In spirit of take your child to work day, the law firm of Colodny, Fass, Talenfeld, Karlinsky & Abate hosted a mock trial for children of their employees. The mock trial script, which pits Plaintiff “Big Bad Wolf” against Defendant “Curly Pig,” borrowed from the “Three Little Pigs” storyline, demonstrates the mitigation measures that were taken to prevent the Pigs’ house from being blown down by the Wolf. 

In an interesting twist of liability and self-defense to the beloved tale, the Wolf accused Curly Pig of trying to “poach” him in a steaming kettle of boiling water.Participating children ranged from ages 5 to 17. They played the roles of the judge, jury, plaintiff, defendant, attorneys, witnesses, court deputy and bailiff. 

Boardroom secured media coverage for the fun-filled and educational event. The Sun-Sentinel featured highlights of the day with interviews of the cast.

See the video here! Photo Taken By Alessandro Abate

More than 2,500 cyclists are expected to make the two-day, 150-mile journey from the Homestead-Miami Speedway to Key Largo and back as part of the MS Bike Ride, Florida’s premier and most exciting charity cycling event. This event will raise money to support research, programs and services to 6,000 South Floridians affected by multiple sclerosis. This year’s ride is the 25^th anniversary, and participants and volunteers alike can expect a great time filled with food, fun and entertainment. Click the image below for more information!

Let’s face it — nowadays everyone has an online identity and it’s important to monitor it. For businesses, the Internet is a useful tool for publicity. For others, it’s a tool to keep in touch or reunite with friends. Whatever way you use social media, it has both positive and negative effects. And even if you don’t have a Facebook, twitter, or LinkedIn account, other people can still post photos or stories about you or your business.

So, what’s the first step in managing your online identity? It’s accepting that you have one and recognizing that it can come in a positive or negative way. Today’s Miami Herald had an article by Joyce E.A. Russell that featured the importance of your online identity and gave suggestions on how to “own” your identity.

 If you want to establish an online career portfolio, register a domain in your own name so that you can build a website. You can create a blog that includes your professional expertise, with the depth of your experience, credentials and accomplishments. You can also include links to your articles, presentations, awards and major career achievements. Always make sure your online information is consistent with your resume.

Use LinkedIn, Facebook, or other sites to establish a professional profile and expand your network. Always be aware that what you post on these sites can be seen by anyone – including peers, coworkers, family members, bosses, or potential employers. Set up “Google Alert” or “Tweet-Beep” to notify you each time your name is featured on the Internet. Every once in a while, search yourself to see what results show up on Google, Yahoo, Bing, Ask, or AOL. If you don’t like what you see or is being said, you can contact the publisher or Web site administrator directly.

Don Silver, COO of Boardroom Communications, will moderate a panel discussion this Wednesday at Florida Memorial University, titled: “BP, PR and the Crisis Response Lessons: One Year Later.” 

The panelists will examine the collaborative response to the spill by BP, the federal government, the Gulf States and municipal governments, with a focus on crisis management and communications breakdowns and effective tools used during the spill.

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico was the world’s largest marine oil disaster. The spill left a significant, long-lasting impact on the environment, as well as, the region’s tourism and seafood industries. The spill was also a classic example of a public relations nightmare for BP in particular. How prepared was BP for this disaster? How did its spokespeople do? How well did the federal government and the Gulf States communicate and connect with the public during the spill? What crisis communications messaging tactics, including PR and social media, worked?

The panel includes:

Dr. Bill Jong-Ebot
Chair, Humanities; Associate Professor, Journalism & Mass Communication
Florida Memorial University

Susannah Costello
Vice President of Brand
VISIT FLORIDA

Cynthia Martinez
Manager, Corporate Communications
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd

Matthew Beatty, M.B.A.
Communications Director
Sonshine Communications • Black PR Wire, Inc.

Tandaleya Wilder
Founder
She Got Game Media

Boardroom Communications, one of South Florida’s leading full-service public relations and marketing firms, recently participated in The Broward Outreach for the Homeless Hope Tote Project. Members of the firm donated shampoo, socks, soap toothbrushes, deodorant and other toiletries to fill the purple Hope Totes distributed by the center.  The center’s aim is to reach out to the homeless and needy to provide food, shelter, and other basic necessities through donations and proceeds from their thrift store. 

Almost everyone you speak to seems to be in the process of a website redesign.  
They are recognizing website-of-old a.k.a. “brochureware,” just won’t due in today’s dynamic marketplace. 

A short read by Phil Edelstein appeared in a recent issue of Website Magazine.  One of the most important take-aways you will glean from the column is the importance of not destroying the rankings you already have with the major search engines by essentially deleting your old site completely.  Specific website pages that already garner good rankings for your targeted keywords should be maintained on your server in the background with redirects attached to them bringing the visitors to your corresponding pages contained in the new site.  This will ensure that you do not essentially lose the seniority you have already earned with Google, Bing and Yahoo.

To read the Phil Edelstein’s full article and for more tips click here.

Julie Silver Talenfeld, a former journalist and founder of Boardroom Communications, was honored last night as a Distinguished Alumni by the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications.

Julie graduated from UF’s Department of Telecommunications in 1984. She went on to a successful career in television and radio news, before launching Boardroom Communications in 1989. Today, the public relations and marketing agency is one of Florida’s leading communications firms. 

“Julie is one of the most dynamic, forward-thinking and successful communications professionals in the state of Florida,” said John Wright, Dean of the College of Journalism and Communications. “She’s also a wonderful person with an engaging and positive personality. I’m proud that she is an alumna of the College of Journalism and Communications and a former student of mine.”

Joining Talenfeld as Distinguished Alumni were Mitchell J. Habib (Advertising, 1982), Skip Perez (Journalism, 1969), and Sara Sidner (Telecommunications, 1985).

Julie Talenfeld & Dean Wright

In the course of representing Florida trade associations and not-for-profits, Boardroom Communications gets involved with virtually every facet of their public relations, public and legislative affairs, search engine optimization , marketing and advertising.  Today, we are kicking off a legislative affairs email marketing campaign reaching one million Florida voters twice, encouraging respondents to click through so their elected officials receive a personalized email demanding reform of the insurance laws.  Stay tuned for the results, which will be tabulated over the next two weeks.  We would like to thank our partner, Equilibrix for providing the list acquisition and email marketing technology and to Mark Holmes for his work on the landing page.

 It’s interesting to see a traditional business magazine like Inc. grasp the importance of optimizing your website via a sound search engine optimization (SEO) strategy.  According to Inc.’s recent article, ”Even companies that do big business online struggle to be noticed by Google users….Traffic is directly related to your site’s rank among Google’s searh results.”

It’s important to understand how the search engines decide their rankings. Each website should consider important factors, begining with the strength of keyword usage and the organization and functionality of the website. 

The Inc. SEO guide is a great read and checklist for those considering a proactive internet marketing program for their business. For more tips, read Inc. full article here.

This month, Aventura Magazine featured Boardroom Communications’ founder and president, Julie Talenfeld, in its “Aventurist” column. The article gives an inside look at Julie’s accomplishments, from launching Florida’s first statewide business radio show at the age of 22 to becoming a finalist for South Florida Business Journal’s Businesswoman and Company of the Year. Julie has been a leader in the communications industry since before her graduation day at the University of Florida. “I’m a news junkie,” states Julie. “Whether it’s CNN, CNBC, the Huffington Post or the New York Times, I’m fully engaged 24/7.”

Click on the image below to read the full article.