Event Info

THE MID-ATLANTIC CHESAPEAKE CONFERENCE

The New Face of PR: strategizing connectivity, innovation,
and integration   

Preliminary Program

7:30 a.m. Registration & Continental Breakfast

8:00 – 9:00 a.m. Welcome & Keynote
Opening Remarks: Maryland, National Capital, and Central Chesapeake Chapter Presidents.
Keynote: Yolanda H. Caraway, CEO, The Caraway Group

9:15 – 10:30 a.m. Concurrent Sessions (choose 1)

Option 1: How to Create Your Own TV Show/Videos to Benefit Your Strategic Goals.
Sharon Boston, Media, Relations Manager, Maryland Medical Center.

Learn the ins and outs of creating and posting a video program on your website and YouTube to build an audience and create awareness about your brand and target specific audiences.

Option 2: Integrate a “Smarter” Strategy into Your Campaign
Valerie Lambert, Owner, Bilou Enterprises.

Although smartphones were only 13% of the handheld market last year, they accounted for 78% of the overall traffic.  Since these figures — and share — will only increase over time, learning how to better reach this segment of your market will help you to better serve your client(s). This session will combine a lecture to display the latest information and statistics with real-time interaction and smartphone participation by session participants to demonstrate the variety of ways constituents can be engaged via smartphones.
 
Option 3: From Intermediation to Apomediation: How Social Media has Changed Information Exchange Forever.
Dan O’Connor, PhD, faculty research scholar, Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics, and head of research at RMM, a European social media agency.

Information about brands is no longer the province of the brands themselves-anyone with an internet connection can share information with anyone else. We call this system “apomediation” which is referring to the millions of social media users “standing by” to give customers information about brands, goods & services.

After this session, you’ll leave with a better understanding of how social media has changed the ways in which customers and stakeholders get their information about organizations and their goods and services.

10:45 – Noon Concurrent Sessions (choose 1)

Option 1: The Revolution HAS BEEN Tweeted.
Zoe Pagonis, Communications and New Media Manager for Governor O’Malley, and Lori Livingston, Social and
New Media Manager of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

Social media is no longer a novelty, but a necessity for effective communications. Go beyond the basics and learn how to use social media through real life examples and analytics that provide a unique perspective on how to manage social media for both an individual and an organization.

Option 2: Panel Discussion: Patch–A New Way to Reach Local Audiences.
Rick Robinson, Washington, DC-based writer who has written about hyperlocal news websites; Doug Donovan, Maryland Patch Regional Editor; Daniel Waldman, PR consultant; and Elise Armacost, Public Information Officer for the Baltimore County Police and Fire Departments. Moderated by Marc Apter.

Online news is dependable news.  And more people are seeking the latest in local information through patch.com because you can get quick access to the information that’s most relevant to you.  This panel discussion will cover the ins and outs of this innovative news service and how you can make it work for you.

Option 3: Panel Discussion: The Business of CSR: How to Make Effective Sponsorship Choices.
Diana Mayhew, President of the National Cherry Blossom Festival (the nation’s largest springtime event) and Jaya Bohlmann, Corporate Communications Executive and Consultant.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) should be approached with thoughtfulness and purpose because the wrong choices could potentially do irreparable harm.  Conversely, selecting the right events, companies, groups, or causes an organization associates itself with could help differentiate it from the competition in an effective and profitable way.  This session will teach you strategies to navigate through these muddy waters to have a positive impact on your company’s employees, stakeholders, and bottom line. 

Noon – 2 p.m.: Networking Lunch/ “Fifteen Minutes and 20 slides.”

Amy Hollomon, Blue Sky Factory, E-mail Marketing in the 21st Century; and Mike North, PCA, LLC, Cross-Media Marketing.

2:15 – 3:30 p.m. Concurrent Sessions (choose 1)

Option 1: Crisis Communication in a Social Media World
Jeff Davis, partner, Sawmill Marketing Public Relations; Washington Post Reporter Jenna Johnson and Maria Teresa Cardona, SVP of Dewey Square and CNN Political Analyst.

Follow a crisis from the first tweet to the TV, radio, newspaper, and online reporter interviews to sending messages to your key audiences.  Join these dynamic panelists as they examine the various sides of social media used in recent national crisis situations.

Option 2: Integrating Social Media into Marketing Communications
Susan Goodell, VP,Warschawski.

This discussion will look at best practices for incorporating social media into an integrated marcom strategy through real life examples and
case studies. Learn how to best use social media and other marketing communications tools to achieve real business results.

Option 3: Choosing an Agency: How to Conduct the RFP Process
Robert Udowitz & Steve Drake, RFP Associates.

Most organizations struggle to identify and evaluate qualified agency candidates. This session is designed to inform organizations on the ins
and outs of hiring a public relations agency and issuing an RFP.

3:45 – 5:00 p.m. Concurrent Sessions (choose 1)

Option 1: Best of the Best
Denise Aube (Maryland Chapter), Crosby Marketing, ShorterERwait.com-Breaking New Ground; John Rivera (Maryland Chapter), Catholic Relief Services, The Haiti Earth-quake: Catholic Relief Services Responds to a Major Disaster; and Trent Flood (National Capital Chapter), Lockheed Martin: The I Campaign.

Option 2: The Art of a Good Op-Ed:
Panel led by Harry Bosk, Bosk Communications, with panelists Damian Rintelmann, Senior Vice President of Digital Communications, Weber Shandwick; Michael Cross-Barnet, Deputy Opinion Editor, Baltimore Sun and Barry Rascovar, columnist & writing/editing consultant for businesses and non-profits.

Some are convinced that crafting a publishable op-ed piece is more of a science than an art.  Harry Bosk will explore this train of thought and teach you how to craft a publishable, thought-provoking op-ed piece in the midst of today’s 24-hour news cycle and expanding social media interests.

Option 3: From PR Manager to PR Leader.
Jeff Ghannam, President, Crystal Communications & Marketing, LLC

This session will use PR scenarios to teach you how to motivate and manage the people on your team, how to resolve conflict and handle difficult employees and clients, and how to influence the decision makers whose decisions affect you.

5:00 p.m. Happy Hour Mixer
Cap off a day of learning with a fun networking mixer!

Online registration is closed. Please register onsite. Thank you.