The Fashion Industry Promotes Itself In An Annual After-Hours Extravaganza

From Manhattan to Milan, Atlanta to Australia, boutiques, department stores and even neighborhood pop-up shops across the globe will stay open after hours TONIGHT to help celebrate what many call the single biggest shopping event of the year (yes, even larger than ‘Black Friday’)- Fashion’s Night Out!

Having started in 2009 as a way to encourage consumers to shop ‘til they drop all in the name of supporting the fashion industry, this is an event filled with celebrities who want to be seen, designers who want to be known, and of course die hard shoppers (I included) who want those exclusive items that were virtually unknown and/or unattainable up until this very moment. Since its inception, Fashion’s Night Out has expanded to more than 15 countries, with each year becoming more popular than the previous. How you ask? Promotion of course, with a team of people behind FNO publicizing the heck out of it! And this year, they made sure to get the public’s attention in one of the top ways we’re communicating today- through technology and social media.

A special (and FREE) Fashion’s Night Out cell phone app was released earlier this month (for iPhone and Android) which allows users to receive real time event information with “around me” options that help them navigate throughout the night.  You can even communicate plans with friends via e-mail, Facebook, and Twitter, making a meeting at Jimmy Choo as simple as a few taps.

It’s a brilliant idea if you ask me, way to think like a publicist FNO.

~Shonte

How a Los Angeles PR Agency Konnects with the Public

Statistics have shown that 50 percent of Facebook users will check their accounts close to 10 times a day! With school, work, and all the other activities of our busy lives, most people are still making the time to visit their Facebook so often, it would be a crime as a PR agency to not use this to interact with the public.

There are more than 500 million people on Facebook, and close to 150 million users on Twitter. It is no surprise that the number one way to reach the public nowadays is through social media. In past years Facebook or Twitter were  ways to keep in touch with friends or post pic’s of a fun trip you took with some friends. Now the personal side of social media has shifted into the business world. Interning with Konnect Public Relations has taught me to not take this valuable media tool lightly. Whether it means devoting a great amount of time to status updates or detailed research on previous “tweets”, ultimately the time spent will be a key part of a successful PR agency in Los Angeles.

Kaya

LA Public Relations Agency On The Look Out For Summer Interns

Summer is approaching and Konnect PR is on the hunt for interns for our LA public relations agency. If you would like to join our team this summer, please find the job description below:

LA-based boutique PR agency is looking for Summer 2011 interns. Proficient in Adobe Photoshop is highly preferred. Intern duties include: updating client Twitter & Facebook accounts, shipping packages, creating press kits, writing press releases, creating media lists, inputting contacts into Outlook, answering phones, etc.

Applicants should have an interest in public relations, familiar with Microsoft Office. Very hands-on experience, great opportunity to learn PR. Students must receive college credit.

If this is something that sparks your interest-please email me at rdiaz@konnect-pr.com with your resume and cover letter.

We are looking forward to review all of our pr driven submissions!

xo Racine

Lady Gaga’s Contributions to Japan

Every morning before I drive in to our Los Angeles public relations agency, I tune in to the morning news to get updated information on the tragic earthquake in Japan. When disasters like this occur, I always wonder how I can make a difference? With that in mind, I came across a few articles about how Lady Gaga raised $250,000 in a time frame of 48 hours for victims in Japan. Utilizing Lady Gaga’s Twitter and website, she sold $5 bracelets that read “We pray for Japan” in both English and Japanese. It’s always amazing to see how social media spreads the news of people coming together to help in such a fast amount of time. Our thoughts are with those in Japan.

xo Racine

The Prez Goes Viral to Fight Bullying

I challenge you to find one person between the ages of 10 and 22 who does not use Facebook. While I’m sure there are a few that exist, I think it is safe to say the vast majority of middle school, high school and college students are on Facebook.

As seen in many recent news stories, bullying can lead to some terrible outcomes, including suicide and cyber bullying in particular is harder to track and can be just as equally devastating as face to face bullying. Much of the digital bullying happens on Facebook. Many young people think online name calling, making fun or teasing is not as big of a deal as when you call some one a name to their face, but you can ask any person who has been the recipient of harsh online words and they will tell you differently.

Facebook is trying to tackle the problem through its own medium Facebook.  As a LA publicist, I know the importance of trying to be the solution to a problem you may be an enabler of. Facebook does not want to be seen as the problem, but rather part of the solution.

Cyber bullying is a serious problem and it is showing Facebook’s serious dedication to stopping it by making these videos with such influential people, such as this latest one with the President.

xox

Shelby

Baby Bumps

With spring right around the corner, I think it is safe to say that there is definitely a celebrity baby boom going on! It must be in the air – the celeb air that is.
Recently to join the 2011 clan of bumps is Jessica Alba.

At our LA public relations agency we constantly stay in the know of the latest, and these babies are right on top. This soon to be mother of two delivered the news on Facebook. Social media definitely helps us stay that much in tune with what’s going on.

Jessica Alba is now joining Victoria Beckham, Kate Hudson, Mariah Carey, Pink, and Natalie Portman (just to name a few). Who will be next? I’ll be on Twitter watch

xo Racine