Final Project

The final project is FINALLY over. We present today and I feel totally confident about it. I am so happy with all the work we've done and I hope Rick approves of everything we did. We worked hard and I'm excited to see our results. The balloon festival is in July and I will definitely be attending. I hope everything works out well and we have spread awareness of the organization. Though we worked days and nights on this project that seemed like it would never end, it was great experience for us and I'm glad the teacher assigned it. I would like to continue working with the NJSCPA to help them and I'm sure Rick would be more than happy to hear that!

Group work and PR Writing

My whole group has been working very hard to promote the NJSPCA tent at the Quick Chek Balloon Festival this year. I think we're doing a good job so far, we just need to get everything done asap. This group project is probably the most important one I've ever done because it's real hands on. I've never worked with a real organization and none of us have real experience in PR, but I think we're catching on. This project has taught me about deadlines and working together in a team. Racing to get all our materials in and approved has been a tough process. It has been very hard for us to meet and go over our work. We haven't even all met together because we are all so busy with different schedules. It's been tough, but we are working through it. I think we work well in a group, but it's hard to depend on people to finish the work, or even get back to you. We've only had a few problems with that. Ultimately, I think we're really getting a feel for what we need to do and we're doing a good job.
So far this class has taught me a lot. There are so many things I never knew about PR that I do now. The completion of this class will result in a finished portfolio for our group projects. This was definitely help in real life situations. This is something we did on our own that shows we have some kind of experience. I'm going to use the skills I have learned in this class and use them in my other classes until I graduate. This class has been a mix of so many different projects and tasks, but I believe they will all help me in the future whether it be in the rest of my years at college or at my internships, or future jobs.

2in1

So I'm going to post two blogs in one today. First I'll start out by writing about opinion pieces then off to free write!
I like to read opinion pieces on news sites on the internet. I'm always curious to see what professionals have to say about the topic they're writing about. Once I read the article, I decide whether I agree or disagree with the writer. I like to see other peoples point of view on serious matters that I'm mostly interested it. I've never read any other type of opinion articles besides on Yahoo or Google.
FREE WRITE! So last week was spring break. Probably the worst spring break ever. It flooded like crazy around my town. My house wasn't affected, but everything around me was. When I was leaving work the day it started to flood, it took me over 2 hours to get home...I work 5 minutes away. It was frustrating. I couldn't really go anywhere but across town because of how bad the roads got. Then the weekend was amazing. The weather was gorgeous and I'm so ready for spring weather. I got free Rita's Ice on the first day of spring, so that was exciting. This week back from spring break is nuts. I have SO much to do. So much class, work, and then homework on top of that. I barely have time to relax, but I make the best of it. So that's whats going on in my life so far, see you soon!

abc

When I heard about the whole ABC thing with Cablevision, I couldn't believe this whole fiasco was going on again. First, Food Network and HGTV, now ABC. I think that Cablevision will continue to program ABC because they do fear negative PR. When the other channels stopped begin programmed, it turned into a huge ordeal. There were commercials explaining why this was happening and how to help. Ultimately, the channels were put back on Cablevision. I think that the two companies will work towards an agreeable contract, without all the drama of taking the network off the air. Many customers were ready to ditch the cable service if the network was removed. I saw commercials for this. I believe it was an ABC sponsored commercial that said, remove ABC from the network, and lose my business...or something along those lines. I thought that was a really good plan that they came up with and it worked. The cable service would have been totally slammed for getting rid of ABC, so they made a good choice by programming the station while they settle their problems.
NOWWWW, about the group projects. I've got to admit, I'm still a little confused and intimidated by the project. I think the main reasoning was that we couldn't get a hold of our client because he was on vacation. Slowly and surely, I think everything will come together and start looking good for us. I hope to meet with our client soon and discuss strategies and objectives. I just did the overview for our brief and I think it came out good...hopefully. We'll just have to see.

MEDIAAA

Well what scares me about working with the media? Honestly, a few things. They can ruin your career, or they can sky rocket it. It all depends on THEM. I have always wanted to work with the media though, so I'm totally up for the challenge. I believe you have to be very intelligent and aware of what's going on around you. Building relationships with the media is a key component of working with them. If you develop relationships, you will be confident and things will work in your favor. As I'm still learning about working with the media in my classes, it's definitely intimidating. I think as I keep learning and getting more experience, I will become more comfortable with it. Hopefully I will learn all the skills that makes me completely confident with working with the media. It is scary to think you could make one mistake and they can totally ruin your image. Although I am a bit nervous, I'm also curious and excited to start my career with the media.

