Introducing: Shadow a PRo

We are pleased to announce the launch of the FPRA Shadow a PRo program. The Shadow a PRo program will bring an added member benefit for our student members, assist our future PR professionals with their career exploration and promote involvement in the Orlando Area Chapter.

To get the program started, we are seeking FPRA members that would be willing to host students interested in a career in public relations for half a day to give them a glimpse into an average day for a public relations professional. We are currently building a database of professionals to match with students, so it may take a few weeks before we get back to you with a shadow opportunity.

Participating students are required to be members of University of Central Florida’s Quotes, Rollins’ Communiqué or a student member of the Orlando Area Chapter. This is a great opportunity to provide some guidance to a future public relations practitioner. Students will be matched with professionals based on areas of interest.

To volunteer or for more information:
If you are interested in hosting a student for half a day, please contact:
Alia Staples – 321-695-1335 or astaples@fhbnet.com.

Image Awards Call for Entries Now Available

The FPRA Orlando Area Chapter will honor some of Central Florida’s most outstanding public relations programs and professionals with the 2011 Image Awards banquet, “PR Under the Big Top.” Start preparing your entry today by downloading the 2011 Call for Entries on the FPRA-OAC website.

The 2011 Image Awards will be held on Thursday, April 28, at the Winter Park Farmers’ Market. All entries must be received by Friday, March 4, at 5 p.m. If you have any questions, e-mail Amy Hanigosky at ahanigosky@engauge.com or Kendall Litton Jensen at littonjensenk@seminolestate.edu.

Free APR Study Sessions for Spring 2011 Begin in February

Earning the APR: What are you waiting for?

Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) is the mark of distinction for public relations professionals — a visible and ongoing commitment to the knowledge, ethics and experience that defines the public relations industry in today’s fast-paced global environment. More job postings specify “APR preferred” because it denotes exactly what potential employers are looking for — professionalism, knowledge, expertise and success in the real world — giving Accredited professionals a distinct advantage over the competition. If you want to advance your public relations career, what are you waiting for? Becoming accredited is a wise investment in your future.

Free APR Study Sessions for Spring 2011 begin in February

The Orlando area chapters of FPRA and PRSA team up twice a year to offer the series of free APR study workshops, once in the spring and once in the fall. An orientation and FAQ session for PR professionals interested in earning their APR will be held at 6 p.m. Monday, February 7, 2011 at the downtown Orlando office of Thompson Wesley Wolfe, 1030 North Orange Avenue, Second Floor, Orlando, 32801.

Study sessions will begin the following Tuesday, February 15, 2011 and will follow an eight-session syllabus designed around the Universal Accreditation Board Study Guide. Subsequent sessions will be held on Mondays at 6:00 p.m. at a location convenient for the candidates. Participants will complete the Readiness Review in April and can take the computer-based exam anytime before February 2012. Visit the UAB’s website at www.praccreditation.org for the Candidate’s Process Chart and to find more information about the accreditation process.

For more information on the workshops, contact the Vice President of Accreditation: Stefanie Macfarlane, APR (smacfarlane@cfl.rr.com ) or 321.578.1722.

 

FPRA Annual Conference Bloggers Needed

Want to be a blogger? We are looking to secure at least one representative from each chapter. Last year we had the largest blog team to date (17 members) working behind the scenes to provide real-time coverage of FPRA’s annual conference. Help us recruit our best blog team ever in 2011!Interested candidates should contact Chris Gent directly at cgent@kua.com.

2011 FPRA Annual Conference: PR 2011: The Evolution of Public Relations

The 2011 FPRA annual conference will embrace the evolution of public relations including the foundational skills and knowledge required to be competitive in today’s marketplace, as well as taking a giant leap forward …exploring the journey ahead for our industry.

Conference will kick off on Sunday, August 7 with a golf tournament and President’s Welcome Reception. Then, put on your college alma mater gear as we enjoy FPRA University: Class Reunion 2011. The FPRA Foundation Scholarship Fundraiser will feature your favorite tailgating food and fun auction packages to bid on!

Your conference committee has already lined up some outstanding speakers! Here is a sneak peek!

Have you ever enjoyed a Heath Ice Cream Bar? If so, you’ll want to thank our opening presenter, Myra Janco Daniels. Ms. Daniels is the founder and CEO of the Naples Philharmonic Center for the Arts and Naples Museum of Art. Ms. Daniels spent 30 years in the advertising industry and started her own firm at age 24. She was the first woman in the country to head up a major national advertising firm and became the youngest person to be honored as National Advertising Woman of the Year by the Advertising Federation of America. Ms. Daniels’s late husband, Draper Daniels, was one of the original “Mad Men” in the 60s the main character, Don Draper, in the hit A&E show, is based partly on Draper Daniels’ career.

We are happy to have Tom Preston, APR, Fellow PRSA, return to share his wisdom with us! Mr. Preston is Executive Director of the Kentucky Office of Homeland Security. He also holds the title, Senior Advisor to the Governor. He is going to reflect on the tragic events of September 11, 2001 and other terror events that have shaped the public relations industry in the past ten years.

Our Dillin Keynote speaker on Tuesday, August 9^th will be the VP of Public Relations from McDonald’s corporate headquarters…more details to come.

Our closing session will feature Steve Shenbaum, a former actor and current President and Founder of game on Media, LLC, based at the world famous IMG Academies in Bradenton Florida. Steve oversees all communication, social acclimation and media training programs at IMG Academies and travels throughout the world leading seminars and keynote speeches to various teams and organizations, focusing on the power of honesty, humility and humor through the use of improvisation. He has worked with the first overall picks in the NFL, NBA and NHL drafts including Sidney Crosby, Eli Manning, Greg Oden, Alex Smith, Erik Johnson and John Tavares.

