The Power of Youtube

Social Media truly has revolutionized the way the world works. Back in the day in order to spread the word, public relations professionals went straight to traditional media. But going beyond the public relations and business spheres, social media has changed other industries remarkably. In this case, I want to bring attention to YouTube. There is more to YouTube than just cute, fuzzy cats and lyric videos. This is a way for any person to create an account and establish an outlet for their talent beyond the shower. According to the YouTube fact sheet: "Founded in February 2005, YouTube is the world's most popular online video community, allowing millions of people to discover, watch and share originally-created videos. YouTube provides a forum for people to connect, inform, and inspire others across the globe and acts as a distribution platform for original content creators and advertisers large and small." I think this puts it quite nicely.

YouTube has launched several huge names in the entertainment industry. Today, the biggest name popping into mind is Justin Bieber. "The Biebs", as I so affectionately call him, just won AMA's Artist of the Year award. This just goes to show the power that thousands of preteens posses. Bieber got his start on YouTube with this lovely video. He got so many views on his videos that he garnered the attention of music industry folks and promptly blew up. Now he is the fantasy of millions of teenage girls worldwide. I am not one of them, though his tunes are quite catchy.

While YouTube has become so incredibly huge now, according to the site people are watching 2 billion videos a day on YouTube and uploading hundreds of thousands of videos daily. In fact, every minute, 24 hours of video is uploaded.

My all time favorite YouTube story is about a little boy named Josh Sacco. Josh's father uploaded a video of him reciting the Miracle speech.

Yahoo's Puck Daddy does a fabulous job explaining the story behind the video and the resulting outcome for four-year-old Josh. But perhaps the best result from this adorable, inspiring video is that Josh performed an edited version of this speech at the 2010 Red Sox Home Opener. Which as any die-hard Sox fan will tell you, is a dream come true. From your living room to Fenway Park, life can't get any better than that!

Budding artists can utilize YouTube to launch careers and gain the crucial following in order to make it in today's dog eat dog industry. What I love about all social media is that it allows anyone to create a unique online voice and be heard, or not. Social media allows a creative outlet whether in the form of a microblog, Facebook, videos, what have you. People can for relationships and make friends from all over the world through social media. The power that lies within your keyboard is amazing and revolutionizing.

Personal Branding. What's the issue?

The business card is dead. Who cares about a 3x2 inch piece of card stock that gets lost in the shuffle and eventually thrown into the garbage? I may be thinking a little drastically here, but the idea holds true. My new media professor has told this anecdote a million times and I think its genius. Here it is: When David Meerman Scott takes the stage at speaking engagements he introduces himself by handing out his "business card." What is his business card? Google. Its a lot more engaging when its told in person.


If you'e been following this blog the slightest bit, you hopefully have gleamed two things. 1) I have a slight obsession with all things Starbucks. 2) Google amazes me. In this crazy world of SEO (search engine marketing, for those of you not in the COM world), digital marketing, and new media, developing a relevant online presence is mandatory whether its for a corporate or personal brand. As a matter of fact, Todd Defren, a principal at SHIFT Communications and a social media thought leader, recently blogged about personal brand conflicting with corporate brand.

As a future public relations professional I am working hard to establish some sort of online presence. I am not afraid to Google myself. To be honest, its one of my favorite activities. I swear I am not conceited. In fact, I openly ask my friends to Google me in order to see what comes up. Because for some reason in my head, the search results are not the same that I see on my own mac. (I have yet to figure out my own brain.) I blog, Twitter, Facebook, connect on LinkedIn, interact on other blogs, and created a Google profile all in the name of optimum SEO.

Here is where the difference lies between generations. My friends and I realize that drunken Facebook photos are not to be seen by potential employers, but when you're trying to establish an online presence where do you draw the line? Facebook has so-called "privacy" settings and laws that help prevent non-friends from seeing photos of you and yet when I Google myself some of these photos show up. This is NO BUENO. I can't tell you how many times I hear from my parents not to put anything on Facebook that could potentially harm my career...thank you Mom and Dad, I get it. I am a self-proclaimed social media master, thank you.


What I find so interesting is my parents do not understand anything about developing an online presence. I want them to read my blog. In fact my family is one of the reasons I started this blog. I wanted to share thoughts about the public relations and communications industry and to help them understand my future career. One night, I asked my dad to google me. Harmless, right? He refused. "I don't want anything to do with that bullsh*t." Direct quote.....ummmm, excuse me? Apparently he has not been reading my blog. THANKS FOR THE LOVING SUPPORT FATHER. He then handed the phone to my mother who was slightly more understanding. But this is when I had to explain what the act of googling is. My parents apparently have no idea what they're paying Boston University to teach me.

The question I want to throw out there is this: Are older, more experienced communications professionals having the same troubles as my parents? In class we are taught that entering the job market as young, fresh students will give us an advantage because we "get" this new social media. But as far as I was concerned, Google was rather self-explanatory. I am interested to see what sort of challenges lay ahead upon entering the full-time work force.

