I Am an Onion.

You may have noticed that my personal logo, which is also the background to my Twitter, is an onion. A lot of people ask why I chose this, and I love telling them. So I decided to share it here. When I was designing my personal logo, I had a lot of ideas, but none of them seemed like the right fit. I was frustrated, disappointed, and tired. Then a lightbulb hit. This was it. This was me. I am an onion. I designed it as a means to portray my versatility. I'm a social media maven, a tech-enthusiast, an Irish gal, a dalmatian lover, a twin, a daughter, a romantic, a lover of books, a soft-hearted egomaniac, a terrible dresser, a Patriots fan, a lyricist, a sister, a writer, and depending on who you ask, a comedian. I'm proud to be exactly who I am, proud to be an onion. As you peel back my layers and get to know me, I hope you'll come to appreciate the diversity of my passions.

My inspiration for this logo was social penetration theory, as developed and described by Irwin Altman and Dalmas Taylor. I'd like to thank Apple Inc., for reassuring me that produce can be an effective way to brand yourself. And hey, if I'm going to brand myself with produce, you bet it's going to be the veggie that's so powerful it'll bring you to tears. On that note, I'll also thank Wendy Nichols at Merrimack College for actually bringing me to tears as we peeled onions to learn about social penetration theory. Lastly, I want to thank Greg Hedges, my graphic design professor at the Newhouse School, for letting me run with such an untraditional idea, even when Cynthia bet me a bottle of tequilla that you wouldn't. Maybe people will remember me as the green onion girl, but at least they're remembering me.

I read a fortune cookie once that I kept in my wallet until the day it was stolen at a pizza place. It reads, "Do not wish to be anything but exactly who you are, and try to be that perfectly." If you want to brand yourself, just think of what portrays you, and be that. Be an onion. That's my PR thought for the day.

P.S. Cynthia you still owe me that bottle of tequilla.

Why I Love Tech PR

Upon entering the real world, the first thing I learned is that my learning has far from ceased. I'm learning more than I ever thought I would, but the difference is in the tests. In my job, I don't memorize facts and numbers or write long research essays, but that's not to say my knowledge isn't tested. It's tested every day as I pick up the phone with a reporter to explain what my client does and why they should care. It's tested in my meetings with clients, in my brainstorm sessions with my teams - account managers want to see why I'm still right for this job with out-of-the-box ideas and creative ways to secure opportunities for our clients. I'm tested each time I open a blank Word document and I have to fill that screen with words that will make speaking and awards committees go - Wow, we have to have this person at our conference. In all this learning, I've reaffirmed exactly why I chose my field and why I love technology.

Okay, there's a million and one reasons why I love tech. Technology is consistently evolving and improving to make our lives more efficient, like I discussed in a prSPEAK post for PAN Communications a few months ago. I always knew I loved tech, but it wasn't until I started working with high-technology clients that I truly realized just how much I love it. I always loved consumer gizmos, gadgets and applications. I loved reading about them, playing with them and most of all, learning about them. Now, however, I'm in a whole new world of technology, the kind of tech that everyday consumers may not hear about, but is improving their lives without them even realizing it. I've been at this real world thing for a few months now, and every day I'm learning new things. Supply chain, application performance management, private and public clouds, virtualization, end-user security, and the list goes on and on...and on - there's an acronym for just about everything.

This whole new world of high-tech with endless acronyms is very different from what I expected - which might be part of the reason I love it so much. Every day holds the possibility of a curveball in the world of high-tech PR. I'm learning about things that most people in my social circle don't even know exist. They may not know about them, but I know the reasons that much of their world goes 'round - why they can bank safely from their mobile devices, or shop during Cyber Monday without having the websites crash, or why their favorite Christmas gift just isn't in stock this season because the someone didn't effectively manage inventory.

Adjusting to a full-time job from grad school was a whirlwind for sure, but it's much easier when you love what you do. If you're passionate about the work you do, like I am with tech PR, then it's a whole lot easier to avoid the snooze button on Monday mornings. That's my PR thought for the day.

