I was invited to an event recently that I was really excited about. However, much to my dismay, I was only able to last a half hour before I high-tailed it out of there. From a cramped event space to complete confusion about where I was supposed to go, let’s just say this event didn’t live up to all the hype.
We thought we would use this opportunity as a learning experience, and provide a few tips that you should keep in mind when planning and executing an event. Continue reading
Some of the comments on the personal post of one of our writers brought up some points that I’ve been thinking about for awhile now. See a friend of mine spent two entire work days at a social media conference. After it was over, I asked him what he learned.
Imagine a very long, brief pause. Then he started talking in circles, so I pushed again, “No, I mean what did you actually learn?” He proceeded to fess up that it was more of a networking event than an actual learning experience. All in all, he didn’t learn anything new. Continue reading
[We received this question on a recent blog post about short job stints]
Dear Flack,
How does one stay active in the PR/marketing world and keep up their skills when they’re unemployed?
This may be a bit off topic, but I was late to the other unemployment posting, so I thought I’d ask here since it’s somewhat relevant.
I’m currently unemployed, and I really want to keep my PR and writing skills active while I continue to search for work. I would appreciate any tips that others have tried during periods of unemployment to keep their skills current and continue doing what they love (and it would also be great to be able to share what I did to keep on top of things while unemployed with potential employers). Continue reading
There is no “I” in “team” but there is a captain even if there is no “C”. A few weeks ago Cog wrote on the importance of teamwork in PR and how as PR professionals we often work collaboratively. However the post reminded me that behind every great team is a great leader. Someone the team trusts, believes in, and who believes in the betterment of the group. Perhaps it’s the manager that goes the extra to mile, ensuring all players are on board or making sure the separate tasks are meeting the end goal. In the simplest terms, thanks to Dictionary.com, a captain is a person who is at the head of or in authority over others;a chief; a leader. In my opinion, if you want a successful team you need a great leader. Marie and I came up with a few necessary traits, in no particular order, we feel a leader should have.
(Note: Marie and I know taking on the role as captain isn’t all rainbows and unicorns and we needed someone to play devil’s advocate. In true PRBC fashion, we turned to our resident devil, Cog, and asked if he would put together why, although our traits are important, it’s not that easy. You can see that post here)
On occasion a PR pro makes the wrong decision about taking a job. Whether it was the money, or the potential opportunity for growth, changing jobs might not always end up how you envisioned. I know this all to well from past experiences.
Let’s say you have taken a job you’ve come to now realize was the wrong move, and you have only been there a short few months. Or you recently took a position and the company was forced to do layoffs and you end up on the cutting room floor. More than likely your next step is to look for another job ASAP.
Obviously a short job stint isn’t necessarily a great thing for the resume, and it also could be a red flag to potential employers. How do you approach short job stints? Continue reading
Recently, TechCrunch featured a post about an e-mail they received from a PR firm, which the publicist obviously didn’t mean to send. To summarize, the firm accidentally left an internal exchange at the bottom of the e-mail that discussed the actual art of pitching TechCrunch.
Since I started out in the PR industry, I’ve quickly seen more and more publicists get blasted throughout the interwebs for their mistakes. Granted this public exhibition of PR faux pas has made communications professionals more aware and cautious about what they send out for mass consumption. One could also argue that at the same time, it’s made us totally terrified. Continue reading
Working in the social media space, I can safely say that overall I understand the marketing perks of Twitter, Facebook, etc. Sure I participate in these sites as part of my job and as marketing research, but at the end of the day I’m also a user.
Originally I fought tooth and nail against signing up for Twitter because at the time I didn’t see a need for it. I kept wondering, “Who is going to care what I have to say?” Obviously I have changed my tune, and decided to just dive into the world of Twitter once I found my niche. Still, I primarily use it solely for work.
Lately, however, my social media conundrum is with Foursquare. As a marketer, I know I should be using it; as a consumer, I just don’t care. Continue reading
In a recent op-ed in the New York Times, the writer took on the current state of the R.S.V.P. He talked about the lack of response that R.S.V.P.s illicit, and that perhaps evites are on the way out the door. This is especially frustrating as a publicist when you are putting on event and are forced to utilize the cost-effective method of evites. You depend on responses.
The decline of evite popularity is becoming more and more of a trend.
I, myself, have been on both sides of the fence in relation to the R.S.V.P. Nothing is more frustrating then sending out an evite, only to realize no one has responded. Not only does it make you sad, but how do you even know who is coming to the event or not? Continue reading
If you didn’t know already, the PRBC has our very own Facebook Fan Page. Every Friday, we ask everyone a random question in a series called “Fun Facts Friday.” Last week we just finished up presenting our 35 ideas about social media in 30 minutes, so we asked you to share your one social media idea in a sentence.
Here is what a couple of you had to say: Continue reading
Raise your hand if you are sick of hearing “it’s all about the relationship.” When it comes to producers, reporters and bloggers, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that it all comes down to relationships. Yet, as many times as it’s been said, it seems no one talks about how to create those relationships.
Whether you are just starting out in PR, or you’ve switched focuses, media relationships can prove to be a tricky thing. How do you establish a relationship? How do you maintain the relationship? Furthermore, how do you prove you are an actual person rather than just a flack robot?
With such hefty questions to tackle, I thought I would poll our PRBC family to get their advice and perspectives on everything having to do with relationships. Continue reading