Life After OU

Life After OU

by Linden Chalfant

When I started at The University of Oklahoma in August 2004, I really didn’t know what I wanted to do. Business always seemed like a great major, but little did I know, there were so many other options out there. I stumbled upon public relations because one of my friends decided on that and she explained to me what broad career possibilities this major allowed. I started thinking about it and every company needs a wonderful image to back their product. Whether I wanted to work for a PR firm, or simply do public relations for a certain company, it looked like there would be tons of possibilities after graduation.
Leaving OU, I am so glad that I chose this major because through it I have met dedicated professors, made wonderful friends, and gained hands-on experience through internships. Public relations is interesting because its fundamentals are applicable to every aspect of life.
Now that graduation is rapidly approaching, I have narrowed down this vast array of possibilities that I once imagined. Upon graduation, I will be doing risk analysis for an insurance company in Dallas, Texas. This opportunity allows me to use analytical skills, writing skills, and it provides a foundation where my career will be built and maintained upon relationship management with clients. Although I am not going into public relations specifically, I feel like my education through the Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication has prepared me immensely for the real world!

The Loudest Voice

The Loudest Voice
by Linden Chalfant

My team’s client is “OU Nightly.” We have had a really positive experience thus far researching background information about the client, developing a campaign to raise awareness and increase viewership and shaping goals and objectives to implement our detailed plan.

We have learned that “OU Nightly” is a wonderful and credible source for news that is applicable to both OU students as well as members of the Norman community. We decided on a large scope of publics to reach all ends of the spectrum.

I think that one of our most interesting publics is elementary school parents. In doing our benchmark survey, we found that no matter what some motivating factors are for people to watch the news (weather, politics, entertainment, etc.), seeing their child featured on the news would be reason enough to watch…and hopefully continue watching. Our research supported this and has provided solid reasons for targeting this certain public.

Many parents are very involved in their children’s lives, especially at the elementary age. Because of this, we decided to make an impact on 80 second-graders’ lives in order to reach their parents. “What did you do at school today?” is one of the most common questions that a parent asks a child after school. Our goal is to make initiate a child’s interest in “OU Nightly” through a short presentation and activity by some of the prominent anchors from “OU Nightly.” In doing this, we hope that the child goes home and tells their parents about their exciting day, and as a family, they sit down and all watch “OU Nightly” that day and for many more days beyond.

Fashion: PR vs. Advertising

Fashion: PR vs. Advertising

by Linden Chalfant

Today, thousands of people tune in to E! to learn about the latest Hollywood gossip. Thousands of people subscribe to celebrity gossip magazines to read about the latest love interests, the latest addictions, the latest trends. One thing that these two outlets inadvertently do is provide a large base for fashion PR.

Advertising is immensely costly and the research and analysis that go into finding a target audience and a certain niche don’t always pay off. Therefore, advertising can be unbelievably costly and potentially not even work well. As many people all over the world are tuning in to learning about celebrities and people in the media, fashion PR firms are trying to link a client’s product to the ones that we all find so influential.

Because of this, major brands are now linking with fashion PR firms to get their product on a celebrity. This proves to be more cost effective and much more influential than placing an advertisement on television or in a magazine. A brand can spend much less by sending free items to the fashion PR firms and then letting the PR firm find a way to get the item into the arms of a celebrity. For example, there was a brand of baby blankets that was really great, but it didn’t get the recognition that it deserved. The brand was making sales here and there for the satin-lined fleece blanket up until Suri Cruise was photographed clinging onto one in a magazine. The second that this happened, this brand was unbelievable successful. There were backorders for these blankets in all different colors and sizes. This just goes to show how public relations through product placement makes a much larger difference than straight advertising.