the PR trade, we “Skyped” with real-world professionals, other professors, graduate students and government officials who relayed their personal experiences for us to learn by example. Furthermore, students were not only encouraged to raise their hands to ask questions, but also Tweet the inquires to our class hash tag on Twitter. In turn, our graduate teaching fellows were hard at work monitoring the hash tag activity and answering questions for the 160-person class.

So what does this say about the future of communications in the teaching of communications? Well, social media has allowed us to build and maintain a network of relationships both inside and outside of the university like never before possible. Using video chat enabled us to learn from industry experts and working professionals from all over the world. But has this shift damaged the treasured teacher/student relationship? I ponder this while remembering one basic principal: One strong relationship is more powerful than ten weak ones. More traditionally: Quantity does not necessarily ensure quality.

Yes, the integration of technology with the college classroom has made the experience much more automated and a bit less personal.  On the flip side, social media has made the opportunity to take a more active role in one’s own education easier than ever before.  The members of Generation Y have grown to accept two-way communication between student and teacher to be the norm. The classroom has evolved from a place of simply consuming information and reciting it back to one where students have become active participants in the creation of content and the learning experience itself. What better way to prepare us for an economy where successful entry requires you to do much more than just intern. You must also cultivate a personal network of influencers, seek out mentors, take time to volunteer, keep up on current events, follow the stock market, maintain a personal blog and basically do whatever it takes to stick out in today’s uber-competitive job market. Learning today is much different than learning yesterday, the key is to adapt and apply each change in a way that allows you to be better equipped for tomorrow.

We were pleased to announce this week the addition of two more European-based companies to our expanding client roster of national and global brands.

Effective immediately, CoreMedia of Germany has appointed Bateman Group as agency of record for the U.S. for the full range of integrated PR and social media communications programs.

In addition, StepStone Solutions of the U.K. retained Bateman for a three-month brand building project to increase perception of StepStone Solutions in the U.S. as one of the world’s leading suppliers of Total Talent Management Solutions.

CoreMedia and StepStone Solutions join a small, but growing cadre of European-based companies who have turned to Bateman Group to jumpstart their North American presence. Others include The Open Group, Jericho Forum, Panda Security and Kapow Technologies.

Please join us in welcoming CoreMedia and StepStone Solutions to the Bateman client roster!

Behold the April Fool’s Day edition of the Bateman Buzz Meter (technically #4), our semi-regular ranking of recent newsworthy events based on PR and Social Media effectiveness.  As always, please comment on any current news headlines or PR stunts you think are worthy of the Buzz Meter we may have missed.

(Remember to click on the image to view it in full screen)

]]> http://www.batemanbanter.com/2010/04/bateman-buzz-meter-april-fools-day-edition/feed/ 0 http://www.batemanbanter.com/2010/02/smart-hard-working-passionate-quirky-seeks-same/ http://www.batemanbanter.com/2010/02/smart-hard-working-passionate-quirky-seeks-same/#comments Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:51:48 +0000 Fred Bateman http://www.batemanbanter.com/?p=448

We know 2010 will be another fast-paced year filled with new and exciting opportunities for the Bateman Group.  January was a growth month for the firm and February is forecast to be one of our busiest on record.  In order to maintain our superior service levels (and some semblance of sanity), we need to expand our team. We’re seeking exceptional candidates to come in and interview for both Associate and Senior Associate positions at the firm immediately.

Here’s the skinny…

Our base salaries are extremely competitive (but vary based on experience) and our benefits package is considered second to none. It includes 100% paid health, vision and dental insurance; 401K plan with company match; state-of-the-art technology tools including the latest laptops and iPhones; three weeks paid vacation the first year; nine paid sick days; new business referral bonuses, new employee referral bonuses, domestic partnership benefits; free monthly parking; beautifully designed office space; and a convenient location near freeway entrances and public transportation. Last, but not least, we offer a nurturing working environment that supports life/work balance like no other.

Candidates should reside in the San Francisco Bay Area with an ability to work full-time from our offices near Potrero Hill. He/she must able to set priorities and deliver results using excellent written and verbal communication skills. The candidate also should be accustomed to working autonomously under pressure, be extremely self motivated, proactive and deadline oriented. Furthermore, the Bateman Group looks for people who are passionate about technology, have excellent client service skills, proven experience with technology trade, business and social media, a strong team orientation, and would enjoy the opportunity to work closely with agency senior management on their own career growth. Finally, he/she must able to leave their ego at the door, but not their sense of humor.

Responsibilities include:

• Providing exceptional client service, from strategies to tactics
• Creative, proactive communications and business development, including new media (podcasting, blogs, RSS feeds, etc.)
• Driving account activities, positioning ideas to managers and clients, implementing programs and presenting results as they follow
• Content development including: communications plans, press releases, corporate backgrounders, customer case studies, speaking abstracts, awards submissions, contributed articles, etc.
• Executing proactive editorial and social media/blogger influencer outreach programs
• Planning and organizing press/analyst tours and tradeshows
• General account reporting/administrative tasks
• Contributing to business development initiatives and internal training programs as requested

Requirements include:

