Personal Brands

Lesson

The final lesson was about how to create your own personal brand. For professionals in the communications field, it’s important to have professional platforms in which to showcase your work. For personal use, it’s good to have a space of our own to connect and display all your projects. By creating a brand for yourself, it’s easier to “market” yourself to potential employers.

Building a personal brand can be done with a few pretty easy steps. One is to be authentic. Next is to keep yourself educated in a field that you love. There is no point in writing about things you don’t care about. Oftentimes readers can tell when the author does not care for the material. Next, you need to continue writing articles not only for yourself, but to contribute to other sources. you could become a source as well. Networking and speaking at events are other ways to create a brand too. Most important, keep an online presence so it’s easy to find you.

Application

In classes, we have been told to be ourselves and write about a field we love, especially in Writing for Com Professions. Networking has been emphasized. Becoming a source hasn’t really been discussed. I never knew you could be a source without a more formal background, such as a degree in the field. Keeping an online presence has been taught in both Writing for Com Professions and in Intro to Media Convergence. We work on how to write articles, but to also keep a bit of ourselves in them to give them more life, to make them appear human.

Article

I have written my last article on what my cat, Smudge, has taught me. It was a little hard to write because I haven’t written an article that wasn’t a list in awhile. It was almost refreshing to not have to come up with numbered steps or tips. The pictures I used were pictures I took, which is always fun. The more involved I am in an article the more proud of it I am. I think this article was a good note to end my internship on. It was a wonderful experience, and I am so happy I had this opportunity.

What I’ve Learned from Smudge

 

Editorial Calendars

Lesson

This week is all about organization. Editorial calendars allow editors to keep track of their writers and the writers projects and deadlines. When coming up with content and trying to keep up with multiple writers, it’s nice to have an easy calendar displaying all the plans for the blog.

Also noted was the difference between content and themes. Content is what the articles are about. The theme is the overarching meaning of what the articles are about. For example you can have the theme of gun violence, and then publish various articles about gun laws or personal stories in reference to that theme, like Marie Claire recently did.

In addition, besides having a calendar with everyone’s assignments, it is also important to make sure you are collaborating with them. Google Drive is great for housing ideas from everyone.

Application

Types of organization aren’t really discussed in classes. Organization is something we learn on the job or by working. Most likely, we will not be editors when graduating college, we will be writers. However, it is worth considering how you might manage a team for future reference or for suggesting in your own work environment.

Article

This will be my last article. It will cover what I learned from my adopted cat, Smudge. It will hopefully be heartwarming and touching. I have sincerely enjoyed writing pet articles for this blog and writing for this blog has been a wonderful experience.

Article!

Here is the article I wrote about how Easter decorations and items may be dangerous for your pets:

4 Common Easter Dangers for Pets

Analyzing Traffic

Lesson

This week’s lesson was all about looking at website traffic. it’s important to take notes on how many people are coming to your site, what kind of people (demographics), and where are they coming from (acquisition). This knowledge can help you direct your attention to a more specific audience. Page views are another important aspect to consider: which pages receive more attention? Why are they getting that attention? How can I direct traffic to other pages? It also may be a good idea to see how long people stayed to see if people were actually reading your posts.

Google Analytics was recommended more than the other examples provided. A brief one-page summary of the important elements to look at was given to me. Aspects such as sessions (both new and returning), page views, and users where considered most beneficial to consider.

Application

Acquisition is something I was more interested than the rest. We have talked in Com 107 about how to promote our blogs on different social media platforms. By seeing which one is performing best, we can adjust our directions on other platforms. Each social media website has different audiences and post types, so the same methods won’t work for all. For example, for Instagram, it is super important to have a nice quality photo. For Twitter, a photo is not needed, but may help. As for Facebook, both a picture and description are important.

As for knowing the demographics, we have talked in multiple Com classes about knowing our audience. Public Relations mentioned how important it was to know the consumers in order to know what information they were looking for and how to keep company information open and honest. Com 106 and 107 mentioned knowing the audience in order to write to and for them. When writing in general, it’s definitely beneficial to know who you are aiming your message at.

Article

This week’s article is on the potential dangers Easter decorations pose to pets. For this article, I had to do research to make sure I had the correct information on what is poisonous to pets and the side-effects they may cause.

Article!

Here is the article on how your cat should be feed through other methods besides a bowl. Bowl-feeding has been found to be unhealthy, promoting lethargy and obesity, so other methods have been introduced to help keep your cat active and closer to its natural roots.

