The Corporate Hobbyist Blogger

Right now I am a student blogger, and I am honestly having a ball with it.  I know since I am a student, not many people look or read these, but this woman has dreams of blogging from beachfront villas; city-view rooms; my bed, my favorite corner of the back yard, tennis matches, volleyball tournaments and PTA meetings too!  LOL -- You know just blogging from wherever I am about two things  (1) Fundraising Communications and (2) My Journey through this life .

I'm thinking after class I'll launch two blogs one called FundRaiserRenee and the other called KokoKnows.   (See a little sample logo I made myself in my spare time:) The first as a professional blog and the second for friends & family.  I wonder if I will be able to get any followers? Ok, this is where I realize I need to learn about how to get followers (Yikes! How do I do that?) My dream is to build an online community based on the things I enjoy ---I'd love to include vlogs of my adventures....it's like publishing my own periodical.

Well maybe you know by now that I am a dreamer. My name is Renee and many of my friends call me Koko (it's a nickname since birth.)

That's all for now!

Blog Explorer Update #2: Social Media Broke PR!

http://www.shiftcomm.com/blog/

Following ShiftPR Blog is enlightening!  I just downloaded this book...I'll follow-up and let you know what all the hoopla is about!  Social Media Broke PR! Wow! That's news to me and maybe all of you too (since we are all in a Master's of PR program!)  I do hope it's just a gimmick!  Nonetheless, keep reading my blog to get the scoop on how ShiftPR recommends we fix things! Or use the link to get the report and learn about it first-hand!

Website Task Force Update

The website task force that I plan to convert to a new media standing committee at work met last week. I assembled a team representing different areas of the Clinic in order to engage and provide great input on the new website project at Los Angeles Christian Health Centers (LACHC.) It went well and everyone was so energized and excited to sit at the table to help me and the CEO make good decisions about the new website.  I am certain the because of their involvement the site will be excellent.  I started with an explanation of the purpose of the task force and what I hoped to accomplish by convening the group , we spent some time looking

at sites we liked and then went through the sitemap. the greatest idea came from a member who suggested that we adjust the header buttons to connect better  with the particular audience we reach e.g. patients, potential patients, volunteers, potential provider or contributors. 

Love is in Need of Love Today

Couldn't Help but post this today.....

Social Media Post of the Week

Most of my FB Friends post positive messages. Oftentimes there are also commentary posts about current events or personal events in their lives (a birthday, a trip, a new job, kid's activities, etc. ).  A post this week from my friend DeeDee really sums it up for me when it comes to Facebook.  I do love the sentiment of the post and for that reason it's my Post of the Week!  Connect, Love & Inspire.....

Reflection on Youth & The Future

I recently had the chance to meet with a group of teens interested in the field of medicine during a tour of the clinic. They were touring to learn and to create ways to volunteer. During open conversation about the clinic we landed on social media.  The teens commented (mostly college freshmen) that they were interested in helping the clinic to use social media to raise awareness of the clinic in the community and to raise visibility to improve fundraising.

These kids were so smart -- they began to devise and discuss events to create and tweet and engage others.  It came so naturally. The conversation about Snapchat posts and twitter and Facebook , go fundme..all part of everyday vocabulary.

It just made me consider how different things will be when they hit the workforce -- certainly  more organizations will have been transformed by the new media revolution.

It's also encouraging to see my work in graduate school and public relations around me everyday.

Blog Explorer Update #1 : Flops & Philosophies

CCHF &  The AfroHispanic Review are a bit of a bust as far as blogs are concerned.  As a blogger follower I am learning a few things about what keeps me following -- 

1. You must post entries often!
2. Have links and make sure they work -- if you are offering to buy something, then make sure I can by it!
3. Have some new news to share, or introduce/update on a new idea or perspective.

While I love CCHF and AfroHispanic Review, there is really no reason for me to follow these blogs. I can keep up with CCHF through the quarterly newsletters they send and I'll check in every 2 months of so for the next AfroHispanic Review. 

