Threats to Your Reputation

What makes up a company's reputation?  Paine describes it as the relationships that a company has with its public(s). It's what people think of when they here about the brand, it determines if people will buy or recommend the products or services offered, if they'd want work or invest in/for the company.

The trust, commitment and satisfaction that companies try to build takes awhile to build up, but can be lost in seconds. Grunig, Grunig, and Dozier came up with four principles to help in a crisis situation.

1) The Relationship Principle says that the company can go through it issues and crises easier if it has established good, long-term relationships with its target audiences who are at risk from the company's behaviors.

2) The Accountability Principle says a company needs to accept responsibility at the time of the problem even if was not their fault.

3) The Disclosure Principle says that during a crisis the company must give all the information it has and promise to give the information it doesn't have soon after they receive it.

4) The Symmetrical Communication Principle says that at the time of a crisis the company needs to think about the publics interest to be just as important as its own, meaning that the company should have a conversation with publics and to practice CRS when in crisis.

A company that failed at keeping up their reputation was Dell in a crisis called Dell Hell. A blogger wrote about a problem he had been having and a large group of other customers commented with similar stories. The consequences were that the story spread through social media then moved to mainstream media and their stock price dropped. Dell went through many years of listening to customers, apologizing and working to fix their computers to restore its reputation. It took a number of hefty discounts for people to come back to the company.

New Holiday Ad Campaign by Gap

The Story:
All 866 Gap retail stores in the US, the online store and even the company's Facebook page are all showing of the new ad with the  Indian-American designer and actor, Waris Ahluwalia posing with artist and filmmaker Quentin Jones. The holiday 2013 campaign started a couple weeks and has received nothing but compliments for bringing diversity into the ads.

The Response: People have been raving on the company's Facebook page about how much people are accepting and taking in the ad.

One person said, "Thanks for honoring Sikh Culture in your new ad campaign, Gap. #Respect."Another said, "It felt awesome walking past this poster wearing turban…! #sikhi #proud." The Ad also had some good feedback on Twitter.

 My Response: I love seeing cultures being excited that their being celebrated in the media. It's a nice change from the horrible pictures that our society as a whole can paint of a specific group.

Take a minute to think about how Middle Eastern people were/are seen since 9/11 and look at these comments from people and try not to smile at the happiness these people are that their culture, their heritage is being recognized as something good.

Yes, there is still racism and hate that we as a country need to work on but this story shows that while there is still work to be done some are making the effort to push for a better tomorrow.

                                                                         

Last Football Game of the Season

This weekend was the last ONU football game and I can honestly say besides a few hiccups during the game I had a blast.

I went with my Polar Pals, a group of students from Korea, my best friend Hannah, her little brother and was later joined by my boyfriend's family. The first half of the game I sat with my friends and explained to the international students the basics of the game. They also were very interested to know when my boyfriend was going in and thought it was cool that I knew a lot of the players.

The first "hiccup" of the game though was when my boyfriend went down after he ran into one of his blockers close to halftime. He just went down and all of the international students immediately asked if both him and I were ok. I explained to them it was most likely his shoulder. On the other end of the bleachers where his family was sitting there was a little less concern as his mom yelled out, "Are you are or are you injured?" Her thing is if your only hurt you can still play and that has been her thing since he played Pop Warner.

As far the game it was really emotional because it was senior day. The game started out with the announcer recognizing all of the seniors and their parents. This game like homecoming showed a different side to the guys and they were laying it all on the field and giving no mercy to Otterbein. They were up by quite a few touchdowns by the half and Otterbein was on their third quarterback.

For the second half it was just Hannah, her little brother, and boyfriend's family. We were so into the game because the guys were doing so well and then a few minutes into the third my boyfriend went down hurt again at the one yard line. This time he could say he was injured. The trainers walked off with him after they helped him up but the good part is we scored right after that.

