Tips for Creating Infographics

For one of my public relations classes we were instructed to research an issue and create an infographic. Infographics are a valuable way to share information with an audience because they are a form of visual communication. Many people will retain information and research better if they can absorb it in a visually appealing manner because it is more memorable. I chose to create an infographic about the dangers of the Internet for teenage users. I focused on privacy issues and the threats posed by strangers online.

Here are a few tips for creating infographics:

• Narrow down a topic. Make sure to focus on one specific area; there are so many statistics and data out there that it is important to make sure your topic is not too broad.
• Keep it simple. The audience won’t be able to focus on the important facts if the infographic is too busy or distracting. Make sure to clearly separate different ideas (subheads are helpful).
• Make sure font and colors are consistent. This will help provide clarity and draw the eye to the most important aspects of the infographic.
• Give a call to action. Simply stating the information won’t bring change; it is important to encourage the audience to actually do something with the information you gave them through the infographic.

Advice for Nonprofit Public Relations

Personally, I consider the nonprofit sector to be one of the most challenging and rewarding areas of public relations. Ballet Fantastique is an innovative and modern nonprofit ballet company located in Eugene; the company works diligently every day to continue to foster support for its artistic performances. Hannah Bontrager has a wide array of responsibilities as the executive director of Ballet Fantastique. She not only handles the core logistics of the company but also heads all PR efforts and performs as a principal dancer. Hannah’s mother, Donna Marisa Bontrager, is the artistic director of Ballet Fantastique; the two work together seamlessly and contribute to the accomplishments of the company. Hannah’s level of involvement with Ballet Fantastique from all angles gives her an intense passion and investment in the company, which she attributes to its success.

“Be a spokesperson wherever you are. Be so passionate about it that you WANT to talk about it to everyone. Bring people onto your team who are that excited about your work and product, too.”

After learning more about Hannah’s work with Ballet Fantastique and the creative ways she integrates public relations with her dance company, I have compiled 10 pieces of advice I have learned from Hannah. These are especially applicable to individuals who hope to do public relations for a small nonprofit program, but I would argue this advice could be extended to all areas of work.

1.    Work harder than 100%. Nonprofits face the issue of fewer resources than many other organizations; hard work and diligence can counteract that. “Be willing to work twice as hard as everyone else, and try not to get resentful that you have to.”

2.    Don’t be afraid to be the first. Ballet Fantastique paved the way for social media among arts groups in Eugene. It was the first company to have a Facebook, Twitter, YouTube; and the efforts to break this norm have been enormously successful.

3.    Think outside the box. Recognize your weaknesses and use them to your advantage. Ballet Fantastique was able to think outside the box and utilize one of the best forms of promotion to its benefit – social media (not to mention it is free!).

4.    Evolve continuously. Don’t get stuck using the same techniques over and over; people will get bored. Change things up to retain the audience’s interest – it will be more effective. Ballet Fantastique uses a variety of media, “The print media makes a hard visual impact, and we like to use online as a call to action – making it easy right then and there to click a link and sign up or buy tickets.”

5.    It’s okay to let things go. Make sure to pay attention to tactics that work and what doesn’t. One of the hardest milestones for Hannah was recognizing when to drop a project; it is disappointing if something does not turn out to be worth the extra time and effort. She recommends stepping back from the situation; it is easy to get wrapped up in something that you think will work.

6.    Don’t let a small budget restrict you. Ballet Fantastique’s principal difficulty in promotion is a low advertising budget, but Hannah spins this constraint in a positive light by sharing how it allows her to be “more gutsy, more hard-working, and more agile in many ways.”

7.    Keep innovating. There is always a way to work around any obstacle with creativity and originality. Hannah consistently fosters partnerships with other local and larger organizations for advertising trade. Her innovative partnership techniques have grown an overwhelming level of support from the community. “Many radio stations, newspapers and magazines are willing to trade for tickets or program ads because they are so excited about the unique work that we do.”

