Jason Mollica

Why We Need Better PR in 2012

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Hard to believe we are only a few weeks away from the end of 2011. At this time of the year, we get to look back at the year that was and take stock. What was good? What was a major #fail? As is the case every year, there is plenty of bad news in the world. Of course, in the public relations industry, we have witnessed some pretty disastrous events, too (we’re looking at you, Charlie Sheen and Anthony Weiner).

This just hammers home that it is absolutely paramount to stress how important good PR is to you and your clients. Of course, you can never predict when a crisis is going to happen. But, why aren’t some doing a better job planning? Continue reading →

Joseph Vasquez

All I Really Need to Know in PR, I Learned From Santa

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It’s the most wonderful time of the year! But only if the holiday rush hasn’t crushed you yet. If you’re (still) filled with the spirit of the season, please indulge me by reading this post with a fun, good-natured, Christmas-y attitude. ‘Tis the season to be jolly after all!

So the headline might be a bit of an exaggeration, but don’t fault me, we are all in PR. However, there are things that I do know in PR that I learned from the man in the red suit. So here’s my list of things PR-related that I learned from Santa: Continue reading →

Allie MacPherson

An Agency Perspective: Five Tips to Keep in Mind When Job Hunting

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So you have your degree. You’ve graduated summa cum laude and your resume is polished into tip-top-AP- style shape.  But now what? How do you take the tools that everyone has at graduation – a resume, letters of recommendation and a diploma – and turn it into something that sets you apart in the job hunt?

While there isn’t one golden rule to mastering the job hunt, there are certain things that can help put you at the top of your potential employer’s list. Here are five tips to keep in mind: Continue reading →

Keith Trivitt

Time for Journalism’s ‘Name-and-Shame’ Game to End

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I’ve never understood the point of the “name-and-shame” tactic employed by some journalists who feel aggrieved by what they perceive to be an undue amount of pitches from PR pros or just plain spam from PR agencies.Is it that they are trying to teach us a lesson? A Daddy (the media) knows best, and if we (the misbehaving children) know what is good for us, we’ll shape up quick before Dad comes home type of ethos?

Or is it fueled by a genuine desire to help the public relations industry better inform reporters of key trends and provide the sources they need to report on the world’s news?

My cynical side tells me it’s neither. Instead, it’s a good bit of self-righteous hand wringing aimed at embarrassing us into submission. Continue reading →

John Trader

Unintentional PR – Bane or Boon?

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I have to admit, I’ve never heard of the game Words With Friends. That is until Tuesday. Actor Alec Baldwin was kicked off of an American Airlines flight earlier this week after a flight attendant asked him to turn off his cell phone which he was using to play the game as the plane was waiting to taxi for takeoff. The actor refused and subsequently he was booted from the flight but not before proceeding to go on a tirade, slamming a bathroom door and later posting derogatory tweets about American Airlines on Twitter using a vindictive hashtag (#nowonderamericanairisbankrupt) to express his “outrage” at what us normal citizens would call “proper protocol” on an airline. Continue reading →

Amanda DiSilvestro

How to Find the Right Audience for Your Presentation

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A great speech doesn’t count for much if you’re talking to the wrong audience. Most PR professionals know that speaking to the public is important, so they create great seminars and presentations for those who attend the event. However, no matter how much you advertise this event, it always seems to be family members and existing customers or clients who show up to “learn more.” Right? While it’s great that you have loyal customers, you want your audience to be full of new faces. I like to think of it this way: 1/3 of a PR agency is producing quality work, 1/3 is maintaining current customers and clients, and the other 1/3 is grabbing new clients. Therefore, it is extremely important that your expert speakers are heard by prospective clients and people who actually need to learn more about your company. Continue reading →

Melissa Chanslor

Getting Back to Basics: Marrying Social Media with the Basic Foundation of PR

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In today’s social world, it’s seems easy to just jump in to social networks on a whim. But it’s important to remember, all social media efforts should map back to your company’s business objectives in order to be successful – just as we do in PR.

A brand shouldn’t create a Facebook presence simply because it wants to be on Facebook.

Your social media and PR strategies alike should map to a broader goal, whether it’s increasing brand awareness for your company, products or service; building web traffic; or whatever other goals you may have. Also similar to PR, if social media engagement is not tackled with a plan, it can have an adverse affect. So how do you best ensure a positive outcome of your social media efforts?

Here are five tips for social media, which as you’ll see are very much the same rules for traditional PR.  Continue reading →

John Trader

Privacy in Social Media – The Next Hot Button Issue?

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In case anyone missed it, on Tuesday of last week the FTC settled their eight-count complaint against Facebook alleging they “misled users about the use of their personal information.” Essentially the FTC was claiming that Facebook had knowingly made changes to their privacy settings in December of 2009 that automatically made aspects of user’s profiles public by default without their permission.

At issue is the inability for Facebook users to have control over who sees their private information (name, picture, city, gender, friends, etc.) and who doesn’t. Twitter has also been a Target of the FTC, and settled a similar case back in June of 2010 for failing to safeguard user information.   Continue reading →

…..a chance to start the day off right.