Other confirmed speakers and topics:

Carla Croleau – Discussing CSX rail lines’ social media efforts and PR program

Allison Blankenship – I Wish I’d Said That! How to Communicate Under Pressure

Why does the perfect response come to mind after an uncomfortable encounter? Do you worry that people are taking you seriously? Have you ever been-caught off-guard and mumbled and incoherent answer? Never again! After working with Allison in I Wish I’d Said That!, you’ll create conversations that get the results you want, when you want them.

Casey Wohl – Creating Girls’ Getaway – Wohl is the Travel Correspondent for the nationally-syndicated TV show, Daytime, as well as the new, all-women radio network, Heartbeat Radio for Women.  She has also been featured on radio and television programs CBS Radio, Better TV, The Daily Buzz, Media Talk, FirstWivesWorld, and numerous blogs.  Her topics cover everything travel, from budget to pet travel to girlfriend getaways.  Wohl has received print and online media coverage on nearly 80 national news sites and publications, such as Woman’s Day and Parenting. Wohl is a contributing writer for several online publications, was named a “Woman to Watch” by Orange Appeal Magazine and was listed as one of “101 Women Bloggers to Watch in 2009” by WE Magazine.

Margi Nanney – FSU/Southeast High School Logo Controversy – Learn what a small high school in Manatee County was faced with when Florida State University told them to no longer use their logo – licensing issues.

General Session – David Lawrence Jr. – Children’s Movement of Florida. Lawrence retired in 1999 as publisher of The Miami Herald to work in the area of early childhood development and readiness. He is president of The Early Childhood Initiative Foundation and “University Scholar for Early Childhood Development and Readiness” at the University of Florida. He leads The Children’s Movement of Florida, building an enduring, sustainable movement to make all children the state’s No. 1 priority in investment and decision-making.

Triple AAA “Tow to Go” Program

Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Frost/Freeze Crisis

Alyson Lundell – Universal Studios – Harry Potter Experience

Share FPRA Membership Details with a Friend

… do you have a friend who may be interested in joining FPRA-OAC? If yes, share this flyer.

Meeting Your Audience Where It Lives

Real-World Social Media Use: ABC Fine Wine & Spirits
By Lorena Steeter

Recently a member of the ABC Fine Wine & Spirits marketing communications team spoke at the CIO summit held here in Orlando. Jessica Dekle was on a panel discussing how corporations are using Facebook to communicate with their customers—something ABC does on an almost-daily basis. Her role in that conversation proved informative to many of the others on that panel, which led to this article.

One big advantage of social network marketing is it creates a space in which to have a conversation with your audience (in our case, retail customers). Companies that use Facebook as nothing more than another medium through which to push messages (or post sales offers) are missing a chance to build real loyalty to their brand by putting faces and names behind the brand. ABC’s goal with Facebook messaging is to meet our audience where it lives: our status updates cover a wide variety of topics, not all of them related to wine or spirits, although we tie them together as often as possible.

ABC has one main goal: engage customers with the brand. There are three sub-targets we’ve identified that work to that end:

1. Inform. Facebook is a tool by which we give customers links to our website, our blog, other (industry) websites that we think will interest them (sometimes just because they’re entertaining). We pass on trivia, new products that meet our “cool” test, commercials that are funny, industry news, upcoming events, and accomplishments by our associates (such as when one of our wine consultants became a Certified Sommelier).
2. Entertain. Facebook is not a sales channel; it’s a means by which we stay top of mind with our audience, partly because we try to have fun with it. We post drink recipes, links to funny or outrageous commercials, and the occasional contest.
3. Talk. We invite feedback. We encourage our associates to post to our wall and to comment back to our fans. (Our only rule is be professional and be helpful.) We answer questions. One challenge is keeping up with comments—because we handle all the posting and commenting ourselves, we do sometimes fall behind with this. We correct errors with humor, sometimes telling people we do it just to prove there are real people behind the page.

Every Monday morning our communications team sits down to talk about upcoming events, important dates and in general, what’s going on in the world (avoiding politics, of course). We aim for two status updates a day, and to hit every segment of our customer base (wine, spirits, and beers) over the course of a week or two. Because we maintain content control, we’re able to use and discard ideas as we like. We have what we sometimes call the “cool” test—which basically translates into this: we don’t just want something to talk about, we want a reason to talk about it. Sometimes the oddest things play a part—the weather, for example, had us creating “summer in January” coupons and status updates for this week. Again, the focus is on what will inform and entertain our fans (no, we don’t always succeed, but we do try).

One of our biggest successes has been our “paparazzi” team. Two of the communications team members head out to most of our Orlando-area wine tastings, take pictures (with permission) for posting on Facebook, and invite people to become fans. This was such a hit we had to recruit store personnel in other cities to answer the cry of “when will the Paparazzi be here?” In fact, it’s such a hit that we now get complaints when pictures from a given wine tasting aren’t posted! Takeaway? On one hand, it’s obvious that people love seeing their pictures on Facebook. On the other, we’ve discovered they love just as much the fact that we are interacting with them, not just talking to them.

Lorena Streeter is Marketing Communications Manager for Orlando-based ABC Fine Wine & Spirits.

FPRA Orlando Switches from Group to Fan Page on Facebook

To allow for expanded page features and increased functionality, FPRA Orlando has switched from a group page to a fan page on Facebook. The current group page will be closed effective Friday, Jan. 14. To access the new page, please ‘Like’ us at http://tinyurl.com/36lumzr