Help Us Help Others During the Holiday Season!

This holiday season, News Generation will be making a donation to two non-profits. All are groups we are proud to call our clients in 2009. Through this donation, we hope to give an extra dose of cheer during this upcoming holiday season and a helping hand heading into 2010.

Here is where we need your assistance. Since each of these organizations represents such great work, we need your help in deciding which organization will receive the donation.

Simply select one of the charities listed below, no later than Tuesday, December 1, 2009. You may vote more than once and we encourage you to include your friends, colleagues and family in the voting!Cast your vote below. The amount of the donation will be $4,000 to the organization that gets the most votes, and $2,000 to the runner up that gets the second most votes.

Vote at http://tr.im/EPh3

WWPR Holiday Party -- Have Fun, Do Good

More charitable touches accompanying holiday partying in the communications community to report. This time it is the Washington Women in Public Relations holiday party:

When: Tuesday, December 15, 2009

6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Location: Gordon Biersch,

900 F St NW (Gallery Place Metro)
Cost: Bring a donation for the Children's Law Center (WWPR's pro bono client) and, if you're a WWPR or PRSA member attend for free!

If you're not a member, attend for just $10. Without a donation, WWPR's cost $10 and non-members cost $15.

Free Twitter 201 Webinar

You know we love to tell you about free stuff and here's a goodie from Burrelles Luce for Capital Buzz readers using Twitter as part of your social media strategy who want to take it to the next level.

A recent BurrellesLuce survey revealed that almost half of their PR clients have a Twitter account. To help those struggling to actually reap tangible benefits from their Twitter activity BurrellesLuce developed a 60-minute, on-demand webinar, "Twitter 201: Adding Twitter to Your Strategic PR Toolbox".

It promises that you will:
~learn how to fit Twitter into your social media plan,
~find ways to use Twitter to enhance your PR campaigns, and
~identify which metrics can be used to garner company-wide support.

Download the webinar, and then let The Capital Buzz know if you find it helpful.

WWPR Program Time Corrected

I've already corrected it in the previous post, but want any Capital Buzz readers who may have previosly read the item about Thursday's Washington Women in Public Relations program on Lessons Learned from leading PR women professionals know that the correct time for the program is noon to 2:00 p.m. and it is a brown bag lunch program.

Thanks to WWPR for promptly letting me know that the information in the first notice I received from Cvent which I used for my post had been caught and corrected.

IABC Will Negotiate Dues With Unemployed Members

Today’s Ragan’s PR Junkie newsletter reported that the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) offers “a complimentary hardship extension to members who are experiencing financial distress,” according to Lee Anne Snedeker, senior vice president of global development for IABC, in a comment to a previous PR Junkie post.

“All they need to do is email me a short summary of what’s going on (we’ll keep it confidential), and depending on longevity and other considerations, we often grant extensions of one to six months,” Snedeker wrote.

But don’t expect an automatic freebie. In a separate correspondence with PR Junkie, Snedeker explained that "the decision about whether to extend membership is based on [the person's] years as a member and contributions to the association. The length of the membership extension depends on the situation." If you would like to ask for consideration, send e-mail to service_centre@iabc.com.

Other professional organizations, including the Public Relations Society of America and the Society for Human Resources Management, have offered a price break or a free year of membership for unemployed members.

This week, IABC e-mailed its members a promotion offering current members extensions of their membership for three months, up to one year, for each new member he or she recruits. Several PR Junkie readers criticized the program. As a member of IABC’s 500 Club (a group that bailed the organization out financially several years ago in exchange for lifetime membership) and former IABC Washington Board member, I understand the organization’s desire to find ways to build membership. IABC has lost 1,000 members since the end of 2008 and expects a further drop in membership of about 7 percent by the end of this year.

PRSA-NCC's Communications in the Nonprofit Sector: How to Demonstrate PR Value

PRSA-NCC cordially invites you to the first professional development seminar presented by the PRSA-NCC Nonprofit/Association and Professional Development Committees:
Communications in the Association and Nonprofit Sector: How to Demonstrate PR Value

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

8:00 A.M. – 10:00 A.M.

