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The Medium
Volume 23, Issue 1
FALL 2013
#HokiePR
IN THIS ISSUE:
History of the Hashtag
by Kate Robertson, pg. 1
National Conference
by Chris Bonelli, pg. 2
Guide to the Perfect
Tweet by Katharina
Elberti, pg. 3
Review of the Firm
by Dan Bowman, pg. 3
Member of the
Semester, pg. 4
Defining PR by Candace
Rutherford, pg. 4
The Job Search Q&A
with Hayden Roberts,
pg. 5
NC Fall Agency Tours
by Ashlyn Davidson and
Hannah Avery, pg. 6
Me•di•um [mee-deeuhm] —n. a means or
agency for communicating
or diffusing information,
news, etc. to the public
Hashtags: A History
by Kate Robertson
The # is experiencing an
identity crisis. In the past, it
has served as a number sign,
tic-tac-toe board and musical
notation. But now, it stands
for something completely
different. Instead of denoting
numbers, games or music,
it’s now largely used to mark
content on social media.
people should reconsider.
According to social media
scientist Dan Zarella,
tweets that contain
hashtags are 55% more
likely to be retweeted
than those without them.
That’s enough to convince
me to use hashtags more
often.
The # has become the
hashtag.
For six years, hashtags only
existed on Twitter. But now,
other social media sites are
beginning to embrace the
hashtag. Instagram added
hashtags to their platform
two years ago. Here, their
function is almost identical
to their function on Twitter:
sorting content based on
the hashtag. Searching
#sundance, for example,
will show all pictures and
now videos posted about the
Sundance Film Festival.
Since its launch in 2007,
the hashtag’s popularity has
skyrocketed, especially on
Twitter. It started as a means
of marking certain news
stories and grouping related
content. These groups are
called “trends.” Tweeters can
search trends and hashtags
to find related content.
For example, searching
#VirginiaTech will show all
Twitter material related to
Virginia Tech. There is no set
list of hashtags; tweeters are
free and encouraged to create
their own. Popular hashtags
include #TBT (Throwback
Thursday) and #SelfieSunday,
in which users post photos
and tag them as throwbacks
or selfies, respectively. Trends
also reflect current events,
like Obamacare, Syria and
the Miami Dolphins bullying
scandal.
More recently, Facebook
introduced hashtags this
past June, a move that has
garnered as many critics
as it has supporters. The
change aims to make
Facebook content more
accessible, and to increase
real-time information
sharing. Proponents agree
that the hashtags will prove
beneficial over time, while
opponents see no use for
them. “Hashtags are for
Twitter,” they say. Opponents
Many Twitter users avoid
also argue that hashtags
hashtags at all costs,
claiming they are useless and clutter their news feeds and
do not blend with Facebook’s
obnoxious. Perhaps those
streamlined design.
Personally, I don’t see
hashtags catching on outside
Twitter and Instagram.
Facebook is not meant for
real-time news and updates.
As Mashable.com writer
Chris Taylor says, “When
news is breaking, or a horrific
storm is heading your way,
it’s Twitter that lights up with
updates. That’s what it was
built for: speed and brevity.”
We may get some news from
Facebook, but ultimately we
turn to Twitter. Facebook
would be smart to stray from
hashtags and stop playing
the “me, too” game, as Taylor
calls it.
This raises a whole new
question: does Twitter “own”
the hashtag? Are hashtags
Twitter-exclusive? Better
yet, should they be Twitterexclusive? The “Hashtags
are for Twitter” response
is enough of an answer for
me. However, we shall see
how hashtags are integrated
into other social media, like
Google+, Flickr and Pinterest.
Regardless of its residency,
the hashtag is a huge part of
social media culture, and it is
here to stay.
Volume 23, Issue 1
Fall 2013, Page 2
Inside Scoop on National Conference
by Chris Bonelli
Each fall, public relations students
gather for the annual PRSSA National
Conference. This is a time for
networking, professional growth and
Chapter development.
Oct. 25 – 29, more than 1,100
PRSSA members descended upon
Philadelphia for our Society’s 2013
National Conference, “Foundation for
Innovation.” This includes students
from all over the country—and even
a South American Chapter! The
Conference was held in the Loews Hotel
on 5th and Market Street, truly the
heart of downtown Philly.
The main programming of Conference
was comprised of professional
development sessions, industry-leading
speakers and thought-provoking
workshops. The
professional
development
sessions included
topics of personal
branding,
evolving digital
media, integrated
marketing, media
relations and
more. These
sessions could not
have been more relevant and beneficial.
