Cresting the Hill - The PR Journeyman Part II

Hey fellow interns,

Since I last blogged there's been a number of exciting things happening at my placement at Volunteering WA.  As I mentioned at the end of my last post, I was getting some help from a friend of mine at Murdoch who's studying Screen Production to film a video for YouTube.

Needless to say, it was a highly interesting experience. I've previously been involved in stage productions in high school, and have recently started pod-casting for a page I run on Facebook - but this was the first time I've sat by myself and essentially monologued to a camera. It was really unnerving to be perfectly honest, and we ended up shooting for an hour to come up with about 3 minutes worth of edited footage - Zak was quick to inform me that I was not cut out for a career in acting, and I think I would have to highly agree!

The final product was really well put together though, and I will provide a link on my last post when it has been put up on YouTube - so there's something to look forward to!

Besides that, I have been working very closely with the Services Team at VWA as we gear up towards the launch of their currently undisclosed new feature that will be launched at their Gala Dinner and Awards Night on the 15th of this month. I'm really excited, as not only were my partner and I offered tickets to attend - but I think it's going to be amazing to see all the work our team has been putting in unfold in a night of celebration, and to see how that translates over the early life of the launch.

I took part in helping write for their monthly newsletter for GoVolunteer, which was really quite helpful in brushing up on my skills - I used to write for a number of other newsletters, but hadn't done so for quite some time. I always find it's easier to say more than say less, and the art of writing a newsletter piece has to obviously be quite succinct. Thankfully there wasn't a great deal of editing, so the newsletter went out on time and I was able to add another piece to my portfolio which is always a great thing too!

My main focus this week has been writing up a Communications Plan for VWA and the other state peak bodies which should hopefully be getting sent out tomorrow. It has been exhausting work, and the research has been quite extensive - but I'm so thankful for all the study that I've done so far, it really has been nothing but a permanent state of reflection as I look back to reference what I've learned and apply it relevantly to my current scenario.

I've really enjoyed my time so far at VWA - and I think it's been an experience for both myself and the services team in working together. It's quite sad to think that my last day is only a little over 2 weeks away, but what I've taken away from this has been invaluable to me and I think will aid me greatly for when I seek my next internship.

Once again, thank you to those who have taken the time to read about my experiences at VWA. Please make sure to read my next post, which will hopefully be the night after the Gala dinner - plenty of photos and stories to share!

Good luck to all - and I look forward to reading about you!

Blade
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The PR Journeyman: Ready, Set, Go!

Greetings fellow students!

For those who don't know me, my name is Blade Shaw and I'm currently in my final year of a Bachelor of Commerce - majoring in Public Relations. For a little insight to my background, I've had some previous experience acting within PR/Communications roles in two different businesses - Morris Computers and Pro Used Pty Ltd, both which are heavily interlinked with the IT industry.

As a student, I've just come off 2 years running on the Public Relations Student Chapter serving as both Secretary and Vice President respectively over 2011/2012. It was my decision at the end of the year to step down and concentrate on my final year, and PR Professional Practice was one of the many units I knew would require my full attention.

Over the University break, as I'm sure most of us did - I looked long and hard for an internship which I thought would best fit my interests, and contacted a number of organisations respectively. Luckily, I was contacted by Volunteering WA - who were very forthcoming and were quite interested in getting me on board after our initial contact.

Before I commenced my placement, I went into the offices and sat down with Felicity Stevens who is the IT Support Officer at VWA - and also a member of the services team of which I'm currently working as a part of. Our meeting went quite well, and after she had guided me through a run-down of the tasks that the service team required me to perform, and that they thought would best suit my skill set.

I started on the 25th of March, and immediately was set to task learning the ins and outs of the organisation so that I would have a significant amount of background knowledge to work off. My first thoughts immediately alerted me to start jotting down ideas in regards to social media, website content, promotional ideas - whatever appeared not to be on offer through their current communications, I was looking to establish a strategy to create it or improve upon their existing practices.

So far, I've still been trying to find my feet at the end of my second week - however it appears I'm slowly beginning to pick up some pretty good momentum, and VWA have been quite open to allowing me to take a great deal of creative licence with the ideas I have for their organisation. At the start of next week, I will be sending out a brief to a number of different University clubs regarding an exciting new service that VWA will be offering.

I will also be conducting some filming for their YouTube channel, documenting some of the exciting new features of their upcoming service.It's been my luck that I have been blessed with a number of very talented personal contacts at my disposal, and will be joined by Zak Norris - a Murdoch Screen Product student who recently was awarded 1st place in Reach Out's Film Crew competition. His winning video can be found on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=aJWE42n-LZ0

Thanks everyone for reading my first post, I'm really glad to have been able to share some insight into my first week at the Volunteering WA office. Please continue to check back with my blog entries, as I continue to document my experiences over the course of my placement.

