Tackling the Transition: From PR student to pro
I was recently interviewed in an article “From a PR Intern to a PR Professional: Tackling the Transition” for Platform Online Magazine.
Transitioning from intern to a full-time professional can be tough. As I’ve preached many times on this blog before, it’s all about the progress you make. Entry-level employees aren’t expected to be perfect, but you should always strive to learn, grow and develop your skill set. Unfortunately new employees often forget that and sometimes act like they know everything. Don’t do that. It will only set you back.
Enjoy the article.
Thoughts on “Social Pollination”
Social Pollination by Monica O’Brien is an easy to read book that can help small businesses effectively utilize social media. This 224 page book focuses on small businesses, but O’Brien’s book can also be applied to your own personal brand.
A few of the chapters that really stood out to me as a reader were “The Psychology of Online Sharing,” “Optimizing your Content” and “Social Media Tracking and ROI.” “The Psychology of Online Sharing” explains why people share online content as well as why people don’t share online content. People don’t often think about the psychology behind sharing, but it is definitely a point social media users should understand.
“Optimizing your Content” and “Social Media Tracking and ROI” are chapters that provide tips and tools on how to understand and evaluate search engine optimization and quantitatively measure your brand’s social media impact. Both are tools social media users need to understand to take their social media ability to the next week.
Case study and “buzz tips” throughout the book apply O’Brien’s lessons to real-world companies to make the tools discussed even more easily understandable for the readers. O’Brien commonly uses a summary and learn more section at the end of almost every chapter so the reader can easily pursue more information on the topic discussed. She makes it very easy for you, the reader, to understand social media and I’m happy to recommend this book to others.
Note: I recently read “Social Pollination” and expressed these thoughts on Amazon.com. I wanted to cross post my thoughts here to share with my readers. These are my own thoughts and do not represent my companies thoughts or opinions.
Guest Post: Job search tips from a recent PR grad
Claire Newton Ford graduated from Brigham Young University in April 2009. A native of northwest Oregon, she now lives in Phoenix where she is a Public Relations Assistant at Thunderbird School of Global Management.
Who could have predicted that April 2009 would be one of the worst times to graduate from college? I figured my private school education and competitive internship experiences would plant me right into my dream job, or at least a job, relatively quickly.
I joined Twitter, LinkedIn and rebranded my Facebook page. I revamped my resume and joined my university’s alumni network. I started cold-calling and social networking in February, but, no one was hiring, anywhere.
It was August and I was new to Arizona; I didn’t have a job or know anyone in the area. I reconnected with someone I met on Twitter months earlier, (the kind creator of this blog,) and we had lunch. He passed along a few names of practitioners in the valley to contact. E-mail introductions were setup and within a few weeks I had a half dozen informational interviews with noted PR practitioners around Phoenix, and from each interview stemmed many more. The face of the game is changing with social media, and so are the rules. Here are main takeaways from my experiences while searching for a position.
Show gratitude: No matter if it’s an informational interview, phone call or e-mail, show gratitude. Thank people for taking time from their busy schedule to chat.
Do your research: Know the agencies in the area. Web sites and books such as Book of Lists and Ranking Arizona can help you figure out which are the top companies.
Resumes: People rarely hire off a resume anymore. If the hiring manager doesn’t already know your name, your resume may wind up in the trash bin. Remember, small agencies often talk to each other about who they’re considering for hire so don’t it’s important to always leave a positive impression.
Informational interviews: Show up early and come with questions. Even if they’re still chatty after the allotted time, respect them and stick to the time you asked for.
Emphasize your desire to learn: Over-express your desire to learn and grow and be a part of whatever organization you are attempting to join.
Networking: Ask those you meet/know in the industry if you can use their name. You may not have a personal relationship with them, but their name can give you valuable time with others in the industry.
Differentiate yourself – Have a plan about what you want to discuss. These topics should help you differentiate yourself from others. Some ideas include your unique use of social media and your previous PR experiences. Also, know the interviewees work and compliment it.
Join the Club: Choose a few or all: PRSA, IABC, AD 2 Phoenix, AZIMA
A new direction: I’m moving to Chicago
Life is comprised of key decisions that affect you and the closest people around you. This is one of those decisions.
I’ve accepted a position on the Digital team at Weber Shandwick in Chicago. This is a great opportunity for me to further my career. I’m excited to be working in a very hot niche that is a necessity for companies to excel – digital media.
This move also allows me to be with my beautiful girlfriend who has stood behind my every decision for the past four years. We both couldn’t be happier and we’re very excited about the future.
Now the hard part – Feb. 5 will be my last day serving as Public Relations Specialist for Thunderbird. It feels like just yesterday that I joined the team (ok it was really July 2, 2007). The experience I received was priceless. I went from not knowing anything about higher education PR to falling in love with it. Whether it was the local media looking for an expert source or the international media reporting on higher ed trends, the phone was always ringing. It was a great job.
Special thanks to my director Carol Sunnucks for taking a chance on me almost three years ago, then giving me the skill set I have today and finally for being a great mentor. I also want to thank Frank Neville and Emily Gladnick for always leading me in the right direction. I lucked out by having such great colleagues (too many to name) and a fun work environment.