8.    Encourage word of mouth publicity. Keep up with technology; so much of our world today revolves around the Internet and social media – make sure you have a positive and active voice online. However, don’t underestimate the power of direct person-to-person publicity either! Positive discussion about the organization brings tremendous value. Ballet Fantastique often holds competitions on its social media platforms to engage and grow its audience, as well as encourage supporters to share information, updates, coupons and deals with each other.

9.    Even nonprofits can become involved in outreach. Recognize that as much as your nonprofit may need help, others need help too. Becoming involved with the community can grow support for your organization. Ballet Fantastique is involved in a multitude of outreach programs ranging from awarding training scholarships to talented underprivileged kids, providing free community-based performances to kids in local schools, and retaining flexibility in where they perform – to bring dance to those who might not otherwise see it.

10. Get excited and have fun! Because nonprofit work is so challenging, passion is one of the most important aspects to a successful organization. Remain focused and professional but don’t be afraid to approach obstacles with a lighthearted attitude – it allows for innovation and willingness to put in that extra time and effort.

Social Media Audit & Conversation Analysis

I was assigned a project this term to conduct a social media audit and conversation analysis to evaluate an organization’s social media presence and effectiveness compared to its competitors. Even the name of the project seemed daunting at first, but our class, Strategic Public Relations Communication, was divided into groups so we could work with others; we were able to choose the company we evaluated based on our interests. The chosen topics throughout the class varied greatly from coffee to wedding planners to football teams.

My group focused on local farm fresh food; the Willamette Farm and Food Coalition was featured as our target organization. We compared its social media presence to that of its competitors: Ten Rivers Food Web, Friends of Family Farmers and Food Roots.

As we delved deeper into the project, I learned the importance of not only evaluating our target company but also the competitors (at first, I thought we would only consider one company). This proved to be a valuable technique.

One issue we ran into was how the size of our chosen organization affected our ability to assess its social media presence due to the few number of social media posts. We manually coded our results because there were not enough data to use an online tool such as Ice Rocket or Social Mention. At first this seemed overwhelming, but as the project progressed we realized the value of manual coding, as opposed to a computer doing the work. Because we actually viewed and analyzed each post ourselves, we gained a better understanding of effectiveness and the resulting discussion. For instance, my group was able to understand that most of the online discussion revolving Willamette Farm and Food Coalition was based on the issue at stake (farm fresh local food) rather than the organization itself. We were able to more accurately describe the conversation that resulted from its social media posts.

Overall, this project was a brand new concept to me and allowed me to better understand the importance of social media. I have learned a lot of tips and tricks about social media through classes, internships and general conversation. However, this project opened my eyes to the importance of evaluating the raw data that results from it. For example, just because a company posts to its Twitter feed daily does not correlate to effective engagement with the audience. By evaluating these company’s social media platforms, we were able to gain a broad understanding of what type of tactics prove to be successful in the online world.

If you are interested in learning more about measurement of social media, Katie Paine’s blog is great to refer to. She is an excellent resource; I highly recommend reviewing a few of her blog posts.

Insecurity

One reason we struggle with insecurity: we’re comparing our behind the scenes to everyone else’s highlight reel.

-Steven Furtick.

This short quote does not need much explanation; just some food for thought!

Four or Six Degrees of Separation?

I’m sure everyone is aware of how quickly our world and communities are evolving. A major component of modern society is the presence of the Internet and social media, which no doubt has a profound effect on our ability to connect with other individuals. It is so simple to find out basic information about a person regardless of how deep of a face-to-face connection we have with them; and all of this is so accessible with social media. We can  see the last three companies that someone worked for via LinkedIn; what they ate for their last meal on Instagram; and even how badly they don’t want to study for their next exam from their latest Facebook or Twitter update.

An incredible amount of information is right at our fingertips (however useless or worthwhile is based on personal discretion). Not only can we glean information about people, but we get a glimpse of just how small the world really is through social media. By simply scrolling through a newsfeed it is easy to discover that random relationship between your college chemistry lab partner and your old neighbor from when you were in second grade.