Also, I took the picture in the article itself of my own cat, Smudge.

Say No to the Bowl: Alternative Ways to Feed Your Kitty

 

Networking and Media Kits

Lesson

This week’s lesson was on the appropriate ways to network. Sometimes a simple email will suffice, however, you have to be open and honest with your approach. Going to events an meeting people in person is one of the bet ways to network. Yet in the blogging world, since much of the conversation happens online and there aren’t many blogger conventions, networking online is more ideal. If never hurts to reach out to people!

Once a person has been picked to be approached, it was noted to have an agenda in mind, but an agenda benefitting them. You wouldn’t want someone jumping in and trying to get you to do something for them without some incentive. When contacting the other person, be sure to put what you can help them out with as well.

 

Media kits are something no one has mentioned to me ever. I found out about them online when searching for blogging tips. I really had no idea what was the purpose for them. It was explained to me that they are a marketing tool used to sell the blog space to advertisers or others.

Application

Networking is emphasized in the Communications department. In every class, in the Communications Honor Society, even in outside events, we are repeatedly told about the importance of networking. Yet no one goes over how to approach someone. How to introduce yourself and your needs. Or how to market yourself so you can benefit the person you are attempting to connect with.

I’m not sure anyone has mentioned a media kit. But this type of them might be more suited for Graphic Design, Web Design, or other Media majors.

 

Article

This week’s article is how making a cat eat it’s food out of a bowl is actually unhealthy for it. Bowl-feeding leads to lethargy and obesity and probably explains why most house cats are overweight.

Article!

Here is an article with tips on how to leash train a cat! Cats are much different than dogs, so teaching them to be comfortable with a leash is a little more complicated.

 

7 Tips to Leash Train Your Cat Like a Pro

Article!

Last weeks article was posted! For this article, I made a how-to and took my own pictures. I made a cat tent with materials found around the house, took pictures along the way, and even had it cat-tested and approved!

I enjoyed the crafty part of this article more. Writing is pretty easy. I need more practice on taking better quality photos and on how to be more hands on with my writing. What I mean is instead of just writing about something, I should go out and physically explore the idea to create a better story.

But for now, the DIY world was calling, so I tested this out first.

10 Steps to Make an Easy DIY Cat Tent

Comments

Lesson

This week’s lesson was on how to handle both positive and negative comments. Comments are something I oftentimes forget about when planning to write a story. It’s important to think about the kind of reaction your article will provoke when writing to try and avoid offending anyone.

Also, by replying to positive comments, you make your readers feel like you are listening to them, which hopefully will create a nice friendly conversation. By creating a friendly atmosphere, readers will most likely come back to read articles.

As for the negative commentators, it’s important to know when to pick your battles. For people providing the opposite opinion, you should listen to them and accept their answer as an opposing view. You can try to create an intelligent argument with them without personally attacking them.

Some people will leave criticism. This can help you when writing future articles. It’s also considerate to thank the person for their feedback as well.

People just want to be heard, and it’s important to acknowledge those who are trying to help.

As for the people who are being rude, vulgar, or offensive, it’s okay to delete their comments if you are the administrator to the page. Comments like this have no marketplace value and can be really offensive to not only you, but your readers. However, make sure you don’t delete comments just for the sake of leaving praise on your site. The comments aren’t for you to look like a wonderful person. They are there to allow people to join in on a conversation.

Application

In Communication Law, we learned about censorship and the ins and outs of Freedom of Speech, what is and is not protected. I feel like I could apply this knowledge to knowing which comments can be protected, and which are just hate or threatening speech.

As an writer taking both Communication and English classes, I have learned how important it is to have a backbone. No matter what format you write in, there will be negative people coming at you. And you can either defend yourself, or let them eat your reputation. And in defending yourself, you have to do it with superior grace and integrity. I have also learned how important it is to research, cite sources, and be sure to not relay lies when writing.

Article

This week’s article is about leash training cats. I had some background knowledge from research I did before when thinking about leash training my own cat. But I still did some research to see if there were any other useful tips other pet sites had to offer. Of course, I also cite my sources. I am currently writing it now, and hopefully when done will receive good feedback on how to make the article better.

Article!

Here is the article with tips on picking the right toy for your dog! This article required some research into how different dog’s might behave and what toys were considered safe. When it comes to a happy and healthy dog, play time is just as important as meal time.

Best Toys for Your Dog’s Personality