When pulling together content for your next e-newsletter, sometimes all you have to work with is, literally or figuratively, a flyer. This can happen when others submit items to run but they do not try to follow e-newsletter style. Do you work to beat the item into shape? Or do you sometimes run them more-or-less verbatim, perhaps because of time constraints? How would you handle an e-mailed submission like this, sent on short notice up against your deadline?

————————————-
27th Annual Congress of Big Buildings and Little Structures
October 3-5, 2009
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Registration is filling up fast, don’t miss out on an opportunity to attend - Register Today

Hotel Room Rate Reduced until September 28th
make your room reservation at the
Bellevue Stratford Philadelphia

The challenges to improving the performance of big buildings and little structures are as broad and varied as the individual structures themselves. How should they be evaluated and strengthened? What assumptions were made? Were they built as designed, and if not, what modifications were made but possibly (probably) not documented?

This 27th annual conference, organized by the Generic Technical Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers, is dedicated solely to improving the performance of big buildings and little structures and includes:

We offer a Great Technical Program - View it online

Six Keynote Plenary Speakers and two Luncheon Speakers.

Over 20 poster displays are scheduled, and

Special Thursday Night Black Tie Gala -Celebrating New Innovations in Big Buildings and Little Structures Over the Last Decade
————————————-

Not only is this submission just a series of info-bits lacking cohesion, it is full of links throughout. (I’ve substituted unlinked blue here.) For it to work in ASCE’s e-newsletter style, it needs to be tightened up a lot. Here is how it was pulled together. Compare and contrast to see how the elements fell into place, and what was omitted.

————————————-

Registration Filling Up for 27th Buildings Conference
[insert graphic of conference logo, or cropped copy of conference Web site banner]
Come to Philadelphia this October 3-5 for the 27th annual Congress of Big Buildings and Little Structures. The Bellevue Stratford room rate has been reduced until Sept. 28. The challenges to improving the performance of big buildings and little structures are as broad and varied as the individual structures themselves. How should they be evaluated and strengthened? What assumptions were made? Were they built as designed, and if not, what modifications were made but possibly (probably) not documented? ASCE’s Generic Technical Institute is again organizer of this 27th annual conference. More than 20 poster displays are scheduled. Attend and earn up to 16 PDHs.

>> Make your room reservation before the Nov. 12 reduced-rate deadline. Get more details at the official conference site.
>> Check out the great technical program. The schedule also features six keynote plenary speakers and two luncheon speakers, plus a special black tie gala celebrating recent innovations in seismic strengthening.

————————————-

Notice that much of the content hasn’t changed, only how it’s arranged in a more readable way that follows e-newsletter style. The headline is focused on the “news” of the submission and implies a call to action, which is the point of the announcement.

Here’s hoping you have a better idea of how a handout can be edited into a workable e-newsletter item on short notice. Let me know in the comments below if and where I could be clearer.

John Marston
Web Content Editor

Some of you may recall my post this past summer about ASCE’s Excellence in Journalism Award program. We’re getting closer and closer to this year’s deadline, so start sending in those stories!

For those of you who may not be familiar with the program, the award recognizes outstanding news stories that enhance public understanding of the role and impact of civil engineers and civil engineering in designing solutions for clean water, transportation, the environment and other public works projects. Journalists and producers from English-language, general interest regional and national newspapers, radio and television stations, magazines, and electronic and Web-based news outlets are all eligible.

For the 2010 award, stories need to have been published or broadcast between May 1, 2008 and Oct. 31, 2009 to be eligible. Members can nominate stories they’ve seen or read, and journalists can also self-nominate their work. Check out the Excellence in Journalism Award page for eligibility information, where to send your submissions and the nomination form. All entries need to be postmarked by Dec. 1, 2009.

A list of previous Excellence in Journalism Award winners is available on the award Web page.

Send me an email if you have any questions about the award. I can’t wait to see your nominees!

Karen Albers
Manager, State Public Relations

Are you an ASCE member who is interested in incorporating public relations into your Section/Branch and professional activities? Have you thought about attending a PR University workshop?

