As a Tennessee alum, I knew I had to post something on PRettySocial about Lane Kiffin’s departure from UT football. However, while I love football and the Vols, I wasn’t the one for the job. So this morning, I bring you a guest post from PR pro & sports fanatic, Mike Schaffer…

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When I heard that Lane Kiffin was bolting from his position of head football coach at the University of Tennessee, as a non-alum and not even much of a college football follower, I thought “Wow, this moves around as much as Jay Leno!”

And after his refusal to answer questions at his final press conference in Tennessee, he came across looking like a jerk.  (In the industry, we call that a PR FAIL! Even when the answers may be uncomfortable or worse, you must address the issue at hand.)

However, to all the Volunteers out there, DO NOT WORRY!

Let me count the ways:

1. He was there one year.  Steve Spurrier lasted longer as the Washington Redskins coach.  And Washington completely forgot that era of awfulness.  He will be a nugget in the glorious history of Volunteer football.
2. Sure, the Vols made it to a bowl game.  But it was the Chick-Fil-A Bowl.  That restaurant isn’t even open on Sundays.  And they lost.  Seriously, though, it’s not like he set the world on fire.  The team competed, but  were not in the upper echelon of the NCAA.
3. His record was only 7-6, and 4-4 in the SEC.  Read: He’s no Bear Bryant…not even a Vince Dooley.  Nick Saban had infinitely more impact in the conference than Kiffin.  UT will find a coach that is interested in being the coach of UT…not someone that wants to coach everywhere but where he currently is.
4. He flopped horribly in the NFL.  After finishing 4-12 in his first year, Al Davis WROTE a letter of resignation for him to sign.  Seriously, if Al Davis thinks you aren’t worth it…enough said.  (For the record, Kiffin survived that off-season, but was axed with a combined NFL record of 5-15.  And filed a lawsuit.  Brilliant!)
5. While he was an NFL coach, he was rumored to be interested in college jobs.  He made it to the top of the mountain and couldn’t handle the heat.   Let’s face it, USC is THE football team in Los Angeles, the #2 market in the country.    Every move he makes will be scrutinized by the media.  And it won’t be pretty.
6. Throughout his coaching career, rules violations have followed him around.  In just one year at Tennessee, he registered numerous NCAA violations, mostly on the recruiting side.  Furthermore, USC is under some hot water right now, that is about to boil, so Kiffin will have to deal with that mess.
7. At USC, Kiffin will be replacing a LEGEND in his prime in Pete Carroll.  Sure, USC’s best days may have been a few years back, but Carroll was going nowhere.  What sane person would want to do that?  Sure, Carroll caused a lot of the trouble that Kiffin will be dealing with, but he is beloved on campus.

There you have it – 7 Reasons to Forget Lane Kiffin.  There’s ALWAYS a next year.

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Mike Schaffer is the Director of Social Media for BWF Communications in Washington, DC.  He is the author of The Buzz by Mike Schaffer and founder of #SportsPRChat on Twitter.  Through his career in sports PR, he was worked with NFL, MLB, ATP, PGA, NCAA, NHL and WNBA teams, leagues and active and retired athletes.   Follow him on Twitter.

This post originally appeared on the ReadPyxl blog. However, in an attempt to get more Knoxville businesses involved with Foursquare, I’m re-posting it here.

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As of last week, Foursquare opened its doors to all cities and towns globally.

In the past few months, Foursquare had been growing rapidly in larger metros around the world…and now we’ll be able to experience the phenomenon in Knoxville.

But what is Foursquare?

Essentially, Foursquare is a location-based, game-like social network. Users visit locations (restaurants, coffee shops, bars, parks, gyms, offices, etc.) and “check-in” via a phone app (which is then often broadcast to their Twitter followers & Facebook friends). The user earns points for checking in, unlocking new spots, visiting new venues, hitting multiple locations in one night, and leaving “tips” for other users. These tips can include things like:

• “Half-price sushi at Nama on Monday and Thursday”
• “Make sure you try the lobster mac & cheese at Cafe 4″
• “Wine is half-price at Sunspot on Wednesday night”

Users can also become the “mayor” of a certain spot by checking in at the same location a few times. From what I’ve seen in other cities, businesses often offer special incentives to the mayor. For instance, some restaurants have hung signs declaring, “Free drinks for the mayor!” Sometimes, even basic check-ins are given discounts that non-Foursquare users would not receive.

So what does this mean for Knoxville businesses?

Foursquare can tell a business how many times a customer frequents their spot, which is allowing venues to use this data to reward their most loyal customers.

Offering mayor-only deals can potentially create friendly competition among patrons of a spot, thus promising more check-ins and free online publicity.

Additionally, as users add tips about a venue, they’re shared with that person’s friends and possibly the general public, thus creating buzz about a spot’s specials, must-try’s and more. This will also often encourage more people to visit a certain location.

It’s almost like a frequent buyer card only very public. Thus, Foursquare can easily become an extra element of a spot’s marketing campaign through its intrinsic, viral word-of-mouth components.

Let’s think about it – a Foursquare user is down the street from your venue when they get an alert to their phone that your spot gives special treatment to Foursquare users. It’s then more likely that they’ll stop in and see you…don’t you think?

So where are we at now?

