Reflection Post

Wow! What a semester it has been! Such a lively and entertaining class to be part of! Our ALES 204 class has learned so much in regards to communication, social media and being professional. ALES 204 was a very valuable class to take in order to learn more about how social networking will impact us in the future!

Favorite part of the course? Using Twitter for marks! It was so much fun to use Twitter in a course. I found it helpful to read what others thoughts were on the material and I also enjoyed seeing others use Twitter for the first time. I have had Twitter for a few years now and I now have 826 followers! It is amazing what you can do when you have numerous followers. For my job last year, I was paid to tweet for YoungFreeAlberta.com and we had almost 3,000 followers to our Twitter page! If I wanted to know what the road conditions were, I would tweet out, and receive three or four responses in a matter of minutes! So cool and useful! I'm truly glad that students had to get this and can experience how fun Twitter is. I think that the people who 'hate' Twitter the most... end up liking it the most!! I also loved telling other students at the University that I was tweeting for marks!! Let's just say... they were more than jealous.

Besides the skills I learned in public speaking, presenting, interviewing and e-mail writing, I think I most valued about ALES 204 was the the online tools that we learned about. LinkedIn, Delicious, Google Docs and Wikipedia... all tools that I didn't use before but I will now! Since getting LinkedIn, I have connected with 35 people and that number continues to grow! I love being connected to people that I used to work with on a professional level. Google Docs is another tool that saved me this semester. Works so well with group projects! Saved me and my groups lots of stress and I will definitely be using it again in the future!

Overall, this was a very useful course to take and I am glad that I took it after they changed the platform. Much more interesting with social media added into the curriculum! I think that next time this is offered you all should include YouTube as a subject to be covered as well! YouTube is one of the most visited websites on the internet and can be used in a professional manner as well. Definitely worth looking into! Thanks to Jessica and my T.A. Obi for taking the time to teach this course because I think we will all be able to take a lot away from this class!

Here are the links to the comments I have made on other blog posts:

• Madeleine
• Julie
• Annalise
• Jasmeena
• Nicole
• Katy

Here is a video that Professor Jessica Laccetti asked Annalise Young, Julianna Damer and I to put together for the last day of class. It is a video that sums up the course and looks at how we can use ALES 204 in the future. Check it out!

And to conclude, here are some famous quotes from influential bloggers and experts on social media.

“How can you squander even one more day not taking advantage of the greatest shifts of our generation? How dare you settle for less when the world has made it so easy for you to be remarkable?”- Seth Godin, Seth's Blog

“Social networks aren’t about Web sites. They’re about experiences." - Mike DiLorenzo, NHL social media marketing director 

“More companies are discovering that an über-connected workplace is not just about implementing a new set of tools — it is also about embracing a cultural shift to create an open environment where employees are encouraged to share, innovate and collaborate virtually.” - Karie Willyerd & Jeanne C. Meister, HarvardBusiness.org 

“Networking is not about hunting. It is about farming. It’s about cultivating relationships. Don’t engage in ‘premature solicitation’. You’ll be a better networker if you remember that.” -Dr. Ivan Misner, NY bestselling author & founder of BNI

Thanks for reading my blog!

Very nice comment from a fellow ALES 204 student!

This is a very nice comment that Laura Gruber posted on my blog! Check it out! 

"First of all I have to say how much I love your blog! I think it's the best one I've seen. I absolutely love the picture at the top. I'm very impressed.  I also think it's great how your blog posts all relate exactly to what you want to do and your interests. It makes your blog very interesting to read. Your blog is one that anyone could read and not be bored because most other blogs are all about the class. I like that you update your blog frequently. I noticed you also have your own personal blog. It must make it easier to write because I'm not a writer and I know I have the hardest time knowing what to write. Great blog and good job actually making it fun to read."

Thanks Laura! :)

Social Media Revolution!

Very interesting! Check it out!

Wikipedia Article

This was quite an interesting project! I always knew that Wikipedia was a website where anyone could update the information but I never really thought about doing it myself! So much fun! At first, it was difficult for me to find a topic to write about. I am currently studying Human Ecology (Fashion Marketing) and therefore, I wanted to choose a subject that had to do with the fashion and retailing industry. It was difficult finding something in this field that I could research and that hadn't already been written about. I wish it was easier to find stubs on the website. Sure, they are organized nicely into categories but if you are wanting to find a certain topic it would have been much easier to have a search engine to search the stubs for you.

