The Public Relations Blog

Social media is now the No. 1 way the majority of Americans spend their time on the Internet. Currently, there are more than 1 billion active Facebook users and 400 million Twitter users – and these numbers are increasing rapidly. It’s clear that social media is booming. People use it for everything: to obtain news, to be entertained and to research and buy products and services. In fact, social media offers a straight, quick path to your target audience – which is why you can’t afford not to be using it.

It’s great to see a company using PR in a smart and astute way to boost sales. Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. announced last week that its Outback Steakhouse Restaurants are now open for lunch nationwide. The company, looking to increase its revenue by expanding its menu and hours, initiated a campaign of national awareness after testing the market on a much smaller – and quieter – scale over the past year. Outback Steakhouse began offering lunch service in select restaurants last year to assess the overall consumer interest and operating expenses. After successful trial runs, the corporation was ready to formally announce its plans to launch lunch service at all of its restaurants across the nation.

By Alexandria Easland

As a public relations student at San Diego State University, I am interested in the ethical issues that arise around the profession. To that end, I recently spoke with Jason Mudd, CEO and president of the Axia Public Relation firm. Not only did Mudd reveal how he got interested in and involved with the profession, but also the standards he holds himself, his employees and his clients to in terms of ethics. Below is my interview with Mr. Mudd.

Embrace, understand and leverage this important tool

Everyone reading this post likely has a general understanding of social media. Regardless of the platform, social media is about one thing and one thing only: social engagement.

All businesses should seriously consider at least a minimal social media presence. Unlike traditional public relations, social media is focused on creating brilliant content, sharing it, then listening and responding in an effort to take traditional PR efforts to the next level. Using advanced reporting, monitoring and structuring tools, public relations teams can further build brands and create a loyal, active following of customers and fans – all of whom can further extend your reach.

While the tumultuous Sony waters continue to swirl, public relations professionals stand on the shore, attempting to discern how a behemoth corporation like Sony could have allowed so many PR flubs to occur – seemingly overnight. The most obvious question is whether or not Sony Pictures is so full of its arrogant Hollywood ego that it believes itself safe from attack and its employees absolutely protected from public scrutiny.

With the landscape of communications becoming more focused on social media and less on traditional media disciplines, there is little doubt that the future of public relations will continue to transform and evolve. Axia PR put together a list of its top predictions for the direction public relations will take in 2015.

Axia Public Relations Offers Four Guidelines

When consumers complain on social media, should a company apologize or seek a different solution instead? In an era of highly social, media-driven communication, it seems like every organization is on high alert in preparation for the uncomfortable, dissatisfied vocal minority. But the thing is, you just can't please everyone. Companies recognize that social media opens up a virtual world in which anyone can speak his or her mind — and do so anonymously. That creates fear that often drives the urge for organizations to apologize, sometimes when it isn't really warranted.

No business wants to deal with a PR crisis. In today’s instant-news world, a mistake or blunder can swiftly tarnish a hard-earned, respected reputation. In 2014, there was no shortage of PR gaffes, and most were avoidable. Axia Public Relations developed a list of the top 2014 preventable PR disasters that prove that even the largest, most well known corporations are not goof-proof.

A common theme in this year’s list of major PR goofs is the mishandling of social media. Three major players: DiGiorno, a subsidiary of Nestlé, Oreo, owned by Nabisco, and transportation leader DHL all bungled their use of social networking service Twitter in 2014. By using less-than-savvy tactics and little forethought, all three corporations outraged consumers with insensitive and outrageous tweets. The takeaway: Because of the instantaneous and widespread nature of social media, it is critical that companies use extreme care when posting to social media outlets.

SANFORD, Fla. – After a competitive search, Rebounderz Franchise and Development selected Axia Public Relations as its agency of record for public relations to build its reputation and attract new franchisees to the growing brand.

How to Re­Market the Results of a Public Relations Campaign and Maximize ROI

Gaining positive coverage is great news and certainly a morale boost in that someone thinks you
are doing a good job, but why leave it there? Just because you had a story published, does not
mean everyone has had a chance to see it. The very nature of word­of­mouth is that it is viral,
but to get the ball rolling, it is in your organization's interest to actively ensure that your message
resonates with as many as possible.