Cupidtino and Exclusivity

With Apple’s newest iPhone and iPad being such hot topics, there’s been a lot less chatter about its new social website, Cupidtino. The site, still in its beta version, is an online dating site playing off the baby angel of love and Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino, Ca. Here’s the catch; you have to be a Mac user to access it. Social media, dating sites included, are about connecting and we’re supposed to be able to choose who we connect with. Not allowing PC users to gain access limits that choice. The idea is that there’s a common interest here, catering to the Mac culture. Is Steve Jobs trying to breed Mac babies? I'm kidding of course, and I'm a Mac user myself. Still, this exclusivity is like a whole new form of prejudice. It’ll be interesting to see if PC users are upset by this exclusion. Are you a PC or Mac? If you’re a PC, do you feel excluded by this site? If you’re a Mac, would you join this site?

With Foursquare, Life's a Game

This year, Foursquare’s considered one of the most up and coming social media players. And I do mean player, because in the world of Foursquare, life is a game and everything is worth points or badges. Foursquare’s founder, Dennis Crowley, made it that way because he enjoyed earning points in video games so much. He wanted to see his video game world become a reality. Check-in to different places on campus, or anywhere else, and earn points each time, watching the points value increase with each check-in that day. Check-in to some place the most, and you become the mayor. Each Sunday night the points system restarts, so you’ll find that when your best bud is beating you by five points on a Saturday night, you’ve got some extra motivation to leave your usual hang out and check-in to a new venue.

Foursquare makes being social in your daily life just like a game, creating incentives to try to new places for more points. And even the least competitive personalities will find that when they’re ousted as the mayor of their favorite hot spots, they’ll feel that impulsive, stubborn need to go for a check-in to gain their title back.

Not only is Foursquare creating a little friendly competition, it’s connecting us too. Checking our smart phones, we get to see where our friends are hanging out, or where there’s a trending hot spot in real time. Maybe you’re headed to Dunkin’ Donuts for your usual fix, but you see your friend just checked-in at a local mom-and-pop bakery down the street so you head there instead. So much of social media is about connecting. With Foursquare, we get to take the virtual interaction of new media and make it social in a face-to-face setting.

Some late adopters have argued that social media actually makes people less social. Foursquare helps to prove quite the opposite. That's my PR thought for the day.

Image was taken from Google images.

Brand Loyalty: Apple's Awesome Experience

Some more branding here, with one of my favorite companies that is no stranger to anyone - Apple. Apple is one of the most innovative and influential technology companies in the world. How did they do it? I'd love to give you my opinion from a branding perspective, though there's a lot more to it. With its products, and with customer service, Apple enhanced the level of loyalty its customers feel toward the company.


A few months ago, I was lucky enough to attend a guest lecture at the Syracuse University's Whitman School of Management. The lecture with Jerry McDougal, Vice President of Retail for Apple, provided me with some great insight into Apple's brand and strategies.

Experience with a brand strongly affects brand loyalty. Apple embraces the idea of customer experience by creating a tech-savvy and hands-on environment in its stores. Customers are encouraged to come into the stores to work, and to play. As McDougal says, “99% of stores that sell phones have dummy phones that don’t work. At Apple, you can really test the product." Apple does this with all of their products and they don’t limit the amount of time you can use these products for free either. Here's a fun fact for - there have even been authors who don’t own computers who have written entire books in an Apple store on a test-drive computer. Many stores wouldn’t have allowed this to happen, but Apple strives to foster good customer experience. These authors didn’t have to pay Apple anything, and they weren’t asked to leave after a few hours. Instead, Apple employees helped them out when they needed a coffee or had a technical issue.

What else has helped Apple's branding? Oh right, Steve Jobs the wonder-CEO. Literature on brand loyalty has stressed the importance of CEOs in brand management. Steve Jobs has always been the face of Apple, even during his hiatus when he wasn’t the CEO. People in the tech world love him and here's what I love about him; he unveils each new Apple product personally, so customers are hearing about the new technology directly from the source. Okay, maybe the iPhone 4 unveiling wasn't perfect, but at least if was straight from Jobs himself. Jobs even has such dedicated fans who admire him as a hero, like the fan who created a site, allaboutstevejobs.com.

Even more proof of Apple's incredible branding is a research study conducted by Cornell University, which revealed that the Apple store in Manhattan was the fifth most photographed place in New York City, and the 28th most photographed in the world. Loyal customers are the best marketing tool a brand can have, and Apple’s dedication to customer experience has created just that.

