Ever just picked up and drove across the country? How about North America? Well Alex and Luke are doing just that, but here's the catch - they have no plans. They're letting all of us out there in the internet world decide where they go, which route they take, and what they see!
This trip has been in the works since September 2009, and they hit the road March 20, 2010. They will be using Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, and Gowala to get their message out to receive votes and suggestions.
To help them with their road trip you can pledge them anywhere between $10-$25,000. They will send you postcards, souvenirs, cook you a meal and even give away the keys and ownership to the car they used! A portion of all pledges will be donated to charities (different for each region they travel in). I'm planning on pledging to receive a hand made post card from the state, province or territory of my choosing.
I for one can't wait to follow their amazing journey, and participate in something that is truly unique. Right now they only have about 540 fans on Facebook so I'm interested to see how they will use their social media channels and if it will be successful.
Would you be able to hand over control of a road trip and drive across the continent in a Volkswagen rabbit?? I'm not sure if I'm that adventurous but power to you @alexandluke!!
I'm not sure about you, but these days I find myself turning to my twitter feed for news on just about anything. I no longer have to pick up the newspaper (and really who wants to? I hate getting ink on my fingers) its all just a mouse click away.
PR 2.0 is the concept, and in Deirdre Breakenridge's article, PR 2.0 a communicators manifesto, this is exactly what she is getting at. PR 2.0 is putting the 'public' back in public relations. As communicators we now have more tools then ever to get our message out there, and reach a wider, global audience.
PR is now driven by technology, and consumers now expect a human connection. A face and voice to put to the brand. Companies are now experiencing more direct communication with their publics then ever before. Its like having a 24/7/365 panel for feedback, and honest feedback at that.
This might have some PR practitioners running for the hills but its in everybody's best interest to embrace PR 2.0. Why you might ask? Because, PR 2.0 is all about effective communication and who communicates better then us? (PR practitioners of course).
Brian Solis makes an excellent point about PR 2.0 in his blog post PR 2.0 = The Evolution of PR, Nothing Less, Nothing More. PR 2.0 is the natural evolution of PR, and it is needed to stay relevant.
PR 2.0 has been ten years in the making , and lets face it, its here to stay. So what do you say we drop the 2.0 already??
So from my previous posts it may be obvious that I have mostly been blogging for class assignments. I never really had the desire to blog before, because I felt I didn't really have anything to say.
Well my "light-bulb moment" (Oprah might say ah-ha) came while I was, funnily enough, at a school event (personal brand camp) where I learned that my online identity or my personal brand isjust me. Its not about where I want to work, or what part of the public relations field I see myself in, it's who I am as a person and what my values are.
SO this being said, I created this new blog. Its all about ME, and I am aware that this probably isn't what people want to read but it's what I want to read. Get ready for posts about travel, business, music, other light bulb moments, cool things I do and cool things I want to do!
We've all seen her in action on The Hills and The City. She's the boss that everyone loves to hate. Kelly Cutrone makes her employees fire their friends, work until 2am and shake in their boots with her direct, no BS way of communication. In short when you work for her you know exactly where you stand, in the line of fire or out of it.
Cutrone is quickly becoming the public face of PR whether she likes it or not. Gone are the unrealistic images of Samantha from Sex and the City standing at the door of an event with a list dressed to the nines. Instead they are replaced with black clothes, no make up and the rule, which is coincidentally the name of her new book, "If you have to cry, go outside."
On top of appearing on both MTV's The Hills and The City, Cutrone has started filming her own show which follows her firm with the lead up to fashion week 2010. It airs on Monday's starting February 1. This has thrown both her and her employees into the lime light, showcasing their talent and "product". One could argue that this is a perfect pitching tool for new clients, it comes at a perfect time as Cutrone's book is set to launch the day after her show premiers.
Cutrone giving advice to young girls based on experience
"Give birth to yourself"
Cutrone has built her business from the ground up. Cutrone started her career in in early 20s working for Spin. Between leaving her first PR firm Cutrone & Weinstienand starting Peoples Revolution she took a small break for a year where she lived on Venice beach as a tarot card reader. But the world of PR called her back and she started People's Revolution. Her current company represents 46 clients including Longchamp, Sass & Bide and Vivienne Westwood to name a few.
"Smile a little bit we're trying to sell underwear not beat someone up"
With Cutrone what you see is what you get, she doesn't bend or change herself for anything or anyone. Which is hard to do when you work in a field as dynamic as public relations. To add to her stress cameras are watching her every move during her work day.
Its incredibly refreshing to see the world of PR on display in such a raw form. Cutrone is offering up a more accessible, less glorified version of fashion based public relations, and I for one, like it.
Foursquare, when I hear that I think of that game I used to play at recess with the rules I could never quite remember. In the internet world Foursquare is the latest social media app that seems to have everyone "checking in" to win. Win what you might ask? Status, badges and bragging rights. Foursquare is a location based social media application, where users "check in" at various locations all over the world. The goal of Foursquare is to unite users with friends and other travellers to unlock the cities in which they live, and travel. As a user you can see where your friends are and recommend different sites, restaurants and activities.
Dennis previously worked on a similar project called dogeball.com which was bought out by Google in 2005 and never caught on quite like Foursquare has.
This video is an interesting dialogue from various industry specialists including co-founder Dennis Crowley about the background of Foursquare its various uses and other social media trends.
The site is extremely user friendly with apps for Blackberry, iPhone, Palm and Android making it easy to check in with out the use of a computer. Foursquare is also linked to twitter and facebook making it a logical add on for most people who enjoy merging their various social media outlets. People who use Foursquare get incredibly invested in the "game" aspect of it for the bragging rights but also because businesses have started pairing with the app to offer freebies to "mayors" including drinks and meals, and various other discounts.
But...WHY?
personally, I'm not a fan of this particular application. to me Foursquare seems like a self initiated big brother. You update the members (and lets face it they're mostly strangers) of your exact location. To me, Foursquare seems to be a mugger's dream; if I was looking for an easy mark - I'd look no further then this application, for that reason alone I didn't sign up to see it in use.
Even though they seem to have a stringent terms of use policy it still feels like a blatant over share of your personal whereabouts. And despite that participating in anything that is unlawful, threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, libelous, deceptive, fraudulent, invasive of another's privacy, tortious, obscene, offensive, or profane; is against their terms of use I am forced to cite the Craigslist murders as an example of violation of on-line trust.
Basically - in this day in age when we can be tracked by cameras or our cell phone usage, how much information is TOO much information?
for a different view check out Jenna's take on Foursquare
for my "elevator pitch" watch below (please don't)
If you are anything like me you recognize Twitter as a new driving force in social media, but you don't quite understand all of its "isms". The concept of the hashtag was lost on me, but after reading this "how to" the world of Twitter has burst open!
I never knew that a hashtag could be used to promote your event, create a group or unite people with common interests. No doubt about it, Twitter has fast become a force to be reckoned with and hashtags are an effective way to create hype and make others aware.
I feel that Ben Parr did a good job of keeping the subject matter low brow (for those of us who are internet challenged) and now I know more then enough to start using hashtags in a way that will enhance my Twitter experience.
If you want to hear more about this particular link be sure to read Zoya and Carmen's blogs!
or if you crave more internet knowledge (as I certainly do) check out these other "How to's"
