Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Prad PR Day Agency Open House Campaign Book
Prad PR Day Agency Open House Campaign Book
Table of Contents
Letter of Transmittal...pg.1
Executive Summary....pg.2
Chapter 1.pg.3
Background
SWOT Analysis
Core Problem/Opportunity
Chapter 2.....pg.9
Goals and Objectives
Chapter 3.......pg.11
Key Audiences, Publics, and Messages
Chapter 4...... pg.14
Strategy, Tactics, and Tools
Chapter 5.......pg.18
Budget
Timetable
Chapter 6.......pg.26
Campaign Outcomes
Chapter 7.......pg.29
Measurement and Evaluation
Recommendations
References.....pg.33
Appendix.......pg.35
Appendix A: Event Survey
Appendix B: Survey Results
Appendix C: Comments from Attendees
Appendix D: Speaker Biographies
Appendix E: Public Service Announcement
Appendix F: Press Release
Appendix G: Letter to Professors
Appendix H: Fullerton Campus Flyer
Appendix I: Irvine Campus Flyer
Appendix J: TSU Marquee
Appendix K: Student Portal
Appendix L: Facebook Posts
Appendix M: Instagram Posts
Appendix N: Twitter Posts
Appendix O: Posting Locations
Appendix P: Primary Contacts
Appendix Q: Team Biographies
May 7, 2015
Professor Douglas Swanson, Ed. D APR
Cal State Fullerton-Irvine Campus
3 Banting
Irvine, CA 92618
Dear Professor Swanson:
On behalf of the students of PRactical ADvantage Communications and California State
University, Fullerton, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to assist you in the
PRactical ADvantage Communications Agency Open House and Public Relations
Speaker Panel. We have enjoyed being a part of such a wonderful event and are honored
to provide you with information and recommendations moving forward.
We promoted the PRactical ADvantage Communications Agency Open House and PR
Speaker Panel to CSUF students, faculty, and industry-related guests. We used various
new and traditional media tactics to encourage attendance. We were privileged to feature
four diverse industry professionals for the PR Speaker Panel. The event provided guests
with great entertainment, delicious food, lively music, and an opportunity to network.
We have learned so much working on this event and we appreciate your time, advice, and
input. We look forward to applying what we have taken away from this assignment
towards our future. We thank you again and will surely use all of the knowledge gained
from this experience towards our personal careers following graduation.
Cordially,
Executive Summary
According to Smith (2005), An executive summary- one- or two-page
synopsis of a strategic plan or other report intended as an overview for
executives and others who need general information but not details
(p. 341).
In spring 2015, PRactical ADvantage Communications held their annual Agency
Open House and this year incorporated a PR Speaker Panel. Our team executed the
planning of the event for our client, Dr. Douglas Swanson, Faculty Supervisor of
PRactical ADvantage Communications. The Agency Open House and PR Speaker Panel
took place on April 23, 2015 at the Cal State Fullerton main campus and simultaneously
at the Cal State Fullerton Irvine campus through the use of two-way screening room
technology. The event hosted four PR industry professionals who led an interactive
discussion dedicated to the public relations field as well as promoted the PRactical
ADvantage Communications agency to students at Cal State Fullerton, faculty, and
industry professionals.
The overall goal of the event was to increase awareness and increase attendance
from last years end result by 500% at 50 total guests.
Numerous new and traditional media tactics and tools were used to help promote
and encourage attendance. Traditional media utilized throughout the promotional stages
of the event included on-campus signage, a PSA on Titan Radio, two on-screen
promotion segments on Titan TV, various on-campus advertising, and pitching a news
release to two local press outlets. Further communication outreach consisted of sending
electronic and print invitations to professors and clubs along with directly reaching
students with tabling efforts.
New media included the use of social media including Facebook, Twitter, and
Instagram to spread awareness of the event to the students of Cal State Fullerton.
Alliances made the COMM Week, PRactical ADvantage Communications, and CSUF
official social media teams were used in order to promote our messages to their built-in
audiences.
These promotional efforts generated an interest by students and a positive
outcome in attendance. The event succeeded a noticeable increase in attendance from the
previous year at over 60 guests total, amongst positive feedback.
CHAPTER 1
Background, Situation Analysis, Core
Problem/Opportunity
SWOT Analysis _
SWOT Analysis is a useful technique for understanding your Strengths
and Weaknesses, and for identifying both the Opportunities open to
you and the Threats you face.