A plethora of connections between people that may have gone undiscovered in the past are easily accessible today. I’m sure everyone is familiar with the “six degrees of separation” that connect us with anyone in the world. There are no longer six degrees, but any two people in the world are now connected by an average of 4.74 people. This number is even lower in the United States, with an average of only 4.37. No doubt this is related to the ever-increasing presence of social media.

If you would like to read more about the experiment, read the New York Times’ article.

As a public relations major, this tidbit of information is incredibly relevant to my life and profession. It proves how influential the online presence of a company or individual can be. In modern society it has become incredibly important and effective to reach out via the Internet. However, I do think it is important to note that even though the ability to connect with others has become much simpler, the ties may be weakening. The fact that we can connect with almost everyone means that the connections are less likely to be personable and deep. In this case, quantity does not necessarily mean quality.

Who is to say that just because we can connect with more people, that we are more connected with the world?

Girl Rising

I encourage everyone to become familiar with the global movement for girls’ education and the issues behind it. A social action campaign called 10×10 is at the heart of the movement, and has recently released an innovative documentary called “Girl Rising.” My mother came to visit me this past weekend, here at the University of Oregon, and seeing this movie was at the top of our to-do list.

I will be straightforward with you; even I hadn’t heard much about the film before seeing it myself. However, I was truly blown away by its power and pure honesty. The core message of this film depicts the importance of educating girls and the powerful effect it can have upon the world. Growing up in the Western world often makes people feel removed from issues that are happening across the world. This movie helps demonstrate exactly how serious these issues are, in a very personal and intense manner. The documentary follows nine young girls from all areas of the world (Peru, Indian, Haiti, Nepal, and more); it depicts the struggles they have encountered due to lack of education and the positive effect that education could or did have upon their lives. Educating girls would provide benefits in many areas: increasing economic growth, lowering mortality rate, decreasing instances of sexual assault, decreasing disease rates, increasing chances of their children also receiving an education, and much more. As Liam Neeson (one narrator in the film) says, “Girl Rising” reminds us that educating the girls of today is an investment in everyone’s tomorrow.”

Here are just a few facts I learned from the documentary:

• If India enrolled 1% more girls in secondary school, their GDP would rise by $5.5 billion.
• The number one cause of death for girls in developing countries, ages 15-19, is childbirth.
• A child born to a literate mother is 50% more likely to survive past the age of 5.
• 75% of AIDS cases is sub Saharan Africa (the region hardest hit by the disease) are women and girls.

Each story depicted in the film is heartbreaking and honest, yet at the same time incredibly inspiring. The movie serves as a call to action to encourage people to be more involved in the struggle for girls’ education, and it is difficult to forget once you have seen this remarkable film. In my opinion, the first step to change is to raise awareness of the issue, and this film is a perfect representation of exactly what needs to be done to propel the movement. Everyone, women and men, should all see this movie if they get a chance – you won’t regret it.

Here is a link to the 10×10 Girl Rising Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/10x10act and their website: http://girlrising.com/ if you are interested in learning more information.

Welcome!

Welcome to my blog, “What Sarah Says.” I, Sarah MacKenzie, am eager to delve into my first blog experience as a public relations student at University of Oregon. I have always been one to share my thoughts verbally, and will now use this as a written outlet to share my views. The creation of this blog was intended for one of my journalism classes, but I aim to incorporate other ideas and opinions as well.

One goal I have for this blog is to express reflections upon my life in the present. Many people spend too much time worrying about things that have already happened or things that have yet to come. Personally, I find that type of thinking to be destructive to a person’s well being because you can’t change the past; you also can’t know the future. I hope to embody a quote by Lao Tzu in my blog; the meaning speaks true to how I try to live my everyday life.

“If you are depressed, you are living in the past.
If you are anxious, you are living in the future.
If you are at peace, you are living in the present.”
-Lao Tzu, philosopher.