Blade Shaw
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Engaging your audience online

As has been taught not only through out my university studies but is also evident through any work experience, social media is the growing area in which businesses are connecting with their stakeholders.

The West Australian Symphony Orchestra (WASO) has of course their own website, and like most companies also a Facebook, Twitter, and because they are a performance organisation- event listings on Perth websites such as ShowMePerth. What many people may not know however is WASO also live streams various concerts throughout the year to the Northbridge Piazza through its partnership with iiNet which is a great way to make classical music more accessible to the wider public.

This week in PR International the discussion focused on social media and the rule of 80% engaging posts to 20% informational whenever you are posting anything online to your followers.

I feel this is a valid rule and I applied it to WASO’s online media presence. For example, recently WASO performed a concert titled Symphonic ABBA and instead of just promoting the concert itself on Facebook, there was uploads of ABBA songs via YouTube, a picture was shared on Twitter and Facebook of the disco ball concertgoers could expect on the night at the Perth Concert Hall and later reviews were posted too so people had a chance to have their say on how they found the performance.

My personal contribution recently to the online communication of WASO was to put together the monthly e-newsletter which is received by around 5,000 people. According to WASO's Digital Marketing Coordinator the email involves writing a blurb for various upcoming concerts in a more casual manner, which I found surprisingly harder than writing from a sales focused point of view! Part of this task involved getting in touch with a musician from the orchestra and approaching them for the introduction of the email as well as liaising with the WA Ballet for a ticket giveaway to Pinocchio, their new performances which WASO provides music talent for. 

Seeing all of what WASO displays online, triggered by this week’s conversation in PR International made me consider further the different approach that should be taken on social media as I see followers of a company page on Twitter and Facebook as generally being there because they already love the brand (particularly in the case of a music organisation). Therefore they shouldn’t be advertised at quite so much as engaged and made to feel included with the company, something I think WASO does well.

INSTIGATING INSTAGRAM - SOCIAL MEDIA MANIA

As the forms of social media communication tools continue to grow, the demand for organisation to keep up is increasing!

Welcome to my second reflection on my placement at the one40william division owned by Jones Lang LaSalle. It has been a busy past few weeks as one40william prepares to enter re-development stage at the 140 Perth sector.

In today’s technology driven society, social media has taken the forefront of corporations communicating and engaging with their stakeholders. Although one40william currently has a Facebook page  and a Twitter account  and a 140 Blog on their website, 140 has recently entered the INSTAGRAM photo sharing world.

TIME TO INSTIGATE INSTAGRAM AT 140

As a result of the social media meeting that I attended regarding 140’s new INSTAGRAM strategy, I was given the role to liaison with Caitlin from Zebra (an organisation that specializes in social media and web design). We both set out to take interesting and creative shots of 140, to capture that unique brand image. It is a creative and exciting role that allows me to utilize the 140 brand position and interact with the retailers.

I was fortunate enough to experience and be a part of the step-by-step process required to create and form a social media tool. Steps were taken to ensure that the photos taken represented the 140 brand and in turn were able to capture the interest and attention of those whom were scrolling down their INSTAGRAM photo feed. Through the use of bright colours, two creative minds and bringing ideas beyond the ‘normal product’ Caitlin and I were able to capture images that were out of the ordinary. It proved that to be different is to think differently when using social media to communicate with your customers in today’s social media realm.

As 140 Perth has recently begun its social media exposure on INSTAGRAM it is receiving great support and exposure. Not only communicating 140’s brand tag line “The 140 Difference” but also promoting the retailers and the products offered at 140 Perth.

To view such creative and interesting images from 140 Perth, search ‘140 Perth’ on INSTAGRAM.

TODAY’S SOCIAL MEDIA

From Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, Blogspot, YouTube…the options are endless! The large range of social media communication tools are highly accessible to corporations. However, through personally seeing social media used in a real life communication sense proves that the planning and management of social media is essential to ensure that it is effective and stands out from competitors.

As a result of my experience with initiating INSTAGRAM for the 140 brand, I found the most essential aspect was the planning period. Planning was the most significant step to ensure that when images were released to the public that they were stimulating and enticing. Therefore the planning and periodic management of such a social media tool is crucial to ensure that 140 does not fade into the INSTAGRAM background but leads the forefront of creativity.

I am enjoying every aspect of my placement as the day’s fly by at one40william. To finally be completing an internship instead of casually volunteering at events has proven to be exciting, insightful and allows me to use my creative ideas.

Until next time,

Alexandra Wheeler