New York Fries is on my side

So I was sent an interesting article ( Thank you Kate Parkes!) about a tongue-in-cheek online marketing campaign being conducted by New York Fries.

They created a Facebook application, where users can call out their friends on their annoying Facebook behaviour.

Once the users "like" the application, they can tag their friends in one of 14 posters, each one depicting different annoying Facebook behaviours. The posters will then appear in the friend's news feed, for all of Facebook to see. It's an attempt to raise awareness to the behaviour in a fun and interesting way.

I really enjoy this type of marketing. Not only do I know that I am not alone in being annoyed by stupid photo albums and status updates, but I appreciate the creativity of using social media as a way of thinking outside the box to promote the New York Fries brand. We're seeing this type of marketing a lot more now ( Old Spice, any one?) and it's exciting to see where else it can go.

So are you just as annoyed by me as that duck face girl popping up in your news feed? Get the application and tag away!

www.facebook.com/NewYorkFries#!/NewYorkFries/?v=info

Reflective Piece- What I've Learned

To take a break from the regularly scheduled Facebook sins, I want to talk about how my perception of public relations has changed since I started the post-grad program in January 2010.

It seems like a million years ago, I sat in the classroom on the first day, contemplating the journey I was about to take. A lot can change in six months, and my perception of public relations is no exception.

I always understood what public relations was all about, but what i did not know was how intangible it is to describe what PR practitioners actually do.

Sitting in numerous communications management classes, I heard over and over again that many people working in an organization have no idea what the communications department does. The only time they are truly acknowledged for their work was when a crisis struck.

This really bothered me; after all, up till this point I have always been acknowledged for my hard work and commitment. The fact that I may potentially be looked at by my co-workers and have them think, "what did she do all day?" simply did not sit well with me.

Now that I am here, I can safely say that this is no longer a concern of mine. Throughout both semesters, I am completely aware of how much work, time, energy and effort goes into working in communications and am prepared to politely discuss so if need be.

Another opinion of mine that has changed, is that working in PR is a lot more responsibility than I originally thought. A good example of this was demonstrated by a recent guest speaker, John Arnone of Bombardier. Bombardier had a crisis last year when one of their planes crashed and killed 49 innocent people. In the few days following the crisis, John had to both stand behind his company but also relay to the public how sorry they were for the tragedy.

In the end, the cause of the accident was not due to a malfunction with their planes. It's almost impossible to imagine how much pressure and stress John had to have been under during those times; but in the end he stayed true to his company and his public, by being completely honest.

Granted many of us will not have to endure a similar crisis, but the lesson I took here has to do with being as prepared as possible. Anything you do, whether it would be writing a press release or securing speakers for an event you are holding, has to be done with the utmost attention and accuracy. It only take one instance for you to make a mistake and have people begin to wonder if you really know what you are talking about. If John had slipped up once during those times of crisis, not only would his reputation be on the line, but that of his organization's.

So in short, do your work and do it well. No one will judge you for that.
And yes, being a communicator is a big responsibility, but luckily there are PR people who are willing to mentor and be available for questions as we embark on our careers.

Oh, and your boss will google you and find your Facebook, so make sure you have cleaned it up accordingly :)

Third Deadly Sin: The Gushy Couple

Love is a beautiful thing. Sometime you feel like you want the world to know how much you are in love. I fully understand this, but there are some things I've seen that I REALLY can't stand.

First example: This is a posting from a girl I have on my friends list, to her boyfriend. Keep in mind this was written on his wall, which then shows up in all her friend's news feed:

"Hey baby! I love you sooooo much. I can't believe it's been three years already. Every day with you just gets better and better. I don't know what I would do without you! You are my reason for living. I can't wait to celebrate our anniversary tonight in the lover's suite. I love you sooo much baby, see you tonight, I can't wait."

It's pretty obvious that this is overkill. I think most rational people will agree with me, that there is simply no need for this much gush. We really don't want to know how great your "special" night together is going to be. This type of message is more suitable for a private message, or a text message, or an e mail, or a phone call. When people post stuff like this, they are instantly written off in my head as attention-seeking and pathetic and it becomes hard for me to take you seriously ever again.

To add insult to injury, on the same day this message was posted on Facebook, they began treating us all to photo updates from their night together. Pictures of them kissing in bed ( in sepia tones of course, it just makes it look so much more romantic than normal colour photos) began to appear in my news feed. Puke.

Lovers, keep those hormones under control. No one really cares that much anyways.

Facebook and Your Brand Image

So I acknowledge that some of you may be wondering what gives me the authority to judge?

Who am I to say what is acceptable for Facebook and what is not?

Some very sage Facebook advice: Don't post anything on Facebook you wouldn't want a potential employer to see. Truthfully, it's not MY opinion that actually matters, it's those of your future employers.

Everything you do online contributes to your online brand image. With every comment, photo, tweet or status update, you are relaying to your public who you are. So if a potential employer decided to Google you, do you really want to be seen as that person passed out on a couch at a party, with obscenities written all over your face? Or that person who claims on a resume that they are a professional, yet their Facebook is cluttered with obvious spelling errors?

Here's an example of how a woman in North Carolina was fired from her serving job after complaining about a particularly bad shift on her Facebook status. Long story short, her boss read her status, didn't like what she was saying about the company and he fired her.

This doesn't mean that you have to brand yourself as devoid of any personality on your profile. Just try to be a bit more strategic in your representation, because you never truly know who is reading.

the link to the aforementioned article: www.chris.pirillo.com/waitress-fired-over-facebook-status/