The team put everything they had into the game and won 42-21. Then after the game was one of the most emotional times. The seniors were hugging all the underclassmen and thanking them for a good season and making sure their last game was a win. But, the most chilling sight was seeing one of the seniors laying on the 50 yard line, it was a Kodak moment and left me wondering where were the campus camera people when you need them.

Communities according to Katie Paine

Chapter 9 of Paine's book is about how to conduct relationships. She starts out talking about who are "neighbors" to an organization and why they're important.

Social media has given the word community a new look because it's no longer just the people and other organizations close by one's own organization. Now, people have to take into account virtual communities. These virtual communities will include of any group of stakeholders that has influence over the business. That includes internal communities such as customers, vendors, and partners as for external communities including advocates and nongovernmental organizations.

Businesses also need to take into account who and what is most important to measure. Majority of organizations focus more of their PR efforts on their key audiences and it's not until they have an issue that their key audiences aren't the only people that need to be cared about. In business today it is expected to some type of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and simply doing a few speeches doesn't fit. For example, one way the NBA takes care of the CSR is by having NBA Cares in place where teams get involved in the global community in some way. The key to their mission is to address social issues such as education, health and wellness, youth and family development. They've raised over $225 million dollars in the last 8 years and have put in 2.6 million hours of hands on time to the organization.

In any area businesses can't think that just saying the right things and keeping the rains tight on their messages can keep up their image because there is always someone waiting to catch the flaw in what is being said or done.


NBA Cares Background

Is Un-Safe Sex becoming a Problem?

Safe sex is great sex, better wear a latex cuz you don't want that late text... that I think I'm late text.

 Lil Wayne

I understand that Lil Wayne might not be the best person to get sex advice from, but it might help younger generations to start practice sex safely. Recently, an article, (No) Condom Culture: Why Teens Aren't Practicing Safe Sex, published in Time's Health and Family section discussed the safety of young people having sex. Some of the stats and comments were kind of a shock. Katy Steinmetz, author of the article, starts of stating that in the 90's things were done better including talking about sex. 

The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) said the amount of students using condoms hit it's high point of 60% 10 years ago and has slowed since then and it's going down in some demographics. According to the Sex Information and Education Council of Canada around half of those sexually active in college aren't using condoms. Other sources are saying that after the first time teens are inconsistent with their condom usage. 

Another issue is sex education because it was more of a big deal with older generations, but in the last year the Guttmacher Institute has said that there are nearly 90% of high schools are talking to students about abstinence and STD's, but less than 60% are talking about contraception methods. Which could explain the reason for the fact that half of the new STD infections are occurring in young people. Americans between 15 and 24 are contracting gonorrhea and chlamydia four times faster than the general population.

In the 90's America was in the midst of the AIDS epidemic which caused condom usage to rise. The 90's had "poster children" for HIV/AIDS such as Ryan White and Magic Johnson in the media and now we have people making songs encouraging sex being played quite consistently. Teenagers of today didn't grow up when all that was going on. Laura Kann, an expert in youth risk behaviors at the CDC, said, "They young people of today know HIV is a manageable, chronic disease,"... "It's not something that can kill you in their eyes. So that leads, most likely, to an attitude that it's not something that they have to protect themselves from."

The CDC has also found that some schools are no longer pushing the safe-sex lessons that were once in place. In places like Alabama, Alaska and Florida, fewer public school are teaching how to get a hold of condoms and the importance of the.  However, there have been setbacks because of the recession, but in places that have money to provide free condoms, health departments haven't seen safe sex increase. 

My opinion is that if the CDC, community leaders, schools, and parents are having such concerns how and why is it that they can't come up with a way to get the point across that their are problems can come from sex. Yes, I understand that as kids, teenagers and young adults, we are going to do our own thing. But, I also feel that from personal experience and shows like 16 and Pregnant that parents are becoming younger and younger. Adults, not all but some, need to stop worried about being our friends and focus on being the adults in our lives by giving us some instruction on how to protect ourselves. 