Our keynote speaker, Mary Henige, and
living legends panel of speakers also
provided wonderful insight into the
world of public relations and our role
in it.
I was especially proud of the Chapter
development sessions held on
Friday afternoon. In May I selected
eight Chapters to give 20-minute
presentations on their “best practices”
as a Chapter. Topics varied from
member diversity, programming on
a budget and even Chapter branding.
These sessions served as a way to
showcase the great work the eight
presenting Chapters have done, but also
to provide ideas for attending members
to take back to their own Chapters and
implement.
I was also responsible for the 2013
PRSSA community service initiative.
We partnered with the PRSA Philly
Chapter to collect women’s business
accessory donations for Career
Wardrobe, a local nonprofit. Career
Wardrobe assists women to re-enter the
workforce after dealing with issues such
as homelessness, domestic violence and
drug abuse. We challenged Conference
attendees to donate gently used belts,
scarves, bags, shoes and new hosiery
and makeup. I am pleased to say we
collected seven large
boxes full of donations to
benefit Career Wardrobe.
It was great to see our
entire Society make a
concentrated effort to
help the Philadelphia
community.
National Conference is
held in conjunction with
the PRSA International
Conference. This year the PRSA
Conference was located in the Marriott
across the street and featured speeches
from Brian Solis, Vernice “FlyGirl”
Armour and John Wood.
Don’t get me wrong; Conference isn’t
all workshops, speakers and panels. We
had a “Party at Gatsby’s” for our Friday
night opening social. There was a live
swing band and plenty of room for the
foxtrot. Attendees got into the spirit of
the evening with fedoras, suspenders
and flapper dresses galore!
There was also plenty of time in the
evenings to tour the great city of
Philadelphia. Instagram blew up with
pictures from the Liberty Bell, town
hall, Rocky statue and more. Not to
mention everyone’s search for the “most
authentic” Philly cheese steak. Check
out the #PRSSANC tag and you’ll see
how much fun all the attendees had.
This was my second National
Conference and I can tell you one
thing for sure—attending Conference
is a MUST. Nowhere else will you have
access to so much insight into PRSSA
and the public relations field. At
Conference, you will make connections
with hundreds of professionals and
students. You never know who may
be that one professional connection
that gets you the “in” you need for your
dream job.
The 2014 PRSSA National Conference
will be held next fall in our own
backyard—Washington D.C. This is
fantastic opportunity and there should
be no excuse for not attending. I am
confident that Virginia Tech will leave
its mark on next year’s Conference.
“ ”
82
Volume 23, Issue 1
It’s been cool to see how to work with a client
and meet their needs. We met with two of the
co-founders of Koofers and they pitched their
product to us. For Gobble Cakes, we decided to
take pictures of their pink delivery car around
town and do social media trivia contests. Mary
Puglisi, a junior studying Communication, said.
Chapter Stats:
total dues-paying
members
35
183
416
first-time members
for fall semester
miles to Charlotte, NC
for fall agency tours
clicks (10/03 to 12/12)
to our blog: vtprssa.
weebly.com/blog
Top 5 PR Firms in the US
by Melissa Grau
1. APCO Worldwide
Headquartered in Washington, DC, APCO
Worldwide has over a thousand clients. This
firm is ranked #1 based on a perfect score in the
categories of needs analysis, creativity, implementation, reporting, and overall performance.
2. Edelman
Founded in 1952 in New York, New York, Edelman serves over 10,000 clients. With over 4,000
employees, Edelman earned a 99.6% overall
score complete with perfect scores in creativity,
implementation, and overall performance.
3. SSPR
Home to 50 employees, SSPR is located in
Northfield, Illinois. With over 500 clients, this
firm holds the #3 spot with an overall score of
99.4%. Areas of expertise include needs analysis, implementation, and overall performance.
4. Ruder Finn, Inc.
Based out of New York, New York, Ruder Finn,
Inc. employs 580 individuals to cater to the
needs of 1,000+ clients. This firm has a 97% client retention rate and an overall score of 99.2%.
5. Waggener Edstrom Worldwide
Located in Bellevue, Washington, Waggener
Edstrom Worldwide has 900 employees serving
over 1000 clients with a retention rate of 94%.
Courtesy of topPRagencies.com, Nov. 2013
Fall 2013, Page 3
Feedback from the Firm
by Dan Bowman
Ut Prosim PR Firm,
which has approximately
25 active committee
members, has had a great
semester so far. We have 2
clients that we have been
working with: Gobble
Cakes and Koofers.