Of course, Foursquare has only been open to Knoxville for about a week, so I haven’t seen many venues pick up on it yet (the Healthy Living Expo was the first and only I’ve seen so far). However, I’m hoping it catches on just as it has in other cities. After all, numerous spots nationwide have found success with Foursquare. Hopefully some Knoxville spots will as well.

I really think this is a business opportunity not to be missed. What do you think?

Any Knoxville businesses thinking of jumping on board?

I’ve been begging and pleading for Foursquare, the location-based, game-like social network to come to Knoxville for some time now…and yesterday, my wish came true! In fact, Foursquare has opened its doors to all towns and cities globally!

But being that I’m in Knoxville, that’s how I’m going to focus this post…

Like a little kid on Christmas, I signed up to Foursquare the moment I found out. Now, you can just type in your city (no more drop-down with large metros only).

But because I’m one of maybe 10 people in Knoxville on it as of yet, I pretty much have to add any venue I end up at (no Knoxville venues are really on there right now). Still, I’ve had two check-ins so far and have unlocked one badge! Woohoo!

So far it seems fun, and I hope some Knoxville venues pick up on it soon and start offering discounts and rewards like those in other cities.

I also hope to see some more Knoxvillians sign up! So feel free to become my Foursquare friend : )

**Want to learn more? Check out my post on the ReadPyxl blog on what Foursquare could mean for Knoxville business.

If you live in Knoxville or plan to visit the area on Thursday, September 10, I encourage you all to check out Knoxville Twestival! It’s only $25 to attend and it’s sure to be a good time! PLUS, all ticket sales will be donated to the Salvation Army of Knoxville!

As a co-founder of SMC Knoxville, here’s some shameless self-promotion for our Official Launch Party:

The Knoxville Chapter of the Social Media Club’s official launch party will take place on Tuesday, July 21 from 6-8pm in The Green Room at Oodles Uncorked in Market Square.

The event will feature speaker Trey Pennington, the founder of SMC Greenville and an influential social media practitioner.

Pennington will discuss the importance of using social media for meaningful engagement and how to take advantage of technology to redefine what it means to be members of a society, community or culture.

SMC Knoxville’s Launch Party is free to attend and open to anyone currently involved in social media or those seeking to learn. Appetizers will be provided and happy hour drink specials will be available.

The event is sponsored by Pyxl, a marketing services firm headquartered in Knoxville, and Mashable, a popular social media news blog.

For more information and to RSVP for the event, click here.

Hope to see you all there!

Yesterday, Mashable reported that Twestival is back!

In February 2009, Twestival leveraged the Twitter audience to raise more than $250,000 in the most ambitious Twitter fundraising event to date.

Last night at #140conf (the two-day Twitter conference in New York), Twestival organizer Amanda Rose announced the launch of the group’s next event: “Twestival Local” takes place on September 12th and encourages local groups of Twitter users to host events in aid of their favorite charities. Registration will be open from July 1st.

As a co-founder of Social Media Club Knoxville, I’d really like to get involved. So if you’re interested in helping, head on over to the SMCKnox blog and join the conversation!

Today, me and the rest of the team at Social Media Club Knoxville are announcing our first networking mixer!

This informal event will be held on the patio at Barley’s Taproom in the Old City (200 East Jackson) from 6-8p on Wednesday, June 3.

It will allow Knoxville’s social media professionals to network in a low-key environment. Members of other SMC chapters may also be in attendance. This mixer will also allow us to address any questions people may have about our organization and give everyone an intro to what Social Media Club is all about.

To RSVP, click here! We’re hoping to have a really great turnout!

I’ve been trying hard recently to not only get more involved in social media, but also to contribute a little more to the city I’ve spent the past 5 years in – Knoxville! So today, I am announcing that I am an official contributing blogger at Knoxify, a blog that’s tag line reads, “The insider’s take on what makes Knoxville great.”

I really love the blog, and the other bloggers have done an amazing job broadcasting their views about Knoxville and everything within it. I’m very excited to begin working with everyone and sharing my own opinions about Knoxville. My first post hits the feed tomorrow morning, so be sure to check it out!

Since 2006, the Social Media Club has been providing a place for people engaged in social media to network and collaborate while spreading social media knowledge to others. Currently, there are chapters across the United States and around the world…but there was one important city missing: Knoxville! That’s why Brenna DeLeo and I have decided to take it upon ourselves to lead the revolution in Knoxville – or at least to provide a place for those engaged in social media to network, collaborate and spread the word about web 2.0.

The Knoxville chapter of the Social Media Club (@SMCKnox on Twitter) has yet to “officially” launch. Instead of rushing it, Brenna and I wanted to take the time to speak to some local social media-ites and put together a really great leadership team that can help us make Social Media Club Knoxville the best it can be. Currently, four leadership positions are filled (among some general volunteer positions), and we’re getting closer to our launch – we’re just hoping to find one or two more social media enthusiasts to help us. If you’re interested, check out our wiki!

Even if you can’t help lead the team, we’d love to have you onboard as a general voluteer or member! We should be launching soon, so if you want to stay updated, join our Facebook group! We’ll also be launching our official city portal via the Social Media Club site next month!

We’re so excited to get moving on this! We’ve had tremendous support from other Social Media Clubs around the country, and we’re ready to bring this professional organization to Knoxville!