Inspiration. 2.0

Because sometimes we all need to take a moment. Take a deep breath and remember that everything is going to be all right in the end. Shout out to my brother for providing this beautiful quote.

Ode to the Red Cup

It's that time of year folks!! Halloween has just ended, November has commenced, and people have broken out the Christmas tunes (or in my case have upped the ante by publicly singing All I Want For Christmas Is You). I don't know about anyone else but every year I countdown to the day that Starbucks releases their annual holiday cups. For some reason, these festive red cups bring an unparalleled amount of joy into my life. If you're judging me for this statement, may I fondly suggest you go purchase a peppermint mocha and proceed to reevaluate. 

Last year's holiday cup was absolutely spectacular. But Starbucks has decided to blow away expectations and incorporate their loyal customers into the festivities. Yesterday, I anxiously got my paws around my first red cup of the season and was even more excited when I read the copy on the cup. As I sipped round one of my pumpkin spice latte, I read this "Our friends think of us as an odd couple, but we only think it's odd when we're apart. www.starbucks.com/share" WHAT BETTER WAY TO GET IN THE GIVING SEASON then to have your customers log onto a unique landing page all about your brand and the sharing and giving of the holiday season. Even better than the quotes on the cup are the "coffee cozys" that have "Stories are gifts. share" printed on them. It's sentiments like these that make me a sucker for the Christmas season.

http://www.starbucks.com/share/

Now even if I didn't have a heavy handed love affair with all things Starbucks, I would think this campaign tapped into what most consumers feel at the start of the holiday season. Even if by mid December you want to poke out the eyeballs of the every blown up Santa Claus storefront, the beginning of November finds most people breaking out Andy Williams Christmas carols with holiday fervor.

Starbucks has always had an interactive social media campaign that takes customer service to the next level. The MyStarbucks Idea campaign takes the best of online marketing and relationship building and creates a hub of online activity unique to the Starbucks brand. With the release of the red cup and the "share" campaign, Starbucks is taking the festivities beyond the usual Peppermint mochas, Gingerbread lattes and Eggnog lattes and creating a space where customers can share stories, interact via Facebook and learn more about what Starbucks is doing to make this holdiay special including "the 12 days of sharing." I think that in the future Starbucks will be one of the case studies to look to when  studying success stories about creating online conversations and building online customer relationships using new media.
As @LaurenB tweeted yesterday "When your customers are annually excited about the release of a red cardboard cup, you are probably doing a good job branding." And I couldn't agree more!


Oh and has anyone else heard about the new Trenta size? This sounds to good to be true!

GleeGate: A Step to Far?

By now I'm sure that most people have heard about the recent controversy surrounding the Glee GQ photos. In case you have been living under a giant rock or perhaps been vacationing in North Korea, here's a little rundown for you:

• About a week ago GQ made public racy photos taken by Terry Richardson
• The photos featured Glee castmates Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, Dianna Agron posing in "hyper-sexualized" versions of their characters
• The Parents Television Council denounced the spread saying it "borders on pedophilia" and is a "near-pornographic display"
• The fever reached a boiling point when Katie Couric, The View, and The Talk all uttered the same sentiment, expressing disappointment in the choices the actors made in posing

While there are clearly several things wrong with this photo shoot and the ideas behind it, the fuss that has been created over these photos has become quite hysterical. Now I realize that as a young adult,  I might feel a little differently about these photos if I were a parent. But the point is not to argue about whether the actors made a good choice in agreeing to take the photos. What bothers me most about this scandal is the fact that these photos would not have been a huge deal if The Parents Television Council had not released statements. The photos might have garnered a small bit of attention because they are pretty steamy, but since words such a "pedophilia" and "near-pornographic" were used, the media jumped on board, broadcasting the photos across the Internet, television, and other print. Because who isn't intrigued by young, hot Hollywood stars and scandal? 


In my opinion, The Parents Television Council did Glee and GQ a favor by increasing attention that would otherwise not have been paid to the magazine. While Glee is an immensely popular show and guaranteed press no matter the issue, more attention was brought to these questionable photos than necessary because of those statements. The photos would not have been posted anywhere other than print and online GQ, but now the chances that children are going to see them are upped considerably. 


What would more than likely have been a small issue was blown out of proportion because the media got ahold of the story. Dianna Agron responded in a recent blog post, "If you are hurt or these photos make you uncomfortable, it was never our intention. And if your eight-year-old has a copy of our GQ cover in hand, again I am sorry. But I would have to ask, how on earth did it get there?" Well now because the story has appeared on several news stations, talk shows, and every corner of the Internet, it nearly impossible that children have not seen the photos.