8:00-8:30 a.m.: Networking, registration and continental breakfast

8:30-10:00 a.m.: Program U.S. Navy Memorial & Heritage Center

701 Pennsylvania Ave., NW

Washington, DC 20005

Metro: Navy Memorial/Archives (green/yellow lines)

Cost: $35 PRSA members and WWPR members/$55 non-members/$10 students/retirees$10 surcharge at the door

Register at: http://www.prsa-ncc.org/option,com_events/task,view_detail/agid,331/year,2009/month,11/day,18/Itemid,0/

Learn from Experience: PR Wonder Women Share Lessons That Shaped Their Careers

Once again short notice, but what promises to be a strong program from Washington Women in Public Relations (WWPR).

On Thursday, November 19 WWPR is presenting a powerhouse panel of senior PR women professionals who will share life-changing moments in their careers, what they learned and how those experiences led them to career success. (This was a panel idea first done by WWPR five years ago and now "back by popular demand".)

In the interest of learning from others' experiences, the panelists will foster an intimate dialogue with the audience, encouraging them to relate some of their "lessons learned" as well.

Panelists include several past PR Woman of the Year Award winners, as well as other local industry experts:

- Tara Hamilton, Public Affairs Manager, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority
- Myra Peabody Gossens, President, Circle Consulting (1991 PR Woman of the Year)
- Denise Graveline, President, Don't Get Caught (2002 PR Woman of the Year)
- Nolu Crockett-Ntonga, Policy Communications Officer, CARE USA
- Beverly Silverberg, President, Beverly R. Silverberg Communications, Inc. (1995 PR Woman of the Year)
- Moderator: Pat Wheeler, Director of Marketing, Cultural Tourism DC (1993 PR Woman of the Year)

WHEN: Thursday, November 19, 2009 ~ Noon - 2:00 p.m. (brown bag lunch)
WHERE: Ogilvy Worldwide DC, 1111 19th St NW # 10, Washington, DC
FEE: Members ~ complimentary; Non-members ~ $15
RSVP: Register by Wednesday, November 18, 2009

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Party Time

Get out your calendars and checkbooks -- it's time for the holiday rush of "parties" put on by area communications professional societies and profit making enterprises that offer food, drink and networking in a festive environment.

As regular readers know, I am a Scrooge about these events -- I don't pay to go to parties and I don't pay to go to professional society activities without a program. However, I'm happy to report that this year there will be a few benevolent and seasonally appropriate touches:

• the Capital Communicators Group (CCG) plans to offer a December program that will feature a speaker on charitible causes and will have ask attendees to bring a gift to donate to the US Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots program
• the IABC Washington Holiday Party will be December 10 and will include a raffle to benefit Bread for the City.

Scheduled, upcoming holiday events include:

Wednesday, December 2 ~ The One Party
6:00 p.m. at Eye Bar, 1716 I Street NW, Washington DC
ONE aims to be a celebration that unites the DC metro area's premier advertising, marketing, public relations, media, interactive and design organizations and "provide the ultimate backdrop for gathering and networking in the spirit of the holiday season - a unique way for members and sponsors to connect with the ultimate audience"
Tickets cost $50 per person and include your first three drinks & heavy appetizers REGISTER: https://secure140.timberlakepublishing.com/adclubreg/one_register.asp

Wednesday, December 9 ~ the PRSA-NCC Holiday Party
6:30 p.m. at Mio Restaurant, 1110 Vermont Ave, NW, Washington, DC
PRSA says this is the perfect spot for ringing in the holidays over cocktails and hors d’oeuvres and will recognize chapter volunteers, introduce the incoming NCC leadership and hold a raffle of prizes. Space is limited; more at www.prsa-ncc.org.

