Alan Weinkrantz PR Web Log

Speaking This Week at PRSA (Public Relations Society of America) Event

I'm looking forward to catching up with regional members of the PRSA group in South Texas on Thursday, where I will be speaking on "Applying Public Relations Methods for Successful Social Media Initiatives."

I'm a firm believer that the discipline and principles of PR can drive successful social media programs. In my presentation, I will illustrate how I combine PR and Social Media strategies that recently earned me a sequence of coverage in "Telephony Magazine," "The Wall Street Journal," an appearance on Good Morning America and an interview on NPR's "Marketplace" show.

Julian Castro for Mayor Campaign to Hold College Night on Wednesday, April 1

The Julian Castro for Mayor (San Antonio) Campaign continues with more innovation on the Social Web. (Disclosure:  I am a volunteer consultant to the campaign).

On Wednesday night, April 1, from 8 to 9 PM candidate Castro is going to hold an event for college students at his headquarters, 3003 Broadway, where they can come in person or log in online for an open Town Hall Meeting which will be broadcast on the Internet.

We are seeking college students from all the colleges and community colleges in the metro San Antonio area.  In particular, I'd like see Political Science majors (and their Professors) take part to witness and be a part of the political process. 

Please use #castro4myr as the hashtag on Twitter

Top PR Tweeters Have Lots to Say on TweetTop

I am pleased to be listed in TweetTop's PR category as one of the top Consultants who are active on Twitter.

It's great to be in the company of other PR Pros like Steve Rubel, Brian Solis and Todd Defrin.

You Are What You Eat. Or Rather, What You Read.... Why I Am on Alltop

Part of being socially present, means you have to be on the social web. 

I'm on LinkedIn, FaceBook, FriendFeed, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, Delicious, amongst others.  Oh I also blog here but also over at 3Screens, Everywire and San Antonio StartUps.

And now I am on Guy Kawasaki's Alltop, where you can see my profile here.

To me, there is a practical and social aspect to Alltop.

1.  As a practical matter, it makes for a great reader (or summarizer) of content I am interested in.  Because there is so much content, I find Alltop to be a great way to see what's on the minds of great thinkers, writers, and thought leaders in one fell swoop.

I have an interest in PR and Social Media.  But I also like gadgets, gizmos, news about Israel, and sights that could impact coverage for my clients so Alltop gives me a good snapshot of this world.

2.  I know some of these people, or have had the chance to meet them at conferences.  At SXSW, I had the opportunity to visit with Doc Searls, catch up with Chris Brogan, and hear Brian Solis talk about his view of where PR is headed.  They, amongst others are on my Alltop page.

3.  You are what you eat. Uh, I mean, you are what you read.  Being present on the social web let's me write, communicate and exchange ideas with others.  Alltop adds value to the ecosystem of personal expression, for in an as much as my writing and communication style is a reflection of me, so is what I read.  And that's where Alltop comes into play.

4.  Alltop is easy to use.  Just view the video and set up a profile.  I also recommend you look at other people's profiles that are highlighted in the rolling ads at the top of the site.

If you need help in thinking this through, email me:  alan at weinkrantz dot com.  Give me your phone number and we can arrange a time to talk.  I am not a consultant doing this for money.  I just think it's a powerful medium that can add to your presence strategy on the social web.  

Note: this offer is limited to the first 10 people who contact me, 'cause I gotta do the day job.

Leveraging the Power of PR and Social Media to Support A Worthy Cause

Shaine Matta is walking from the Rio Grande Valley to San Antonio to raise awareness for the need to build a new Veteran's Hospital in South Texas. Here is my interview with Shaine and here is a radio interview on Tech in 20 with Luis Sandoval and Jennifer Navarette 

 

Guest Blogger, Randy Bear, writes about applying new technologies for civic good

In working on the Julian Castro for Mayor Campaign, I am getting to work with some amazingly smart people - including this person:  Randy Bear.

During SXSW, Randy and I hung out at the event on the look-out for applications and concepts for the Castro campaign.  Here is his well articulated article....

This past weekend, as many of you are probably aware, I attended SXSWi in Austin. I had to cut the trip short to get some work in this week but it’s still going on. It was my first time but it’s definitely not going to be my last. I’m already planning my trip for next year and plan to pitch it at work as well. Never before have I seen such a great collection of creative web and social media enthusiasts as I did this past weekend. What’s even more exciting are the ideas I got to bring back to the Castro mayoral campaign. To continue that excitement I know Julian wants to talk about these ideas to see how we can help advance civic development in San Antonio through them.

While I was there I ran into Alan Weinkrantz who I’m working with on the Castro campaign developing online strategies. Alan’s a great individual who helps promote social media and ideas across America. He’s a guest columnist with the Express-News and has been incredible to work with and share concepts with. In a blog posting after Friday’s ssession he hit on something I agree with - we are on our way to a creative and economic renaissance. As Alan puts it in his blog entry “with all this positive energy abound, I sense an economic and creative revitalization of our country, and our world at large, in the making.”

