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No, not the kind you surf (though we won't stop you from exploring those if that's your thing!). When we talk about "making waves," we're referring to professional communicators making a real difference. Creating an impact. Delivering unmistakable value to our organizations or clients.

Let's be candid: Today's economic turmoil places undeniable stress on all of us. At the same time, rapid changes in communications technologies, and the corresponding need to adopt new strategies and tactics, make keeping our skills sharp a professional necessity. PR practitioners are under intense pressure to convince decision makers they're receiving a powerful return on their public relations or marketing investment.

The 2009 PRSA Western District Conference offers you the knowledge you need to succeed - and even thrive - in this challenging environment. You'll hear from insightful and engaging speakers on a wide range of salient topics. You'll have a chance to interact with colleagues from throughout the region and establish valuable professional and personal relationships. You'll even enjoy a healthy (and no doubt well deserved) dose of fun!

So don't hesitate. Sign up now for what promises to be a primo adventure!



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KEYNOTE SPEAKER

“It's not web 2.0. It's not web 3.0. It's simply life.”

Peter Shankman

CEO, The Geek Factory

Founder, Help a Reporter Out (H.A.R.O.)

We have more technology than ever before. We can reach more people than ever before, in shorter and shorter amounts of time. But that doesn't mean we should be! You can have all the tools in the world - it doesn't mean you know what to do with them!

Peter will discuss social networking, viral marketing, and all the "fun ways" to use them - Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and perhaps most importantly, why sometimes, not using any of them is your best bet.

From the beauty of Will It Blend, to the utter simplicity of the amazingly successful HARO, Peter will touch on all facets of social media, marketing, and "non-traditional ways of thinking.

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GENERAL SESSIONS

“What Consumers are Doing Now
...and What Marketers Must Do in Response”

Paul Leinberger
SVP, Global Accounts
The Futures Company

The United States is in the deepest recession since the 1930s - and this time it's global. With consumer spending accounting for over 72 per cent of the nation's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), it is imperative that marketers understand how consumers are reacting to this grime reality, how consumer attitudes and behaviors are changing, and how marketers must respond to the radical changes taking place in consumers priorities.

This presentation will examine how consumer attitudes and behavior are changing, what marketers can expect in the months ahead, and suggest how marketers need to respond. It will also look at marketers must do to ready themselves for the recovery. Yes, there will be a recovery.

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“Five Digital Trends to Watch For in 2009”

Steve Rubel
Senior Vice President, Director of Insights
Edelman Digital

Even though the economy is slowing, all signs show that audiences are still spending a lot more time on the web. Marketers need to invest to meet them there. However, what's changed today they are smarter about where they focus their time, dollars and energy. Experimentation is giving way to tactics that deliver ROI. These include public engagement, search and social networking - three themes that connect the major macro trends:

• Satisfaction Guaranteed - Customer care and PR are blending as consumers use social media to demand service

• Media Reforestation - The media is in a constant state of reinvention as it transitions from atoms to bits

• Less is the New More - Overload takes its toll. Gorging on media is out. Selective ignorance and friends as filters are in

• Corporate All-Stars - Workers flock to social media to build their personal brands, yet offer employers an effective and credible way to market in the downturn

• The Power of Pull - Where push once ruled, it's now equally important to create digital content that people discover through search

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"Media Myths & Realities: What We're Facing in 2009"

Jerry Swerling

Professor and Director of Public Relations Studies
USC Annenberg School for Communication

Sean Fitzgerald
Partner/Managing Director
Ketchum West

Is traditional media dead? How does media consumption vary among people of different ages? Are digital/social channels credible? How do consumers’ media choices affect their purchase decisions? How are the increasingly blurred lines between media channels affecting the way Americans buy products, seek information, plan their social lives, and make personal and business decisions?

And how is all of this affecting the practice of public relations and communications?

These are but a few of the questions that will be addressed during this stimulating and provocative session, which will delve into the findings of the 2008 U.S. Media Myths & Realities survey, the most recent version of an annual study conducted by Ketchum and the University of Southern California Annenberg Strategic Public Relations Center.

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"Public Relations on the Mobile Platform: A Brave New World"

Mike Wehrs

President and CEO

Mobile Marketing Association

For hundreds of millions of people across the world, their first experience on the Internet is through a mobile phone. The global shift away from communicating on a computer already has begun. How will this evolution in how people communicate and inter-relate affect public relations professionals? How can PR pros maximize their communications programs using a mobile platform? How are leading brands already deploying mobile marketing campaigns and getting results? Find out how mobile marketing will change the marketing and PR industry forever, and how PR pros can stay ahead of the learning curve for this bold, new communications medium.