Initially, I was going to write on the fashion companies Free People or Cole Haan. These are both fashion and accessory companies that I am familiar with. I later found that they would be very difficult to get references for and most of the critical information from their official websites were already on the page. Therefore, I had to choose a different topic. I ended up going with Jacques Cartier (the jeweler), one of the brothers who helped create the luxury Cartier jewelry line. There was lots of information from credible sources that I was able to cite on this topic. I also added a referenced picture.

I have always loved Cartier jewelry. It has been something that we have studied in some of my class and even though I can't afford any Cartier jewelry right now, I plan to own some when I am older. Cartier jewelry and watches are timeless. It was fun for me to looks for sources and learn more about how this business was started.

Through looking at other blogs and Wikipedia articles from the students in the ALES class has been interesting too. I have noticed that lots of students are having trouble when it comes to referencing and citing and I did as well! One Wikipedia article that stuck out to me was the one on Textile Design by Katy Cheung. Katy is in the same program as me so it was interesting reading about some of the information that we have used in our classes. She used some of our textbooks as reference as well, so I know that they are credible. I though she did a great job on her article!

This was a great assignment because I truly think that I learned a lot about Wikipedia.

**Please note: My wikipedia username is kelseymacd.

Vlog!

Here is a vlog that Annalise Young and I did for the class in response to Julianna Damer's video post. Check it out!!

Julianna's original post:

Our response post:

Scientific Articles

Being a Human Ecology student, I haven't had to write many scientific articles. Actually, I have only had to write one once in my textile science class. I understand how other agriculture student would have the need to write more scientific articles/papers but thus far it has not been a necessity in my classes. That is why I am pleased that we had a week to learn about this in class. Especially since we have to write one for this class! Kaustav's lecture was really helpful and I know that it will come in handy when I am putting together my scientific paper!

The papers that I usually write are typically laid out like the following:

1 paragraph - Introduction
3 paragraph - Body
1 paragraph - Conclusion

But according to Kaustav's lecture, scientific are laid out like this:

Title
Abstract
Introduction
Materials and Methods
Results
Discussion
Conclusion
Tables and Figures
References

...much different that an english paper. Wish me luck while putting mine together for the assignment!

Folksonomy and tagging!

What is 'folksonomy'?? According to Wikipedia, folksonomy is:

 

Ultimately, folksonomy is just part of a larger idea: tagging. The internet is an information overload. You can find information on absolutely anything! Ex:

How to take the door off of a '92 Honda?

What is ALES 204?

What do The Beatles songs really mean?

Why do chickens crow?

Who designed the lastest Versace pattern?

Etc, etc, etc....

But how do you find the information you want in such a large pool of knowledge? How do you find the right picture for your portfolio? TAGGING.

Tagging allows for things to be categorized and organized so that it can be found easier. It makes the internet simpler. The more specific the tag the better. According to our lecture, tagging is dynamic, offers serendipity, reflects changing ideas and changes communication. This method of sorting makes it easier for the user to find/use the information. Tagging is a very important asset to the use of internet.

Avoid that 'Death by Powerpoint' Feeling

Powerpoint is a widely used tool for creating successful presentations. According to Alexei Kapterev, there are an estimated 300 million powerpoint users across the world. Kapterev discusses how bad presentations lead to a vicious cycle. A bad presentation leads to bad communication, which leads to bad relations, which leads to less sales, which leads to less money, which leads to less training, which in turn leads to the return of bad presentations. This week has been very helpful when looking at creating presentations. In University, we need to do many presentations that are graded so therefore it is very important to communicate our ideas effectively.

The following link is an article by Dr. Joseph Sommerville about The Seven Deadly Sins of Powerpoint Presentations. 

Another method that I have found effective for presentations is using other presentation platforms (rather than powerpoint). Prezi is one that I have used often. Of course, it is important to double check that a powerpoint is not a necessary tool to be used. If one is allowed to use other forms of presentations then Prezi is a good platform to use.

Julie also had some good points on Pecha Kucha presentations as well! Very neat! Check it out!

Speeches

What makes a good speech? When you type in 'best speech ever' on YouTube this is the first video that comes up:

Is this really the best speech? I'm not sure. But it is a good speech. But what makes it a good speech? His ability to capture your attention? His ability to evoke a feeling in his audience? Or his passion for the subject? Are these all things that lead to giving a great speech? Well, if giving a good speech was based solely on these factors then this little girl would also be a great speaker.

