Career Advice

career advice…Do’s and Don’ts of Social Media by Adrienne Bailey

awilmes Leave a comment

Social Media; a treasure to many and a monster to a few. I think it is safe to say most everyone in our industry has engaged in social media via one form or another. Without much direction, everyone began posting, linking and tweeting away. Both excellent conversation and even large controversy have been the result of a platform with little-to-no rules.

Here are just a few do’s and don’ts on social media etiquette. I’m sure we each have our own unique experience so feel free to share your rules — I’d love to hear what you have to say.

  • Do personalize your messages, especially when making connections on LinkedIn and Facebook.
  • Don’t flood all outlets with the same content, be sure to provide new content or alter messaging to fit the specific audience. In other words, don’t link all platforms together, Twitter to LinkedIn, Facebook to Twitter, etc.
  • Do mix personal with professional, but be smart about it. Have a personality but be ready to take responsibility for your actions.
  • Don’t be a robot.
  • Do respond to people trying to engage in conversation with you.
  • Don’t try and connect with people on Facebook or LinkedIn you don’t know. Those are more personal platforms and you are better off beginning with the ‘follow’ button on Twitter.
  • Do offer to help people when possible. But don’t always expect something in return.
  • Don’t tell me everything; it adds noise instead of value.
  • Do contribute something more. As contradictory as it sounds, Twitter is a great place to lead and not always follow.
  • And finally, don’t ever auto DM or spam.

What social media etiquette rules do you live by?

Adrienne Bailey is an account executive in the public relations division Young & Laramore.

your pr career…Becoming the PR Pro Journalists Want You to Be by Andi Wilmes

awilmes Leave a comment

I recently watched a Ragan Communications video interview entitled “How to Pitch David Pogue of The New York Times.” Nothing in the interview was new to me. I have read and attended countless “How to pitch…” articles, blog posts and seminars and they basically all say the same thing. But after I watched this particular interview I found myself asking “Why in the world if we know all the DOs and DON’Ts of interacting with journalists do we find ourselves often doing the DON’Ts?”

I know that to pitch correctly it takes time (and time means money) which is why it is much easier to mass email canned pitches that reuse already approved marketing copy. But you don’t have to be a genius to know these pitches don’t work and are the reason thousands of articles and seminars are devoted to eradicating this common practice.

Here are some examples of the DON’Ts many of us are guilty of:

  • Making the awkward “Have you had a chance to read my news release…” follow-up call to journalists you don’t have a relationship with or have never worked with
  • Writing news releases and pitches filled with industry jargon and corporate gobbledygook
  • Developing distribution lists that are not well targeted
  • Crafting email pitches that have several paragraphs and long subject lines
  • Not bothering to research or read what the journalist covers prior to pitching
  • And the list goes on and on

It’s no wonder PR pros have a bad rap amongst journalist. Many of us are blatantly ignoring their complaints, advice and tips on how best to work with them and achieve a placement. What’s worse yet, seasoned pros are often guilty of teaching or allowing new pros to perpetuate this negative stereotype. It’s no secret that many of the above tasks are given to the new pro.

So as the next generation of PR pros let’s make a pledge! We all solemnly swear to end this nonsense and start becoming the PR pros journalists want and need us to be.

Andi Wilmes is the director of marketing and communications at Beringea, Michigan’s largest venture capital firm. She can be reached at andrea.wilmes@gmail.com.

your pr career…What your College Coursework Doesn’t Teach you about Succeeding in the Workplace by Andi Wilmes

awilmes 2 Comments

Moving up the ranks as an entry level employee and new pro can be a long and tough process. And if your university was anything like mine, it didn’t spend any time teaching the really – in my opinion – important stuff for surviving and flourishing in the workplace.  Sure I received a top notch Marketing degree, but I was not taught any real world business skills.

In the workplace, being smart and capable only gets you so far. And this fact is extremely apparent when it’s the first few months of a new entry-level job or internship. The tasks you are given frequently seem like busy work, and your level of responsibility can be minimal or non-existent.

The following basic business tips were passed on to me when I first started my career and they really helped me move up the ranks as a new pro:

Be Where the Action Is:

Ask to sit in on meetings, important phone calls, etc. You may think it is presumptuous, but your employer will appreciate your initiative and motivation. How are you supposed to become part of a team or know what’s going on in the company when you’re not where the important decisions are being discussed and made?  In most work environments you can be clueless as to what the person in the next cubical is working on. Stupid I know, but office communication no matter where you work can always be better. As the manager of your career, you must be where the action is. By being in meetings, you are much more likely to be given tasks and responsibilities, which are key to your advancement.

Read Voraciously about your Industry:

The more knowledgeable you are about your industry – and current events in general – the more prepared you will be to engage in conversations with your colleagues, boss, industry professionals, media and customers. From day one ask your boss and colleagues what newspapers, magazines, e-newsletters, etc. you should be reading every day. You can look really ridiculous if someone asks you about a current event that directly affects your industry and you know nothing about it.

