PENNSYLVANIA DENTAL ASSOCIATION



Communications and Public Relations Committee

Conference Call

January 14, 2011

Present Staff Present

Dr. David A. Tecosky, Chair (1) Rob Pugliese

Dr. Joseph E. Ross, Vice Chair (9) Director of Communications

Dr. John L. Meci (2) Natalie Kinsinger Dr. Constance L. Wilson (6) Web Content & Graphic Design Manager

Dr. William Weaver (8), Trustee-Liaison Amber Wickard

Dr. John B. Nase (2), ADA Consultant Communications Coordinator

Rachel Damrauer

Communications Coordinator

Absent

Dr. Randy R. Nolf (3)

Dr. V. Lynne Cochran (10)

Dr. Bruce Terry (2), Editor

Dr. Joseph J. Kohler III (9), Associate Editor

Dr. Brian Mark Schwab (4), Associate Editor

Call to Order

Dr. David Tecosky, chair, called the meeting to order at 9:37 a.m.

Approval of Minutes

On a Ross/Meci motion, the committee unanimously approved the minutes from the

October 1, 2010, meeting.

Election of 2011-2012 Committee Chair and Vice Chair

The committee discussed several members being at the end of their terms. Dr. Joseph Ross and

Dr. John Meci are interested in serving an additional year, pending approval. Dr. Tecosky's term is up and he is unable to continue due to his commitment with the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD). Dr. Cochran has asked to be removed from the committee and made this intention known to her district trustee. The committee unanimously elected Dr. Ross as chair and Dr. Constance Wilson as vice chair for 2011-2012.

Old Business

2011 National Children’s Dental Health Month (NCDHM)

Ms. Amber Wickard reported that the kits were mailed to schools in December and orders have been coming in for both NCDHM supplies and library materials. She also reported that PDA was unable to secure rewards coupons for 2011, as companies either declined or failed to respond.

Ms. Wickard plans to contact a variety of companies later this year to try to secure coupons for 2012. She reported that publicity forms will be mailed and posted on the website later this month; members can fill out a form to report their NCDHM event for inclusion in the upcoming Journal article.

News Releases

Ms. Rachel Damrauer reported on news releases distributed this past year and the January NCDHM poster contest release. Committee members suggested future releases include avulsed teeth, caries diagnosis, sensitivity and the positive effects of fluoride.

Day on the Hill

Mr. Robert Pugliese reported that Day on the Hill is scheduled for Tuesday, June 14, 2011, and that an article with detailed information will be running in the January/February Journal.

Leadership Conference/Spokesperson Training

Mr. Pugliese reported that an abbreviated version of Spokesperson Training will be held at the Leadership Symposium on May 21, 2011.

Redesigned Website

Ms. Natalie Kinsinger reported that the newly redesigned website launched in early December. Committee members commented that the new site is much easier to navigate and locate information and is much more attractive. Members would like staff to create a report showing statistics on what pages are most visited, bounce pages, etc. (Secretary's Note: Staff contacted cSystems to discuss PDA's current tracking system. cSystems' server uses Google Urchin which doesn't have the capability to filter out IP addresses. Because of this, page views and other statistics are skewed depending what pages are being worked on by staff. Staff and cSystems are looking into a workaround for this issue.)

Social Network

Staff encouraged members to use the Social Network, particularly the forums. Dr. William Weaver suggested staff set up all district and local groups to encourage participation. However, staff pointed out each group needs a moderator, and that before creating a group, a moderator would have to be named. Dr. John Nase will provide a bulleted list of the benefits of using a social network over e-mail. This list could be printed in publications or provided as a hand out.

Mr. Pugliese reported that a PDA Social Network training session will occur at the Leadership Symposium.

Pennsylvania Dental Journal

Mr. Pugliese reported on upcoming articles, including Dr. Bruce Terry's editorial on the new dental school in Erie, PDA's legislative priorities, the importance of PADPAC, Day on the Hill, Dr. Brian Schwab's article on using the Social Network's forums, detailed information on Annual Session and practice management articles from Tom Weber. Committee members were asked to provide any article suggestions to Mr. Pugliese or Dr. Terry.

Sixth District's feature article was submitted, which leaves only two districts that have not yet submitted articles - Fifth and Seventh.

In the past, the committee has frequently suggested featuring human interest stories/members' hobbies in the Journal. The first one, to be published in the January/February issue, highlights

Dr. Terry and his outdoor activities, particularly mountain climbing. A call for suggestions/

submissions is being published along with the article, asking members to provide information about themselves or someone they know. Committee members were asked to write articles on members who they know who have interesting hobbies.

Electronic Advertising/Premier Advertiser Perks

Mr. Pugliese reported that recently the wrong ad for Thayer Dental Lab ran in the Journal. After discussing with Thayer different ways to reach the membership with the time-sensitive information, it was agreed that PDA would send a blast e-mail to members in lieu of refunding the full amount of the advertisement.

This instance became a good starting point for PDA to consider offering electronic advertising opportunities. The committee members were asked to discuss electronic advertising via eblasts and PDA's monthly eNews Update. The members agreed blasts should not be sent consisting of solely advertising, but that ad spots could be worked into eblasts and eNews Updates. The committee proposed no more than 25 percent of an e-mail be used for advertising. Spots could be sold to advertisers, and PDA could offer current advertisers electronic advertising opportunities either at an additional cost, or as a perk to premier advertisers. Mr. Pugliese is going to inquire about electronic advertising to other dental associations of similar size, and ask Camille Kostelac-Cherry for input.

New Business

QR Codes

Dr. Nase asked staff to look into using QR Codes in PDA advertisements, especially for events. A QR code can be generated for free online and placed into printed publications. When a user takes a photo of the QR code with his or her smart phone, the corresponding website page featuring more information opens on the phone. This would be a way to direct users to the website and provide additional information when publication advertising space is limited.

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 11:08 a.m.

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