ASCE’s annual national PR University workshop is scheduled for Monday, Dec. 7 at ASCE Headquarters in Reston, Va.

For those of you who might not be familiar with the program, ASCE created PR University, a public relations training program for civil engineers, as part of its goal to bring effective public relations strategies to the ASCE Section and Branch level.

During the highly interactive, one-day workshop, ASCE’s Communications staff shares techniques for effective communications, including media relations and outreach, through presentations and hands-on PR activities. A guest speaker from the media will also be on hand to give attendees the newsroom perspective.

All attendees receive a PR Toolkit reference guide to help bring the tools from the communications classroom to the civil engineering profession. Part ‘how-to’ manual and part resource guide, this Toolkit provides a practical introduction to public relations for civil engineers. So far, nearly 200 ASCE Section and Branch members have participated in PR University!

Attendees willing to serve as their Section or Branch PR Coordinator may be eligible for a workshop “scholarship.”

Sound interesting? Want to attend? Email me for an application or more information. Applications are due by the close of business on Wednesday, Nov. 11. Space is limited, so submit your application early.

Have you already participated in PR University? How have you used what you learned? Share your experiences in the comments section.

Karen Albers
Manager, State Public Relations

Many of you are probably familiar with ASCE’s State Public Affairs Grant (SPAG) program. For those of you who aren’t, let me take a minute to explain.

The SPAG program was created as a resource for ASCE Sections and Branches that are tackling public relations and government relations projects at the local level. The goal of the program is to enhance the image of civil engineers as leaders and experts on America’s vital infrastructure systems and to encourage advocacy on issues that are important to civil engineers.

So what does this mean for your PR activities? If you’re planning a program for the upcoming year, consider sending in a grant proposal. While you shouldn’t rely on SPAG as your sole funding source, it can certainly be a great supplement to help you fund your project.

For more information on what kind of projects are eligible to receive SPAG funding, check out the 2010 SPAG guidelines. In particular, the SPAG Committee keeps an eye out for new and original projects.

So what are you waiting for? The deadline for proposals is Friday, Oct. 30! You can find more details on proposal requirements and submission information in the guidelines. (Don’t forget that all proposals need to be submitted through your local Section.)

If you need assistance or have any questions while you’re planning your local PR programs (SPAG-funded or not), send me an email and I’ll be happy to help!

Karen Albers
Manager, State Public Relations

If you’ve been reading this blog for awhile, you’ve probably heard us talk about how to communicate with reporters and some of the different tools you can use to do so. But what if you don’t know which reporters you should be talking to? How can you find out?

The first step is to become conscious of your local news desk. If you were to read your local newspaper or watch your local evening news every day and kept an eye open for stories on civil engineering-related issues, you would probably start to see the same reporters’ names pop up over and over again. If those are the reporters regularly covering issues related to or impacting civil engineering, they should certainly be on your media list. These reporters may cover beats such as engineering, transportation, environment, and building and construction.

Another reporter to keep in mind is your local metro section writer. While the metro reporter may not be the person who regularly covers transportation or environment issues, that reporter will probably talk about those issues when they are a particularly “hot topic” that affects the entire area - for example, when there is a major water main break.

However, in your hunt for key reporters, don’t forget some of the not-so-obvious ones. These reporters might cover issues such as education, public policy, business, science and real estate. For example, your local education reporter probably covers math and science education issues. Those issues certainly affect civil engineering education and thus, the future of the profession.

Keep track of the reporters writing about these various issues - both the obvious and the not so obvious. When it comes time to figure out which reporters might be interested in hearing about a Section/Branch program or event, you’ll know who’s already talking about the issues.

What kind of reporters have you worked with before? Were you surprised by the wide array of reporters that cover civil engineering issues?

Karen Albers
Manager, State Public Relations

In working with ASCE Sections and Branches on their PR programs, one of the most frequently asked questions I receive is about how to “get the word out.” You may have spent weeks, months or even years organizing an event and now it’s finally time to spread the word about it. But how should you go about doing so?

There are a variety of tools you can use, but one of the first things you should consider is your audience. Are you promoting an event to primarily local ASCE members? Publish a blurb on your Web site, in your newsletter and in other publications you use to communicate with your members. Keep in mind that blurbs on a Web site or in a newsletter should be kept short and to the point – a length of 75 to 100 words is usually best.