Satisfied customer will act as marketers without even realizing it. Apple enthusiasts rant and rave about their technology, and they make people who don’t have Apple products jealous. They think they are the best because they have Apple; and they tell people they are best because they have Apple. The evidence is all over the virtual world, with blogs dedicated solely to discussing Apple, and Facebook pages such as "We Love Apple." Apple Inc. didn’t ask its customers to rant and rave; they just provided the products that compelled its loyal customers to do so. Simply by providing a good product experience, Apple enhanced its brand loyalty.

Apple is awesome, and their loyal brand enthusiasts prove it. That's my PR thought for the day.

Transparency, You Really Still Don't Get it?

Transparency has been written and talked about a lot. I won't pretend it hasn't, and I'll try not to beat a dead horse. That's why I don't understand how people still don't get it. Every day I see Tweets, Facebook updates and blog posts that are promoting a product or service, but the person isn't disclosing their connection to it. Unfortunately, it even happens within my own social circle. I see it and I'm excited because a friend or connection, who I trust because of past experience, is recommending something. Naturally, I want to check it out. Later I find out they were doing it selfishly because they're connected to it, or because they "had" to because they work for the company. I start to wonder if the product/service is reliable. I second guess my judgment and theirs.

I'm not saying that you shouldn't promote a product you're connected to in your social networks and circles - I know I've done it. In fact you should do it because you should support, like and believe in the organizations you're connected to. The difference is disclosing the connection. I know I've genuinely liked everything I've ever discussed in my social networks. The value of social networks is the ability to gain honest, third party perspectives and feedback. There will always be people out there who aren't honest and who are only looking out for number one. But if even people in my social networks are doing it, the ones who I consider the "good guys and gals," what's going to happen to that third party value I've enjoyed so much? Am I just dreaming of an idealistic social world that simply can never truly exist?

So all there is to it, is be transparent. Promote your product, promote your friends and promote your clients - just disclose your connection to us loyal followers, fans and friends in your social networks. That's my PR thought for the day.

Image was found using Google images.

@CocaCola Ties Brand to World Cup via Promoted Tweet

I didn't say much when promoted Tweets came out; I wasn't sure how I felt about them. I guess I'm still not, but they're worth commenting on. Specifically, today @CocaCola sponsored the Twitter hashtag, #WC2010. All I have to say to that is - nice moves Coke, nice moves. I don't drink soda so I have no reason to give them props, other than I think they deserve it. Twitter's fail whale has been seen far too often since the World Cup began because it's being overloaded with fans who want to dicuss, share and debate their favorite/least favorite teams and of course the ever-pressing topic of quality officiating. With Coke sponsoring the hashtag, anyone that follows that feed will see @CocaCola's Tweet at the top of the discussion. Earlier today it read, "CocaCola Congrats to ENG & USA on moving forward. Lots of celebrations across the globe. How's your celebration? http://CokeURL.com/63fx #WC2010." They're showing support for a current, wildly popular world event, and linking back to their website in the process.

I don't have the statistics for who's viewing this, but I know it's a lot, and I'm impressed by the idea. Sometimes we see global companies ignore Twitter, but Coke used Twitter to tie its brand to a global event. Honestly though, I would have loved to see a start-up or small business do that today and see the results. It could have been dramatic for driving a new audience to their site. I know I would have clicked, especially if it was something I wasn't familiar with already because I would have been curious. Anyways, props to you Coke.

Image by Poolie on Flickr.

Brand Loyalty: Avon's Cause-Related Marketing

For those who don’t know, Avon is a cosmetics company dedicated to the betterment of women’s lives through beauty, health, fitness, and self-empowerment. The company has a very well known, worldwide Avon breast cancer campaign, which has raised over $660 million in over 50 countries. Avon has developed and implemented a very important cause-related marketing campaign for breast cancer awareness, which has helped increase brand loyalty. Choosing this cause was important for Avon because it is something that resonates very personally with its target audience - women.

According to its website, Avon has a history of CRM dating back to 1942 when the company began donating 40% of its output to military manufacturing. This move was strategic because the war was a current event that was affecting every American citizen in some way.

In 1989, the company launched its first breast cancer awareness campaign in the U.K, with a U.S. launch the following year, enlisting over 500,000 sales representatives to raise awareness and funds through the “pink ribbon” product line. For every purchase of a “pink ribbon,” product, a percentage of the sales went to breast cancer awareness and fundraising. Over the years, that percentage has varied, and is currently at 68% of the sale price.