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"Kernels of Career Success: Aligning Your Knowledge and Leadership Attributes with Management’s New Expectations"

Smooch Repovich Reynolds

CEO

The Repovich-Reynolds Group

In this session, attendees will participate in a free-flowing exchange of career branding kernels of the realities that underscore the importance of defining and creating your career identity, including: a lively interactive discussion about the key attributes of communications leaders that lead to the C-suite, broadening skills on the job that position you as a business partner with management, and a look into defining “savvy that leads to success.” Corporations around the world will face a talent shortage in the next 3 – 5 years, recognizing that A-level talent is the key to advancing their businesses in the global markets. This interactive presentation will provide insights into today’s C-Suite expectations. Kernels to be gleaned include:

• Anticipating and planning career strategies for economic uncertainties;
• Understanding why CEOs and hiring executives gravitate toward recruiting “athletes;”
• What you need to do to become A-level talent and leverage your intellect and talents when we emerge from the current economic hard times?
• Adapting for future shifts in the human capital markets and what that means specifically to Communications professionals;
• The success factors needed to be competitive for the near- to longer-term paths of our careers.

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BREAKOUT SESSIONS

"Mommy Blogging: Diapers and Tweeters and Bloggers, Oh My!"

Speakers:

Sarah James, Freelance Writer and Blogger

Elisa Camahort Page, Co-Founder and COO of BlogHer

Rebecca Woolf, Freelance Writer and Blogger

Moderator:

Nancy Syzdek, APR

How the Mommy Blogger Revolution is changing the dynamics of consumer PR and more.
Are you trying to reach women, locally or nationally, between the ages of 18 and 39 who wield an enormous purchasing power and serve as opinion influencers? Then you need to get familiar with the history and power of the Mommy Blogger revolution. Forget Oprah’s Favorite Things, these women can make or break product releases, drive traffic to or from your business, and even shut down a multi-million-dollar pharmaceutical campaign in between diaper changes and dinner. How can you tap into this amazing power with public relations? Learn from some of the do’s and don’ts of pitching from best of the best in the blogosphere.

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"About as bad as it gets: Death, train wrecks, federal investigations, criminal trials and more tests of crisis communications planning"

Presenter:

Denise Tyrrell, formerly of Metrolink

Presenter:

David Langness, formerly of Tenet Heathcare Corp.

Moderator:

Denis Wolcott, APR

President, The Wolcott Company

Death, train wrecks, federal investigations, criminal trials and more tests of crisis communications planning. Denise Tyrrell and David Langness individually have been in the middle of communicating bad news from some of the biggest news events. Now, they will share a career’s worth of experience and expertise and some exclusive behind-the-scenes looks.

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"Play it, Don’t Say It – The Power of Digital Video"

Pete Deutschman

Founder, CEO & Chief Buddy

The Buddy Group

Don’t wait for the press to tell your story, or customers to visit your website. Get out and tell your own story – digitally! In this workshop you’ll learn about creating content that can engage audiences where they already are and deliver them back to you.

The most consumed type of content online is video – on news sites, within social media and even over email. Are you missing the boat by not having digital video as a part of your strategy? Definitely. From Michael Eisner’s Tornante to NBC Universal and Kodak to Fisker Automotive, this team has no doubt produced digital creative that you have engaged with. Join them to learn about the latest technology available that can help you deliver BIG results.

BONUS: With lots of fun and creative executions to share, the one thing we guarantee is a good laugh!

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"Publicity From Both Sides of the Fence"

Joe Schlosser

Senior Vice President, Communications

NBC Universal Television Distribution

As a veteran TV journalist who made the leap into corporate communications, Joe will discuss the view from both sides of the mountain and how his combined experience lets him see the playing field from a different point of view. Having covered the TV landscape for leading industry trade publication Broadcasting & Cable for nearly a decade, Joe got to know the players, the news cycles, not to mention his fellow journalists and editors--many of whom he still calls friends today. Joe will discuss the importance of understanding journalists, their publications, their deadlines and much more, in these fast moving PR times.

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"Social Media Monitoring & Engagement—Beginner Session"

Jay Krall

Manager, Internet Media Research

Cision US Inc.

Maybe you’ve starting developing relationships with a few bloggers as part of your media outreach efforts, but you’re not sure how to go about utilizing social networks and other social tools online. Maybe you’re active on behalf of your brand on a social network like Twitter or Facebook, but struggling with how to make an argument in your organization for a more comprehensive social media strategy. Or, maybe social media still seems like a puzzle, and you’re not convinced how it can help you achieve your communications goals. If so, this is the session for you.

We’ll discuss:

• Understanding the major types of social media tools: blogs, microblogging services, social networks, podcasts and online video
• Quickly and easily finding social content that is relevant to your company and your industry
• The basics of measuring your brand’s presence on blogs and social networks
• Deciding when and how to engage, both with your supporters and your critics
• Communicating the value of social media outreach within your organization

If you’re still not quite comfortable dealing with social media, now is the time to start listening and engaging. People are talking about your campaigns, and waiting for you to get involved.

