Introducing Bryce Keane
Let me cut through the press release crap.
As of July 2010, I’m thrilled that Bryce Keane will make a monthly appearance on Waxing UnLyrical.
Who is Bryce Keane?
He’s this really, really, REALLY smart dude I happened to come across on Twitter several months ago. I forget what the exact circumstances were, but I think Bryce was listening in on a Twitter chat I was doing, and asked if he could pick my brain on something.
Normally, I rear up like a rattlesnake on coke when I hear that phrase – because it’s led to far too many conversations that go nowhere – but Bryce did it so nicely, that I said “yes.”
Next thing you know, we’re chatting on Skype and feeling like old buddies.
And then Bryce organized a tweetup for me when I was in London earlier this year.
Aww.
Seeing as how Bryce is a displaced Aussie in London, I thought it would be cool to have his perspective on the business of communication… as well as the perspective of someone who’s very much a Millenial (which I, decidedly, am not).
This is also Bryce’s first shot at blogging, so I hope you’ll join me in cheering him on as he takes tentative-to-become-surefooted steps across the blogosphere. Just as Kami Huyse did with me, though I’m nowhere near surefooted as yet.
This is what Bryce has to say about his forthcoming stint here on WUL, and I promise I didn’t pay him to write this:
I came to know Shonali through the wonderful, and ever-evolving world, of social media (followed by a fantastic “offline meeting” during her recent visit here in London for her birthday). Since then she has become something of a digital mentor so I’m sure you will all understand how thrilled I am to begin my first foray into the wonderful world of blogging here on her fantastically informative blog.
I am also looking forward to getting to know all of you, and hopefully bringing some unique perspectives from the UK comms industry on various issues and stories affecting all of us from key ‘movers and shakers’ over here.
Having said that, I would also like to encourage all of you to always feel free to get in touch with feedback, comments or if there is an issue or person you would like to see covered here – just let me know, and I promise I’ll do my best to make it happen!
Welcome, Bryce! And remember, other than commenting on Bryce’s posts, you can always reach Bryce on Twitter.
More on mentoring and brains:
- The indefatigable Jim Ylisela on why you don’t have to be indefatigable to be a good mentor
- Kami Huyse on why giving your knowledge away can make you a superstar
- Why the phrase “pick my brain” makes Christopher Peterson feel like a chicken bone
The Terrible Twos: Keeping Up With #measurePR
When I started the bi-weekly #measurePR chat on Twitter last month, I had no idea how it would do.
Yes, I could tell there was a need for it (conversations in several chats I sat in on turned in the measurement direction), and yes, I’ve done a little work in the area – but even if you hope and plan till the cows come home, you never really know if they’ll deliver the milk, do you?
OK, that’s my terrible analogy for the day.
Taken off it has. From some terrific guests, to being adopted as “the” hashtag for conversations related to measurement, #measurePR is almost like an infant running towards toddlerhood – “terrible twos,” anyone? – before it realizes it can’t actually run (image: Tomás Fano, Creative Commons), it’s still crawling.
Part of this running/crawling thing means that I’m left with so many thoughts swirling around in my head at the end of each chat – or when I listen in on related conversations outside of our regular chat window – that I’ve done a terrible job of capturing them. So I need to do better there.
But it also means that you can find a wealth of PR measurement-related resources, thinkers, and sharers, indexed by the hashtag.
I’m going to recap some of our past chats in greater detail (promise!), but in the meantime, here are downloadable transcripts for the previous chats to date:
- The first #measurePR Twitterchat on Feb. 2 featured Katie Paine (of which I managed to do a recap, which you can read here) who, I’m sure you know, is @kdpaine on Twitter;
- The second #measurePR chat featured research and measurement powerhouse Sean Williams, who tweets as @commAMMO;
- Richard Bagnall and Kristin Wadge were a “twofer” in the third #measurePR chat; can I just say how lucky the folks at Metrica are to work with them? They’re @richardbagnall and @kristinwadge on Twitter, by the way; and
- #measurePR #4 was the “community chat,” where the community led – and answered – the questions.
Today we have a terrific guest who’s taking time out of what I know is a very busy day to chat with all of us, Kami Watson Huyse (@kamichat) of Zoetica Media. Kami’s bio and credentials are so prolific I wouldn’t be able to do them justice here, but suffice it to say she rocks PR, social media, measurement and pretty much everything in that area.
Please join us from 12-1 pm ET on Twitter today (remember, the chat is bi-weekly, not weekly); use #measurePR with Tweetgrid, Tweetchat or your search method of choice to listen or participate in the conversation. See you there!
Filed under MeasurePR, Measurement, Public Relations | Tags: #measurepr, kami huyse, Measurement, PR measurement, Twitter, twitterchat, zoetica | Comments (4)Year Two, Here We Come
As I mentioned yesterday, this blog turned a year old on January 10. Another milestone for me in a year of milestones (another one’s coming up on January 15, in case you missed my post from yesterday).