This Blog Explorer expedition has me thinking about how blogs fit into an organization's overall online profile, communications and presence.  What's appropriate, or more effective where, or worth repeating across media?  Is there a rule or guide about how different audiences use different media, or do the groups overlap? Yikes! What's an explorer to do? Furthermore, what's a PR Practitioner to do in a 1-woman PR shop to answer these questions in order to best fill the organizations needs and strategic objectives. (Going to Graduate School for Public Relations might be a good start to figuring it out!) 

While each of these organizations have a great perspective and offerings to share,Hey if you have some info to share on this do tell, I'm all ears!  Here are my thoughts about how CCHF & AfroHispanic Review Blogs could reach me....

1. CCHF -- is a movement that touches christian medical provider, why not invite different members to write a blog post monthly on their work, challenges and victories.  The founder of the movement is an iconic leader who speaks often and always inspires and enlightens about the journey, why not feature a monthly video from one of his sessions. In addition it's important to have some ongoing update on the progress toward the movement from the leadership. All that being said, I certainly know it's more than a notion to shift ideas like this into motion with no staff or volunteers dedicated to it....maybe its something I can offer to the group once I finish my MAPR?

2. AfroHispanic Review -- The current Dominican/Hatian citizenship issue is an opportunity to share literature about the subject of the history of 'colorism' in Latino/Carribean culture. These are the times when and literature can be a balm or spark conversation toward reconciliation. This publication is actually way ahead of things, the 2013 issue was filled with essays about the Dominican/Hatian cultural experience. 

The PR Internal Collaborator Goes to Work!

I'm starting a New Media Task Force at work in line with what we are studying in New Media Strategies at California Baptist University. According to Deirdre Breakenridge, The PR Internal Collaborator is one of the 8 new practices for the PR Professional when it comes to Social Media. And collaborate is exactly what I am aiming to do with this assembled team.

Okay, well my task force is really just a website task force for now .  No one has time to join an ongoing work committee at LACHC.  Especially when you don't really know how it can impact your work or even know what new media is. That's why I'm starting with the Website.  So many co-workers have come to me about the website with issues already, I believe that most staff are keenly aware that improving the website is good for business at the Clincs.

I recruited a team from different parts of the agency  (IT, Nursing, Patient Navigators, ECW Administrators, etc.) to participate . We are working with a great integrated marketing and public relations firm called Reveille.  Our process started with a review/audit of the current site and research of other sites. Now we are ready to tackle the sitemap for the new website.

In my eyes it's the beginning of my role as an internal collaborator in new media. It's an opportunity to show the best about why and how this new media can really impact business and agency wide objectives and outcomes.

The first meeting is Friday --- I will let you know how it goes. The goal with the first meeting is simple, define the task force and it's role and then dive into a review of the proposed site map.  I am hoping that website map will be greatly improved as a result of the task force's participation and also that once this project is complete that we will morph this committee into a new media task force!

Sunday Sanctuary: Love is the Key

Sunday Sanctuary: July 19, 2015

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV)

Do you know how much your love means
Do you know how many hearts you've lifted?
Did you know your love was healing?

Such a beautiful feeling

Did you know your love was precious
It warms me like the shining sun
Keep shining through the darkest season
Your life has such a perfect reason

Chorus:
In a world of sadness and strife
You could help change somebody's life
If love has made a difference to you
Help somebody else believe that it's true

Love is the key
Take it from me
Show your love

#loveisthekey

Project Complete: Emoji Soap, YouTube and a Mommy & Me Project

This is the weekend!  My 10-year old and I are making soap.  Not ordinary soap, but soap shaped like emojis! This is the YouTube we are using to guide us. We visited the local Michael's  to get supplies, searched the web for our favorite emoji's and are all set. I'm doing the happy face with the heart eyes, and she is doing the one with the winking eye. We have watched the video at least 6 times.  I'm still not sure I trust the perky hostess.  Her make-up is flawless, but somehow I feel we may miss a step. Oh, well I will let go of doing it perfectly and allow the time to be about connecting with this precious gift of a young girl who God has made my daughter.

I named her Kinaya, it's a word that means complete.  I gave her that name after carrying her to full term.  Carrying her to full term was a first for me ( I lost my first baby and my oldest daughter was born more than 2 months premature.)