I wouldn’t be active in PRSA if it wasn’t for two people I admire in the PR world – Felice Appell and Abbie Fink. Of course I plan to be just as active in the Chicago chapter.
I also want to thank Tiffany Erickson, Matt Simpson, Deborah Rosenstock, the Phoenix PRSA New Pros, all my Theta Chi brothers and of course my family for always lending an ear. There are so many more people who have shaped my Arizona years, the last six year’s of my life, that deserve my praises and thanks. I thank you all.
Goodbye Arizona.
Here’s to the future….
Bill Gates bursts onto Twitter
Around 3 p.m. EST Bill Gates officially became a member of the Twitter community. His number of followers was increasing by the hundreds every minute. The PR Practitioner has a minute by minute breakdown of the amount of followers he has and lists he was part of from earlier today. He gained 5,345 followers between 6:43 and 6:58 p.m. That’s almost 6 followers per second!
Time Followers Listed
6:43 p.m. 13,862 555
6:44 p.m. 14,075 567
6:45 p.m. 14,359 583
6:46 p.m. 14,705 601
6:47 p.m. 15,093 621
6:48 p.m. 15,415 634
6:49 p.m. 15,828 652
6:50 p.m. 16,103 667
6:51 p.m. 16,601 688
6:52 p.m. 16,891 702
6:53 p.m. 17,501 727
6:54 p.m. 17,836 736
6:55 p.m. 18,139 752
6:56 p.m. 18,462 767
6:57 p.m. 18,873 778
6:58 p.m. 19,207 792
9:23 p.m. 86,178 2,588
10:37 p.m. 103,346 3,101
As of 11:19 p.m., Gates had 113,152 followers and was part of 3,420 lists.
Companies pay you to talk and tweet about them
Attention companies: Kim Kardashian will tweet about your product for a mere $10,000 (per tweet).
Attention companies: If you provide excellent customer service and I enjoy using your product, I’ll do it for free!
I’ve never used Web sites such as PayPerTweet.com or PayPerPost.com, but it’s more and more evident that others do. I think it’s great that ordinary people and celebrities get paid to endorse products in the online world, but I don’t know if I could ever bring myself to do that. It’s great because it’s an easy way for people to make money, but it’s completely wrong because your tweets/blog posts lack authenticity.
Who are you if you don’t have your own voice? Who are you once people find out your receiving money for your tweets/posts? Do you then become less credible?
I hope everyone who uses these services discloses to their readers/followers that they are reading paid content.
Editor’s Update: In an effort to see what everyone is talking about, I just signed up for ad.ly. If I am chosen to tweet about products (which I doubt I will be), I will fully disclose this AND I plan to do a full blog series on how it changes my Twitter relationships.
Social media for your special occasion
Photographer – Check
DJ – Check
Videographer- Check
Social Media Consultant – ????
It’s no secret that if companies don’t have social media presence already, they have severely fallen behind. It’s also not a secret that individuals use the social media site Twitter to express their thoughts on everything, from everywhere (such as the bathroom, the park and work).
I seem to see a lot of live tweets from special events such as weddings. I recently read an article about a groom posting a just married tweet before kissing his bride. With twitter now main stream, how long will it be before we see individuals offer their services as a professional tweeter for special occasions? You already hire a photographer and a videographer partly because Aunt Robin and Uncle Joe can’t make it. Why not hire a professional tweeter who is responsible for live tweeting throughout the occasion?
There is nothing stopping consultants from charging for a strategy and day of execution. I bet a hash tag on Twitter to follow along and a video of the first kiss almost instantly as it happens would be part of the consultants plan.
Would you hire a social media consultant for your special occasion?
*photo from: The All Tweet Journal
Getting creative: making a video resume
More and more people seem to be looking for employment. The unemployment rate in October 2009 was 9.5% of the labor force in the U.S. (14.3% in Michigan!). Job seekers will do anything to be creative and get the attention of a hiring manager. One creative, but not so new way to grab the attention of a hiring manager is creating a video resume.
There are over 15,000 results when you search “video resume” on YouTube. One of the keys to a solid video resume is substance. Make sure you introduce yourself, talk about your qualifications and show your true character. Most PR pros don’t have a problem showing their true character. Here is a great blog post that provides 10 things that go into a great video resume.
Watch Ray’s (spoof) video resume for an example of what your video resume should not look like:
What are you video resume experiences? Have you successfully landed your video resume in front of a hiring manager?
Guest Post on Twinked.In
I recently wrote a guest post on Twinked.In “Twitter & LinkedIn Link Up Benefits PR Pros.”
TwinkedIn.com aims to be a resource for professionals who are ready to take their social networking to the next level. The site features guest posts and how-to’s, as well as a community forum.
Guest Post on PRSA’s New Pros Blog
I wrote a guest post on PRSA’s New Pros blog, “The mistake I stopped making.” The post is about a mistake that I made when I first entered the full-time workforce. PRSA’s New Pros blog is a great resource for new professionals and college students focusing on PR.