It’s been quite a ride, which is why I decided to use this wonderful photograph from West Zest’s Flickrstream (CC-licensed, of course) as a visual accompaniment to this post.
Because I felt quite childlike when I started my journey through the blogosphere; wonder that you cared what I thought, glee when it made you chuckle, and overwhelmed when you showed you cared, like when you helped find Darby a home.
I plan to share some of my lessons learned in this first year of blogging in a follow-up post, but this particular one is meant to thank a few people who really helped me out, started me off and kept me going. This is not an “Oscar” list by any stretch of the imagination; I’ve received so much support from around the world it would be impossible for me not to leave someone off a larger “thank you” list – so please know I really, really appreciate all of you.
In particular, though, I need to thank:
Kami Huyse, who gave me my first guest post slot even before I started this blog. She took a chance on me and, as a result, put me on the path to Wax UnLyrical.
Robin Lane, who patiently sat through countless IMs about “what the heck do I call it?” I wanted it to have a really great name, and she told me to go with my gut.
Lisa Hoffmann, who gave freely of her advice and encouragement. She’s one of the nicest, most welcoming people it’s been my good fortune to meet.
Joe Perez, who has taught, and continues to teach, me so much. Joe helps me out with all sorts of blog-related stuff, from SEO, to plugins, to Idon’tknowwhatchacallemsbuttheyrock, at all hours of the day and night. Joe, some day when I’m rich, I’ll buy you an island.
Jeff Crites, who connected me to Joe. Jeff – you probably don’t even remember, but it was an IM on Facebook that set this whole thing off. So really, this whole thing is your fault.
Shashi Bellamkonda, who shares his love of technology and tools freely, and who has given me countless tips on how and where to start making this blog more visible.
If you’ve visited, commented, shared my posts, tweeted or retweeted them out, subscribed (gasp!), you’ve kept me going. And that has led to some wonderful connections, professional opportunities and even a legitimate advertising inquiry (just one, just yesterday, but it’s a start, right?). Someone pinch me.
Thank you all. Year Two and beyond – here we come!
Sun, Sand and… Measurement
In a few days I’ll be Westward-bound; one of several hundred (or is it thousand?) PR and communication professionals converging on San Diego for PRSA’s 2009 International Conference (that’s me on Coronado Beach a couple years ago). My first experience of PRSA’s annual shindig was last year, when I was lucky enough to co-present with Katie Paine on measurement in Detroit.
The entire experience was a blast, and it will also live forever in my memory because that’s where I first met the beauteous and brilliant Shannon Paul and Lauren Vargas, caught up with the dynamite Kami Watson Huyse, first encountered Jason Falls, and was dissed (and defended, thank you Kami!) at my first tweetup. Ah, the good old days.
This year I’m lucky enough to have been selected by PRSA as a solo speaker and will be presenting on measurement on November 9 (here’s an interview I did to promo it a while back). If you’re attending the conference, do come by.
But more than plug my session, I want to pick your brains.
See, the thing is, my take on measurement is very simple (and yes, has been strongly influenced by the afore-referenced Sashet, the Measurement Goddess, aka Katie Paine).
You start at the end – what are your measurable objectives? And by “measurable,” I mean quantifiable and time-bound, not “increase buzz” or some crap like that.
You focus on what outcomes you’d like to achieve, not just outputs (like media impressions) and, if possible (because usually this takes some budget dollars), outtakes as well. A lot has been written about these recently, but I believe in going to the source, so here’s a great dictionary from the Institute for Public Relations (you should bookmark this).
And then you map out your strategy and tactics, track everything along the way, and then analyze the results of your program, based on what you were trying to achieve in the first place.
I like to use a couple of case studies, showing how this has been done both with “traditional” and social media, sometimes on a very tiny budget.
I show how, at my last job, we patiently tracked our communications against organizational key performance indicators, and how we were able to calculate – using a formula that was given to us by the equivalent of the marketing department – the value we added to the organization’s bottom line.
And I will tell you to stay away from ad value equivalency or AVE, which I hear IPR’s Measurement Commission recently voted down as a no-no when it comes to PR measurement.
My presentation’s probably not going to be earth-shattering for anyone (and I kinda hope it won’t, because the measurement debate’s been going on long enough).
What I hope it will be is engaging, and show practitioners who might be overwhelmed by all the jargon out there that measurement is not necessarily tough, mind-blowingly expensive, or tedious… and how to get started, or get back on the right track.
Looking for the Wisdom of Crowds
Here’s my question to you: are there any other questions you think I need to address? What else can I add to my presentation so that attendees can walk away with tips and ideas they can really use?
I can’t promise I can answer all of them, but I’ll try; if I can’t, I’ll try to find resources who can. Or, do you have tips I can include?
The bottom line is, I want the presentation to be about you, not me. So I’m asking you to help me deliver the content that will be most useful to you. I’m sure I can go it myself, but it’ll be so much more fun this way.
I’d very much appreciate your thoughts and feedback; just send me a tweet, or leave a comment below. I promise to give credit where credit’s due, and will be uploading it to SlideShare so that you can all see it.