If you want to communicate with people outside your Section or Branch, there are a variety of ways to do so. Many media outlets, including newspapers and TV stations, have event calendars on their Web sites. Visit the outlet’s Web site to see if they have a calendar listing feature and look for the appropriate contact to have your event added. Keep your eyes open for additional opportunities to promote your event, such as on a community bulletin board at your local library, community center, university and other locations, including coffee shops and bookstores.

If you want to invite media to your event, you’ll want to distribute a media advisory. Advisories are normally sent to media about a week to 10 days prior to an event and include important event information, including who, what, when and where, with minimal details about how and why in the body of the advisory.

If you have any questions or would like assistance promoting one of your Section or Branch’s events, email me and I’ll be happy to help!

Have you promoted a Section or Branch event in the past and discovered other useful tips for getting the word out? Or did you have something not work out as planned? Share your experiences in the comments!

Karen Albers
Manager, State Public Relations

If you write or maintain a blog with a set posting schedule, you’ve probably hit a wall at times in trying to come up with a good topic. That’s where I found myself as I approached this entry. Fortunately for this blog, I can make the lack of a topic a topic itself, but since that won’t work for you, here are a few suggestions for developing topics:

1. Know your subject. Draw on the expertise you already have, or work to become a knowledgeable authority in the blog’s general area. In the world of civil engineering and ASCE, this can be the skills and experience you have in your specialty, and/or in the Section or Institute you’re active in. Blog topics spun from your knowledge and experience don’t have to be grand or expansive, they could be about minutiae so long as they’re something your audience can relate to. A special benefit of knowing your subject well is that it will come across readily in your blog, giving you credibility and integrity with your audience.

2. Stay up on current issues and trends in your subject. If this is related to your everyday job, then you’re already a step ahead - it just becomes a matter of realizing what can be worthy of a blog topic. If you’re not as familiar with the subject, become a regular reader of trade publications and journals in that area, plus daily newspapers (many available online). Developing a routine around checking reliable sources in the subject will pay off in generating ideas.

3. “That would be good for the blog!” Not to suggest that you breathe, eat and sleep with thoughts of your blog, but if you can look around your world with the blog in the back of your mind, sights and events will jump out and suggest themselves as blog entries. For instance, if the blog is focused on transportation engineering, events on a highway drive could spawn topic ideas.

4. Tap your own reactions and opinions. If the blog represents an individual, either yourself or someone you manage it for, the blog can (indeed, it probably should) reflect the voice and views of that person. This means that well-informed opinions are not only welcome, they give the blog a personality reflecting the person, and help foster reader comments and conversation. Blogs representing groups likely should not offer opinions unless they reflect a consensus or decisions already arrived at by that group.

Got any other tips for idea-generating techniques that have worked for you? Share them in the comments below. We’ll highlight a few suggested techniques in an update to this entry.

John Marston
Web Content Editor

Since PR University launched in March 2007, more than 160 participants have ‘graduated’ from the 100-level workshop. Now we’re beginning to develop more advanced, 200-level courses to help graduates continue building their knowledge base and expand their local public relations programs. We’re hoping you’ll share your ideas on the topics you’d like to learn more about!

As you may remember, the 100-level PR University class is an introduction to public relations for civil engineers. It covers topics ranging from ‘what is news’ and news release basics to spokesperson training. (For a refresher, you can view the workshop’s agenda here.)

Currently, we’re in the early stages of developing 200-level courses to build on the knowledge graduates gained from the 100-level course. These courses could be half-day workshops, Webinars, teleseminars…you name it! They will dive into more in-depth public relations topics that you can use in your Section or Branch activities.

So what do you want to learn more about? Is there a public relations project you’d like to learn how to tackle? A public relations tool you’d like to learn how to use?

For example, a 200-level course could revolve around an in-depth discussion on how to write op-eds or letters to the editor, or how to work with different types of media outlets. Or, we could talk about how Sections and Branches can develop and expand community relations and outreach programs.

