Keep Calm and Pack On

In exactly 15 days I board a flight from Portland to London where I will be spending the majority of my summer. Although I am ecstatic for the opportunity to immerse myself in another culture for the summer, I am worried about packing one suitcase for that span of time. I am the type of girl that packs a full suitcase for a weekend getaway and live by the motto that it is always better to be over-packed than under-packed. This will be the first time I have to consolidate my wardrobe and I have started researching tips and tricks on how to successfully do so.

The greatest challenge I will face is the weather. London in the summer is unpredictable. One week it could be smoldering and the next it could be cold and rainy and I have to somehow pack for both instances. To prepare for this, I am planning to bring lighter weather clothes with a rain jacket and umbrella just in case.

The second challenge I face is being prepared for a variety of activities and events. I will be traveling, going to class, clubbing, and visiting Parliament for one of my political journalism class. All of these activities require vastly different outfits, but I can pull from the same basic pieces to create each. I am planning to bring flats, sandals, boots, converse, and one pair of heels because I will need each of these for various events. Clothing will be a little harder but I am hoping to bring versatile tops that could be worn for traveling and class interchangeably. The Parliament and clubbing clothes will be vastly different but I will only bring a few options for each instead of my entire wardrobe.

The hardest part of packing for this will be deciding which pieces to bring and which to leave home. I am horrible at making fashion decisions and wish that I could bring everything. I found an infographic while scouring Pinterest that I am going to use religiously while I pack. It helps to make the decision of whether it is practical to pack something or not. After learning about the effectiveness of infographics in PR and advertising I knew that it would help me more than simply reading an article about effective methods of packing.

Wish me luck with packing! I will share photos of my time in London and the outfits I ended up choosing when I return in August!

 

http://jena-crossingoff73.blogspot.com/p/study-abroad-packing-list.html

http://www.hercampus.com/school/oxy/studying-abroad-packing-tips

Tips for a Flawless Presentation

This week in my public relations class I gave a speech about the Sarah Jessica Parker collection infographic I created. The assignment was to explain my statistics and why they are important in the creation of an infographic Nordstrom can use to raise sales. I felt that my presentation went well and I thought I would share my process and some things I was surprised about in the PowerPoint making and speech giving process.

The creation of the PowerPoint and talking points was the most difficult part for me. I had a lot of information and found it was challenging to organize and present it effectively. Once I found an order I felt made sense I tackled the design aspect of my presentation.

I chose to utilize simple slides and consistent color choices and font styles to keep everything uniform. I used many images in my presentation to show the product and tie back to “Sex and the City.” Pinterest was a huge help for me because it provided better quality images than I found on Google. I also incorporated two videos to break up my constant speaking and give the audience and myself a break.

I found an infographic about how to make presentations stimulating and I followed many of the points that it made. The three aspects that I incorporated into my presentation were: ask, sequence, and display. I asked questions during my presentation to involve the audience, organized new material in an order that flowed well, and displayed my information with a variety of images and videos.

The part of presenting that surprised me the most was how quickly it was over. My biggest concern going into my presentation was that I did not have enough information to get me to the minimum time limit. I was shocked when she had to cut me off on my second to last slide because I had spoken for too long. Once you start talking about a topic you are passionate about time flies and the presentation is over before you know it.

By creating a visually appealing and well thought out presentation you will ensure the success of your speech and keep your audience engaged and interested.

http://flirtingwelearning.wordpress.com/2011/11/01/40-tips-for-awesome-powerpoint-presentations/

Target Gets Groovy

I have never been one to associate Target with fashion, but after seeing a commercial for their Peter Pilotto line I have completely changed my mind. To most people Target clothing is cheap, not the best quality, and unfashionable, but they have taken the appropriate steps to up their game. Over the last few years they have had a few designers do fashion lines for them that were cuter than their usual pieces but not anything too impressive. Their Peter Pilotto spring line breaks new ground by being a high fashion line and having a commercial for it that is far from Target’s usual ads.

The line features bright geometric patterns and a variety of dresses, crop tops, and skirts. The look is very high fashion and pulls characteristics from many designer brands spring lines. Not only is the look appealing, it is also high quality and does not look cheap in real life. It is a complete shift from the variety of jeans and tee shirts that Target sells otherwise. Although it sticks out from the rest of the store’s merchandise, it gives Target the opportunity to reinvent themselves in the eyes of the public.