Gobble Cakes is a
cupcake boutique
downtown that needed
help bringing back its initial surge
of customers in its second year of
business. We have mainly been using
social media for outreach, but we plan
to implement some events during
second semester.
Our second client is Koofers. Not
only are the founders of Koofers
super relaxed and fun to work with,
but they are also very willing to work
with VT students since they started
the company here as undergraduates;
they are giving back to the school that
gave them the chance to start a career.
We are learning the ins and outs of
a new product Koofers is beginning
to market called Campus Recruiter.
In essence, it is a tool for companies
to conduct online interviews with
prospective hires, by searching
through different categories in the
Koofers database.
This product is tailored to companies
rather than students and is something
very different for the Blacksburg
start-up. Our job will include media
relations. We will be reading and
commenting on trade and technology
blogs so that bloggers may write about
our product. I am excited to continue
leading the firm next semester, and
look forward to what we can produce
as a team.
Guide to the Perfect Tweet
by Katharina Elberti
K.I.S.S – Keep It Simple Stupid!
Timing is everything. If you want a
tweet you have to think about your audience and their patterns; reaching the
19-year-old college student that stays
up until 1 a.m. and reaching the a 9-5
company require very different tactics.
its format so that images can be viewed
without having to be clicked on.
Appropriateness. It is good to have
opinions. Express them and stand by
them, but if a tweet has no other point
than to bash or harm someone, then
there’s no point in writing it. Tweeting
“Johnny smells like rotten ggs and will
Hashtags: good or bad? Good in mod- never get a date” is in no way going to
eration and terrible in excess. Do not
improve the quality of your life so why
be one of those girls who does 25 char- not just think it (or don’t…be nice…)
acter hashtags (#omgbestboyfriendand not spread it? Rather, our generintheworld…just, why). Hashtagging
ation should be using Twitter to voice
topics or a location is alright, but not
opinions on animal abuse or tweeting a
every other word. Another thing I have link to a fundraiser for those affected in
noticed is that tweets with an absorthe Philippines.
bent amount of hashtags are less likely
to be retweeted.
Work v. Pleasure. Simple: every time
you tweet something make sure you are
Tweeting images. I love attaching pic- OK with your boss five years from now
tures and images to my tweets; people seeing it. Let’s be honest, technology
respond well to visuals. However, I
can do amazing things and people are
would not recommend an image with
creepers; it could resurface when you
every tweet. Twitter recently updated
do not want it to.
Volume 23, Issue 1
Fall 2013, Page 4
Member of the Semester: Elliott Williams
Major and year? Junior communication major, focusing in public relations.
How are you involved with PRSSA? I just joined PRSSA this fall. I am part of the Ut Prosim
committee and have helped work with Gobble Cakes, a local bakery.
Where do you one day hope to be career-wise? I’m in a band and have done PR for us. I would
love to work with a record label and help bands obtain recognition.
What has PRSSA done for you? PRSSA has helped me a lot in understanding how public
relations works. Since I transferred from a community college, I’ve just started my classes as a
communication major. I feel like my short time with PRSSA has given me a head start and the
things I’ve learned will transfer over to the classes I’ll take in the future.
What’s one thing you would tell potential PRSSA members? It’s a blast! Coming into Virginia
Tech I never expected to join such a fun club that really incorporates the things I love to do. If
you’re looking to focus in PR, I would strongly recommend joining this club!
PR as Your Client’s Suit and Tie
by Candace Rutherford (in collaboration with Melanie Ford)
Think of your favorite
celebrity. Now think of all
of the ridiculous things
they do and say. Miley
Cyrus, anyone? Or maybe
Kanye West at the Grammy
Awards? It’s no surprise
that someone is needed to
represent them and foster
a positive public image.
While this isn’t all that a
PR agent does, it’s a simple
way of thinking about the
management function that
is PR.
PRSA’s official definition
of public relations, found
on their website, is “...a
strategic communication
process that builds
mutually beneficial
relationships between
organizations and their
publics.”
A PR agent has opportunities in many fields ranging
from corporate to nonprofit and entertainment to
sports.
That being said, PR can
take many different forms.
Communication methods
have evolved drastically
in recent years and it’s
only natural that PR
evolves with it. Agents
use various methods to
communicate a company’s
desired message to the
appropriate audience.
Social networking, print
and digital newspapers,
television stations, radio
announcements, and
fliers are just some of the
avenues that are used to
deliver a client’s message.
