Surviving Your First Job in Public Relations
A few of us in the office were comparing notes on PR Daily’s list of things you should expect in an entry level public relations job. As Katie mentioned in her earlier blog discussion on defining PR, one essential component of the industry is change. One day can look very different from the next. Here are a few other things to expect: (more…)
Want to be a better communicator? Put down your smartphone, strike up a conversation
There used to be a time when people weren’t listening to music, texting, IMing, checking their email, posting to Facebook, Tweeting and browsing the web as they crossed busy intersections. I’m guilty of being digitally leashed to my iPhone, having jumped on that bandwagon early on. Technology has done wonders for communication, allowing people from around the world to keep in touch in real time day or night. But it has come with a humanistic price that we communicators should keep in mind. (more…)
Simple Reigns Supreme
On this Valentine’s Eve, we are feeling a lot of love with new client samples from KonaRed, a Hawaii based superfruit beverage company, and cookies from the Girl Scouts NorCal, who just kicked off sales with 2.9 million boxes distributed throughout Northern California. Talk about a lot of Thin Mints.
We’re barely into 2012, but things are already chugging along nicely. Katie, just back from the IPREX Global Leadership Conference in Berlin, is buzzing on the evolution of our practice and the increasingly “glocal” (global and local) communities emerging online. (more…)
What is PR? Anyone? Anyone?
“Nice to meet you. So, what do you do?”
“I work in PR,” I say … silence. “Public relations?” I continue. Still, blank stares.
“Oh, you make commercials!” “You must be good with people!” “Do you do a lot of public speaking?” “Are you like Samantha Jones from Sex and the City?” “How are the parties?”
Sigh. I can’t begin to count how many times I’ve had this conversation and come away exasperated. How is it that my chosen profession is so hard to explain? It’s clear to me, but not to the friends, family, acquaintances and cocktail party guests I’ve met over the years who just don’t get what I do. Why is that? Probably because there is no singular explanation that defines public relations.