As the commercial for the Peter Pilotto line plays it is unclear that it is for Target. When I first saw the ad I figured it would be for H&M or Saks and was shocked when the Target logo came on at the end. When the commercial first came out my friends and I could not believe how cute and in style the line was and that it was at Target. The models look like runway models and the song is groovy, unlike Target’s usual family oriented commercials with normal looking models. Targets move to make the commercial for the line different and shocking is smart because it makes an impact on the audience and is memorable.

Target has reinvented their entire clothing department because of the Peter Pilotto line. Now people see them in a new light and from here on out they can continue to surprise and delight their consumers with new fashion forward lines and pieces. Once the consumer expects something from their retailer they will continue coming back in hopes of finding similar pieces at a discounted price. This is a series of exceptional decisions by Target and I am excited to see what else they come up with.

http://www.fashiontimes.com/articles/2384/20140204/see-first-peter-pilotto-target-tv-commercial-starring-jourdan-dunn.htm

Stories Stick

In my strategic public relations class this week we discussed the power of stories in communication. Storytelling has been one of the most widely used and understood forms of communication since the beginning of time. Anyone can tell a story and that allows for easy retelling and the ability for information to be passed effectively from person to person.

For public relations and advertising professionals, it is important to utilize the power of stories to communicate ideas and polish images. Your audience will remember information presented to them through a story more than they will by simply being told it. Our brains respond to visuals and by creating a visual in a persons mind that idea will stick with them.

In the novel “Made to Stick” the Heath brothers discuss the power of storytelling and how to accurately utilize that power. They explain that: “Stories illustrate casual relationships that people hadn’t recognized before and highlight unexpected, resourceful ways in which people have solved problems” (Heath, 206). Stories bring ideas together in a creative manner and force the audience to visualize and connect the dots to the meaning. Later in the chapter, the Heath brothers explain that the right kind of stories stimulate the brain. By mentally stimulating someone you are essentially causing them to experience your idea in the next closest way to physically experiencing it.

Chipotle has a commercial called “Back to the Start” that encompasses the qualities of a good story and gets their point across without saying anything. The commercial is a series of Claymation scenes involving a farmer and his family. You watch as the farm becomes industrialized and the process of the farmer getting fed up and changing his farm back to the natural way it used to be. At the end of the commercial it says, “Cultivate a Better World,” and under that says chipotle.com.

This gets the point across that Chipotle is taking a stand against industrialized and commercial ways of processing and obtaining their food. They are telling you that their food is all natural and farm fresh without every stating that. The use of the story allows the audience to mentally connect the dots of what is happening and what the purpose is. It is unclear what the commercial is for until the very end, giving the audience even more of an opportunity to draw their own conclusions.

Chipotle’s commercial is a success because it forms a story that involves the audience and mentally stimulates them. The use of simple graphics allows for the story to stick and be easily memorable. Now whenever a customer walks into Chipotle they will remember the commercial about the family on the farm and remember that their food is safe and farm grown.

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jim-yu/go-beyond-advertising-and_b_4683818.html

Tugging at your Heartstrings

Emotions are easily the most powerful force of action or change people can experience. People react passionately to things or ideas that evoke a feeling deep within them. Sometimes this feeling can be explained in simple terms and other times it can be unexplainable. As communicators, it is important to recognize the value of emotion and learn how to control your audience’s reaction without manipulating it.

In the Heath brother’s novel “Made to Stick”, they explain that the key to making a message stick is to align it with an emotion that is widely shared and recognized. You want to tell people what to feel without actually telling them. They express the notion that, “if we want to make people care, we’ve got to tap into the things they care about” (Heath, 176). Companies find success with commercials and ad campaigns when they associate their product with an emotion that people can relate to.

One of the commercials that always stuck with me was one of Apple’s first FaceTime commercials. The commercial portrays a series of conversations between people FaceTiming one another. Each conversation exudes a different emotion, such as: giddiness, happiness, excitement, sadness, and loneliness. Although each conversation evokes a different simple emotion, they all cause a feeling of nostalgia or a feeling of want.