We need to find the resources to put programs in place that majority of parents, schools and community leaders with the help of the CDC. Promote them and make the best use of them. It may not be what everyone wants but it really comes down to what image do you want your family, school, community, etc to portray from the outside. 

Baby, it's a fact, that once it's gone you'll never get it back/Hold on, to your innocence, use your common sense 

 Lyfe Jennings 

Lil' Wayne lyrics (Lollipop Remix)

Lyfe Jennings Lyrics (S.E.X)
(No) Condom Culture Article

Drake was Wrong about New Friends

Recently, ONU  started this new program on campus called Polar Pals. It pairs selected second year up students with first year international students to help them get acclimate to the campus. As veteran ONU students we are required to meet with our pal or pals for an hour a week and record how each experience went and there are some required events.

The first required even was reveal night, each international student was called down to the front of the Moot Court Room followed by their pal meeting them there. I have two pals this year, Geuna (NaNa) from Korea and Thais from Brazil. After we found out who the other was we got in groups with other pals to go on a campus (photo) scavenger hunt and ended the night with a potluck.

Geuna, myself, her roommate (Heejung) and her pal (Kristen) all had dinner tonight to get to know each other. Heejung taught Kristen and I how to make seaweed rolls and how they are different from sushi. She told us that the difference is how the rice is prepared and the raw fish is only used for sushi. So we had three types of seaweed rolls and a spicy noodle dish that Geuna made. We ended up talking for two hours learning about each other and figuring out other times we all can out on again. Next time,  we all plan to go to the football game on Saturday together along with Thais and some other international students

.

I'm really excited though to get to know these two girls as well as the other people involved.

Bullying in the NFL?

Basis of the story: For the past few days all you've heard on most sports based shows is the trouble in Miami concerning two of the Dolphins offensive linemen, an NFL team, Jonathan Martin and Richie Incognito. The issue being discussed is the alleged bullying of Martin from Incognito.
     
Incognito's Point of view:  Incognito talked to ESPN's James Walker, telling him that he (Incognito) was "shocked" and "betrayed" by the accusations from Martin. Walker reported that the linemen felt has though the two of them were friends and held the role of a "tough love older brother".


Background on Incognito:
Incognito was drafted in 2005 by the St. Louis Rams after going to school at Nebraska. He was released from the Rams in 2009 and picked up by the Buffalo Bills for a year (2009) before being picked up by the Dolphins in 2010.


Others' Point of view:
A former teammate, Josh Brown, who is the current kicker for the Giants is no stranger to Incognito. Brown played with Incognito at the University of Nebraska and again in St. Louis. Josh remembers the lineman being, "somebody who's really got some demons that are out of the building," and that this was no surprise. Brown went on to say, "None of it shocks me,"... "I don't know any details obviously. The league hasn't released anything. But Richie seems to be a person with a tortured soul. He's had these issues for quite awhile, and it's sad." He also said he didn't remember their being any big issues with Richie while with the Rams, but  was released by them in 2009.

NY Daily News reported that while with the Rams, Incognito was referred to as one of the dirtiest player in the league. This past Monday, a former coach of the Colts, Tony Dungy said that Incognito was on the team's DNDC, Do Not Draft because of Character,  list before the 2005 NFL draft. Former (Kansas City) Chiefs GM and (New England) Patriots player-personnel vice president, Scott Pioli, said he didn't want him when he was coming out of college and he didn't want him now.

However, not everyone saw him as someone negative. Ryan Tannehill, quarterback for the Dolphins, told the news on Wednesday, "If you asked Martin who his best friend is on the team two weeks ago, he'd say Richie Incognito,"... "It's tough for us to sit here and here all that when we have each others' backs."

Another teammate, tackle Tyson Clabo who also spoke to the news on Wednesday said, "What's perceived is that Richie is this psychopath racist, and the reality is Richie was a pretty good teammate,"... I don't know why (Martin is) doing this. And the only person who knows why is Jonathan Matin."