weekend

I've had a mini vacation from school and I've been relaxing, maybe a bit too much. Thursday and Friday were snow days and I didn't really do anything productive. I stayed at my boyfriend Sean's house with his sister. We were drinking beers and playing Junior Scategories and Clue. I've never played Clue before, I liked it. I didn't win though. I called out of work Thursday and I actually went on Friday. I closed that day. I didn't do anything on Friday night. It was pretty boring. Sooooo Saturday night my friends from South Jersey were supposed to come up so we could all go out, but they didn't end up coming for some silly reason. Me and some of my friends went to a bar called Thatchers in Pompton Lakes. BUT there was a line to get in, it was ridiculous. So we left there and went to Sunset bar and grill in Lincoln Park. There was some band playing and a bunch of old heads. It was a fundraiser. I got some beers and had some shots. All in all, it turned out to be a great night. I tried patron cafe for the first time and it was delicious. I came back home and played super monkey ball with friends. Then I work up 15 minutes before I had to be at work and surprisingly I was only a minute late. So now it's Sunday night and this day is dedicated to homework. I'm so ready for spring break!!! OH, and I just got Jimmy Fallon tickets. YES THE ROOTS. :D
no work tomorrow, just school. so much homework, guess i gotta go do it nowwww!

bad pitch blog

After looking through the bad pitch blog very thoroughly, I think it may be one I start to read all the time. I read many different types of blogs, and I did enjoy this one because it talks about pr so much. I am actually interested in a lot of the posts. I really enjoyed the post about NBCs terrible decision to boot Conan off the network. It goes into a lot of details about the story and how NBC didn't make the right choice. Also, it mentions that they didn't think about how WE would feel about getting rid of Conan. and boy..am i mad about that. Another post I liked was the one that went in depth about getting a job in PR and all the different challenges that comes with it. The blog explains so many different aspects of finding a good job and how to answer interview questions. This post was helpful to read because it really went through all the basics of getting that dream job you've always wanted. I also enjoyed the "You belong in PR if..." post and you don't belong in PR if... I enjoyed this blog and I definitely will visit the site again.

Kevin Smithhh

Oh, how I adore Kevin Smith and SOME of his movies. I couldn't believe this story when I read about it. I thought it was crazy that they actually told him he couldn't fly because he was over weight. I don't believe that Southwest really handled it well. It makes them look bad because he says that he's flown with them several times before this, and there was never a problem. So why the sudden problem now? Southwest says that the passenger has to fit safely and comfortably in a seat. So why did they tell Smith to get off the plane? Who knows.. He swears he fits fine and he could get the armrests down. I don't think he'd lie about something like this. First off, I don't think he should've been kicked off at all because there are plenty people bigger than him that travel on Southwest, I'm sure. In another article I read, it said Southwest had given Smith a $100 voucher and an apology. Kevin Smith made it into a war through twitter. About 200 updates made about the whole ordeal. This is where he went too far. I mean, okay okay you got kicked off a plane, but do you need to make 200 updates about it? Southwest used their own blog and twitter to retaliate and explain exactly why they did what they did. So that was a smart move on their part. So overall, I think this story is getting blown out of proportion and could have been settled without this crazy public relations war.

Recent Publicity Stunts

I can't remember too many publicity stunts that have happened lately, but I do remember three that stick out in my mind.
The first was the famous MTV stunt at the Movie Awards, I think? Well anyway, I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. It was the moment when Sacha Baron Cohen, who as that point was Bruno, landed on Eminem in the crowd. Many people really believed this, but it soon came out that it was a stunt. Eminem looked really angry so he played the part well. I guess he wanted to seem like a badass or something by walking away after. It ended up working out for MTV because lots of people gave in to it. I thought it was pretty silly, but still funny. Bruno got his movie out and he people saw him differently cause he "messed" with Eminem.
The next stunt is the boy in the balloon. What could I say about this one. This family is crazy. It was believable at first. I thought it was ridiculous. Then the kid had to go and say "I did it for the show" It was great. I'm happy this family had to come out and say they were lying. I don't think they should have taken the stunt that far because the authorities were involved. I mean come on, they were already on wife swap. do you really need to be on TV again.. AND what kind of a name is falcon? The stunt was working for a bit, but went terribly wrong, and I'm glad it did.
The last stunt I can remember was one that is done by an Improv group. I think they have them all over in different cities. The one I remember was the group went to Grand Central Station and randomly broke out into synchronized dance. AND, i am such a sucker for synchronized dancing hahah. I absolutely loved this stunt and it definitely got the groups name out. The group is called Improv Everywhere if you guys wanna check it out. I want to participate in one of their "missions" as they call it.
Well, that's it for now! BYE!