There is a way for every person who sees this commercial to relate themselves to at least one of the situations. This relation can come from a past memory being sparked or seeing a hope for the future come alive. Even the sad and lonely scenarios have a tinge of understanding and positivity.

I found that I related to a large majority of the scenes in some way. The two main scenes that stuck out to me were the one with the woman laughing hysterically in bed and the young couple after they got engaged. The woman laughing reminds me of talking to a close friend and evoked that feeling of giddiness and nostalgia inside of me. The proposal scene evoked that sense of future want and made me feel happy knowing that when that time comes for me I will be able to show my family and friends my reaction and ring right after it happens.

This commercial is successful because Apple is able to make their audience feel these emotions and relate them to their own lives. Once they make a connection with their audience they are able to express that because of their advanced technology these intimate conversations are made possible. FaceTime connects people and allows them to share these emotions with their loved ones the closest way to a face-to-face conversation that there is without being physically together. By appealing to emotions, Apple was able to successfully get the point of FaceTime across without ever really explaining its purpose in words.

http://www.economist.com/news/business/21591165-admen-have-made-marketing-guru-daniel-kahneman-prizewinning-psychologist-nothing-more

http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/08/06/apples-new-facetime-every-day-ad-continues-powerful-iphone-campaign

Dress for Success

Today I had a job interview for a receptionist position at the University of Oregon International Affairs Office. It had been awhile since my last interview and I was initially terrified to go in. Last night I took some time to gather my thoughts and prepare myself for the interview and realized that I needed to make an exceptional first impression in order to stand out from the rest of the candidates. Being who I am, I knew the key to my success was to showcase my uniqueness and self-confidence through my style.

After doing some online research I realized that not all job interviews call for the same outfit. In order to look like you truly belong you need to understand the company culture and how to match it. Since I was interviewing for an on campus, student position I knew that the dress code would be very laid-back. My interviewers would not be expecting me to come in slacks but would most likely hope for more effort than a pair of leggings and a hoodie. Upon defining these guidelines I was able to create an interview ensemble I felt portrayed me.

I wore a pair of dark wash trouser jeans, a floral blazer paired with a black blouse, black flats, and a neutral statement necklace. The look was polished and professional without looking like I tried too hard. The outfit caused me to feel confident because I knew I looked the part and would come off well to the interviewers.

While scouring Pinterest, I came across an infographic about job interviews and the value of dressing the part. The statistics astounded me, but fell directly in line with my beliefs. According to College Atlas, 55 percent of interviewers surveyed said that first impressions are determined by the way you dress, act and walk through the door. Sixty-five percent of those surveyed agreed that clothes have been a deciding factor between two similar candidates.

As an aspiring PR professional I am well aware of the value of a positive image. In the field of communications it is important to be able to communicate your capabilities through your personal image. Looking like you have an understanding of the company culture through the way you dress speaks to those you are trying to impress and showcases your knowledge.

Do your research, dress the part, and ace your interview. I hope that I found success by doing these three things during my interview and hope the same for others going through the similar situations. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

http://www.visualistan.com/2014/03/34-crucial-tips-for-your-next-job-interview-infographic.html

http://www.business2community.com/human-resources/your-outfit-for-your-job-interview-how-to-pick-it-and-why-it-matters-0396912#!OTI7U

Two Amazing Ways to Score

Over the years I have learned that the most important quality a fashionista can have is the ability to bargain hunt. Having flawless style is not necessarily correlated with how much money you have, but more on how you spend the money you do have. Growing up my mom and I would always frequent our local T.J. Maxx and Marshalls stores to find quality pieces for a bargain. Bargain hunting at these two stores is more exciting and challenging than frequenting a department store or a boutique because you never know what kind of deal or designer piece you will come across. Half the fun of creating your personal style is the hunt to find the pieces that will pull together the image you want to portray.

For many years I though that T.J. Maxx and Marshalls were competing stores, which I later learned is a belief that many people have. Both stores are set up similarly and sell most of the same brands and items, so it is easy to assume they would compete. T.J. Maxx and Marshall’s are actually both owned by TJX companies, making them sister stores. In order to ensure that the public knows that T.J. Maxx and Marshalls are not competing stores, but instead working together, TJX companies put out a commercial featuring both stores coming together.

