Western Nevada Community College has been recognized in a national competition for its marketing efforts. The college was honored with a silver Paragon award from the National Council for Marketing & Public Relations at the 2007 National Conference in San Diego.

The WNCC Information & Marketing Services Department accepted the award for its Media Success Story, which included hundreds of newspaper articles, photos, and web stories on the Scenic West Athletic Conference champion Wildcats baseball team’s inaugural season. Western competed against more than 600 colleges from the United States, Canada and the Bahamas.

Technorati tags: Western Nevada Community College, National Council for Marketing & Public Relations, WNCC Information & Marketing Services Department, Media Success Story, Scenic West Athletic Conference, Wildcats, Carson City, Nevada

Somer Athari, from left, Emily Lowe, and Season Lopiccolo, all with Noble Studios in Carson City, hold a conference call April 3 with the Nevada’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology

Season Lopiccolo’s actual title is operations director at Noble Studios Marketing and Web Development, but the staff has dubbed her “loose ends director.”

She brings together many different aspects of the business, working with clients and with employees. She’s full of passion for the business, and that’s something she encourages in her employees and in anyone thinking of running any business.

To help build passion in new business, Lopiccolo and her staff have been working closely with Nevada’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology in the promotion of a project that encourages college students to build viable business plans. The 2007 Nevada Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup program, in its third year, winds up with an awards ceremony on Thursday in Reno.

Question: Why are you in marketing and public relations?

Lopiccolo: It started with the writing. I really enjoy it, back in college and even before that, for as long as I can remember. I’ve always been the one who likes to write short stories with a point. And marketing and PR sort of have that same feel. They grab from your creativity, and they allow you to talk more on the passionate side of things. I’m a very passionate person. I love the fact that I get to use that on a daily basis.

Read entire story here

Technorati tags: Season Lopiccolo, Noble Studios, Nevada’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology, 2007 Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup Competition, Reno, Nevada, marketing, public relations, Emily Lowe

What does it mean to PR professionals’ strategies and tactics when e-zines, blogs, and podcasts are the new media? Does citizen journalism take away credible editorial filters? How do PR pros work best with new media to generate public awareness?

This month’s PRSA luncheon features Eric Schwartzman, managing director of Schwartzman & Associates (www.schwartzmanpr.com), a leading-edge boutique PR firm based in Los Angeles.  He presents the highlights of his exclusive UCLA February class entitled ‘Intro to New Media PR.’ In this PR training course, Eric teaches his attendees about:

• the latest trends in social media and citizen journalism
• yielding control of the message to the market
• monitoring and participating in digital conversations
• drafting and measuring search engine optimized press releases
• growing communities and reaching niche audiences through audio and video podcasts
• using RSS to stay top of mind with key audiences
• autonomously integrating websites into PR campaigns without relying on webmasters

While one hour does not give Eric the time to address what he covers in five sessions at UCLA, he will give us the highlights and answer your questions about how organizations are integrating blogs, podcasts, RSS and the web into marketing and PR campaigns.