Thank you!
Filed under Communication, Measurement, Speaking | Tags: ave, IPR, jason falls, kami huyse, katie paine, lauren vargas, Measurement, Public Relations, Shannon Paul | Comments (14)Want to Freelance? TwitterSource
I had a lot of fun co-hosting the first #soloPR chat on Twitter today. It was a shame that my co-host, Heather Huhman, was locked out of Twitter for the duration, but pros like Kellye Crane, Jen Wilbur, and many more shared great tips on a career as a freelance PR professional, especially for new/recent grads. That’s right, I put “career” and “freelance” in the same sentence; because it can be a great one.
You can see the entire transcript of today’s chat at the #soloPR What the Hashtag?! page, but here are some gems from today’s chat:
It was great to meet new folks and reconnect with friends like Jennifer Mitchell, a feisty San Diego-based pro. Jen and I agreed to use the term “an agency of one” (which I first heard from her and promptly appropriated – with her permission – for my website earlier this year) on separate coasts. And Shane Kinkennon put me squarely in my place with a beautiful definition of “higher marketing”:
Many thanks to everyone who signed on today. I hope you’ll join the erstwhile Kellye Crane as she moves the #soloPR chat forward every Wednesday, from 1 – 2 pm ET. If today was anything to go by, we just tapped into an amazing resource.
You.
Do you have more tips you’d like to share on a career in freelance PR? Do leave a note in the comments, I’d love to know.
Filed under Career, Communication, Public Relations, Twitter | Tags: alison kenney, consulting, freelancing, heather huhman, jennifer mitchell, jennifer wilbur, kami huyse, kellye crane, pr, Public Relations, shane kinkannon, solopr, stephanie mrus, Twitter, twitterchat, wthashtag | Comments (3)What Makes a Mentor?
About a month ago, I saw a tweet from Shel Holtz, ABC, that piqued my curiosity:
Not one to bridle said curiosity, I followed the link Shel provided and immediately signed up for the Mentorship Connection. Again, almost immediately, I was told (via e-mail) that I had been matched with a willing mentee: Nick Lucido – and now it was up to the two of us to connect and figure out how I could help Nick move towards his PR career goals.
What Nick and I have in common are a passion for smart PR and the desire to give back to the broader PR community by being actively involved in it. Thanks to the similarity in our natures, it took the two of us almost a month to speak via telephone this past Friday (though we’ve been corresponding via e-mail and Twitter since we were put in touch). I was struck by his drive and conviction – how many of us knew while still in high school that PR was our chosen path? – but most of all, by his willingness to extend himself along paths unknown.
What Makes a Mentor?
About a week after I saw Shel’s tweet, Kami Huyse wrote an insightful post on why mentors are vital to the development of one’s career. I’ve had many friends, colleagues and supporters who have helped me over the years, and I hope there will be many more.
But as I read Kami’s post, it reminded me of the mentors who have – perhaps without knowing it – been instrumental in helping me navigate my career and grow into my PR shoes. John Mason, one of the most visionary educators this world has seen, was an early mentor; since I moved to the U.S., I can never repay the kindnesses my first boss, Charly Zukow, and measurement queen Katie Paine have shown me. More than kindness, though, they exemplify the dictionary definition of a mentor:
What John, Charly and Katie have even more in common is that – at least from my point of view – they didn’t come to me and say, “Hey, I’m going to mentor you.”
What they did, instead, was lead by example, letting me know their respective doors were always open. They recognized potential that I did not, and armed me with the confidence to plumb that potential. They steered me towards taking on ever-increasing challenges that, when I succeeded, showed me possibilities I didn’t even know existed. And when I failed – because we all do – they let me lick my wounds but, before long, picked me up, dusted me off and set me back on track.
What John, Charly and Katie have in common is that they earned the title of mentor. And whether they know it or not – or like it or not – they will always be my mentors.
If I can do even one-tenth for Nick of what has been done for me, I will count myself fortunate. And perhaps then I’ll earn the title of being his mentor.
What about you? How have your mentors inspired you and earned your trust? I’d love to know your thoughts.
Filed under Career, Public Relations | Tags: Career, charles zukow, john mason, kami huyse, katie paine, Measurement, mentoring, mentorship connection, nick lucido, pr, Public Relations, Shel Holtz | Comments (17)Why Little Things Matter
Today, I’m sending you away from my blog – yes, you read that right – to read my guest post on “Communication Overtones.”
As you know, that’s written by the brilliant, perceptive and generous Kami Huyse, and I am honored to be one of several guest-bloggers visiting with her over the next few days. I had a tough act to follow in Lauren Vargas, and her guest post, along with several conversations I’ve had on Twitter recently, led to mine: why PR should sweat the small stuff.
I do hope you will let us know what you think. Come back and visit with me soon, won’t you?
Image: fesoj‘s Flickrstream, Creative Commons
Filed under Communication, Guest Posts, Public Relations
| Tags: communications, community, kami huyse, lauren vargas, pr, Public Relations |
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