Internal Analysis
Strengths
The PR Speaker Panel gave students the chance to obtain valuable insight from
experienced professionals within the field
It allowed students to engage in discussion with PR professionals
Provided a spotlight on public relations
Challenges
Last years attendance was not a desirable outcome
The location at the Fullerton campus was separated from the rest of the COMM Week
events
Appealing to Communication majors who are not in the PR concentration proved to be
difficult
The Fullerton campus only had a broadcast version of the speaker panel, which made it
difficult for students to feel that they could engage with the panel (as shown through lack
of participation of at Fullerton campus)
External Analysis
Opportunities
Social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter were available to help bring
awareness to students
Two locations offered students the option to attend at either the Fullerton or Irvine
campus
Attendees had the opportunity to establish relationships with professionals from the
industry by bringing them to CSUF
The event was during COMM Week, which gave us a built-in audience for promotional
efforts
Faculty can offered extra credit opportunities for students to attend a COMM Week event
Faculty can used the event in place of a normal class session
CSUF offered multiple media services to help promote the event
Threats
Attendance from students were hindered by their routine activities like work or class due
to the time and date of the scheduled event
The Newport Beach Film Festival had its opening night on the same night, which took
away attention from our event from communications majors
Core Problem/Opportunity
The core problem that was faced with this event was that there was a lack of prior
awareness amongst students, which relates directly to low attendance rates in the past.
CSUF provided a great opportunity to utilize the many facilities, services, and
organizations of the university. Also, social media was a powerful tool to generate
awareness, especially in the age group we were mainly targeting.
According to a study conducted by Nielsen, Facebook is the top used social media
platform while Twitter is second (Nielsen, 2012). This information provides a wonderful
opportunity to promote this event using these platforms. Platforms such as Facebook,
Twitter and Instagram were popular amongst our target audience. Services such as Titan
Radio, Titan TV and Reprographics also furthered our promotional efforts. Titan Radio
gave us a PSA shout-out during their regular radio slots. Titan TV gave us a platform to
broadcast our event to their viewers. We used the Digital Print Services (formerly known
as CSUF Reprographics).
CHAPTER 2
Goals and Objectives
Goal:
The overall goal of the event is to not only promote awareness about the public relations
industry for Cal State Fullerton students, but also to successfully attract attendance
Objectives:
Obtain an audience of at least 50 people on Fullerton campus (increase last years
attendance by approx. 500%)
We picked 50 people because it seemed like a reasonable, yet substantial increase from
last years attendance.
Obtain an audience of at least 25 people on Irvine campus
We picked 25 because less students have classes at the Irvine campus.
Obtain an 80% retention of our audience
The 80% retention represent how many students will stay for the entirety of the event. We
chose this number because we believed that we would have a successful event, but we
also took into account, the reality that people might not be able to stay for the whole
event due to external factors.
Invite PRSSA and Lambda Pi Eta (communications honor society) to the event
We thought that inviting other PR-related clubs and organizations would increase,
promote, and engage a larger audience.
CHAPTER 3
Key Audiences/Publics and Messages
Our key audiences for PRactical ADvantage Communications Agencys Open House
included:
Students enrolled at CSUF
Faculty members of CSUF
In regards to the students of Cal State Fullerton, we focused specifically on those that are
a part of the College of Communications. They are the ones that would be more likely to
attend due to the fact that they are currently aspiring to go into the communications field.
Faculty should attend because they can bring their students to attend and also gain
valuable information about the PRactical ADvantage Communications Agency.
According to collegeportaits.com, our target audience of communication students made
up 9% of all bachelor degrees awarded during the 2013-14 school year.
Key Message
The message that we broadcast through the Agency Open House for PRactical
ADvantage Communications is the importance of getting your foot in the door, as well as
taking the initiative to go out of your comfort zone. The opportunity here is a chance to
obtain raw insight on the industry. With that being said, those that are PR majors were
encouraged to attend an event that is tailored to their possible careers. This student
involvement with social networks can help facilitate the development of confidence,
identity, transferable skills and, most importantly, offer students opportunities to
demonstrate that they have what is required for the cultural fit within a particular
organization (Stuart, 2011).
Theme
Gain the experience you need before you graduate
This years theme for the event was, gain the experience you need before you graduate.