Which every side sways the public more didn't really matter because currently Incognito is indefinitely suspended and Martin has taken what seems to be a leave.

My Point of view: Before I give my opinion, I'd like to state that I don't know all of the details because every story that has come out either has very little detail itself and/or has a contradictory story to others. Some parts of the story make it seem like this guy (Incognito) has been the image that media is painting and when you speak to current teammates they don't see the same guy. Honestly, with the given information and the different stories that are out, I feel like Richie was a guy that got to caught up in the culture of the NFL. The name calling and the trash talking went to far and his teammate's feelings weren't taken into account. Now, by no means am I saying what he did is right because I feel as though he does need to make an apology to Martin and that this could've been a situation that spiraled out of control and should've been handled privately.

Richie Incognito feels 'shocked and betrayed' by Jonathan Martin

Richie Incognito sent Dolphins teammate Jonathan Martin threatening, racially-charged texts and voicemails:report

Bullying accusations against Richie Incognito don't surprise Giants kicker Josh Brown

Dolphins players defend Incognito, question Martin in bullying case

Oh What a Social World We Live In

Social media had changed the way we have done many things and has cause a need for people to change their perspective on how they present their businesses. 

Katie Paine gives us a three part social media revolution or 3 areas where she thinks that our thought process needs to shift because of social media.

      1. Timeliness has been redefined

               -There's been a change in how we think about time in the business world now because 

               responding to people within a day or two is no longer thought to be responsive or responding 

               in real time. Katie suggests that responding before it goes viral. Brand monitoring should be a 

               daily process if you aren't doing it hourly. 

                     - One example of this going wrong was Domino's Pizza. A video about the less than 

                      desirable conditions in one of their restaurants went viral and the communications office 

                      didn't respond until 48 hours later. In that time they sales had dropped significantly.

                             -That leads perfectly in to crisis communication because you need to prepared to give 

                             a quick response. Companies need to have their brand influencers identified before 

                            problems come up and be aware of possible things they can/will say something about. 

      2. The role of marketing and communications has been redefined

                -Social media and the internet in general has given us the opportunity to ask friends and 

                 others for their opinions before decided on things like where we should go to dinner, what 

                 movie we should go see, etc. 

                     -A personal example, my family and I spend a good amount of time in Chicago, but when 

                     we go we always try to find different restaurants to try instead of going to our staples the 

                     whole time. So, our main tools are Yelp! and Open Table. We just plug in our current 

                     location and look up places close by and we pick a few that sound good and go through 

                     the reviews. One weekend we found a restaurant for Sunday brunch, Table 52, that was 

                     located in  a spunky area away from the hustle and bustle of downtown. We chose it 

                     because of the description as well as the raves of the desserts and the untraditional takes  

                     on traditional brunch foods. And I can say their take on Shrimp and Grits was REALLY 

                    good. 

 Table 52 (52 West Elm St. Chicago)

          

      3. Most definitions of success are irrelevant

              -Success based on the number of eyeballs or impressions in the world of social media is hard 

               to keep up with and really doesn't matter. Those of us study Public Relations have had the 

               next phrase shoved in our face countless times, but it's important ---> 

               RELATIONSHIPS ARE KEY!  Measuring them by engagement is the best way to count 

              success in social media. 

                 -I think I've used this example before but I'll use it again. Over the summer I got a new 

                  laptop from Apple and my little brother got my old one. At Apple they transfer all the stuff 

                  you have on one laptop/computer to the new one, which is helpful (my first impression of 

                  service). Until you find out that your supposed to turn off your iCloud after a good chunk of 

                 your contacts are gone. I spoke to two people the night that happened and lost my contacts 

                 right after Apple told me how to fix the problem. So sensing my frustration (and countless 

                 angry tweets while this is all going on) they hooked me up with a "geek", they use the word             

                 Genius, in a higher position the next morning. I told him my problem and he walked me 

                 through the same process from the night before which of course led to the same ending, he 

                 tried it again but with an extra step and then gave me his email, phone number, work hours, 

                 and told me that I needed to contact him personally anytime I had problems with any of my 

                 Apple products. 

