Congrats 2010 Image Award Winners

Congratulations to all of the 2010 FPRA-OAC Image Award winners that were honored at the organization’s annual awards banquet on April 22.  Download the winner list here (PDF).

Also, a heartfelt congratulations to Chris Gent with Kissimmee Utility Authority who was bestowed the 2010 PR Professional of the Year Award by FPRA-OAC. Congrats Chris! Well deserved.

View photos from the Image Awards gala on our Flickr page.

Visit www.fpra-orlando.org for more details.

Don’t Miss the 2010 Image Awards PR Evolves on April 22

Come celebrate our craft and colleagues at the 2010 FPRA Image Awards on Thursday, April 22.  This year’s master of ceremonies is Ted Murphy, Founder/CEO of Izea, Inc.  We will also honor our 2010 PR Professional of the Year, Chris Gent, vice president of corporate communications at Kissimmee Utility Authority.  The program will be held at the Orlando Museum of Art, located at 2416 North Mills Avenue, Orlando.  Free parking will be available on-site.  

To reserve your ticket, register at www.fpra-orlando.org.  The reception starts at 6 p.m. followed by dinner and awards presentation at 7 p.m.  Tickets are $50 for FPRA members, $60 non-members, $30 for FPRA student members and $35 for student non-members.  Corporate tables of eight can be purchased for $375.  To purchase a corporate table, please contact Lenora Spence at (407) 481-5672 x305.

Save The Date, May 27: Helping Your Company & Clients Get More Traffic From Google

Ensuring appropriate representation in search engines has become vital to a comprehensive PR strategy.  In fact, according to eMarketer.com, by 2013 total U.S. search marketing will reach nearly $23.4 billion and marketers will spend more on search engine optimization (SEO) than on contextual advertising. 

Join the Orlando Area Chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association and WebSolvers’ Matt Certo to learn how you can put SEO to work for your company during the May 27 breakfast meeting, “Helping Your Company & Clients Get More Traffic from Google.”

You will learn the ins and outs of SEO as well as straight-forward, practical steps that every PR practitioner can implement in order to improve your Web site’s Google rankings and simple methodology that you can apply to your company or client’s situation.

Matt Certo is co-founder and CEO of WebSolvers, an interactive marketing firm whose clients include The Tavistock Group, Baker Barrios, RDV Sportsplex, WORKFORCE CENTRAL FLORIDA and Isleworth.  The company’s areas of focus include Web design, search engine marketing and social media consulting.  

The event will be held at the University Club, 150 E. Central Blvd., Orlando, Fla.  Registration and buffet breakfast begin at 8 a.m. and the presentation begins at 8:30 a.m.  Prices are $15 members, $20 non-members and $10 students.

Registration for this event will open May 1.  To register, visit www.fpra-orlando.org.

FPRA Membership Dues News

Effective for the 2011 membership year, which begins November 1, 2010, annual membership dues for the Florida Public Relations Association will increase from $150 to $170.  This dues change will apply to the following membership categories:

• Individual Professional
• Institutional Professional
• Multi-Institutional Professional (Additional members from the same company and location would be $160)
• Allied

The Associate Member category, which is designed to extend membership privileges to those individuals who are temporarily not actively engaged in a public relations position, will remain unchanged at $52.50 for the maximum one-year membership.

This dues increase decision was based on the following:

• FPRA has not increased its dues since 1997.  During this time, the Association’s expenses have increased by 39 percent while revenues have only increased by 32 percent.
• Not until 2007/2008 did the Association experience a deficit, which is why the State Board has not recommended an increase until recently.
• This dues increase will allow the Association to reinstate the full 20 percent rebate to chapters.  Chapter rebates were temporarily reduced to 10 percent in 2009/2010 to help balance the budget for the 2009/2010 year.
• The increase will allow the Association to continue to set aside funds in reserves as recommended by the Association’s accountant and financial management, which will protect the ongoing financial viability of our professional Association.