Through this theme, the team hoped to relay to potential attendees the benefits they
would receive by attending the event. The theme was able to relate to the PR speaker
panel as well as the Agency Open House that immediately followed.
CHAPTER 4
Strategy, Tactics, and Tools
Strategy
According to Cameron (2011), Strategy describes how and why
campaign components will achieve objectives. A strategy provides
guidelines and key message themes for the overall program, and also
offers a rationale for the actions and program components that are
planned (p.154).
As part of our strategy in reach our goals, we utilized students from public relations
classes as possible attendees of the event. We considered all possibilities and outlets
available to reach out to our target audience. We created an agreement with a professor
from the Irvine campus to take students to the event in place of lecture that day and
provide extra credit for attendance of the event.
To achieve of overall goal of increased attendance, we used social media such as
Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook and we also to advantage of the services Cal State
Fullerton offers. Reprographics was used to print our flyers. Titan TV and Titan Radio
were the media outlets used to further our promotion.
We reached out to clubs like PRSSA and Lambda Pi Eta (Honors Communications
Society) to encourage their members to attend our event.
Our team joined the COMM Week team and PRactical ADvantage team in regards to
tabling to students. We tabled for our event on four separate time slots during the two
weeks prior to the event.
Tactics _
According to Cameron (2011), Tactics describe the specific activities
that pout each strategy into operation and help to achieved the stated
objectives. (p.156).
Social Media
As mentioned previously, Facebook and Twitter are the most used social media
platforms; therefore we utilized those mediums effectively to reach the intended target
audience and promote awareness for the event. Specifically, we collaborated with the
COMM Week and the PRactical ADvantage social media teams. In this collaboration, the
social media teams received copy from us to post on our behalf about the Agency Open
House onto their own Facebook page, as well as on Twitter.
Our Facebook event page was housed under the Practical Advantage Facebook account
and was used for social media users to have a place to get more information and have the
opportunity to RSVP. This was also a way to reach out to students, notify them of the
event and send them an invitation.
To add to our social media promotion, we also engaged in Instagram. The PRactical
ADvantage, COMM Week, and even the CSUF Official Instagram account made posts to
increase promotion for the event. We also advertised on the CSUF student portal, which
is visible to every student at CSUF, to notify them about the event.
In addition, through social media, we reached out to anyone that has shown interest in the
COMM Week event by teaming up with the Titan Task Force to promote the event. We
also worked closely with the social media team from the PRactical ADvantage
Communications Agency to reach out to the audience they already have.
TV/Radio
We also reached our target audience through a short interview on OC News on Titan TV.
By promoting the Agency Open House and PR Speaker Panel on OC News, we were able
to visually promote our event to student viewers. According to the Titan TV website,
Titan TV airs over channel 98 on Time Warner and AT&T U-Verse in Fullerton,
Placentia, Santa Ana, Buena Park, Seal Beach, and Newport Beach. In addition, other
cable stations throughout Orange County broadcast CSUF programming.
Titan TV would be a beneficial platform to use because it geographically targets the
audience that would most likely attend our event because they are closest to our event
location. We made two different social media appearances on the Monday and
Wednesday before the event.
Additionally, we used CSUF Titan Radio to blast awareness on campus to students about
the Agency Open House. According to titaninternetradio.org, Titan Radio broadcasts
worldwide and reaches about 6,000 listeners per month (15,000 listeners per semester).
We reached out to the marketing manager of Titan Radio and requested a PSA feature
during the week leading up to the event. Our 30-second PSA aired throughout Monday
through Thursday.
Print
We utilized CSUF Reprographics to print out eye-catching flyers that were displayed and
distributed throughout campus. We used 8.5 x 11 one-sided colored prints that costed
$.46 per print that was funded by our overall allotted budget.
In addition, we gained access to market the event using the digital marquee above the
TSU.
Tabling
We partnered with the PRactical ADvantage and COMM Week teams to promote the
event through tabling at the Fullerton main campus. When tabling, possible attendees
were educated and encouraged to attend the PR Speaker Panel.
Tools
Press Releases & Pitches
A press release was generated and sent to local news outlets such as The OC Register and
the Daily Titan to feature the event in their publications.