The commercial is set up to make it seem as if the two stores are separated to coincide with the common misconception. You see two groups of women walking towards each other with intense music playing in the background. Each group of women is dressed impeccably and exudes confidence and style. One side is holding blue Marshalls shopping bags while the other totes red T.J. Maxx bags. Once the two groups are face to face it looks like a standoff or the beginnings of a fight. The tension is cut once one of the girls breaks her glare, smiles, and states, “I gotta have that bag.” This prompts each group to begin complimenting one another on various pieces of their ensembles.

At the end of the commercial the phrase, “Two stores. Two amazing ways to score,” is stated to solidify their point. “Two amazing ways to score” is a phrase that sticks with the consumer and forces the two stores to come together as one. After seeing the commercial, people will associate the two stores together and be more likely to shop at both instead of feeling like they need to have a favorite.

This public relations move by TJX companies is successful because they were able to identify a problem and accurately remedy it. Instead of putting out an article explaining that both stores are under the same management, they made a light-hearted commercial that will appeal to their customers and get their point across.

This advertisement is sticky because it utilizes the element of surprise that I discussed in an earlier blog post. The viewer begins the commercial thinking it will be a competitive commercial between two stores and ends with the knowledge that the stores are friends and are working together to provide designer deals with a decreased price tag.

http://www.fashionedible.com/2012/11/tj-maxx-vs-marshalls-review.html

Seeing is Believing: The Power of Infographics

This week I completed an infographic assignment for my strategic public relations class. I decided to create an infographic based on my blog post last week about the SJP collection at Nordstrom. The infographic will be used as an additional PR tactic to gain awareness of the line and grow sales for Nordstrom. I decided to incorporate facts about the fashion industry and women’s shoe ownership and combine them with facts and anecdotes from “Sex and the City” to tie into the collection.

Infographics are one of the most powerful forms of technological messaging because we respond more to seeing than to reading. The majority of people would rather view an image than read an article, so it provides an outlet to get more information across in an effective manner. In an article by Backbone Media, Inc. they explain that infographics are powerful because they can simplify messages and make complex ideas easier to understand. The Backbone Media Blogging Team also addresses the fact that infographics convey information to a much broader audience than simply the company’s standard customer base.

Here are some of my tips for creating a successful infographic:

• Make an idea web and focus on honing your idea and exactly who you want to your audience to be.
• Separate ideas and facts with different background colors to make it clear to the audience that you are switching ideas.
• Use symbols that are easily recognizable so that people get a basic idea of the theme of your infographic before they take a closer look.
• Include facts that appeal to a variety of different audiences in order to create a new, broad audience for your idea or cause.
• Choose one color and use varying shades of it to separate sections and create a more cohesive image.

 

The Value of Infographics for Social Media Marketing

 

 

Savvy PR Spotlight: SJP Collection at Nordstrom

“Men I may not know, but shoes, shoes I know.” This iconic line spoken by Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker, in the hit television show “Sex and the City” highlights the two focuses of the six season long show. A show revolving around the complexities of relationships and a passion for shoes has recently found a regained sense of relevance ten years after its series finale. In late February, Nordstrom released a shoe collection designed completely by Sarah Jessica Parker and Manolo Blahnik’s CEO George Malkemus, called the SJP collection. The collection features 25 stunning shoe styles, even one called “The Carrie.” This collection allows women to finally bring their “Sex and the City” shoe dreams to life for a price much lower than the Manolo Blahnik’s Carrie teetered around in for six seasons.

Although this line is breathtaking, the aspect that impressed me the most was the public relations tactics that were utilized to promote the line. The SJP collection has its own page on Nordstrom.com that includes a blog and stylebook featuring outfits paired with each style of shoe. Social media channels were also used to promote the line, such as: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest. In my opinion, the most effective channel used to promote the line is Instagram.

