My Growth in Public Relations

Wow! What a quick semester it has been...I'm not sure about the rest of the class or due to the fact that I have been extremely busy over the last 6 months but it has come and gone like a gust of wind. You have that sigh of relief that it is over but then an itch to keep going and be pushed once again. I believe the quote in life that 'You can never be overdressed or overeducated'.

I look back at my first blog entry..I think it was fresh and written through the uneducated eyes of PR. I was clearly unsure of what I really was embarking on and I really didn't know the fundamentals of PR as a profession. This semester I have not only been faced with written and verbal challenges but also been able to use my enthusiasm and determination to successfully complete some tasks with ease. As a group we were given such a great opportunity in running our own campaign, even though at times I had thought 'seriously this is impossible to accomplish?' but we all worked very hard and pushed ourselves beyond our capabilities to raise over $5000 for Read Write Now. And that is just amazing!

My initial thoughts of what PR is has been tipped upside down and swirled around, the hands on experience from this course has enabled me to really know what it feels like to work for a PR agency and complete a successful campaign and event. I feel that my interpersonal and leadership skills have not only helped me but others in the group to get the job done and to do it with a sense of pride in your work and the work of others around you. I really needed to dedicate my time, on and off campus to complete assessments and activities effectively. Time management is a key role within any learning environment, but was made prominent in the field of Public Relations.

One key importance to me has been the momentum and guidance I have gained from the lecturer's - to really go that extra mile. It has enabled me to notice the drive and passion I need to facilitate as I enter the job market in this industry. There hasn't been many moments of complete relaxation or switching off from PR this semester but I'm hoping this hard work is going to pay off and really open up a new world for me.

Taming The Lion's

Last Saturday night’s 7^th home game for the Emirates Western Force resulted in both a much anticipated win against The Lions. The game concluded 17 – 11, and the third win of the season for The Emirates Western Force.

Set up and running of the day and night is all familiar to me now, which takes the edge off a little but I have to remember to always be on the ball, as I am dealing with different people and different events laid out on the run sheet. There are always different promotions and competitions carried out at all home games. This game was particularly enjoyable, as RugbyWA had a competition run through The West Australian newspaper for a school student in Perth to win the junior captain role and for his/her entire class to win tickets to attend the game. To see the smiles, excitement and appreciation on the 11 year old’s faces was incredible.

I was in charge of Remi (Junior Captain) for the game, as I am for every home game. He was enthusiastic and in awe of his surroundings. His job entailed the coin toss, running the game ball out and also running out with the team for kick off. I also took him around the field a few times, sat with him to watch the players warm up and his class mates got to come down onto the field also for the team to run out onto the field. The greatest moment for Remi was, ‘I got to shake David Pocock’s hand.. twice!’, which I overheard him say to his mother after his job was complete. Then they got to enjoy the game while I was packing down inflatable’s and preparing half time activities. 

A dominant performance from the Emirates Western Force brought them out on top but a strong defence from the Lion’s kept the score quite even. At the end of the day it is great to win and that is what sport is all about it, the supporters and everyone involved really needed it, so it was good to see smiles on fan’s faces. I helped organise the players signing after the game, which is always great to be part of after a win as the vibe is blissful and positive. The end bump out of the game took some time throughout the corporate rooms, so it was a late finish but the second last game down..already! How quick the season has gone by. That’s all from me until the final home game for the season on June 30^th.  

Same Sex Marriages

Same sex marriage is an extremely sensitive subject that has manoeuvred back and forth within political discussions and debates. There are for’s and against points that can both be argued and then it merely comes down to the individuals opinion on sexuality, politics, religion, marriage, family and love. These can all be valid points of discussion when accessing the legalisation of same sex marriages. I personally can see both sides of this debate and I certainly don’t have a problem with the way anyone wants to live their life and if that being heterosexual or homosexual...

As of May 10, 2012 – 8 states in the US legalised same sex marriage, Massachusetts to be the first and it is also permissible in 10 other countries including The Netherlands, South Africa, Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Spain, Norway, Sweden, Iceland and Portugal.

