Deirdre Breakenridge

This must be the week of great PR announcements. Here is another special announcement about our very first #PRStudChat Tweetup. I’m happy to announcement that #PRStudchat is hosting a casual/informal event on Wednesday, March 10th at Gary Vaynerchuk’s (@garyvee) Wine Library (@winelibrary) in Springfield, New Jersey from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.

Here’s a special video announcement on #Chatmixer that will take place on Tuesday, March 9th at 8:00 p.m. EST. Looking forward to chatting with all of the different Twitter chat communities!

I was really happy when Valerie Simon (@valeriesimon) and Arik Hanson (@arikhanson) approached me to participate in Help a PR Person Out (#HAPPO). What a wonderful way to share information and to help PR professionals with the job search by organizing an upcoming Twitter event. The goal: to help PR job seekers locate the numerous PR jobs that are finally becoming available.

I just finished the book, Twittfaced, by Jacob Morgan and Josh Peters. I think it’s a good social media 101 handbook that provides you with a breakdown of social media tools, platforms and opportunities that are not overwhelming to the reader, but organized so that the information is straightforward and easy to read. I had the pleasure of interviewing co-author, Jacob Morgan. Jacob is a social media consultant and the Principle of Chess Media Group, a social business consultancy, focused on strategy, creativity, and results.

I received my PR training in the late 1980’s. I was lucky to watch and work closely with a Vice President and a SR. Vice President at Padilla Speer Burdick & Beardsley (now Padilla Speer). At the start of my career, I knew the importance of building a relationship. These same principles are used today. However, back in the 80s, although the principles were the same, the tools and outreach were different.

I read a great blog post by Chris Brogan that discussed all of the extra chores that social media adds to our daily “To Do” list. Chris’ post maps out his very busy day, from the time he wakes and monitors his Google reader (to see what people are talking about or what they are saying about him) to reading 700 blogs and sifting through his 500 emails. Yes, Social Media definitely takes time and effort. It’s not a one day or once a month type of adventure. And, it’s definitely not a spectator sport. Actually, Social Media is an everyday commitment (in some cases, it becomes an addiction) and for me is one of the best ways to build human capital and turn a new virtual friend into a valuable physical relationship.

What steps are you taking to understand the culture in a social network before you engage?