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"Public Relations Inside Corporate America: When Worlds Collide"

Chris Johnson

DNA 13

The public relations industry is dramatically changing as it collides with human relations, corporate communications, and customer relations - a media opportunity for a public relations professional may be a customer relations opportunity for a customer relations expert. How should public relations professionals adapt to their changing workplace, and how should they approach opportunities or challenges that span across internal departments? How do Fortune 1000 companies maximize their communications platform across multiple business units, corporate silos, varying levels of management, the sales team, and corporate partners?

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"It’s a Brand You World: Succeed by Being Your Best Self"

Diana Jennings

Founder

Brand You Image

Personal Branding is not about creating an image for the outside world; it is about understanding what is truly unique about you - and using that to differentiate yourself and guide your career decisions. In this presentation, you will learn the secrets of developing and communicating your brand.

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"Community Relations: The Art of Influencing Public Behavior"

Marlee Lauffer, Newhall Land

Laer Pearce, APR, Laer Pearce & Associates

Ron Wildermuth, West Basin Municipal Water District

America has heard the word “change” a lot recently – but does that mean people are any more open to change when it comes to their neighborhood?

If not communicated properly, changes like a new housing development or turning toilet water into drinking water still can lead to community outcry and fierce opposition to the best-laid plans.

Marlee Lauffer is Senior Vice President of marketing and communications for Newhall Land, which is now proposing one of the largest new-home developments in California. Ron Wildermuth is Public and Governmental Affairs Manager for West Basin Municipal Water District, and recently oversaw Orange County’s Groundwater Replenishment System (”toilet-to-tap”) outreach program. Both will share the triumphs and pitfalls of two of Southern California’s most watched community relations programs – and give you tools to help you successfully shape public perceptions.

The panel will be moderated by Laer Pearce, president of Laer Pearce and Associates, who has more than 25 years of experience in public outreach and public affairs for the land development and water industries.

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"Writing for Conversions – Why SEO Writing is Easier than You Think"

Michelle Howe, MBA

Owner

Internet Word Magic

Learn clever writing techniques to create website content that is persuasive, interesting, and optimized.

Writing content for websites is different than writing other marketing materials because you are writing for two audiences: people and search engines. The challenge is writing effective marketing copy that is interesting to the human audience and also easy for the search engines to index and therefore generate more visitor traffic.

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"Meeting the ‘Triple-Bottom Line’: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Corporate/Not-for-Profit Partnerships"

Scott Pansky, Allison & Partners

Zafar Brooks, Hyundai Motor America

Consumers, the media and stockholders are demanding more from corporations, creating a ‘triple-bottom line’—environment, community, and finance. In their presentation, Scott and Zafar will discuss cause marketing and the role of social responsibility in helping companies ensure they are effectively meeting these new standards, and how corporations and not-for-profits alike can both ensure that they are getting the most from their strategic partnerships.

"Flux: What do you do?"

Casey DeLorme, APR

Owner

Get Spine Communications

Just as our profession achieves exciting levels of maturity and executive-level acceptance, technology and economics force change in our roles as public relations practitioners. In a culture where individuals identify themselves primarily through their profession, this poses many quandaries. During this ”thought experiment” workshop, Casey DeLorme, APR shares a theory that we can leverage our own professional skill sets, including sharp critical thinking, creative brainstorming, and powerful networking skills to more powerfully shape our careers.

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"Social Media Monitoring & Engagement—Advanced Session"

Jay Krall

Manager, Internet Media Research

Cision US Inc.

With little investment as compared to other forms of media outreach, participating in social media has become a great, low-cost alternative for generating buzz in a tough economic climate. Yet, how to strike the right tone in social media outreach, and measure its return on investment, continue to elude many communications professionals.

As many companies have learned, monitoring and responding to mentions of your brand online can have as great an impact on its perception as any advertising or public relations campaign. Learn how to stay ahead of the curve and better yet, develop relationships with influencers through social networks you already use.

"Meet the Editors: West Coast News Leaders Offer Pitching Advice"

Speakers:

Russ Britt - Los Angeles Bureau Chief - MarketWatch from Dow Jones

Scott Jagow - Host - Marketplace Online

Patrick McMahon - Los Angeles Times

Richard Siklos - Fortune

Does your story have what it takes to make the national news? Senior editors and writers from West Coast bureaus of major new organizations will offer exclusive insights on how to effectively and tastefully pitch your stories, explain why they need your expert NOW and give you the latest trends in how and where news is showing up. This session is critical to just about any public relations professional whether you work at an agency, a non-profit or business. Learn tips on how to make your story worth national coverage.

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