The case I am making is The Parents Television Council should have left the photos alone. GQ's target demographic is older men for whom seeing scantily clad women is nothing new. At the end of the day, is you look closely at the content of Glee, the plot lines are certainly not G-rated and constantly push the envelope. I am not gonna lie, I have often thought about parent's reactions to some of the show's dialogue. But when one examines the audience of the show, most of the avid watchers are college age students and adults. Most certainly young teens are watching the show too, but seeing a few racy photos  is not going to epically harm a growing mind. If you take a look at past magazine covers, it is nothing new for young starlets to appear on covers such as Rolling Stone or Vanity Fair, hardly dressed. Take a look at Britney Spears when she was barely 18 and appeared dressed in underwear on the cover of Rolling Stone. Most recently, at the time 16 year old Miley Cyrus wrapped in a blanket in Vanity Fair. There comes a point in every career where boundaries are pushed, people will not always be child stars. Miley Cyrus will not always be Hannah Montana. Just take a look at Lindsay Lohan, former Disney Star or Vanessa Hudgens and the requisite nude photo scandal. People must come to the realization that Hollywood stars are actually adults and go beyond the roles they play on television. 


What do you think? Are these photos pushing the boundaries or have they gone a step too far?

There's A Reason for the Season

Beautiful snow covered Beacon Hill

I'm not sure what is going this year, but it seems Mother Earth has made the decision to jump from summer straight into winter. I have never been a huge fan of fall- please just give me snow, Starbucks holiday cups, and festive cheer- forget about the changing of the leaves and apple picking. Unfortunately what comes with psychotic Boston weather is the onslaught of holiday marketing and advertising. Every year it feels like stores, both big and small, feel the need to put up their holiday displays earlier and earlier. The onslaught begins with Halloween and ends with New Years. Before we know it we'll be buying Halloween costumes mid-July and purchasing Christmas gifts and baking Christmas cookies dressed in tank tops and shorts.

Now usually I am in agreement with most of the universe in believing that stores are celebrating these holidays way too far in advance, but this year I find myself listening to Christmas tunes before the leaves have barely started to change. I am eagerly awaiting this years Starbucks holiday cup and cannot wait for Halloween to be over so that stores put up there Christmas trees and start playing Christmas carols. Even as I write this, I find myself listening to Mariah Carey's single Oh Santa.

Perhaps I am experiencing this sudden turn in feelings cause I feel the distressed and depressed world pressing down around me and hope some Christmas cheer will plaster a smile on your face. Even if its a fake cheery atmosphere, I love the holidays. Some people find the overall cheeriness depressive. I on the other hand, can't wait to wish random people on the street "Merry Christmas and Happy Holdiays!" It is the season of giving after all. During the two or so months of infectious cheer, the world is in a generally happier mood. It isn't until the realization that another year has passed and New Years resolutions start breaking, that world sets back into an overall gloomy atmosphere.

Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree

All I'm saying is that the world deserves a much needed break from incessantly worrying about the economy, job market, and general life craziness. This is what the holidays are all about. This is why I'm beginning to realize that it doesn't matter if your local Macys decides to put up their Christmas displays on November 1. In the end, I believe, this is all about spreading cheer.

Perez Hilton: The Queen of All Media??

All hail the Queen of Media! Or so this is what the banner of Perez Hilton's famous gossip blog says. I would venture to say that he is the Queen of gossip blogs, but most definitely not of all media in the world. That's a bit of a big claim, don't you think? Yes, I am one of gossip hungry types, who check his website several times daily when there's time. But over the years and after spending some time in Los Angeles, I have come to realize just how hypocritcal his blog is.

Disclaimer: This post is not meant to lambast Perez Hilton or his site because his entire career is evidence of how much influence bloggers can have. And also how blogging can become a launch pad into so many different opportunities that were not present before blogging or social media.

When I use the term hypocrtical I mean this: when the whole Taylor Swift/Kanye West debacle occured, there was no one who lambasted Kanye West more than Perez Hilton. And for several months afterwards, Hilton continued to carry a grudge and negative attitude towards West in all of his related posts. Example here. Yes, I think what West did was completely inappropriate and the negative fallout was much deserved. But people including Hilton continued to harp on the matter until the most recent VMA performances by both artists. Both of their performances dealt with the subject matter. But it seems like Hilton has decided to switch sides. Yes, he still doesn't approve of West's antics. But now he seems to think that people need to let it go, forgive the guy, and move on. Excuse me, Mr. Hilton but why are you so suddenly changing your tune? I don't understand.

Kanye West is not the only celebrity that Hilton flip flops on constantly. I feel like at one point or another, he has lambasted each celebrity or called them out on some sort of ridiculous notion. Like looking not so fresh in public, or acting like a semi normal human being. I just wonder when Hilton decided that he was the supreme source for all things celebrity. A reality check is much needed in this situation. Or at least pick a side and stay on it. Perhaps, maybe even admit you are wrong once in awhile.