• Senior Associates possess 3-5 years of high-tech public relations, communications or related professional experience; Associates possess 1-3 years experience (including internships)
• Pre-existing knowledge of at least one of our four main practice areas: 1) Software for consumers, developers, and the enterprise; 2) Systems for the transport of voice and data; 3) Security of the network, desktop, device or data; and 4) Services targeting both businesses and consumers.
• Excellent organizational, communications (written and verbal) and time management skills
• Established relationships with technology trade press/analyst community as well as business press
• Prior client service experience required; new business experience preferred
• Proficiency with basic computer and PR tech applications including Cision, Lexis, Sysomos, Meltwater, CatchPole, Google Docs and News Alerts, MS Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.)
• Additional technology prowess given priority (blogging, podcasting, RSS feeds)
• Ability to travel to and from client/new business meetings as appropriate

If this describes you, please forward a cover letter and your resume via email to: hr@bateman-group.com

We’re not seeking freelancers or contractors for this position – full-time candidates only, please. Individuals lacking technology experience, either agency or in-house, need not apply. No phone calls from candidates or inquiries from recruiters, please. The Bateman Group is an equal opportunity employer.

Last week, The New York Times’ Virginia Heffernan began tolling an early death knell for Facebook in her article, “Facebook Exodus.” According to Heffernan, despite the fact that people are continuing to join Facebook and “compulsively visit the site,” she claims that many people are abandoning Facebook for a variety of reasons-from its heavy-handed tracking of users for marketing purposes to the breakdown in privacy to the heartbreak (yes, heartbreak!) some users feel when “friends” drop them in a public forum. Heffernan says one user compared Facebook to a kids’ new toy-once the novelty wears off, it gets tossed aside.

I think Heffernan may be onto something here. I recently received suggestions from Facebook to “friend” my 70-something aunts and uncles. If this isn’t a clear sign that Facebook has gone too mainstream, I don’t know what is. Thankfully, it hasn’t reached my parents yet-that may be the day I quit myself!  Seriously though, if Facebook users are increasingly over 50 and the site is already being abandoned like my Quik-Curl Barbie once was a few days after Christmas, it begs a couple of questions:

1) Is Facebook’s usefulness as a social media marketing tool beginning to lose its cache?  

2) As PR practitioners, how do we best advise our clients which social media tools are right for their business and for how long?

Social media is still a developing medium. Many of the elements we collectively group together as “social” are still in the early fad stage and largely unproven. We have no way of knowing which will stick and which will go the way of MySpace, which in a two short years has gone from a “must be on it” social network to place primarily used by musicians for self-promotion. All the cool kids once on MySpace gave it up for Facebook long ago. Will, as Heffernan’s article implies, Facebook share a similar fate?

There’s no easy answer to that question, and if I could answer it, I could just pack it in and retire right now! What I do know is that these things come in waves. In PR, businesses must be smart about which waves they surf and which they choose to stand and watch. When mediums such as Facebook and Twitter are new, hip and exciting and early adopters are clamoring to join the wave, the pressure to conform can be overwhelming. After all, that’s how marketing works – it needs to stay ahead of the curve. 

Technology companies feel this pressure every day, particularly when it comes to figuring out how best to mine the emerging social media landscape. Many have begun to engage Facebook as a marketing tool by building “fan pages”. For consumer brands, a Facebook Fan page can be a good tool to build and maintain a community of brand enthusiasts. Facebook Fan pages for Apple Computer, the iPhone or the Wii, for example, make perfect sense to me. Are fan pages also an effective tool for B2B technology companies? It depends. If it’s just a static page of information like news releases or company events that can be easily found on the corporate website, then Facebook adds little value. If you use Facebook to cultivate an active developer community or user group-why not? The bottom line is to know your objectives in advance and be specific about what you want out of social media. Just jumping on the bandwagon will be completely unproductive or potentially damaging to your brand.

I feel Twitter is much better suited as a social media channel for the news-driven nature of PR and B2B campaigns in general. Unlike Facebook’s slow-moving walls, it’s much more dynamic. I can learn up to the minute news or link through to more in-depth information – and I get the added bonus of personality and opinion rather than press release repostings and pictures from the company picnic. I don’t have to worry about whether anyone I follow is actually my “friend” or not, whether they’ll post embarrassing pictures of me with a bad ’80s perm, or whether I’ve insulted anyone by not following them. I can tweet my client’s news or retweet industry articles and not wonder if I’m annoying people I care about. It’s also not profiling me for advertising purposes or making me vulnerable to fraud through the people in my network or quizzes I’ve taken. On Twitter, I can actually follow and get interesting updates from the journalists and other influencers in the industry I need to follow. Kara Swisher of AllThingsDigital isn’t going to friend me on Facebook anytime soon or consider a pitch I post on her Wall. But on Twitter, I can follow her professional musings and even pitch her when relevant. 

My prediction: Facebook will ultimately become a medium for the branding and advertising facets of marketing, particularly for consumer brands where creating a personal affinity with a product is desirable. B2B companies will likely lose interest in using it for marketing within a couple of years. Twitter, on the other hand, will evolve into more of a business tool, with less emphasis on the personal and mundane. And something else will come along soon enough that will upend the process yet again…

So, what do you think?

Introducing the first Bateman Buzz Meter!

We are constantly scouring the Web for the latest in technology news and PR/social media strategy, and come across a lot of content. The Bateman Buzz Meter is our take on the best and worst from the last 30 days. 

(Click on the image to view it in full screen)