As Ben Butler, PRSSA
National vice
president
of public
relations,
said at the
PRSSA
National
Assembly in
April 2013,
“As public
relations
professionals, the focus of
our work should not be on
us. It should be on whoever
we represent, whether a
client or employer.”
Representing a client will
not always be an easy job.
Transparency is key, in
both good and hard times.
PRSA encourages all PR
practitioners to adhere to
its code of ethics: advocacy,
honesty, expertise, loyalty,
independence and fairness.
As Butler went on to say,
“We are like the ‘suits and
ties’ of organizations. Suits
and ties were not created
to stand alone -- they were
designed to enhance the
image of others. We do this
by achieving organizational
goals through the strategic
harmony of
marketing,
advertising,
media relations
and other
necessary
tactics driven
by researchdriven
insights.”
In layman’s terms, PR is
the professional mediator
between a client and
the public, presenting
the client as a polished
business suit would.
Artwork from Justin Timberlake’s
“Suit and Tie” album, Jan. 2013.
5 Potential Marketing
Trends for 2014
by Kevin Williams
1. Increased Digital Marketing
Budget- Digital marketing includes
advertising using the web, social
media and mobile technology.
2. Decline of Traditional Media
Continues - While traditional media
still has a role to play in marketing
and public relations, businesses are
moving away from traditional media
because the costs outweigh the
benefits. Traditional media refers
to radio, television, magazines and
newspapers.
3. Less Words, More Visuals - The
brain processes visual data about
60,000 times faster than it processes text. An effective visual is likely
to convey a message several times
better than text can. This finding
could lead to an increase in photo
and video sharing apps.
4. Google+ and Twitter Challenge
Facebook - Facebook is currently
the world’s number one social media platform and that is not expected to change overnight. However,
Twitter and Google+ are becoming
increasingly popular, and 2014 could
be the year that they push Facebook
from the social media mountaintop.
5. Snapchat as a Marketing Tool - As
businesses attempt to be as creative as possible in their marketing
efforts, don’t be surprised if some
businesses turn to this popular app.
Volume 23, Issue 1
Fall 2013, Page 5
Photo courtesy of career.vt.edu
The Job Search
Q&A with Hayden Roberts
1. How should undergraduates
prepare for a career during their first
three years of college?
During your first three years it’s
important to get involved in clubs,
organizations and courses at Virginia
Tech that interest you and are related to
what you are looking to do. Try different
things to make sure you don’t miss out
on anything. Getting an internship or
co-op during this time is a great way to
gain first-hand experience in a job field
and make connections that can help
later on down the road.
Undergraduates should, without a
doubt, come to Career Services, where
I am a Peer Career Advisor, and learn
about all the resources we have to offer.
We can help anyone with their resumes,
cover letters and answer any questions
they may have about careers. Getting
started freshman year makes leaving
college and finding a job a much easier
transition and doesn’t leave you feeling
overwhelmed at the end.
2. When and how do I start applying
for jobs?
It’s a good idea to make a spreadsheet
of all the companies you are interested
in and put the job description, when
the application is due and where the
company is so that you can keep the
resumes and cover letters all straight.
See if any of the companies are coming
to the career fairs in the fall or spring.
Talking directly to a recruiter and giv-
ing them your resume in
person is a great way to get
started.
3. It’s fall of your
senior year and you’re
overwhelmed by the thought of
almost being thrust into a “real
world job.” What do you do?
It’s important to a step back and
see where you want to go and what
you want to do. If you are extremely
overwhelmed, come into Career
Services and make an appointment
with an advisor to discuss your options.
Also, if you are unsure about entering a
real world job, shadowing someone in
a field you are interested in might help
ease some of the stress you are feeling.
One thing that might help students is to
realize they are not alone. A lot of other
students are in the same boat.
4. What resources can students use
to find job listings?
Students should be looking anywhere
and everywhere. Career Services always
recommends Hokies4Hire because
employers looking for Hokies put
numerous job postings on the site. But
there are a lot of great resources out
there--you can find job listing sites
pretty easily through Google, including
CareerShift and Monsters.
5. Who should students talk to
if they have questions about a
potential career path?
Talk to someone who is in the field now.
Find a Tech alumnus and see if you can
meet with them to hear about how they
got to that point and where they plan
to go. Everybody has a different way of
getting to the job they have and it can
help you determine what you should
be doing now to get to where they are.
Also, a new resource to Career Services
is CandidCareer. On this site you can
look up specific positions or majors, and
it has interviews with professionals in
the field now who talk about how they
got to where they are today.
6. What if a student still has no idea
what they want to do after earning
their undergraduate degree?
Make an appointment with an advisor
and discuss all the options that are
available to you. Graduate school might
be a great option for them to be able to
narrow in on a particular field more.
Students also find it helpful to know
that just because they have a degree
in English or math doesn’t mean they
have to go into a certain job. Your major
doesn’t equal your career. That usually
helps some students realize they have
more options than they originally
thought.
7. Is grad school for me and how can
a broke college student pay for it?
Graduate school is a common option for
people who want to go into something
more specific than an undergraduate
degree can offer. Many employers will
now pay some or all of an employee’s
graduate school tuition. Often times,
universities will pay students’ tuition
and provide them with a stipend if
they work as a teaching assistant or
undergraduate assistant.
Hayden Roberts is a junior communication
major at Virginia Tech. She works as a Senior
Peer Career Advisor with Career Services
and writes for the lifestyles section of the
Collegiate Times student-run newspaper.
Volume 23, Issue 1
Fall 2013, Page 6
Your 2013-2014 Executive Board
[from left to right]:
Cat Goergen, President
Melanie Ford, Webmaster/Editor-in-Chief
Danielle Logan, Chapter Relations Chair
Dan Bowman, Firm Director
Becca Leaf, Secretary/Treasurer
Courtney Edwards, Vice President
Meredith Spencer, Co-Events Chair
Alex Niciforo, Co-Events Chair
Interested in joining? Email
[email protected] to receive listserv
emails, internship opportunities
and meeting information.
Meeting schedule: Every other
Wednesday at 7 p.m. in Johnston
Student Center RM 100
Get involved on a committee!
Visit the “Our Chapter” page on
our website for more info.
Website: vtprssa.weebly.com
Facebook.com/VTPRSSA
Twitter: @VTPRSSA
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Douglas
Cannon Professional Advisor:
Lori Greiner Local PRSA
Chapter: Blue Ridge Chapter
Upcoming Events
Jan. 21 Spring classes start
Jan. 22 First spring meeting at 7
p.m. in Johnston RM 100
Feb. 8 VT PRSSA Comm
Connections from 12-3 p.m. in
the Bowman Room (Jamerson
Athletic Center)
Feb. 18 Connection Career Fair
from 10 a.m.- 4 p.m. in Squires
Mar. 13-16 PRSSA National
Assembly in Charleston, SC
More Career Fairs www.career.
vt.edu/Fairs/Spring2014.html
NC Fall Agency Tours
Ashlyn Davidson
As I got in the car in the early morning
of November 15 to visit three public
relation firms in Charlotte, NC my mind
immediately began to race. What do I
want to do with my life? How will I find
internships and build my resume? However, my mind was soon put to ease after
visiting the three firms. Spark Strategic
Ideas, LGA and Taylor, all had fabulous
presentations and the willingness to answer all of our burning questions about
the industry.
Hannah Avery
I can honestly say that going on the
PRSSA agency tour trip was one of the
highlights of my semester. As a communication major with a PR focus, I really
loved the opportunity to visit three
successful PR firms. By simply walking
around the office, talking to the people
who worked there, and feeling the work
environment, I began to feel a lot more
confident about my career path. I now
feel excited to potentially work for a
firm like the ones we visited.
My venture to Charlotte taught me that
it is vital to start planning for my future
now, although I am a sophomore. I
received a stack of business cards from
the employees who were all willing to
help in any way possible, which was very
gratifying. For me, public relations is so
exciting because things are constantly
changing; new stories, new media technology and new ideas are always being
brought to the table. Spark Strategic
Ideas, LGA and Taylor all confirmed
that public relations is right for me, and
that if I put my all into my undergraduate career I can be successful in the future. I believe that it is important to be
able to visualize yourself in a workplace.
After visiting Charlotte I can imagine
myself working in a PR firm, surrounded by people who have the same passion
that I do.
I loved the fact that the employees not
only provided information about their
firms, but also tons of information
about what students can do in college to
become successful in the field later on.
Specifically, they recommended that we
try out different classes, get involved in
organizations that have to do with our
future career, network as much as possible, get writing published, and find an
area that sets us apart from others and
taking classes that involve that unique
skill.
All three of the firms had such an amazing vibe to them, and all of the people
who worked there seemed truly happy
and satisfied with their jobs. I am excited to use the knowledge that I gained
from the tour in my college planning
and see where it takes me!