Alan Weinkrantz presentation to Students at Trinity University on Strategic PR and Personal Branding. Presentation includes discussion case study of Denim Group, founded by 2 Trinity Univ. alumni

1. Strategic PR
& Personal Branding
Trinity University
September 28, 2010

2. Before we start
• Inventory of cell phones
• Leave them on for the 1st 20 minutes of
the discussion....turn up the volume
• Take all calls, but speak in soft voice
• Check Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, email
• Respond to IM in real time

3. Today
• This course is critical to your career / life
path regardless if you become a PR
person, politician, doctor, lawyer, rock
star, architect, etc or win the lottery
never work a day in your life.

4. Today
• Background
• PR as it was
• PR as it is becoming
• Social Media
• Case Story: Trinity Alumni Company-
DenimGroup
• Personal Branding - you!

5. About
• PR guy for 25 years
• Social Media for the last 5 years
• Blogger with.... 4 blogs
• Former Journalist.... contributing
columnist “Express-News”
• Content producer

6. When I went
to college
No PC - we used a
typewriter
Research was done the
Library
No Internet
No iPhone or wireless
devices
No digital camera
Social Media did not exist

7. Caveat
• Presentation based on my belief sets
• I try things out and like to experiment
• Not everything I do works, but the good
news is that this costs almost zero, other
than your time

8. PR
• PR still matters in the traditional sense
but it’s rapidly changing
• message
• voice
• content

9. Strategy
• I still believe in strategy, but even the
best laid plans have shorter shelf life
because the media and how “news” gets
reported moves so fast

10. I still pitch
• I still develop story ideas
• I still pitch journalists
• I still get “media coverage” for clients,
but it’s getting harder and... less relevant

11. Every company is a...
• Media Company
• content creator
• story teller
• community builder
• aimed at being discovered and
shared if you do your job right and
deliver on your brand promise

12. Premise
• Don’t just study “PR” at Trinity
• become your own client
• start marketing and selling you in
advance of your graduation so you can
go on to grad school, start a new
business, or get an amazing job

13. Today
Dear Mom &
Dad... today in
• Focus on branding school, I learned
• you are a brand that I was a
brand

14. How to package yourself
• Thought leader raise
partners
money
• Innovative
• Connecter
grad
• Networker build a
school
team
• Ear to the ground
cool job

15. Influence is the new currency
• Influence and thought leadership is the
new currency
• Make your voice heard
• Make a difference

16. study. work hard. have fun.
start
story
telling

17. stream
your
narrative

18. build a following
and new deal
flow will come
your way

19. how: > ?

20. converse
interface
broadcast
inform
share
spread you ideas
give away as much information about you as you can

21. The Basics
• Develop your “voice”
• Write like you speak
• Write to and for your audience(s)
• Give yourself six months to see it work

22. Who are you trying to reach?
• Have the right message and tone of
voice
• the right people
• the right networks
• be persistent with outreach

23. The Social Web

24. If you populate the social web
with great and relevant content
about yourself, you’ll be found,
and it will serve its purpose in
whatever you want to do after
you graduate from Trinity

25. static VS. active
Web Site
Brochures
Press Releases
Trade Show Booth

26. Go wide and deep
You Company Technology
Article
Blog
submissions
Facebook delicious
Twitter SlideShare Comment on other
blogs
YouTube
LinkedIn Digg
Docstoc
Slideshare

27. How I’ve used the power of social web to get
media coverage, gain credibility and
demonstrate thought leadership as a pro-
active consumer of AT&T’s three screen
service offering

28. trade business/financial broadcast radio

30. YouTube -great way to pitch the media

31. Re-purposing content...
Industry leaders
demonstrate
N-trig technology

32. Industry leaders demonstrate
N-trig applications & product
differentiation

33. How To: How I watch Internet TV - U-verse and Internet TV

35. DenimGroup
• Founded by 2 Trinity Alum
• Dan Cornell & Sheridan Chambers
• Building secure software
• 50 + employees
• Inc 5,000 company 3 years in a row

36. PR / Social Media
• Thought leadership in emerging market
category
• Hard news
• Media coverage in tech / IT / security
media
• Social Media / Content Development

40. Branding YOU
• Your brand is your best personal resume
• If you understand the power of personal
branding it will help you get into grad
school, start a new business, or great an
amazing job when you finish Trinity
• Branding really shows who you really
are

41. How I am branding Alan
• Social Networks
• Blogging I’m a mini
• Journalism broadcasting
network
• Self PR
• Photography
• Videos

42. What about you?
• Student leader
• Innovator
• Collaborator
• First mover
• Entrepreneur
• Community builder

43. Consumer facing blog covering AT&T positions
me as an authority in triple play services in
telecom

44. Facebook connects me to
friends & business associates in
the U.S. and Israel

45. LinkedIn - business focused social
networking in the U.S. and Israel

46. Flickr photos....I always carry my
camera when I travel for fun or business

47. Monthly columnist for San Antonio
“Express-News” covering AT&T
and Social Media

48. B.B. King, Tom Petty, The Who
in Concert

49. Branding You!
• Join a few networks
• Determine what you want to
communicate about yourself
• Make sure you have an up to date photo
• If you are on social networks, make sure
you have an up to date profile

50. Branding You
• Your personal site on Facebook
incorporated with your school work
• Start a blog on your professional
interests
• 30 days of listen
• 30 days of research to see who you want
to engage with
• 30 days of conversation and outreach

51. Brand Persona
• @TrinityHottie careful how
you brand
• @LoveMyBeer
yourself on
• @BigAssCamero twitter...
• @AnarchyNation

52. Be aware
• You are what you post...
• “got shit-faced last night at Fiesta”
• “going to Mexico this weekend to....”
• “Prof. Smith is an ass-hole”
• “looking to buy term paper on....”

53. Contact
• Alan Weinkrantz
• www.alanweinkrantz.com
• alan@weinkrantz.com
• @alanweinkrantz - Twitter
• FaceBook, LinkedIn too!

54. Copy of presentation
• online today: alanweinkrantz.com
• Slideshare.net
• copy and share with others
• this is just what I believe and seems to
work
• your mileage may vary

55. start story telling
be your own client
don’t just “study” PR; do it for yourself

56. Thank You
© 2010