Related articles by Zemanta

• Evan Williams’ TED talk: Twitter and Change (talkitup.typepad.com)
• Why I use Twitter (socialmediatoday.com)
• The Latest On Twitter: CEO Williams Talks (paidcontent.org)

Although I’m just getting to this post at ReadWriteWeb, I think it’s so important to read it. Writer Marshall Kirkpatrick lists Ten Common Objections to Social Media Adoption and How You Can Respond. I hear these objections a lot — from colleagues still getting to know this stuff, from superintendents who don’t want to blog because of the reactions they might elicit, from adult students who say they just don’t have the time. But Kirkpatrick says that anyone using this media now should be ready to meet these recalcitrant objections with a handy list of responses. For example, when they groan that “our clients don’t use this stuff/it’s too geeky,” let them know nicely that:

Many of these tools provide value vastly disproportionate to the literal number of people they reach. These are like high-value focus groups where you’ll gather information and preparation to engage with the rest of the world.

Editor and Publisher also featured a story earlier this year that looked at how newspapers need to seriously consider making cultural changes, including more use of social media and the web. (I just heard recently from a handful former newspaper colleagues who’ve suddenly found themselves out of a job, and I’m personally losing money on my Gannett stock.)

For me, as a public relations professional with work in the public education sector, I find myself always urging people to get on board this online media train. I hope they begin to robustly use the tools the web offers them to communicate and to promote their fine schools.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Why copywriters can succeed in social media
• Gannett goes national with mom sites
• Throw Down the Gauntlet: Break the Chains of Bad Practice, Build Our Future
• Are You There, Print Journalism? It’s Me, Death
• US publisher Gannett to axe 1,000 staff posts
• Newsroom employment lowest in three decades
• Ouch! Newspaper revenues take biggest plunge on record
• Social Media usage now a Mainstream Activity
• Writer for hire…

Every item is in the small box next to the date, and direct links to those items are in blue. Check it out and see if it works for you.

Related articles by Zemanta

• FitLink Relaunches With More Social Features
• The initial signal of Web 3.0
• Ten web 2.0 ideas that failed

Image via Wikipedia

I just recently learned that I will be presenting a Gold Mine session at the National School Public Relations Association conference in Washington, D.C., titled “School PR and Social Media,” without web access in the meeting room. Yikes!

Apparently, NSPRA’s being asked to pay huge prices for use of the Internet at the hotel, particularly in its large meeting rooms. That’s not very nice — and we all thought the Internet was for everyone. In addition, because it’s a big hotel, the only way you can pick up wireless from a meeting room is by perhaps doing your entire presentation with your laptop by the window.

Oh well. This will be interesting — a presentation about using social media without Internet access. Screenshots, here we come!