Rethink, Rebuild, Renew: PRSSA National Conference

The Public Relations Student Society of America hosts an annual National Conference in various cities across the United States. This year’s National Conference is in Atlanta, Georgia from November 6-10. PRSSA’s National Conference is the largest gathering of public relations students in the country. You are able to network with professionals and other PRSSA members. You also have the chance to meet and speak with various PR professionals from some of the most well-known companies like Coca-Cola and General Motors. PRSSA’s National Conference is a great opportunity to improve your personal and professional skills. 

I am fortunate enough to be able to attend this year’s National Conference. Myself and five other students flew out of Akron early Friday morning. As soon as we landed in Atlanta, it was all business. We unpacked, got ready and began attending various sessions.

Dr. Aggie was a speaker for the session ‘The “Retailization” of Health Care: Using Social to Reach Those Gone Digital’. It was an amazing opportunity to see your professor speak to hundreds of students and professionals at the national level. After listening to many speakers over the past weekend, I am very grateful to have Dr. Aggie on Ohio Northern’s campus. Our professors are invaluable resources we should take advantage of and appreciate more often than we do.  

Another highlight of National Conference is the award ceremony. The award ceremony congratulates various PRSSA chapters on their accomplishments. ONU PRSSA won Star Chapter award for the 6^th consecutive year. Talk about an accomplishment!  

After my first full day in Atlanta, I am already exhausted but I cannot wait to see what the rest of PRSSA’s National Conference has in store! I know there is still a lot more to come.

The 7 Steps to a Flawless Measurement Program

Having a measurement program doesn’t do much if you are unable to prove your results and use those results to improve your company or organization. Chapter 3 of “Measure what Matters” by Katie Paine focuses on the seven steps it takes to create the perfect measurement program that positively influences your company.

Step 1: Define your goals and objectives

Most marketing goals fall under three categories: sales, message or position and public safety or education. In order for goals to be measurable, Paine says the goals or objectives “must include not just the desired outcome but also a date by which it should happen, and ideally, a budget and the audience it is designed to influence.”

Step 2: Define your environment

You need to examine each individual audience you are trying to reach and ask yourself two questions: how does a good relationship benefit the organization and how might a bad relationship threaten it?

Step 3: Define your investment

You need to be aware of the budget your company or organization is allowing for measurement programs before you dive in.

Step 4: Determine your benchmarks

Measurement is meant to be a comparative tool. You need to have something to compare your organization to in order to have relevant feedback. Ideally, you should benchmark against your company’s past performance and against three other companies.

Step 5: Define your key performance indicators

Key performance indicators (KPI) are the specific criteria to success.

Step 6: Select the right measurement tool

“Your measurement tools are the techniques you will use to collect data.” You will be collecting data by content analysis, primary research or web analytics.

Step 7: Turn data into action

In order for your measurement program to be a success, you need to analyze data and make changes when necessary. Being able to make changes and adapt to various elements will make your measurement program stronger.

Measuring what matters means measuring relationships because all transactions conducted today are driven by relationships. Building, managing and measuring relationships are fundamental to your success and the success of your organization. By implementing Paine’s seven steps, you are on your way to effectively measuring relationships.

Video Assignment

The stress of college always leads me to stress eat. I have a bad habit of craving sweet snacks when I’m cramming for exams and finals. I know I’m not the only one which is why I decided to make a how to video for my social media class on how to make puppy chow. It’s the perfect snack to share when you’re up late studying with your friends.

Luckily, puppy chow is super simple and quick! Here are the ingredients to make puppy chow:

½ cup peanut butter

¼ cup butter

1 cup chocolate chips

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

9 cups Crispix cereal (any flavor)

3 cups powdered sugar

After you have all of your ingredients, the first step is to combine the peanut butter, butter and chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for one minute then stir to blend the three ingredients thoroughly. After the ingredients are blended, add your half teaspoon of vanilla extract and stir again. After you have all your liquids mixed, add them to the dry cereal and start stirring! This step can get a little messy, but I think it’s the most fun part! Lastly, put the powdered sugar in a zip-lock plastic bag and pour in your peanut butter-chocolate cereal mixture and start shaking. After the mixture looks completely covered in powdered sugar you’re ready to start snacking!

I’ve never created a video before so this was definitely a learning experience. I used iMovie to create my how to video. Fortunately, Apple’s iMovie is user friendly and easy to figure out once you get the hang of it. I had a little trouble trying to upload it to YouTube but thanks to Google, I figured it out pretty quickly.

Satisfy your sweet tooth craving by making your own puppy chow. Check out my video on YouTube to see how. Let me know what you think!