PRSA-NCC Announces 2010 Leadership

The results are in and PRSA-NCC has announced its officers for 2010:
Photo: New PRSA-NCC president Jeff Ghannam
President: Jeff Ghannam, vice president, communications and membership, Biotechnology Institute
President-Elect: Samantha Villegas, APR, manager of communications, Loudoun Water
Treasurer: Aaron Cohen, vice president, media and digital communications, MS&L PR
Secretary: Sylvia Aguilera, director, Hispanic Technology and Telecommunications Partnership
Immediate Past President: Barbara Burfeind, APR, strategic communication director, Defense Visual Information, U.S. Department of Defense
Vice Presidents: Brigitte Johnson, APR, director of communications, American Forest Foundation; Robert Udowitz, public relations consultant; and, Erika Rooks Wilgenburg, APR, former communications manager, San Diego Housing Commission

Two-Year Directors:
Jaya Koilpillai Bohlmann, vice president, public relations, Sodexo, Inc.
Michelle Hudgins, APR, senior press officer, National Education Association
Sabrina Kidwai, media relations manager, Association for Career and Technical Education
Ann Andrews Morris, principal, AndMore Communications, LLC
Phil Simon, APR, managing director, communications and marketing, American Institute of Architects and,
Gwyn Walcoff, APR, owner, CCG, LLC Public Relations (term expires 2010)
One-Year Directors:
Frank Howard, president & CEO, Howard Consulting Group, Inc.
Shannon Joyce, public relations account executive, Focused Image and
Amy Robinson, APR, vice president, communications and media relations, Direct Selling Association.

The new leadership team will oversee more than 50 annual professional development and awards programs designed to advance professionalism and career growth in what is the largest PRSA chapter in the nation with more than 1,400 members.

New resource for planning PR events

So many of our readers help organize and set up events in the Washington, DC, public relations world--whether sponsored by their companies or as volunteers for our professional groups--that I want to share a new directory from OpenTable, the restaurant-reservations website. It's specifically for private dining options, and since many of us need to book private spaces in restaurants for meetings, luncheons or receptions, it's a welcome feature.  You can find out at a glance how many people each private room accommodates seated or standing (through a great series of symbols), see photos of the rooms, and, as with usual OpenTable listings, you can filter by cuisine, location, price range and more parameters. A real boon to meeting planners--please do report on your impressions in the comments.

Where in the World has The Capital Buzz Been?

Yes, we've been remiss lately about keeping up with posting and reporting on the many communications events around town, as several Buzz readers have reminded. We can only beg your indulgence, loyal reader, and attribute our hiatus to the demands of work and life -- proof, if needed, that even with a team of contributers blogging can be difficult to squeeze into tight schedules and limited time.

We pledge to get back to delivering timely news and opinion. And to start, here are a few items you might find of interest.

The Boss Ladies were at the 20th Washington Women in Public Relations PR Woman of the Year awards last week as Capital Buzz sponsors.

Pictured at left: Kate Perrin, Susan Matthews Apgood, Jennifer Collins and Sherri Core.

Looking for a way to distinguish yourself, your work and the work of your team? The International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) is now accepting submissions for the 2010 Gold Quill Awards.
The IABC Gold Quill Awards has represented international best practices for more than 35 years. Every communication project or campaign is a potential Gold Quill Award winner — if you apply excellence to a defined business need, identify specific goals and objectives, and back your efforts up with measurement, you could have a winner.

View the Call for Entries at www.iabc.com/awards/gq.

Early-bird deadline: January 27, 2010
Final deadline: February 3, 2010

Thinking of Joining AWC-DC? NOW is the Time!

Dues Price Break in Effect for Anniversary

To celebrate its 100th anniversary the Association for Women in Communications (AWC) is extending a special $100 National Dues Rate to NEW members. In addition, the standard $50 application fee also will be waived for this campaign, making this a savings of more than 45%.

To join, go to http://www.womcom.org/Centennial_Membership_Drive.asp

Writing Web Content that Grabs Attention

AWC-DC Offers Web Writing Workshop with Web Content Strategist Merry Bruns

Tuesday, November 17th
6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Hamilton Crowne Plaza, 14th & K St, NW Washington DC
Lafayette Park Meeting Room
$30 AWC members; $40 Nonmembers
Cash bar / Complimentary hors d'oeuvres

It promises to be an evening of cocktails, content strategy and conversation when web writing guru Merry Bruns appears at the next AWC-DC program. She will give advice on writing compelling Web site and blog content, offer her best practices and provide tips for communicators at any skill level.

A Principal of Science Sites Communications, Merry has over 15 years of expertise in Web content development. Her clients have included the World Bank, Georgetown University, Porter-Novelli among others.

Register online or for further information contact D'Oniece Dillard at infoawcdc@aol.com.