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1:6

I attach this scripture to her birth, life and her name. Every time I call her name, I am affirming this promise in her life and even in my own.  And this weekend, Emoji soap is the object of our Project Complete.  I'll post a follow-up soon on how the soap turned out.

Social Media Post of the Week

#OurNewBison

My favorite social media post this week goes to Howard University and the unveiling of a new logo.  

The posts were simple. The logo and the words, "Better. Bolder. Bluer #OurNewBison" posted across platforms for Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter and the website hit in unison.  The Bison Alumni Nation rose in support and my FB feed was filled with celebration. I stood a little taller, felt pride and appreciation for the response to my Alma mater's news. 

I'm so proud that I went to Howard University(HU).  It would take up too much of this blog to tell it all. I owe a debt of gratitude to HU, I learned so much in those undergraduate years, most importantly what it meant to be 'young, black and gifted.' It was sitting under professors like Offield Dukes, a public relations visionary and pioneer, and Barbara Hines, an awesome mentor,  that I accepted the responsibility of the gifts God gave.  

I know it was a long time ago, but I still have that Bison Pride.  I am looking forward to being a Lancer and contributing the best I have to my new university and to feeling the Lancer pride based on the work I am doing now to earn a Masters in Public Relations. But for today, My HU gets the prize, MAPRenee Social Media Post of the Week.

#HAHN Live Tweet Adventure!

Blog Explorer Mission: Operation Follow!

For the next five weeks I will follow a few interesting blogs and share with you what I learn about blogging and the topics. I'm hoping this will be a better experience than reading the newspaper in undergraduate school. Back then I knew I couldn't cut it as a print journalist because the newsprint paper made my skin crawl and I wasn't too interested in the words on the paper either! I was young and optimistic about life and becoming a 'news junkie' just didn't fit. I know now that God had other plans for me! I am having fun blogging and perhaps there is a new media journalist opportunity in my future? 

Click on the blog title to visit the site.

Shift Agency PR
Shift is an international integrated communications agency with clients like McDonald's and SalesForce. They also helped to launch Yelp!  Their blog is cutting edge and easy to read. I'm hoping to elevate my PR Game by keeping up with they have to say. 

CCHF Blog
Christian Community Health Fellowship is a partner organization for hundreds of christian community clinics around the country.  The mission of CCHF is to educate, encourage and equip Christians to live out the gospel through health care among the poor. I attended my first conference in Atlanta this year and love the message, movement and fellowship. 
Sarah Bessey
I found this blog through Blogger.com and like that she's a mom, writer and christian.  I also love the look of her site.


The Stewards Journey
I have actually been following this blog for a few months.  It's part of my journey in ministry work as a fundraiser.  It's always encouraging and enlightening. 

WITNESS Book Club
This is the blog of the book club I joined last year.  It's a wonderful fellowship of christian women devoted to growing in faith, fellowship and relationship with Christ. 

Afro Hispanic Review
I studied Afro-Hispanic literature in college and am always looking for ways to engage on this topic.  I studied under Ian Smart and always enjoy a good challenging read and stimulating thinking about the experience of African people in Spanish speaking countries. 

Sunday Sanctuary: Be Still and Know that I am God

"Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."

Psalm 46:10 (NASB)

It's Sunday and this is my mood.  So many storms of life in a season, in a week, in a day in a moment. Today I will be still and know He is God -- the one who provides for me, heals, shows his grace and mercy and loves me soooo much.  He is with me every moment, I am not alone.  I will not be consumed. I can stop striving and know....

No striving for perfection I believe his strength is made perfect in my weakness.  No striving to win, to get ahead, be heard....just be still and know.  God will be exalted.

I live an ordinary life, am an ordinary woman with hopes for better days for my family, community, country and world.  Today I am a wife, mother, worker, public relations practitioner, member and student.  I'm grateful that's all, grateful and handing it all over to God.

Responsibilities of the #PR Policymaker

When it comes to social media and public relations there is a lot to learn for this 'seasoned' fundraising professional. Social Media and Public Relations: Eight New Practices for the PR Professional (Breakenridge, 2012), breaks it down well, beginning with the role of  the PR Policymaker. I have already started to build the Social Media Core Team.  I'm still looking for the company policy to review (Next week I promise to give an update on what I find.)