I found out about the collection on Instagram through a picture that Nordstrom’s Instagram account posted. The post tagged the SJP collection’s Instagram page, so I was able to follow that and learn more about the line. The SJP collection’s Instagram account currently has 152,000 followers and 198 posts. Most of the posts feature the shoes or show Sarah Jessica Parker pairing the shoes with her outfits, but they had a successful promotion where people could post photos of themselves in their SJP collection shoes. People who purchased shoes from the collection took to Instagram and posted their photos with the hashtag #SJPCollection and many of the photos were featured on the SJP collection blog on Nordstrom.com.

The SJP collection blog on Nordstrom.com is another effective tool utilized to continually promote the brand and keep their customers updated on current news regarding the line. So far there have been nine posts about a variety of different aspects of the line. Some of my favorite posts include: The SJP collection countdown because it had a personal message from Sarah Jessica about the line, the post about the collection’s appearance in O magazine because it informed the reader that the line would be featured in the publication, and the most recent post about the Met Gala because it is up to date with current fashion news and trends.

One of my favorite PR tactics the SJP collection utilized is their “Complete Looks” section on the collection’s webpage. It not only showcases the shoes, but also “suggestion sells” other Nordstrom merchandise. Each outfit compliments the shoes perfectly and allows for the online customer to picture their shoe purchase with specific outfits. Nordstrom was tactful in this decision because it ensures sales growth within the SJP collection and their women’s apparel department.

The public relations tactics utilized by the SJP collection expertly targeted their audience and laid the foundation for a continual conversation about the line. This collection is unique because the audience is a seamless combination between “Sex and the City” fanatics and designer shoe lovers. The SJP collection is a dream come true for many women, and seeing the products come to life through Instagram posts and the online blog makes the line accessible to everyone. Go check out the line and get inspired by the ladylike shoe designs that will make your inner Carrie Bradshaw swoon.

 

(Images are from Nordstrom and were taken as advertisements for the SJP collection)

http://blogs.nordstrom.com/fashion/category/sjp-sarah-jessica-parker/?origin=leftnav

http://shop.nordstrom.com/c/sjp-complete-looks?origin=leftnav

http://instagram.com/sjpcollection

Credibility Counts

The success of a business is determined by a variety of factors, but all of these factors would not be possible if the customer did not trust the company and what they stand for. Trust is the single most important component of a positive and healthy relationship, even the relationship between customer and company. In the business world, a company achieves trust with their consumers through their credibility and how they go about proving it.

The definition of credibility is: the quality of being believed or accepted as true, real, or honest. It may be difficult to gain credibility, but it is easy to lose it. Actions speak louder than words and consumers know better than to believe what they are told without any real proof. True credibility comes from making claims about a product that can actually be tested by consumers. Many businesses establish their credibility through their advertisements and marketing campaigns because these allow them to reach their entire consumer base with one message.

The first credible business that came to my mind while researching this concept was Dove. Their commercial for Dove Nutrium Moisture Body Wash always stuck out to me because of its undeniable credibility and realness. The commercial starts out with a group of women in robes discussing their current body washes. The women they chose to feature in the commercial were the first credible component I noticed. The women are all average twenty and thirty year olds who look like they would on a typical morning in their home. This sets the tone for credibility and honesty more than a group of models that are perfectly styled would have.

The commercial then tells us that our current body washes are stripping our skin of moisture and nutrients. They do this by dipping a test paper circle in containers of other brands of body wash mixed with water. When they pull the test paper out all of them have disintegrated or have sections that have broken down. They counter this by saying that the Nutrium Moisture Body Wash won’t strip your skin and they show the test paper being dipped in to that mixture and it comes out completely intact.

Reactions of the women in the group are genuine and obviously not scripted. They are all shocked about the way the water ruined the first paper strips and are pleased to see that the Dove soap reacts differently. The commercial shows you candid clips of the women feeling their smooth skin and includes one woman’s comment about definitely needing to switch to Dove.

This advertisement is credible because if a consumer wanted to test this information, they could. The experiment used is simple and could easily be replicated. To me, credibility is assumed through the presentation of the women’s reactions and seeing the different results of the test paper being dipped in the body washes. After seeing this commercial, I made sure to choose Dove as my next body wash because I remembered the ad and trusted its credibility. Dove’s credibility caused me to continually buy this body wash and recommend it to my friends, proving the correlation between consumer trust and a company’s success.

http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/establishing-credibility.htm