(See Appendix F)
Invitations
In order to reach out to professors, we used multiple strategies to promote awareness for
the event. The Administrative Support Coordinator from the Department of
Communications sent out a save the date mid-March. This allowed professors to receive
an initial announcement from a more credible source. A few weeks prior to the event,
we wrote a tailored business letter to the part-time and full-time faculty inviting them to
the event, with the hopes that they would encourage attendance from their students. We
also attached flyers in order to provide them with more information. Lastly, we emailed
individual professors that held class at the same time as our event (at both campuses), in
order to offer them the opportunity to bring their class.
CHAPTER 5
Calendar and Budget
Budget
Given Budget
Donations
TOTAL BUDGET
8.5x11 Printed flyers from Reprographics
Balloons
Food (Irvine Campus)
Food (Fullerton Campus)
including sandwiches, muffins, water,
gatorade, etc.
Thank you cards
Camera Film
TOTAL EXPENSES
Expected
$300.00
$$300.00
Actual
$300.00
$350.00
$650.00
$20.80
FREE
$125.00
$75.00
$141.50
FREE
$267.93
$96.58
$4.99
$60.00
$285.79
$4.99
$66.00
$577.00
$14.21
$73.00
Our budget shows that we were expected to go under by $14.21. By the end of the event,
we went under budget by $73.00 with the help of a $200 donation from Professor
Evanow and a $150 donation from the Gutierrez family.
Date:
Status:
01/01/2015
to
05/14/2015
COMMWK-PRDAY_SP15
All
Project Type:
All
Show:
Personnel
Type:
Summary
Client:
Personnel
Hours
Allen, Rachel
46.00
46.00
Clark, Maya
32.53
32.53
Gutierrez, Jazmin
41.80
41.80
Total
131.58
Date:
Status:
Project Type:
Show:
Type:
02/09/2015 to
05/14/2015
COMM-WK-PRDAY_SP15
All
All
Clients, Projects
Summary
Client
Project Code
Client:
COMM-WK-PRDAY_SP15
802
Project
Status
Project
Type
Hours
PR Day/Agency
Open House
Open
Event
131.58
Total
131.58
CHAPTER 6
Campaign Outcomes
Campaign Outcomes
According to Smith (2005), Campaign outcomes- measured results of
the implementation of tactics showing the level of achievement of
goals and objectives (p. 339).
Promotion
We were very happy to have our event promoted on many outlets such as Titan Radio, the
PRactical ADvantage social media, the COMM Week social media, and it was even
mentioned on the CSUF Official Instagram account. We did not create our own Twitter
account, but rather utilized Twitter accounts already run by PRactical ADvantage and
COMM Week to promote the event.
Speakers
We were very pleased that all speakers arrived to the event on time and without any
issues. The speakers also had very positive feedback by the end of the event. They really
enjoyed the intimacy of the overall event and appreciated how interactive and semiinformal it was.
Attendees
Between the Irvine and Fullerton campus, we had over 60+ attendees. This surpasses our
initial goal of at least 50 attendees. Overall, guests seemed to enjoy themselves and some
even left notes in the comment box. Also, most of Prof. Jeesun Kims class also attended
the event in placement of their regularly scheduled class. Many students even had a
chance to mingle with the speakers one-on-one after the panel was over.
Student Participation
9 groups of students provided displays of their client work for the open house attendees
to view.
Facebook Event Page
Through the Facebook event page created from the PRAD Facebook account, we sent out
event invites to over 500 Cal State Fullerton students. The page only resulted in 13
confirmed attendees. However, that number did not accurately reflect the actual
attendance, which was considerably larger.
Goals
We omitted our objective to obtain an 80% retention rate for attendees at the Agency
Open House and PR Speaker Panel because it was difficult to measure because of the
flow of traffic from different rooms at the event.
Surveys and Sign-in Sheets
The surveys and sign-in sheets had a less than desirable outcome, but we were able to
gage a general headcount during the event. It was difficult to get everyone to sign-in at
the Irvine campus, which had most of the attendees. The flow of guests between several
rooms for the event made it difficult to encourage participation by everyone. Not all
attendees took the survey, which will cause the survey results to be skewed.
Clubs
Our efforts to engage with on-campus clubs and organizations produced a less than
desirable outcome. PRSSA executive board informed members of event and members
showed a lack of interest in involvement. Also, we reached out to Lambda Pi Eta and they
failed to respond to our initial email and follow-up email.
Press release pitch to news publications
After reaching out to two news publications with a pitch to cover our event, we did not
hear back from either publication for a news feature.