The most important part of Avon’s cause-related marketing is the company’s choice of cause. Avon describes itself as an organization dedicated to the empowerment of women. With such a clearly defined vision for the betterment of women, and product lines that are created for women, it was imperative that Avon chose a cause that resonated with women. Considering that there is a new breast cancer diagnosis every three minutes and a life lost to breast cancer every 14 minutes, breast cancer was a logical choice for Avon (www.avoncompnay.com).

Avon achieved its loyal customer clientele, in part, because of its connection with a cause that is important to many women. Avon aligned its whole company with the cause. Breast cancer’s color is pink; so is Avon’s, which helps to remind consumers of Avon’s dedication to the cause. Avon created a three-day walk for the fight against breast cancer, which takes places annually in different locations across the United States. This is directly linked to the company because the highly publicized event is titled “Avon Walk for Breast Cancer.” This name is plastered across banners, signs, blogs, websites, T-shirts, bags, pens, water bottles, etc. The brand is everywhere and it’s associated with an admirable and necessary cause, which resonates strongly with Avon’s customer base.

In the CEO’s message on the corporate Avon site, she mentions the Avon Foundation’s dedication to breast cancer awareness within the first paragraph. The bottom line is that Avon works hard to make sure no one ever forgets its dedication to bettering the lives of women and the fight against breast cancer. Whether you are on its corporate site seeing links to the breast cancer campaign, or on the Avon Foundation website with links to the corporate site; the two are branded together. Avon’s name is plastered all over the Foundation’s page. And if you type in breast cancer awareness on Google.com, you’d find that three of the top ten hits are related to Avon. That’s successful CRM.

A good marketing campaign is especially important for Avon because it is a direct seller company, so it needs to be creative in how it reaches consumers. Reaching women through breast cancer awareness drives them to the Avon site and creates a sense of familiarity and trustworthiness with the brand.

Avon cements its brand loyalty through the telling of personal stories. On the Avon Foundation site, people have the opportunity to share about their experience with breast cancer, whether that is fighting it personally, or participating in a walk in support of someone else. With the Avon name at the top of the page, or in the corner of a video, the Avon brand is even further engrained into the viewer as they connect with the brand through an emotional appeal. An emotional connection is a strong way to build brand loyalty.

Cause-related marketing can be a highly-effective tool for increasing brand loyalty. Avon did it best by choosing a cause that was important to its audience. That’s my PR thought for the day.



All information regarding Avon was found on Avon's corporate website, www.avoncompany.com. I am in no way affiliated with Avon

The Value of True Brand Loyalty

A good brand is almost as important as the product or service itself. It helps make consumer decisions easier. It's a marker for trust, for reliability. It separates one company from the next. The relation of a good brand to sales is evident, and companies must make managing their brand a top management function.

True brand loyalty is what every company strives for, or at least it should be. An increase in brand loyalty not only boosts reputation, but it directly affects sales. Brand loyalty is different than having a popular brand. A popular brand can lead to increased sales, but it may not last forever. Brand loyalty means developing a strong customer base dedicated to your brand. Committed customers are a huge asset to a company, defending the company if there's a crisis and generally having a more negative view of its competitors, incidentally engaging in word of mouth marketing.

Brand management has often been viewed as a marketing function more than a public relations function. The three brands I have recently studied, however, took a personal approach, building relationships with their customers. Building relationships? That sure sounds like PR to me. The truth is that every department and every employee helps build the brand. Perhaps the most important employee to help build the brand is the CEO, but we'll discuss that in a later post as we look at a company with a brand not unfamiliar to anyone living in this century; Apple. The next three posts will take a closer look at three organizations, Avon, Starbucks and Apple, to see how they were successful in achieving brand loyalty.

True brand loyalty is an asset to every company, and a vital PR function, so it's important to looks at companies who have done it well. That's my PR thought for the day.

Applying Freakonomics to PR

I just finished reading Freakonomics, by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner and my head’s now jam packed with some fun facts. Apparently, Americans spend $1 billion per year on chewing gum, which is the same as is spent in a typical election period, including campaigns for the Presidency, the House and the Senate. Also, you have a greater chance of being killed while dealing crack in Chicago, than if you’re sitting on death row in Texas. Like I said, fun facts – not that I need to know them, but still interested regardless. Beyond the fun facts, the book was great in other ways. I learned that the world is a bit more corrupt than I had imagined, and the idea that incentives make the world go ‘round is forever engrained in me. How can this be applied to PR? I’ll tell you.

