Jenn Cornell: PR in the Age of Social Media

Jenn Cornell makes many valid points in her interview. We have come to an age where people expect things quick and have high expectations for what they get. With the inception of things like facebook and twitter, people are informed of every move that their contacts make and this can become a valuable tool for many businesses. Many businesses have begun to use the internet for more than just the buying and selling of their goods or services; the number of people who blog or read blogs is always increasing and this is a market that businesses should be aware of and use. Before, the way to get word out about your business was through word of mouth; today, you can go online and research a company or a product and read what dozens of people think about it or why they would or wouldn't recommend it to someone else. This knowledge is essential for a company to know about and respond to accordingly; a company wouldn't want to lose business because they were not monitoring what people were saying about their product, only to find out later that there were issues that could have been resolved if they had taken the time to monitor what was going on. By creating a facebook page, or a twitter account, and simply going on and replying to what people are saying, or giving information about their products, a company can show the public that they are keeping up with the new technologies that are coming out and that they are using them to help the public and stay on top of their game. Rather than letting their competition gain all the business and position in a market, by all businesses developing ways to communicate with their client base, they are showing the consumer that they are paying attention and willing to do whatever they need to keep their business. That is something that all customers want to hear and they will respond accordingly.

Jen makes many valid points. Using social networking sites as a way to connect and reach a large amount of people is a very good thing to do. This will enable a business to get their product of service out to the masses without ever leaving the office. It is an inexpensive way to connect to customers and potential customers as well as get feedback on a particular product the company may sell. I know that many companies and small businesses are looking into these social networks as a way to promote their businesses, but I often wonder how professional this really is. I often think of these networking sites as for fun only, but they can be used for business, it is actually a smart idea, because many people do use them. But still, I would like to know if this is just my feelings or do others get these feeling also. How does one make a site like facebook or twitter more professional for their business? What are the risks associated with using these sites for business? But I do see the benefit of using a site like twitter. Businesses can get opinions and interesting ideas from people that can in turn help them to make their business better. Also since the internet tends to make people more truthful because it takes away the face to face contact, people are more likely to give the honest truth. In this way, a company can tell what they are doing right and what needs work. I would say there seem to be negatives and positives to these social networking sites, but that is the case with anything. If a company decides to use the sites, I would think there are definitely many perks that go along with them, one would just have to be careful and also stay professional because you never know who is on the other end typing.

Jenn Cornell made some valid points that helped give my perspective of internet networks a wider outlook. Technology has advanced so much that majority of the society's young people interact on the internet versus the physical one-on-one contact. More people are using the internet for activities such as paying bills, catching up with old friends, and much more. Twitter can be the key to success for up and coming business in the market becausee it will enable companies to examine how others feel about their products or services. This will give companies the power to build a stronger client base by appealing to the needs of thier clients and attracting potentially new ones.

I was really impressed with this video submission. Public relations is a great subject to blog about since I think people have so many misconceptions about what it really is - this really cleared some things up. Public relations from watching this video instantly screamed to me "translate" and "gate keep" meaning these people put words into sentences customers can understand and respond to. I think a future issue for public relations is the notion that people in public relations are doing damage control and are master of words to make something not sound as bad. I look forward to seeing how this subject is addressed. Facebook and Twitter were surprising to me since it seems like Facebook and/or Twitter may open the door for unprofessionalism with photos, posts, and other stuff that may be deemed inappropriate. I could see setting up a personal page not for the person but the business to create a strictly professional look/feel/topic discussions. I can see updating and using relevant information on both of these sites as possibly difficult. There are so many sites out there now so deciding which one to use may become difficult. I also found it interesting that the interviewee suggested Facebook or Twitter could be damaging to ones business and would not help them. I assume people who are not computer savvy, this could be a problem for. Another part of the article I enjoyed was the part about how the internet can make business easier for people in public relations. I assumed it was wise to look at message boards and discussions about your product or industry but to actually participate in these discussions was something totally new to me. Is there a conflict of interest here and are we involved to clarify misconceptions or be defensive? I would think not and the purpose would be to ask questions for feedback.