CHAPTER 7
Measurements, Assessment and
Evaluation of Success
Recommendations
Professor Engagement
During COMM Week, Professors become very engaged with the event and love for
students to attend and learn from as many events offered as possible. We would
recommend continuing correspondence with professors to promote the event. Reach out
to professors that have a class time at the same time as the event. Also, reach out to
professors that may offer attending the event as extra credit. Strategically conduct
classroom visits for professors that offer extra credit to further entice students to come to
your specific event.
Keep a Running Contact List of Attendees
It may be beneficial to keep an updated sign-in sheet with guest names and emails so that
a contact list can be maintained. By keeping an updated contact list of those that attended
the event, you will have the means to invite previous attendees again for the next event.
You may also have a contact list to inform those interested in the agency about any future
news or announcements.
Setting Up
We would recommend expecting to start setting up for the event as early as 24 hours
prior. Making sure that the room is set up the day before will make setting up for the
event run much more smoothly. Creating an event day checklist and distributing to all
volunteers along with a contact list will also prove to be useful.
Sign-In Sheets
For this event, we planned to use laptops for guests to check-in. If you plan to do this as
well, having a hard copy as a backup would be useful just in case you are running low on
staff and are not able to setup your laptop in time.
Surveys
Have a designated volunteer to handle surveys would be beneficial. With all of the
commotion of the event, there should be one or two people distributing surveys to the
guests before they leave the speaker panel. Also, having the moderator kindly ask the
guests to participate in the survey will would also help.
Interacting with Guests
Make sure that you have ample volunteers with specific duties will allow more time for
guest interaction. Interact with the guests provide a pleasant atmosphere and is an
important consideration when planning an event.
Facebook
If you choose to create a Facebook event page, make sure to have administrator access to
the account the page is posted on. This will give you some extra control on making sure
your event gets promoted the way you would like. This will also allow you to make
changes or addition to your scheduled posts at your own discretion. This same goes for
Twitter and Instagram, if used.
Flyers
The design for your flyers should be created 2 months in advance. Spaces for pending
information should be left blank and added in when information is known. Having your
flyer drafted early in advance will allow ample time to obtain the necessary approval
from faculty, posting approval from SORC, and printing.
REFERENCES
APPENDIX
The survey shows that all except two respondents either agree or strongly agree to all
questions asked regarding the speakers. The second chart displays similar results by
showing that, again, all except two respondents chose either agree or strongly agree.
Overall, guests showed great interest in the event and their positive feedback is viewed as
a success.
Other guest demographics include that guests were 70% female and 30% male. Over 60%
of survey responders were in the age bracket of 21-24 and more than half of the
responders were seniors, with PR being the dominant major in attendance.
The interactive speaker panel will spotlight PR Professionals: Erin Glover, Social Media
Coordinator for Disneyland Resort; Anthony Magani, Account Manager at Luxury Brand
Group; Andrea Carpena, Client Services Coordinator at Working Wardrobes and CSUF
Alumnus; and Bill Kolberg with over 25 years of experience as a partner at Porter
Novelli. The interactive discussion with these professionals will provide students with
tips and advice for starting their career path in public relations by supplying them with
professional insight and experiences on the industry.
PRactical ADvantage Communications was established in 2011 and is housed at the
CSUF campus in Irvine. The agency is a collaborative effort of students in capstone
courses in the three concentrations of advertising, public relations and entertainment and
tourism.The agency has also conducted over 65 successful campaigns for on- and offcampus nonprofits and businesses. PRactical ADvantage Communications allows
students to develop and implement advertising and public relations campaigns and/or
events for local businesses, non-profit organizations, and student organizations at CSUF.
###
657.278.7402
wrashidi@fullerton.edu
Alfreda Hart
Facilities Support Assistant
Irvine Campus
657.278.1601
alhart@fullerton.edu
LaTanya Jackson
Instructional Support Assistant for IT
657.278.7308
lajackson@fullerton.edu
Reprographics
Digital Printing Service
657.278.3964
SORC
657.278.7622
sorc@fullertno.edu
printing@fullerton.edu
Elahe Amani
Student Affairs (Portal Posting)
Sa_portalmessage@fullerton.edu
Katie Meyers
ASI Marketing & Public Relations
657.278.5870
Kmeyers@fullerton.edu