Such a little inspiration! If only I could give myself these daily affirmations! ...see! She got me thinking and wanting to apply her techniques to my life! But does that necessarily mean that this young girl is good a giving speeches?

In class this week, I learned numerous things about speeches. They must be organized and effective. You should know your material, know you audience and know the venue. Be prepared and be sure there is continuity in your speech. Other than that, anyone can give a good speech. If you are passionate about a topic and you don't let yourself have stage freight then we can succeed.

I really enjoyed our lab on Pecha Kucha speeches. We had limited time to come up with a topic and presentation... but it was fun seeing what we could put together!

Here is a video of me last year with my job with Young & Free Alberta. This was my FIRST EVER appearance on live TV. VERY nerve-wracking! I definitely said 'umm' too much but overall I got the message that across that the program wanted me to. Let me know what you think!

If you want to read another blog post about speeches from a classmate, then I would recommend reading Annalise Young's post!

Have a good weekend!

Resumé 2.0: The Social Media Version

Generation Y has grown up in a time of great changes in the industry of technology. Most people are connected 24/7 these days. Their cellphone in their pocket while walking around the house, by their bed while they sleep and even with you when you are in the privacy of your own bathroom. This shows how society is constantly changing which means the job application process is different now as well. Online tools are becoming more and more relevant in this day and age. There are websites such as LinkedIn, Empire Avenue and even Twitter that can be used as a means to promote yourself as a business professional. This is why I was very pleased when our ALES 204 assignment was to make a Facebook Page as business professionals.

There is great potential in having a Facebook Page for your professional self. This is a great spot for possible future bosses to learn about your skills, work experience and interests without them having to see all of your personal information. I had a great time putting together some information about myself that I thought would be important for employers to know about myself.

Below are photos from my Facebook Page. You can click the first picture to go visit the page if you would like! 

The other pages that I chose to include as my interest on my page were Young & Free Alberta and 104.9 Virgin Radio because those are both institutions I used to work at. I also included The University of Alberta and the Human Ecology Program as they are where I am receiving my education. I also added my favorite Public Relations group because this is the field in which I wish to pursue a career. And for fun I included the page of a musician friend of mine, Justin Blais.  

I also found it interesting reading the other blogs from students in the class about their experience creating their page. I especially enjoyed Jasmeena Gill's blog because she posted a link to an article that discusses how to use Facebook professionally. 

I hope you enjoy my page!

About Kelsey MacDonald

My name is Kelsey MacDonald and this is my blog for my ALES 204 class at the University of Alberta. I am currently in my last year in the Human Ecology program and I am hoping to pursue a career in Public Relations. I moved to Edmonton from Calgary after high school in 2007 and I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in the capital city.

Last year, I was lucky enough to be chosen as Servus Credit Union's Young & Free Alberta Spokesperson for the 2010-2011 term. This job was all about being the connection between Servus Credit Union and Generation Y.  I was paid to Facebook, blog, tweet, and create videos for their Young & Free program, all in hopes of generating a greater number of young clientele to Servus. This job changed my outlook on life and greatly influenced my decision to aspire for a career in public relations because I realized how much I loved connecting with people from all around the world. I also now have a deep understanding of social media and it's importance in our lives due to this work experience.

The role of a public relations specialist is to work with a company to help enhance their reputation and create awareness of their brand or goals. In this day and age, social media plays an enormous role in the marketing of a business. Now, one can be paid to run a social networking site for a business, just as I did last year. This alone proves how integral social media has become in our day to day lives. According to SocialBakers.com, "currently, there are 16 761 880 Facebook users in the Canada, which makes it #13 in the ranking of all Facebook statistics by country." The presence of social media can also be exemplified through the fact of almost every (if not every) large retail company has an official Twitter account and Facebook page. It is a great way to notify the public of what the company is up to... for example, the Nike Store.

 

Or, Sears can create an official @SearsDeals Twitter account where their customers can be continuously updated on their discounts or current coupons. 

This is a great marketing strategy and perfect for generating awareness for potential new customers. Being part of the Young & Free Alberta program helped me realize how much I love social media and what a big part it is playing in our society today. That job helped me to decide that I wanted a career in public relations and I know that social media will continue to be a huge part of my life for a very long time.

I also enjoyed reading Nicole Hayday's blog and how she is planning on incorporating social media into her animal science and veterinary medicine lessons.