Publicity Stunts

The Taco Bell stunt was truly a good April Fools joke. They got so much media coverage and half a million dollar revenue increase. They sure do have a sense of humor, but not everyone liked the idea. I think it's an ingenious idea and it really worked in favor for their company. The ProShade stunt was an interesting idea to say the least. ProShade, knowing that their offer would never be accepted, tried anyway. The news would spread and soon enough everyone would know their company name. Next is the GoldenPalace. I actually recall hearing some news about a grilled cheese with the Virgin Mary on it. I had no clue an online casino had bought it. It worked for them because they got a lot of media coverage. This is strange news, but that's exactly what attracts people to it. The Burger King stunt was another April Fools joke. This one wasn't as clever as Taco Bells and I don't think it's a good stunt, but it worked for them because people actually believed the ad. The SonicYoga stunt is interesting because it could have went terribly wrong. They did what they needed to do and somehow got away with it. Since they made the one video, four more have come after so it definitely worked for them. DC Comics was just a clever way to get comic book readers to go out and buy the death of superman because they knew that would sell millions. Of course, they couldn't kill off Superman so they had a Return of superman. I'm not too sure this stunt intrigues me. Maui beverages, giving themselves a more laid back and chill persona was a good way to go. The Meow Mix was a clever idea, but I don't think it's too interesting. Half.com was a good stunt, but it I think it failed because they didn't go through with what they said they would do. Pokershare.com had a great idea because people love free gas, food, and music. It worked well enough to happen again in LA. Snapple's stunt was just an epic fail. They could've had something great there, but should've though of the consequences. JMP creations was a good idea at first and I'm sure the audience loved it because they thought that was supposed to happen, but it failed miserably. Vodafone was just a terrible idea to begin with. The company was obviously going to get in trouble. Sure it got the name out there, but they had to pay a hefty fine. I think the Sony idea could've been pretty cool, but graffiti is illegal so it didn't really work. It's true that Oprah got most of the publicity for Pontiac. I didn't even know that it was their stunt, i thought Oprah was just crazy and liked to give things away.
So overall, there are plenty of publicity stunts that works and some that go terribly wrong.

i just don't know

I've been sitting here doing school work for the past two hours. I'm exhausted. I didn't go to sleep until five in the morning last night. I could've avoided it, but I chose not to. I had to wake up bright and early for work today. I went into work at ten and luckily, left early at one. I've been trying to keep my eyes open to finish my homework. It's not going to happen, I'll probably take a nice long nap after this post. I'm so happy I don't have classes on Mondays. It makes me feel a lot better about the weekend. I've got so much more homework to do already, it's only th end of the second week. My boyfriend won't stop playing Mass Effect 2, it's getting really annoying because that's all I can hear. It looks interesting though. I want to play, but I can't because I know I'll become addicted. It happens every time. I try not to play video games a lot. SO, I think I'll go eat something now, and then take a nap. good night :)

tweet tweet

I think it's incredible how much Twitter has blown up in this past year. I remember when some of my friends got Twitter and I was clueless as to what it was. I think the idea of Twitter isn't really that remarkable. I'm sure many of you guys from class have Twitters, but honestly, I don't really see a point in them. It's kind of like a whole site that is facebook statuses. I think it's great for the people that started Twitter because it's been such a huge success. Like it mentions in the article, celebrities having Twitters definitely made the website so popular. I'm not going to deny that I've checked some celebrity Twitters, but it's not something I would check everyday. I think everybody jumped on the bandwagon way too quickly and the numbers have flat lined. I believe slowly, but surely, the site will keep growing and getting more popular because it's becoming international. I don't really think I'll sign up for an account, but you never know, I could change my mind.

All About Me!

This is my first post in my very own blog, which I'm excited about because I always read all sorts of blogs, now I have my own! So my name is Kamila and I'm currently a junior at Montclair State. I'm a Communications major with a concentration with public relations. I think the most interesting thing about me is that I was born in Poland. I really embrace the fact that I'm from a different country. I came to America when I was four years old. I lived in a town in NJ called Wallington. Ultimately, I ended up in Lincoln Park, NJ when I was in the fourth grade. Learning a new language when I was very young was pretty hard, but I excelled and am proud of myself for that. When I first entered college, I went to Richard Stockton College in Pomona, NJ. Seriously, middle of nowhere. I became a social work major for about two semesters. It was my passion because I love helping people, but then I realized that what I really wanted to do was work with the media. Shortly after, I switched my major to Comm. and I found to really love the major. I transferred to Montclair and moved back home. I am really liking Montclair so far, it is my second semester here. I feel that it's more challenging than Stockton, but I don't mind. I am hopefully going to find an internship for the summer of 2010. In the field of PR, I'm not 100 percent sure what I want to do yet. I know I would love to work with entertainment, music or movies mainly. I don't think I'm ready for the semester to start yet, but let the work and stress begin.

Kamila