Using incentives isn’t rocket science. People like to get things and if it’s free – that’s even better. How can your company be using incentives more effectively? Let’s talk Foursquare, one of the newer social media platforms that’s still getting its feet wet in terms of getting value out of it for business. Some businesses are doing it right though. These are the coffee shops that will give you a free cup of Joe after so many check-ins, or the bar who gives a free drink to the mayor of the venue. These places are taking advantage of incentives and of social media.

Incentives can work internally as well. Sales departments creating contests for employees with a bonus for the winner. Or just general sales goals that aren’t contests. Offer a gas card to someone who’s been working really hard on a particular account. These are all simple things that can go a long way.

Another applicable point for PR in Freakonomics is the use of expertise and information hoarding. Considering all the power that experts are given, the best thing to do is to be really good at something. Be an expert. Become the go-to person about a specific topic in the office, and people will begin trusting you more and more as you build a reputation and credibility. For public relations, it’s important that you try to establish your company or client as experts in their field. This way, people trust them. Journalists need experts just as experts need journalists. If you’re an expert and a journalist needs a quote about your field of expertise, you can earn more media exposure.

Lastly, the book offers advice on questioning the conventional wisdom, which can go far in a professional setting. Just because a company has always done things a certain way, does not mean that this is the best way to be doing it. In questioning the conventional wisdom, a manager may find a much more efficient way to inspire employees or way of getting work done faster. Change is good. Wisdom is great. But conventional wisdom can lead to mediocrity. Don’t be afraid to take risks. Change things up and it might improve business.

Freakonomics is a great book, applicable to all businesses and just generally interesting to read. If you’re looking to gain new perspective on the way the world works, read this book. That’s my PR thought for the day.

Marketing to Individual Consumers through Birthday Tactics

What do you look forward to the most when your birthday comes around? Cake? Birthday wishes? Time with your friends and family? I look forward to all of these things. As my birthday was nearing, however, I realized one more thing I was looking forward to this year - birthday discounts from some of my favorite stores. What a great marketing strategy!

One of my favorite stores sent me a $10 gift card this year, as they have for the past few years. Of course, this draws me into the store even though there wasn't a single thing I really needed there. But did I only spend $10? Of course not! And I'll bet that whoever decided to use this tactic knew that this was going to be the case for the majority of people who receive the birthday coupons. The key was to draw me in; once I'm there, I'll be shopping for a while. My advice to other stores would be to learn from this tactic and attempt to do something similar. People love to save money, especially in this economy. We look for any excuse to save a buck. The truth is, we're actually spending more than we would if you had never sent us the coupon, but we still think of it as saving $10.

Kudos to the companies who use this tactic. I appreciate the birthday gift, and I applaud your marketing tactic. Maybe it doesn't work on everyone, but it convinces me to take a trip to the mall! It's an effective way to market to the individual, not just the masses. That's my PR thought for the day.

Does anyone think that companies may start to use similar tactics to this but find a way to do it through social media? Are there any companies that already do this? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Making Online Conversation More Valuable

Today, I came across a post through my Google Alerts, in which the business-oriented video dismissed the public relations profession as a “crap shoot.” Being a student in public relations and of the complete opposite mindset, I decided I would leave a comment on the post, respectfully arguing the value of public relations. My comment would have said something such as:

“Though I respect your insight for small business owners, I think you are misunderstanding what it is exactly that public relations professionals do. You claimed that PR works well for events related and big news promotions, but other than that, small businesses should not spend their money on PR. In the PR profession, we are about a lot more than events related promotions. We are about strategically building positive and sustainable relationships through a variety of strategies and tactics.

I’m glad I was able to share this comment here, because unfortunately, I was not able to leave a comment on the actual site where I watched the video. This brings me to an important point. I’ve jumped on the social media bandwagon. I see the value. Specifically, I think that when done right, blogs create meaningful relationships and build credibility. They establish these relationships by not only sharing a company or person’s insight and expertise, but by allowing the readers to respond. It creates a conversation. This means that it should be easy for anyone viewing the site to comment and respond.