Alan and I will be sharing our ideas with Julian when we get back together primarily because Julian wants to know how we can leverage these technologies to help change and grow San Antonio. That’s encouraging to hear from a potential mayor of the seventh largest city. It shows maturity and vision for moving San Antonio forward. His campaign has already started to demonstrate that vision with the virtual town hall conducted recently. Feedback from that event alone was great and demonstrated new ways to connect the voter and the candidate directly. As I shared this with people at SXSWi many thought it was a great idea and plan to take it back to their cities.

My last session that I attended before heading back home was on creating regional whuffie. It was very exciting to hear how others have leveraged the concept of whuffie and applied it within their communities. This concept of regional whuffie is where groups and environments are fostered to bring together people using social media to help spark innovation and new ideas for the community. It’s about leveraging the social capital of a community for the common good of the community. Here’s a link to the links referred to in the panel.

Looking at the projects section you’ll see a lot of links to projects in various cities where this concept of regional whuffie is being put into practice. One of my favorites is junto.org, a 21st century version of the original concept developed by Benjamin Franklin in 1721. Just as Franklin pulled together to help debate issues of morals, politics and natural philosphy to improve the city of Philadelphia the new era junto is focused on the same concepts leveraging new media to help facilitate the discussion. Already this group is making progress by helping save and improve the Philadelphia Free Library, the successor to Franklin’s Library Company commonly known as the first public library in the country.

Granted, social and new media cannot solve all the problems of San Antonio today. But leveraging these technologies can help facilitate deeper discussion and hopefully drive new ideas for consideration as a path to solutions. It’s a noble thought but having a leader who understands the value of using these technologies helps bring the concept along much further. This is new for both Alan and I but with the help of others in the community we feel we can move forward with progress.

More to come as this develops.

Here's My Interview on BlogTalk Radio on PR/Social Media During SXSW

I've been attending the SXSW Conference in Austin and really enjoying the panel discussions, visiting with friends, meeting new people, and meeting people in person that I follow in one form or the other.

Yesterday, I did a joint interview on BlogTalk Radio with Patrick O'Keef, writer, developer and community administrator and the founder of iFroggy Network 

and the author of Managing Online Forums.

You may listen to the interview here:

I spoke about how I combine PR and Social Media, trends in Social Media, and a team of very smart people that I am working with.

SXSW Day #1: We may be in an economic recession, but we're on our way to a creative and economic renaissance

As a rule, when I go to conferences and trade shows, I try to plan ahead. 

I make appointments and reach out to specific individuals in hopes of meeting for the first time, re-connecting from previous relationships or engagements, see old friends, and meet people just because I follow them on Facebook, Twitter or through a person's blog. 

This time, in taking part in SXSW, I just decided to go with the flow and then let things unfold.  

I attended two panels, one on how to sell social media programs to management and the other on the ecosystems of media.  I also went to hear Scam School's Brian Bushwood talking about Social Engineering and how to scam your way into anything or from anyone.

From there, it was on to two parties where I reconnected with friends and....

• met an Indie Artist whose music I am going to check out on iTunes
• met a very successful software entrepreneur who recognized my name, and told me what a fan he was of one my YouTube video that I recently did on a Fender Amp I had purchased. 
• hung out with my buddies from San Antonio's Web 2.0 community which I will be covering tomorrow for my San Antonio Startups Blog
• met people that I follow, and whose persona came to life in meeting them in person
• and had people come up to me who recognized my face or read my badge as they follow me on various social networks.  

These chance meetings and outreach of established or instant relationships reflect the energy and yes, the love I felt on Day #1 of SXSW.  

I don't use term term "love" in the sense of the vernacular, but rather one of just sharing, caring and realizing that we're all there to bounce off each other's energy, brilliance and smiles and create something anew.

To those of us taking part in SXSW, my hope is that we can all take a moment each night of the event right before we go to sleep and a beam prayer, a happy thought, or just hum a tune or something that puts this energy into the air and back into an economic and sociological engine driven by nothing more than organic and creative energy abound.

Sure, there's still a bit of dust to settle from the fallout of this economic malaise, but just you watch:  with all this positive energy abound, I sense an economic and creative revitalization of our country, and our world at large, in the making.  

Yup, it's brewing and bubbling here in Austin, Texas - during SXSW.

  

Guest Post by Luis Sandoval: Social Media Experiment with Mayoral Candidate

Here is a guest post that I have re-purposed from the blog of Luis Sandoval, who was a participant in Tuesday's Virtual Town Hall Meeting that was held by San Antonio for Mayoral Candidate, Julian Castro.  I'm a volunteer for the campaign helping out on social media strategies.

Luis is a friend.  A very smart person.  And a great writer & social media expert.

Take it away Luis....

Last night I had the pleasure of participating in a local experiment merging new media and traditional media in a social media event held by mayoral candidate, Julian Castro. I was unable to make it to both events, but the one I did make it to I wanted to share with everyone. 

I first want to share the relevant questions and answers that were exchanged during this amazing discussion happening both in person and streamed on the internet thanks toBlogCatalog's, Bloggers Unite initiative. The event organized by Alan Weinkrantz was a huge success and regardless of political affiliation was an interesting take on the merging of two worlds, similar the the recent US Election, which finds President Obamasitting at the head of our nation. 