Looking at Barack Obama’s recent public announcement in favour of same sex marriage nearing pre election, this decision can be debateable even though times are changing and equal rights are evolving in many different social aspects. I cannot see this as a political move as there are many US citizens that are against same sex marriages all together, that already don’t back Obama’s Democratic political party. There are currently conservative groups that follow Obama but oppose same sex marriages, so now where does that leave their view on Obama and his decision to move forward with legalising same sex marriages in The United States? This defined in quote from the Washington (AFP) “He has always had trouble with white, blue collar, socially conservative swing voters and Wednesday’s move will hardly help.’’

But in politics who can you really believe is being sincere and honest in any situation?

I can definitely see this happening closer to election time in Australia as there are certain leaders pushing for it and others against it. We also tend to follow trends from The US politically, as there is a strong relationship between the two countries. Same sex marriage has been a debate in Australia and all over the world, it is only inevitable that the issue is faced again in parliament and during election squabbles between Labour and Liberal parties.

My views on the legalisation of same sex marriage are not entirely clear but can be expressed through two very important key words: ‘marriage’ and ‘union’.

Marriage: the formal union of man and woman, typically as recognised by law, by which they become husband and wife.
Union: the action of joining together or the fact of being joined together, especially in a political context.

I believe the word marriage originates from religion and as they believe the word homosexuality is a sin, looking at the above definition, it is then weakened and the institution of marriage is lost if same sexes are to unite. Same sex marriages could then confuse and develop issues with the legality of marriage and family values tipped upside down. Not that everybody does get married under a religious ceremony but do the history and definition of marriage then need to be reassessed and changed for a minority of people wanting to unite in same sex marriages? Gender roles will also be changed and the subject of pro creating (naturally) is not possible in any way.

There are also reasons why allowing the union between the same sexes is beneficial and positive, such as that you cannot deny anyone of their religious freedom and homosexuality is highly recognised and accepted in society today.  Research has also shown that there are an increased number of adoptions available for same sex couples and it is a form of individual discrimination to not allow gay marriage.

Personally I think there should be such a thing as same sex union between two people recognised by law and the word marriage be left out as marriage is defined by the union of a man and woman initiated from religion and legalised this way thousands of years ago. I could be named a fence sitter on this situation and will need to do further research on the positive and negative reasons towards same sex marriages but it doesn’t affect me personally for the same sexes to be together and make it accepted legally and to the world.  But I do believe that the word marriage is the bonding of woman and man and same sex marriages should be legalised under a union in some way possible.

Quotes to get us through our study days...

The Big Move...

Young at heart with curiosity, adventure and good times on her mind, I at 19 decided I wanted to move from my home town of Perth to Sydney…for it to be for 3 months, 6 months, a year or as long as I could last away from home. I had been on many holidays to Sydney growing up and had always wanted to live there at some point in my life but would not have thought it would have been so young or have had such a huge impact on my life at the time and still today.

There were many emotions, experiences and events that took place from fun to sad and very overwhelming. It started from my good friend (Lauren) that I had grown up with moving to Bondi 3 years previously, I went over to Sydney for a month holiday to stay with her and pretty much had the time of my life. Of course at the young age this heavily involved eating and drinking out, tourist attractions and opening my eyes to life in the big city that was new to me. I came back to quiet Perth after my amazing holiday and had mixed emotions of what I wanted to do and where I wanted to be... then the opportunity to move in with Lauren came up and I jumped at the chance! Of course it was a very hard decision to leave my family and friends but my heart and head was telling me to ‘Just go! And if I don’t like it, then come home.’

Two weeks later, leaving my mother crying at the airport, I was off. Everything was so surreal and I had friends tell me ‘I give you 3 months Jen and you will back, no way can you last being on the other side of the country from your home.’ This comment did come in the nicest way possible from a good friend and I admit was based from the beautiful home and care I have grown up with. Although I have always been a hard working and independent soul, definitely the baby of the family in regard to being spoilt and had a lot done for me growing up (which I entirely thank my parents for) but excuse me, three and a half years later until I returned to Perth.

This entire experience changed my life and not saying there weren’t horrible moments leaving me in crying array on my bedroom floor from home sickness or general tough days but I would never take the experience away. It opened my eyes up to a completely different world and I believe in things happen for a reason and I was meant to move there when I did. I leave it down to ‘If it feels right then do it’ and I did! People asked how did you do it, like make new friends or be happy in a new anew place? I am very sociable and outgoing but I definitely had to get out of my comfort zone and jump in there, and to this day still have made friends in Sydney that I will have for life. If I didn’t put the effort in and open myself up to new people and new friendships, I would have been home in an instant.

I find it difficult to explain the uplifting feeling, maturity and life knowledge I gained from moving to a completely new city and unless you have lived in a different city away from your comfort zone, you could not understand entirely. This moment in my life holds great significance into the person I have grown to be today, not saying I didn’t make any mistakes or silly decisions but I am proud of myself for opening up for a new challenge and venture. I can still remember the first day as a little 19 year old girl arriving to the big city, falling into a job at an amazing company, living a 5 minute walk from one of the best beaches in Australia, eating tuna out of a can so I could afford to go out on the weekends and learning discipline and understandings that I didn’t know existed. 

Three Big Weeks of Football

With The Emirates Western Force having 3 home games at nib in a row, was a big and overwhelming 3 weeks for myself. This now also leads us already to half way through the super rugby season. The way things fly by when you're having fun hey...

This definitely was a testing time with everything I had learnt through RugbyWA since I first started back in February & remembering and putting it into practice on my own. As I work along the branding and marketing sectionsnfor each event, I was given more responsibilities and in charge of certain activities through out the game without being told where to be at what time. The run sheet for the day and night being my bible! Examples of these were knowing exactly where signs are meant to be up and taken down, preparing half time activities with signed balls given out and monitoring the teams mascot Westy.

Unfortunately we had 2 losses the last 2 weeks against the Chiefs on Friday 6th April (family day) and a loss to The Waratahs on Friday 13th April. (This being quite a devastating one...it's so interesting how involved you become with the game after only working with them for a short period).

I have been in The RugbyWA offices on a weekly basis preparing for each home game, the tasks have been just as important as the ones on game day. Some of these include;

• Ticket allocations (organizing tickets for charities, promotional winners & force fanatics etc)
• Preparing word documents to be placed on the emirates western force website.
• Putting together prize winner packs including hats, jerseys, mini rugby balls, stickers and posters.
• Setting up spreadsheets for competition entrants and mailing out letters for winners e.g. The West Win a membership competition. Office filing from previous office and years of documents for rugbyWA.
• Being apart of captains run at nib a day before game day (clients invitations, final training day for players, morning tea, tour of change rooms, team photos etc
• Phoning and congratulating competition winners (also notifying them of winner details, eg where to pick up their tickets for the game.
• Email out going to all competition entries. Putting away western force merchandise (hats, jerseys etc).
• Help loading up cars with merchandise for game days (signage, prize packs, ticket allocations)
• Pre day organizing and set up for game day at the stadium.

 Thats it for my update half way through the season and I hope you enjoy reading about my little escapades.

Behind the scenes at The Emirates Western Force

We have flags, junior captains, signage, inflatables, morph men, mascots, ball shooters and more!!  

Digital media usage at a young age - should campaigns be conducted?

Firstly we look at the topic of digital media and how it is used in schools and at home today amongst children and teenagers. As the use of digital technology is increasing by the day new issues are established with the negative side to Internet usage. The two key words that stand out for me are 'inappropriate material'. We don't always think or see the negative impact the convenience of the Internet provides.

 

If we look at children and teenagers in schools today using the Internet at a high degree, the basic fundamentals need to be taught. If a child doesn't know that it is wrong to upload a photo that is deemed to be inappropriate then why would they not do it? This brings us to teaching and developing right and wrong to students at a young age. I don't know how young children are using social media, streaming and other similar websites but this needs to established to begin the education on the use of Internet in school and at home.

 

If I was to conduct a campaign in schools on the use of recording, uploading and sharing of inappropriate material....