FPRA is continually seeking ways to reduce costs for our members and control operating expenses of the Association. Some of these measures include:

• Negotiating lower hotel rates ($125 room rate for this year’s Annual Conference in Naples) and other expenses for professional development events.
• Seeking local sponsors and community resources to reduce costs of hosting quarterly State Board meetings.
• Seeking sponsors to help support communication vehicles such as the Association’s Web site.
• Minimizing print and postage expenditures by using electronic means for communication when appropriate.
• Renegotiating telephone service fees.  In November 2009, the FPRA State Board of Directors approved a new Association Policy titled “Membership Dues and Categories Review Policy.”  This new policy requires an annual review of our membership classes and dues to ensure that membership categories reflect the needs of members and that membership dues are appropriate to meet the Association’s budgetary requirements.

We hope that you agree this is a modest and necessary increase to ensure we can continue to offer the level of service, professional development and networking opportunities we have all come to expect from our professional organization.

Visit the members’ only section of www.fpra.org for additional information.

Annual Conference on a Budget?

We all know that budgets are tight these days.  But in this economy, networking and enhancing your professional value is more important now than ever. So what are we to do?

The 2010 FPRA Annual Conference committee has been working diligently on ways to make attending Annual Conference more budget-friendly, so you can get in the networking and professional development you need at a price that is right.  Here are some ways to see The Big Picture on a budget:

1. Get a group discount.  If more the one person attends from your organization, each additional person gets $40 off his or her registration fee. Click here to download the registration form.
2. Carpool. Visit the Annual Conference Facebook page and click on the Carpool Discussion Group.  Announce that you’d like to accompany one or more colleagues on a road trip to Naples (or find someone who is looking for the same). You’ll make a new contact, save some money, and even help the environment. What’s not to love?
3. Share a room with a colleague.  The Naples Grande is a beautiful location with luxury rooms. So why not share with a roommate?  Besides, there is so much to do during Annual Conference, you won’t be in your room a lot anyway! 
4. Enjoy a luxury resort at a motel price. The Naples Grande reduced its standard room rates to just $125 a night.  Room rates have not been this low in five years! Click here to reserve your room today!
5. Add a vacation. Time to Think Business – Think Pleasure!  Leverage your work and personal funds by adding a couple vacation days before or after Annual Conference.  Enjoy the reduced rate at the Naples Grande for three days prior or after conference and enjoy all the amenities with your family!
6. Meals included. Unlike other conferences, most of your meals are included in the price of a full registration.  While attending Annual Conference, you will receive three breakfasts, two lunches, the Golden Image banquet, and your fair share of chocolate!  With the optional Sunset Social networking event on Sunday evening, you will receive another dinner.  So when you’re budgeting for the conference, you won’t have to add a lot for meals on top of registration!
7. Stock up your professional library. Books, Books, Books will be back with a 15 percent discount for attendees, so this is the time to stock up on your PR, communications, marketing and business books!
8. Single day registration.  Can’t make the whole conference? Consider a single day registration.  The AC committee reduced single day registration by $95 for Monday or Tuesday (Tuesday single day registration does not include the Golden Image Banquet). While we are certain you won’t want to miss a minute of this year’s line-up of speakers, if you have a scheduling conflict, this may be the plan for you!

Look out for more ways the 2010 AC committee is giving you what you asked for!  Budget-friendlier options, more down time and networking opportunities, high-caliber speakers and timely topics…look for more information through e-Facts or join our Facebook page to keep up on the latest!

Golden Image Call for Entries is Here!

The Golden Image Awards competition is conducted annually by the Florida Public Relations Association to recognize outstanding public relations programs in Florida and to encourage and promote the development of public relations professionalism in our state.

The Golden Image Awards have become a standard of public relations excellence in the state of Florida.  Winners demonstrate the very best examples of innovation, planning and design.  The awards competition includes four divisions of categories: Public Relations Programs, Printed Tools of Public Relations, Audio/Visual Tools of Public Relations and Student Projects in Public Relations.  To qualify for judging, an entry must incorporate sound public relations research and planning.  Entries also must meet the highest standard of production, execution and evaluation of results and budget.

The 2010 Call for Entries is now available for download.  The deadline for entries is 5 p.m. on Friday, May 21, 2010.