Out of all the celebrities around the world, the last person I would have imagined to use Twitter would be Shaquille O’Neil. He’s so tall, I can’t even imagine how he would fit behind a computer.
I read an article on the PRSA website, and I think it is truly interesting how the Suns are using Twitter as a means of recognizing their fans and their connections with each other. When Shaq signed up for Twitter, he gained over 30,000 followers in a very short amount of time. Amy Martin is the digital media researcher for the Suns, and she said they could not continue denying the importance and prevalence of new forms of social media, such as Twitter.
So, Martin and the PR department of the Suns began organizing a “Tweetup,” which is the equivalent of a Facebook event, in order to reward Shaq’s and the Sun’s Twitter followers. I think the Suns should be truly commended because they are cashing in on forms of social media that will only continue to grow more popular. They are not simply sitting still; they are progressing and growing way beyond into the future. I think it is very important for us as students to look at these public relations’ moves very closely because this could be the future for our careers. We all know that social media will continue to grow and become even more a part of our daily lives.
Social media is definitely the future for public relations, and for the world in general. I think we should continue to polish our Twitter, Facebook, and blogging skills because these skills will make us more competitive when we begin applying for jobs in the near future. Plus, it would just be super cool to have Shaq as a “tweep.”