I found this neat wheel to remind me of just what's involved with this role.... I love that it is a wheel with lots of balls.  Mostly because I love to think of my work as a juggler, just tossing things up and keeping it in motion, trying not to drop anything.  I wonder do others in PR roles feel like jugglers too?

Up for discussion next: Internal Collaboration Generator and PR Technology tester.  I can already imagine how these new PR Roles relate to establishing a solid new media program and am looking forward to sharing.

Momentarily I thought I'd implement all of these in some way each week at work. Now I know that was a bit ambitious --I must have time to digest all of this new information and think strategically about how to put my new theoretical knowledge to the test?  Right? ...

Stay tuned on that....
Responsibilities of the #PR Policymaker

Top 10 Tips to Rapid-Fire Weekly Blog Posts

I'ave been a blogger all of 10 days!  So I have 10 tips to share with you that also serve to encourage myself  to keep pace and step out in faith into this new media world of communications! 

1. Make up working blog titles for the week(s) ahead.
2. Create/keep a list of editorial topics you'd like to cover.
3. Decide on the amount of content:  text,links, video, photos.
4. Use class reading assignments as inspiration and a guide. 
5. Decide on the 5 days you will post, create a theme for one or all (eg. Throw Back Thursday.)
6. Check your spelling and grammar (?) -- have a friend, classmate, coworker read and correct.
7. Explore the world of popular blogs and follow what interests you.
8. Get involved! Reply to other bloggers, connect.
9. Invite colleagues,friends and family to follow-your blog. They can be a source of encouragement and content.
10. Have fun, be fearless and let your light shine!

Social Media Revolution 2015

We are part of a revolutionary age...

The age of Social Media REVOLUTION. 

It really is a revolution.  Marketing isn't the same, business operations are changing, the structure of organizations are changing and we, the consumers are adjusting too.  This video shares evidence and makes a prediction about how important peer-to-peer communications (reviews, likes, posts) are to making buying decisions.  It really helps as a PR Practitioner and manager to consider this when making plans to impact the goals of my department. ......

As a Christian working for a Christian organization it causes me to think more about the importance of sharing the best of my faith in social media.  Honestly, if people are making decisions based on their online friends comments and recommendations, then I really ought to recommend Jesus more often. Furthermore it makes sense to develop a manner to personally connect with people through social media...really connect and share.  'FaceBook Friends' takes on a new meaning.  For many now and others in the future an FB Friend/Fan is a friend, friend not a 'fake-friend'.  

Welcome to the revolution! This revolution will be televised, media-vised, on blast everywhere.....

A Rocky Start!

It was a rocky start in Grad School for me.  It's been #$!?? years since I've been in school, had homework, called anyone 'Professor', read a syllabus, talked to financial aid, had a student ID card or wrote a paper for class!!! By the way what is a rubric??? But it was a start indeed!

This blog is for my New Media Strategies course and already I'm learning new things (like what a rubric is!) I'm clammoring to incorporate what I'm learning. Specifically I want to recruit a Social Media Core Team per Deirdre's recomendation in Social Media and Public Relations: Eight New Practices For the PR Professional. Right now, my Social Media Core Team consists of me, a new media producer volunteer and bits and pieces of my CEO and grants manager colleague. My goal has been to increase activity, attract fans and tell stories about our work at Los Angeles Christian Health Centers. Now I'm snooping around for our organization's policy and to find some 'dedicated professionals' to join the team. I'm also reeling to incorporate a personal touch in our social media program.  I found myself studying Facebook(FB) for ways to communicate and interact with our fans. A prime example is that there are a few patients who use the FB Check-In when they go to the Joshua House Clinic. At this point I do nothing to acknowldege or follow-up.  Now I see that this is an opportunity to interact and need some input from a team of AWESOME, SMART classmates to suggest what we could do to interact with patients who check-in on FB. Welcome to my Ad-Hoc Social Media  CoreTeam. Your recommendations are welcome!

As for now I'll continue reading, writing, learning, expanding and moving forward to do all these new things that are springing up in my path.   It's wonderful, even with the rocky start and I'm still encouraged. 

Here is to Peace, Love, New Media Mash-ups and Student Bloggers Everywhere!!!!