• You would first look at all the avenues where students are in class, reading, programs and other school activities to create awareness. Whether it be posters around the school, next to computers in libraries, on student Internet log in pages etc.
• As students are always on the Internet - then advertising on the school website on rules and regulations of using certain websites and repercussions involved.
• Rules and information would need to be set up and presented to students from teachers, guidance councillors, form room teachers and all mentors involved in the students education.
• Student councillors, house captains and student leaders can run presentations at assemblies and in class on the rules of Internet usage.
• It is important to notify and work alongside parents as they have a large impact on their children's lives growing up and for schools to run workshops to teach the students but as well as their parents.
• Place information in school newsletters as many parents read and can pass on the information to their children.

The Internet today is going to have negative impacts as there is more availability, social media and connecting with one another and I think programs do need to put in place at an early age from the education department, individual schools and parents themselves. At the end of the day school aged children need to take it upon themselves to look at the positive and negative impacts of using the Internet and think before uploading, recording and sharing material online. The digital media age can now give you new opportunities and exciting things at the click of a button but it is still down to the way you use it and what you want out of it.

 

Leaving you with the final words: Google before you tweet is the new think before you speak. 

FEEL THE FORCE!!

Firstly, a great win for The Western Force on Saturday night against The Reds at nib Stadium. The attitude, vibe and atmosphere from the crowd was remarkable and we came to finish 45-19. My job began early afternoon but operated a lot smoother than my first home game a few weeks ago. This included directional signage around the stadium, change room partnership signage and organisation of uniforms from the rebel sport stand for the McDonalds promotion team.

I felt like I was on top of everything at the game; I knew where I needed to be and what I needed to do, which made it a lot easier. Similar roles included looking after the junior captain who completed the coin toss and is present for the warm-up and team run out. I also had the lucky job of taking care of a competition winner on the field, who was only 6 years old and was amazed by everything in sight J Throughout the game I was monitoring the flag bearers that are at each end of the field; making sure they are waving their flags exceptionally to support The Force, organising uniforms for them previously and keeping them informed of what is happening throughout the game.

Half time activities change from game to game and this night included giving away signed balls to the crowd with the mascot ‘Westy’ and also organising players at the end of the game for signing around the field for their supporters. Half time also incorporated machines shooting jerseys and balls into the crowd, which is always a winner for the fans.

There are always other tasks required by all areas of RugbyWA – coaching staff and partnership teams and I also had to take photographs in one of the corporate function rooms for future club and media coverage. The night is complete when the final bump out is finished; getting everything out of the stadium that needs to be out (mostly promotional equipment).

It was a busy and enjoyable night that ended with some beverages with players and staff. Well done boys!! And I hope we can have another win this Good Friday for ‘Family Day’.  

Certain photos i cant upload from my iPad but will post over the next week :)

“Winners grin but losers wait” – The National Broadband Network for WA

The National broadband Network, which has been a large topic Australia wide in connecting the country with broadband, communications and digital economy. It all comes down to politics and what each state and national government can do to provide the service of superfast broadband to all Australians in urban and regional towns (with optical fibre – FTTP). The attached article from Friday, March 30 in The West Australian describes the access of the broadband network in the next three years and the many suburbs and areas missing the cut for the service (described as areas lacking economic benefit). The article describes the squabble between NBN Co., Julia Gillard and opposing communications minister Malcolm Turnbull.

These proposed government projects, like many others is down to power and finances with governments continually promising, contesting and controlling the country and each state. My thoughts on the above article is similar to any other regulation pending through parliament and the community not getting their tax paying dollars’ worth.  It is above any persons control and the on-going time it seems to take to be completed. Many other projects that seem to take centuries for governments to complete, for example; freeway extensions, proposed sporting stadiums or any other infrastructure project, recently large news in Perth with the city waterfront project.

The comments back and forth by government leaders and always stating the opposite of each response to try and claim the right or wrong, but with politics who really knows what is right and wrong and what is best for the country? There are daily articles in the newspaper on each liberal and labour government policies and actions, all stating words like spokesman or spokeswoman and the arguments between each that seem never ending.  

I think the broadband network is way overdue as Australia seems far behind the rest of the world in the available communication resources, in saying that we are isolated compared to other countries. In projects like this, not everyone is going to be happy and at this point the only very central suburbs will benefit from the fast speed connection. I love how the article explains all the positive points from NBN Co. on the project and the opposition stating that NBN is behind its original targets. All that eventuates is which government can really do the right thing and make everyone happy? 

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/breaking/13300392/winners-grin-but-losers-wait/

Group Projects

Many Public Relations agencies or individuals working in the field write blogs to inform others on certain trends, tips or information and support on the industry. This can be a help guide to be the best possible PR specialist, support networks or projects to undertake and how to approach them in the planning stages. A few of these blogs found included http://online-pr.blogspot.com.au/ and http://publicrelationssydney.com.au/.

Group projects in Public Relations can vary from small to large depending on the account, client and agency objectives, internal or external affairs and finance available. Group Projects need to be approached through a holistic view as there are many things to consider for yourself and the peers you are working with.

Most Important Tips:

·         Complete individual work and work assigned as a team to the best of your ability

·         Communication, communication, communication (to keep all members informed and on top of the project)

·         Brainstorm and allocate tasks evenly

·         Identify each members work ethics and delegate tasks accordingly (a person’s strengths should be used in areas of the project)

·         Contribute but also listen to all ideas presented

·         Respect and acknowledge everyone’s involvement

Communication and working to the best of your ability is the key to make group assignments/projects effective. That is the thing about team work, if not everyone plays a part then the project will lag in one way or another. Past experience has been very successful and not so successful due to people not pulling their weight or communicating with one another on the tasks at hand.

And finally make sure you have fun doing it!

Survived my first Emirates Western Force Game

I was recently given a great opportunity as marketing intern at RugbyWA (Western Force) for the 2012 season. Working alongside the branding manager and partnerships team for each home game, the first being Friday 9^th March. Following two days in the office preparing for the game, it came to start preparation at NIB Stadium at 12pm. It was all new exciting but something needing to be completed every hour until kick off, this included setting up promotional activity, signage in change rooms, grandstands and corporate areas and navigating my way around the field with headsets to communicate with all employees associated with the game.

Throughout the game my role included:

·         Meeting junior captain, getting him ready for the coin toss and showing him around the field while The Western Force and The Hurricanes warmed up.

·         Organising access passes and jerseys for the competition winners at half time Emirates promotion

·         Helping out with flag bearers around the field

·         Setting down of promotional activity at one of the gates

·         Preparing players for signing at the end of the match with balls and textas for ‘fans on the field’, also continuing handing out promotional activity (on this particular day – Nathan Sharpe masks for his 150^th game)

The audience and all the players go home leaving an empty stadium, to my unbelief that’s not where the job ends for the RugbyWA employees. All sponsorship and promotional activity needs to be bumped out of the stadium including corporate rooms and tents. All other relevant signage and event paperwork all packed up to go back to the office. One very long day…I had nerves throughout at not knowing the complete progress for the game to be a success but enjoyed the activities, learning new things constantly and working with a lot of different people.

I hope you enjoy reading about my first hand event experience but the portrayal of fun parties and glamour is definitely not the case preparing for a Super Rugby game…Its hard work and preparation across the event staff, commercial team, coaching staff and operations unit.

BRING ON GAME NUMBER TWO on 31^st March.

Added some pictures below;

WIFI Hotspots - Welcome to 2012

I think this marketing project ‘Homeless People turned into WIFI Hotspots’ is a good idea as it is a charitable innovation initiative and offering homeless individuals to be a part of something in the community. In this day new ideas have to be brainstormed and introduced with technology and digital media constantly changing and expanding. This project is catering around media advancement, involving charities and helping people in need.  It is offering homeless individuals an opportunity to sell a digital device and I cannot see a problem with the project, if everyone using the wifi is donating for the service.

People living on the streets is exists all around the world and if a project like this can help them raise more funds for them and surrounding shelters then why not? It is also reminding the public that they are capable to be a part of a development and the struggles some people face in society.  It is great that they are getting paid for something like this as many of them are incapable of gaining employment, I also did some extra research and they are getting paid $20.00 per day plus all donations for the Wifi service.

The only problem I can see with the marketing project is if the branding company BBH – New York are gaining profits for developing the idea and any further costs they require from the homeless shelters or charities involved. Unfortunately there are many people living on the streets struggling with life every day and if there is a way to help them out with food or shelter then I don’t see a problem with it. The project needs to be demonstrated in the exact same way and respecting all people involved.

Please check out the article here:  http://au.news.yahoo.com/world/a//world/13152191/homeless-people-wifi-hotspots/

The Purpose of blogging in Public Relations?

I searched over numerous Public Relations blogs, particularly observing ones from the agencies I networked last week. I found discussions or the same information frequently posted online, all in relation to social media and the impact it has on the PR world. Social media is not only becoming an important part of Public Relations but plays a big part in our lives today with online communication used to such a great extent.

Public Relation blogs ultimately promote the agency to future clients, customers or anyone looking at their website. It gives followers information on future events coming up, benefits of their services and articles of what is occurring in the industry. E.g. upcoming award nights. It is also a help guide for all PR agencies for networking, marketing, social media and linked in. All industries are ever evolving around technology and blogging is opening up discussions and conveying ideas and opinions for all readers/followers.

Public Relation blogs are also displaying company involvement, credentials, employees, success stories and industry knowledge to have a positive effect on a future customer/client base. General news in PR is presented, with information, results and insights on areas effecting PR, e.g. communications, advertising and marketing. As all social media channels need to be monitored, Public Relation agencies need to keep it informative and up to date for anyone reading it.

Our lives today are driven around online activities and for any successful business in this industry; ultimately they need to be online to be seen.  Blogging in PR is all based around networking and communication between business to business and business to customer/client.  

Just a slice of inspiration

There's Always Something Going On in PR....

Ronn Torossian - CEO of 5WPR (one of the 25 largest in The US) talks about 'a day in the life at a PR agency'


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7KUjZ0iyJ0&feature=related

MALE VS. FEMALE

A very interesting class activity conducted this week involved groups splitting into male and female to debate on the topic of hand - "females right to vote taken away" or "males right to vote taken away" with the opposite sex trying to convince the opposing group.

Brainstorming ideas and aiming to engage in the mind of the opposite sex presented two common stereotypes of 'men only think about sex' and 'women are only satisfied with a lot of money'. Both groups came to conclusions that to take the right to vote away brought up campaigns for a bro's day compiling of beers, beach, BBQ and topless waitresses and women having a tax free, days filled with shopping and day spas and unlimited opportunities to do what they want?

Overall it brought many laughs and also gave the class a chance to discuss and express individual ideas when faced with a difficult topic that needs to be campaigned. 

Public Relations...and me

As we begin 2012 with goals, work, aspirations, study and planning for the future, I have chosen to study and further my business knowledge and skills in public relations at Central Institute of Technology. 

Public Relations can be confused or miss interpreted by the public through the media conception that it is only about 'fun parties or events'. The are many avenues used to explore what public relations is but at the present time through my eyes, the best way describing it is 'the management of an organizations communication activities'. Key words of management and communication. I plan to explore & research in detail through class assessments the break down of all areas of public relations, effect it has on organizations and the public, industries and sectors and core functions demonstrated. 

I firstly want to combine my marketing background with public relations as they are intertwined along with advertising. I want to learn the fundermentals of how these career paths are separate but also have a high correlation with one another. 

Working on my own and along with my peers as a team, I endeavor to build relationships with all around me. PR is making relations with others; knowing people and understanding people through networking and conversations with people in the industry but also engaging with the public as in the future I will need to be in touch with social change and the community.

I also want to further my written and communication skills, time management, organization and practice of getting out of my comfort zone. I hope to gain a full understanding of all new tasks at work including campaigns, different ranges of media studies and other PR documents. 

As my peers and I embark on a very busy year ahead, i plan to be hard working and dedicated to excel in this course and open up doors for further opportunities in Public Relations as a career. 

Jen xx

Indah Bali

Another amazing experience in Bali. Bali Deli..Uluwatu..Cocoon Beach Club & Sanur big highlights. So many photos but i hope you enjoy the few selected :)