After the Q&A reporting I will give my final analysis of the event as a whole and where it fits into local politics. 

Engagement 

The gathering started at 6:05 p.m. with an opening by Alan Weinkrantz followed by an introduction to Julian Castro who thanked everyone for being present. The event was attended personally by bloggers, traditional journalists, and other media types from San Antonio that had been invited to this private event. The audience was live on the internet via chat room but the video stream was available for them to watch and interact with. 

Julian wanted to express his interest in seeing technology and media efforts infused into every aspect of the city at the community level, the political level, and the personal level. He expressed his love for they city he grew up in and how he wants his efforts to help the city become a functional entity. He looks to embrace social media tools to allow individuals to engage him in questions, comments, thoughts, and have a real say in the course of how the city is navigated during these tough times in America. All lofty goals, but he seemed genuine in his statements. 

He expressed his concern with voter turnout talking about how only 13-15% of voters turn out to engage in the process, with a huge gap remaining in the 18-30 demographic. Hoping that social technology can help increase the turnout, especially within that demographic by speaking to those individuals on the formats that they are most familiar with. 

His goal is to ultimately create a dialog that does not currently exist and provide just another way for people to enter into the political process. 

Questions 

Question 1: From the internet regarding San Antonio's green initiatives 
Point 1: Mentions the importance of sustainability; wants San Antonio to be a leader 
Point 2: Pursue ways to put San Antonio into the "Green Economy" building green collared jobs 

Question 2: From invited blogger regarding Julian's plan on dealing with poverty 
SA is ranked as one of the poorest big cities in the nation. Julian wants to continue to build programs that help the less fortunate work to become functional citizens for their own personal lives. Two problems to work on to help alleviate some of the poverty issues: 
1. Illiteracy: Relatively high numbers need to overcome their lack of being able to read or write. Build programs that will help elevate the number if illiterate and get them to where he knows they all can be. 
2. Teenage pregnancy: A key problem for girls under 15, work with established assistance programs like Project Worth, and build on after school programs to help keep youth engaged. 

Question 3: From invited blogger regarding the creation of jobs 
He commits to make job creation a priority focusing on two points: 
1. Wants to create a competitively trained work force by working with public libraries, public school districts, after school programs, job training programs, and universities and colleges in the city. 
2. Foster the growth of current economic strengths such as the BioSciences expansion at Ft. Sam. 

Question 4: From the internet regarding the creation of a financial district in Downtown 
Julian believes that San Antonio is prime to build itself a financial district with its proximity to Mexcio and the rest of Central and Latin America. 

Question 5: From invited blogger regarding issue with San Antonio school districts 
Julian agrees that better efficiency is required when it comes to the school. Because a lot of his initiatives place the burden on education and training, he'd like to review the current status of the school system and possibly collaborate and consolidate where he can and where it seems most appropriate. He recognizes that the issue is bigger than just the city and goes up the chain to State and Federal Government concerns. 

These are just five of the questions asked during the hour and a half session that was amazing informative. Other questions fielded included inquiries on taxes, communities and neighborhoods, transportation, public services, technology, economics, and current processes within the local government. 

It was a good turnout for media types in person, while 30+ people engaged the mayoral candidate online, proving the experiment was successful in terms of gauging an audience online. 

Analysis 

Ultimately this mayoral candidate proved himself to be articulate and ready to tackle questions without any kind of preparation. Julian's approach is definitely one with family and communities in mind. In all fairness I was unable to attend the other candidates event, but I welcome any opportunity to hear that side of the story too. 

As an experiment I think there was an overall success. The convergence of traditional media with new media types was a good atmosphere and established an understanding that there is a place for both to coexist. 

My only concern with regards to the technological advances that our city is making, is that we cannot forget those that are unable to tap into those networks. There are vast populations in our city without a computer much less an internet connection. Any mayoral candidate must not lose sight of those constituents regardless of the cool "newness" of the internet's social networks. Social media must be understood as an extension of the constituency not the focus, because that will distance those individuals not connected to modern trends. 

Several outlets posted articles on the "Social Media War." The focus was who was doing what rather than the message. The messages that I heard at what I attended were strong, and evident that every one had a chance to be heard. From what I hear about the event that I did not attend, there was a similar atmosphere. 

Despite Twitter, Facebook, and other video networks and their popularity, let's hope the candidates do not lose sight of what their real duty is, as mayor of this fine city we are the investment, the people, and ultimately that is what they will be judged on. 

BloggersUnite's Tony Berkman Helps Foster the Political Conversation. SA4Mayor's Patricio Espinoza Captures the Story...

I'm a volunteer for the Julian Castro for Mayor of San Antonio Campaign, pitching in with some social media strategies.

Tony Berkman, CEO of San Antonio-based BlogCatalog and BloggersUnite articulates the role of social media and how his BloggersUnite site helps causes join together through the power of the blogosphere, while remaining political neutral.  Kudos to Patricio Espinoza, who is doing a great job of reporting on and more importantly, telling a fair and balanced story about the Mayoral race in our town via his SA4Mayor site.

Here's the interview: