Tweet Baby, Tweet Baby!

***Disclaimer: One thing that I find awkward about Twitter is the idea of  “following” someone. It brings to mind such religious connotations which do not quite sit well with me. I would prefer a term that does not have such a religious nature. Not sure what it would be, but something that does not sound so cultish.***

Anyhow,  Twitter is a way to quickly and briefly update people on what a person is doing at a particular moment. When I first heard about Twitter in undergrad, I was not very impressed with it. And then came the status updates on Facebook. I figured if  I wanted to know that much about a person I would just pick up the phone and call them. There are different ways to use Twitter; however, that make it more suitable for the less invasive public audience.

As I am not one to publicize my daily life’s event to an unknown mass public, I have opted for alternative uses of Twitter. For example, if there is a quote or something inspiring that I have read, I am likely to share this on Twitter. Also, when I notice the accomplishments of friends and family members, I like to make that known on my Twitter page as well. This may sound pretty lame to some, but it is just my personal preference. It is always a challenge for me to decide on how I will present my personal self/life in such a public space. The best thing for me to do when facing this challenge is to think about what I am posting and if what I am posting is something I would actually saw in a face to face conversation with someone. If not, it won’t be posted either. It’s just a part of being true to who I am regardless of the environments I find myself in. So if you’re looking for something “juicy” from my tweets, just know that it will only be as “juicy” as what I would normally say. Ta Ta!!!

All Access Granted

I was in college before I had texting capabilities on my cell phone. Although I was obviously lagging behind in the newest technological fad, I was not disturbed. I was still able to communicate with the people I needed to communicate with. It was not until my junior year in college that I really became highly involved in texting, but this was only due to the fact that I was president of my music fraternity. My fellow fraternity members informed me that it would be better to contact them via text messaging, so I gave in.

The one feature that I absolutely LOVE on my cell is the camera. Whoever came up with this idea is a genius. It is easy to use, convenient, and I am able to send pictures immediately to my sisters and friends. The picture quality has improved drastically from my first cell phone to my second, (yes, I know… not many updates for me). I often send pics from my phone to my email just so that the picture will be larger, and the quality is not too bad at all.

I’m not into much of the newer technological capabilities that are offered with cell phones nowadays. Call me old fashioned, but I enjoy the anticipation of sitting down at a computer to check if I got an email, post, message, etc. Having constant updates sent to my phone does not appeal to me; it takes away from the excitement of finding something in your inbox.

This may change for me in the near future, especially since I will be entering into the workforce. Perhaps the LG Chocolate Touch? We will have to wait and see. I can see internet access on cell phones being extremely helpful for instances in which I need to look up an address, number or other information that is only available to me through my email account. But for now, my plain blue ice though mine no longer looks this new) is enough for me!

A Publicist’s Dream!

Social news releases have perhaps become a life-saver for PR practitioners and others who have the need to publicize information. This online-publicity dock is a one-stop shop to any type of social media outlet and other networking outlets used to promote an event. For example, the social media news release for a local carnival may have a link on the dock for Facebook, YouTube, Flikr, Podcasting, and RSS feeds. 
This method certainly makes it easier for the PR practitioner to supply important information to their publics, but PR practitioners should also consider how their publics perceive this type of publicity. In my opinion, the social media news release is a genius idea; However, it tends to appear somewhat cluttered and unorganized. A face-lift to make the social media news release dock more appealing would be a good idea. A trend that I  am noticing more recently is that of personalizing online content. If there was an option to personalize the dock with colors and themes, this would create a more interesting and personable appearance for the event or organization that is being publicized. What do you think?