Some Web sites though require that I create a user name and password to log in and comment. The site I visited today, along with many others I have come across, seem to make it a little more difficult to create online conversation. Yes, it would be great to raise online membership; but they are losing part of their audience by requiring this. If I had to become a member with a user name and password for every online community I follow and comment on, my walls would be covered with notes, reminding myself of the unique name and passwords for each site. I have enough memberships and e-mail addresses; the thought of creating more gives me a headache, and it turned me away from this site. Many sites allow for readers to agree, disagree, or add more insight to posts without creating an account. It’s even a great way for readers to get their own names out there, possibly by leaving their own Web site information. If someone stumbling across this post likes a reader’s comments, they can easily be directed to that person’s site.

It should be noted that I do understand why some sites do this, as a filter to prevent spam. To avoid this however, there is always the option of encryption keys for comments.

An important goal of social media is connecting with your audience on a more personal level by creating dialogue. By making this dialogue easier, both the business and the audience will greatly benefit. That’s my PR thought for the day.



Image was taken from Google images.

Should We Really Be Updating Multiple Networks Simultaneously?

So I just read that Seesmic acquired Ping.fm and now we can update 50 of our networks simultaneously with the touch of a button. But hey, wait a minute, don't people in the PR business tell us that we should choose the right networks that can be geared towards the right audience? Then isn't it safe to say that each network may have a different audience? I think so.

The people who follow you on Twitter may very well not care what you're doing on vacation, but may be very much looking forward to hearing about your take on the newest industry trend. Maybe that's just how I see it. My three main social networks are Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. I use Facebook mainly for staying connected with friends and family, while Twitter is a much more professional network for me, used to follow industry leaders and trends so I can stay informed about PR, social media, and technology. Finally, LinkedIn is my most professional network, catered completely to making connections for future employment and other professional opportunities. Clearly, these three networks all have different audiences for me. In fact, I can't think of 10 connections I have in common on any of those networks.

Today, I updated my status on Facebook to say I was playing Bingo with my grandmother during my vacation in Florida. I tweeted about interesting articles I found, such as a NYTimes article discussing the rumors of the Apple tablet. I don't update LinkedIn quite as often, but when I do, it's relevant to work or research projects that I am doing, or opportunities I am looking for. None of my followers on my Twitter account really care that I played bingo, and none of my friends or family care about social media and PR (in fact they say I talk about it too much already). The same principle can easily apply to organizations with different audiences for different networks.

All I'm saying is that if you're a business person, you should respect your clients enough to cater your messages to them individually on each network. Ant professional person should to the same. Different audiences deserve different messages. That's the best way to get the greatest value out of social media. That's my PR thought for the day.

Image taken from Google images.

The Value of Video: Connect with Your Audience

Recently, I've read a lot about the value of using videos online, whether it's on a blog, a social networking site, or posted to Youtube. Here are my thoughts:

Videos add a greater sense of being connected to your audience, and even more specifically, your audience being connected to you. In a video, you express more about how you really feel about a topic, and you present more emotion. There's more "you" in a video than in written word. For example, during finals week this past December, I was really into leaving video posts on people's Facebook walls. Now, these weren't professional posts, but more comical and a better way to connect with other students going through similar difficulties as me, and also with people from home who I hadn't seen me in a long time. After I left a few, people started writing to me, "hey, where's my video post? I want to see what you're up to!" I never got responses like that with regular written posts. The feedback on my video posts was almost tripled than with written posts. I thought about why this was, and so I asked a few people. The responses I got were that they got to see my facial expressions and hear my tone of voice. It made it more funny in some cases, and people from home said they felt much more connected with me.

Of course, this was not for professional use, and this video format would not work in every situation. One area where videos can be immensely useful is in promoting nonprofit organizations, and asking for donations. You may be able to write on your Website why this cause is great and should be supported, but isn't it better to show them? These videos are different than commercials; they allow for greater flexibility, and therefore creativity. You can add a song; have a child speak; use still frames with sounds; and many other things that stir up emotions. Furthermore, with online video, you are usually seeing real people, and that also creates connectivity. Check out this video for a great example of a nonprofit cause using video for promotion of the cause. It's called the Pink Glove Dance, and it's fun to watch, as well as powerful. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEdVfyt-mLw

Like I said, videos may not work for every platform, but many organizations in many different industries have experienced great success using videos. The key is that it really connects you with your audience. If your audience doesn't feel connected, you're doing something wrong. That's my PR thought for the day.