Assignment #2/ Press Release to Stories

Feb. 25, 2008

I am very interested in the snowboard industry, and one of my favorite companies is Etnies shoes. Etnies is also the parent company of Thirty Two, who makes snowboard boots. The press Release I chose from Etnies corporate website was a rundown of a snowboard event they had sponsored called “Goofy vs. Regular.” GVR is a competition of pro snowboarders with a team that rides “regular,” or left foot forward, competing with a team that rides “goofy,” or right foot forward. Snowboarders argue about which way is better to ride, but it all comes down to what feels more natural to the rider. The official press release can be found at, http://etniessnow.com/blog/2008/02/25/official-gvr-press-release.

The first Article I chose was found on Transworld Snowboarding Magazine’s website (http://transworldsnowboarding.com/article.jsp?ID=1000042750). Transworld is the largest and most successful snowboard publication out there. Their magazine empire covers virtually all of the main action sports. Transworld actually sponsored the “regular” team in the event. The “regular” team ended up taking home the victory in the competition. This made for some definite gloating on Transworlds part. The entire article was devoted to bragging about how the “regular footers” stomped their competition. They even went so far as to say that “regular” was definitely the better way to ride, which in snowboarding is like saying right handed people are better writers than left handed people. This type of gloating and support is expected on the part of a sponsor to a certain extent. At the same time, from a journalistic standpoint, Transworld showed little integrity. One positive thing was mentioned about a “goofy” team rider throughout the entire article. Transworld showed their vested interest in a big way, and overall the article painted a negative view of their competition, not necessarily a positive view of their team.
The second article I found off of the same press release was found on the Snowboarder Magazine website (http://snowboardermag.com/features/news/gvr-goofy-regular-etnies/).

Snowboarder is the second largest snowboard publication and is in direct competition with Transworld. The difference I found in Snowboarders account of the event was very factual and contained more information from the actual press release itself. Snowboarder focused more on actually reporting the event. The article went over the event course in detail and gave praise to all involved in the event. This article was written very journalistically and is very balanced. It’s interesting to see how a publication with no financial interest in the subject can do a much better job of reporting than one which has a profit to make from the event reported. Overall this article was very positive and easy to read.

These two magazines were very obviously a target audience of the press release. Etnies had Transworld promoting the event all along with all sorts of features and hype leading up to the event. This type of promotion came free to them since Transworld was also a sponsor of the event. Snowboarder however, reported on the event because they knew it would be of interest to their readers, which made for better reporting. Etnies understood that Snowboarder would want to report their event, because of all the hype that Transworld had created in the minds of snowboarders. Etnies press release was effective, not because it was an outstanding press release, but because the event was worth reporting on. Even snowboard magazines don’t want to be left behind on a story.

Positioning Myself/ Assignment #1

My desire to work in public relations has stemmed from opportunities I have had in sales occupations and with speaking in public. I have realized along the way that I enjoy selling ideas to people, and coming up with new ways to help people buy in to what I am working with.

My wife and I would like to move to her home town in Star Valley Wyoming when I am done with school. This goal obviously conflicts with having a large job market. The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows a mere 300 jobs in the public relations field in Wyoming. There is a larger job market when other related fields like marketing and advertising are included. For this reason I have found that I will need to direct myself to doing public relations in Jackson Hole, which is close to where we would like to live. I will also need to diversify my education, as far as my minor is concerned.

According to the Wyoming Business Council, only 22 percent of the population in Wyoming have a college degree. This low statistic raises my marketability as an employee in general. So for the small amount of jobs available, there is a small amount of qualified competition for those jobs as well.

Jackson Hole has a need for public relations in their resort sector and also their national park, called Grand Teton. I have always loved being in the outdoors. I love to snowboard, snowmobile, hunt, and do many other activities outside. My father in law owns horse riding businesses that I work with, which are very close to Jackson ski resort and Grand Teton National Park. This has given me the opportunity, and will give further opportunities to establish good contacts in this area. My passion for the places I will be promoting and working with will also help me be an effective and motivated employee.

Output Objectives

1) I will contact, and keep in contact with, the two major ski resorts in Jackson, Grand Teton National Park, and other related businesses in the area. I will find out who I need to be speaking with at each of these organizations about getting a job in the future. I will call and ask for 15 minutes of their time to help me with a class project on what they look for in an employee. I will then glean from that information, which of the organizations to target based on how I will fit there. Then I will keep in contact with them throughout the following year until I graduate. This will keep me fresh in the minds of my potential employers.

2) I will work with my father in laws businesses in the same area, helping them with their public relations, and advertising. This will provide an anchor in the community for me, which I will be able to refer to when interviewing for a job.

3) I will use my minor cognate to center around marketing and advertising. This will broaden my education in related fields so that I will be able to do my job well, and so that I will look more attractive to employers.

Impact Objectives

1) I will have at least three job offers by Fall 2009, just after I graduate summer of 2009.

2) I will produce press releases and have at least one article published in the local Jackson newspaper by Spring 2009. I will also design new pamphlets with a fresh positioning statement and tagline.

3) I will have established a list of 15 potential employment contacts by the Spring of 2009, when my job search will be at its most important stage.

Talking Points

1) Great People Skills

- I have spoke to groups larger than 100 people on over a dozen occassions, and feel very comfortable with public speaking and giving presentations.

- I have done door to door sales for 4 years and have generated over 300,000 dollars in revenue for my company. I also assistant manage the sales office.

- I have worked in direct customer service for 2 years dealing with all kinds of customers and projects.

2) Dependable

-Have remained loyal to the same sales company for over four years, despite other appealing offers.

- I Accomplish tasks given to me effectively, and on time. "Whatever project or presentation I have Danny work on for our sales office, he always comes through in a big way."-Adam Johnson, Office Manager APX Alarm.

3) Solid Representative

- I represent my company well. "Danny has done an awesome job recruiting new sales reps for our company, he establishes trust with recruits, and gets them to commit to us." -Jared Young, Regional Manager APX Alarm.