We’d love to hear your ideas for course topics! Even if you haven’t participated in a PR University 100-level workshop, don’t hesitate to share your course ideas with us! Send me an email or leave your ideas in the comments section below.

Karen Albers
Manager, State Public Relations

Generational diversity has never been such a hot topic… until now! Generation Xers and Millennials are moving in and changing the rules of the game in almost every work setting!

Young professionals between the ages of 22 and 42 have jumped into the workforce with high levels of confidence and self esteem; they’re optimistic, willing to express their ideas and opinions, and they aren’t afraid to critique the ways things have been done. There’s an ever-growing demand for their skills and fresh knowledge. They’re diverse in their racial and cultural make-up, and they’re creating innovative solutions to some of the oldest and toughest problems facing our world today.

Let’s face it, Generation Xers and Millennials are shaking things up! And while this is an exciting time for those of us exiting the GenXer population, for some, it’s also a time of confusion and frustration. While many Gen Xers and Millennials have been heralded for helping companies maximize their bottom lines, some have been stopped cold in their fast-moving tracks by stereotypes fueled by miscommunication and sometimes resentment by those who feel young and emerging professionals are impatient and less loyal to their companies and profession.

It’s true, there are very clear distinctions in the way different generations view their self-worth, their quality of life, their commitment to their professions and their futures. Creating a space to build understanding and effectively manage these differences can either make or break opportunities for positive workplace relationships.

One of the ways ASCE ensures that its younger members (members 35 years of age or younger) feel “at home” is by providing venues for their participation in all levels of the Society. ASCE has a board-level Committee on Younger Members (CYM), and Younger Member Forums have formed across the country. And, there are a number of student organizations, awards, publications and other member benefits and services targeting young professionals preparing to enter the civil engineering profession and become active leaders within ASCE.

ASCE values the perspectives of its members in all their generationally diversity. And ASCE knows that it can achieve inclusivity that extends beyond the traditional characteristics of “diversity” - age, language, race and country of origin, education, sexual orientation and physical abilities. Active and effective inclusion also leverages unique perspectives through diversity in thinking.

So let’s talk about real generational differences! How is your Section building multigenerational team success? For example, is your Section connected with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn?

Lisa J. Jennings
Senior Manager, Diversity and Pre-College Outreach

Not long ago the typical image of an engineer included a recurring description - older, white male. This image is rapidly changing. ASCE and the engineering community have placed a high value on diversity in the field, valuing the unique contributions and skill sets along with broad professional experiences. Promoting diversity in the field of civil engineering will enable us to enhance the image of the professional and encourage students of all backgrounds that they can be civil engineers too!

What can your Section/Branch do to enhance the image of the profession?   

Nominate a co-worker or colleague for the National Engineers Week Foundation’s (EWEEK) New Faces of Engineering recognition program for 2010! ASCE is now accepting applications for this program designed to highlight the accomplishments of engineers (ages 30 or younger) from diverse backgrounds who are making a positive impact on the world. One individual from ASCE, as well as one from each of the Foundation’s sponsoring engineering societies, will be selected by the EWEEK Diversity Committee as their discipline’s “New Face.” This individual will be featured in a full-page ad in USA TODAY during Engineers Week (Feb. 14-20) 2010. ASCE’s top 10 qualifying individuals will be named our New Faces of Civil Engineering. The nomination deadline is Oct. 5, 2009. Nominate your “New Face” today!

What can your Section/Branch do to showcase diverse images of civil engineering to students – our future civil engineers? 

Encourage your Section/Branch members to participate in local outreach events, especially those members from diverse backgrounds. If you typically rely on the same individuals to handle local classroom presentations and career fairs, find ways to motivate others to participate. Post outreach events in your newsletter, send emails and talk about volunteer recruitment at your local meetings. Also consider recruiting volunteers for local outreach events sponsored by our diversity partners: the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) and the Society of Women Engineers (SWE).

It’s so important that students see all images of civil engineers. You can make such a large impact with your actions. 

What has your Section/Branch done recently to promote diversity in the field?

Shana Gipson
Senior Coordinator, Diversity and Pre-College Outreach