The Last ONU Away Football Game, Another Road Trip, and Cookies: OH MY!

Well today away game of the ONU football season at Willmington! And that meant another road trip!

I started the road trip off by spending the night with my best friend, Hannah, and her family watching her little brother's first high school playoff game.

Even though they lost we still ended up having fun. Hannah, "Lil' Hammond" (her little brother), and I ended the night with an interesting McDonald's trip. It was interesting because Hannah put her food on the roof of her car so she could open the door and as she got in she only brought in her drink. As we drove away she realized she didn't have her food and we had to turn around. We found her fries all over the street and her burger sitting messily in her bag. That ended up being the joke of the past two days. 

Today, we started it off by going to Shuler's Bakery, which is a Springfield (OH) staple, they have the best iced pumpkin cookies, but instead we got donuts to eat on the way to the ONU football game. This game against Wilmington was the  football team's last away game. They did so well! They had quite a lead at halftime and came out of the locker room after ready to go and even more excited to play. It was so contagious. They had a couple quarterback sneaks, an interception and lots of big hits from the defense. "Da Bears" ended up winning 52-10! Sadly next week is the last game of the season. The boys finish the season at home against Otterbein and it's rumored that they might play under the (new) lights. 

There's a Difference between Counting and Measurement

Katie Paine makes it very clear that counting and measuring are very different in her book Measure What Matters. 

Paine describes counting as simply adding things up and getting a total. As for measurement involves much more than that. She describes measurement as follows:

• Taking the totals (from counting) analyzing what they mean
• Using the meaning to improve business practices
• Provides the data necessary to make sound decisions
• Helps set priorities, allocate resources, and make choices
• Without it
• hunches and gut feelings prevail
• mistakes get made and no one learns from them 

Paine then goes further into some of those items as well as others to describe why they are important.

• It helps Allocate Budget and Staff
• Gain a better understanding of the Competition
• a company needs to know how they "stack up against' rivals
• measurement gives insight into competitive strengths and weaknesses 
• Strategic Planning
• Measurement Gets Everyone to Agree on a Desired Outcome
• a company can't decide what form a measurement program is going to take without an agreed set of goals
• that reason alone maybe a reason to start measuring 
• Measurement Reveals Strengths and Weaknesses
• can compare data to see what strategy works best in certain situations
• Measurement Gives a Reason to say "No"
• making decisions base on your gut rather than data leads to an overworked staff and unclear priorities 
• data on results of previous programs, frequently gain the leverage needed to turn down requests that will be a waste of time or resources

After reading, it seems as if I never realized the number of things that could be measured, what should be measured, and how those measurements could affect an organization. I found myself falling into some of the myths that Katie pointed out. For example, #2 focuses on the idea that measurement will create more work for employees. It seems reasonable, but if a company doesn't measure or keep track of a budget that is where more work comes in.

OMG Batman, It's Halloween in Ada

Well, I haven't been out that much this year and what's a better weekend then Halloween. I spent Halloween night in Walmart helping my boyfriend to find a mask to wear with his Spider-Man shirt, he took from me, and add some things to my Catwoman costume.

To start off the weekend, my best friend, her roommate and I ate spaghetti and garlic bread while watching TLC's Bride Day shows on last night. Tonight, her and I are going to one of the football houses, the Goat House, for their  Halloween party (she's the Batman to my Catwoman) and to help them celebrate their win today. It also is my second weekend of being legal so we are also going to celebrate that by trying some stuff we found on Pinterest.

So, I'm excited to see what tonight holds here in the A-d-a. Happy Halloween everyone!