Don’t Avoid the Jerks:

In every office there is a jerk. Someone you would prefer to avoid at all costs. So often though you have to interact with this person in order to move things forward in a project. Everyone’s first instinct is to avoid the person, however if you do, you can run the risk of missing deadlines, ultimately jeopardizing your career. Don’t let the jerk play the starring role in whether or not you get your work done.

Ask, Ask, Ask:

There is always downtime in an entry-level job. Unfortunately no matter how much experience you have from your internships, extracurricular activities, etc., you still can only be trusted with a certain amount of responsibility. So if your boss runs out of tasks for you, what do you do? Ask around. There are always colleagues and departments that can use an extra hand. Volunteer and you will look like a motivated team player. Don’t fall into the trap so many do, and sit by idly waiting for an assignment to drop into your lap. Your boss will expect you to be proactive and keep busy.

Interject Yourself in Everything Possible:

The more you are involved in multiple projects, departments and teams, the more job security you will have. You want to be everywhere. The person who appears to be adding value in the company is the person that won’t get fired. Make yourself irreplaceable.

Document Your Achievements:

You can’t rely on your boss to know all the great things you are doing, especially if you don’t interact with your boss on a day-to-day basis. It is up to you to make them aware of your achievements. I recommend keeping a log of achievements from day one. This will be really useful during review time when you are trying to justify a raise or promotion. Keep your boss in the loop constantly about your achievements – don’t just wait until review day. If you score a great placement, tell your boss. If you sign a new customer, tell your boss. Don’t brag, but keeping them in the loop on all the value you are adding makes them more apt to consider you for new assignments, responsibilities – and more money.

Ask for Forgiveness and Not Permission:

As a new pro, you will have the tendency to ask your boss permission all the time. Even on things that you can easily decide on your own. A lot of time is wasted on waiting for approval. If the question you have is nominal, your boss will admire the fact that you are able to use good judgment and make decisions without a lot of hand holding. In this economy, your boss is likely doing the job of 2-3 people, so they will appreciate making less decisions each day.

You are the only person you can count on to manage your career. Those who understand how to play the game are ultimately rewarded. If you look around at the people who are superstars at your company, they are likely doing most of the above things. So go join them!

Andi Wilmes is the director of marketing and communications at Beringea, Michigan’s largest venture capital firm. She can be reached at andrea.wilmes@gmail.com.

professional development…Mentorship: What New Pros Have to Offer by Sommer Caraway

awilmes Leave a comment

Throughout my life, I’ve been advised that I should always have a mentor and be a mentor.  When I first joined PRSA, a mentor program is something I searched for but found was nonexistent.  Shortly thereafter, I became a Phoenix PRSA New Pros leader and about a year ago, we divided our responsibilities into two keys areas: events and mentorship.  A passionate advocate of the latter, I was tasked with developing a mentor program, in which we New Pros would mentor others.

We developed the first mentor program between the PRSSA students at Arizona State University with the goal to simply bridge the gap between the academic and professional worlds.

We set small goals, knowing that we could build on them later. The PRSSA liaison (a PRSA member) and I decided to pair up New Pros group leaders with the student leaders.  We would try it for a semester and if it worked, we hoped word-of-mouth would yield greater participation the next semester.

So I sent out mentor and mentee interest forms to the most active New Pros and to the PRSSA president. To our surprise, 14 students signed up to be mentees the first semester!

We designed the mentor program to be informal so that people wouldn’t feel the time commitment was unattainable. For one semester, every other month, pairs were to meet one-on-one; on the off months, all pairs would meet as a group.

Because of the commitment of the PRSSA leaders and the gracious mentors, the program has been a success, and we look forward to implementing it again this year!

Thinking of starting a New Pros/PRSSA Mentor group? Here are five ideas for group meetings to get you started:

  1. Plan a kick-off happy hour (with options for students under 21, of course!) to discuss the importance of mentoring, expectations and topics students care about.
  2. Schedule a volunteer group event in lieu of a happy hour so mentors and mentees get to know one another outside of work.
  3. Pair up with the local Master’s SIG for a “speed mentoring” event that includes students, New Pros and seasoned pros.
  4. Offer a Shadow Day so students can see PR in action at local agencies and corporations. Encourage mentors to schedule a group lunch the same day so mentees can discuss what they learned.
  5. Plan a holiday, spring or graduation party to conclude the semester of mentoring. Host at someone’s house for a casual, fun celebration!

Sommer Caraway is a public relations professional in Arizona and a New Pros Committee Leader in Phoenix PRSA.  She may be reached at sommercaraway@yahoo.com.

career advice… The mistake I stopped making by Brian Camen

New Professionals PR Blog Leave a comment

When I graduated college, my resume  touted all I accomplished during my four years at Arizona State University. Three internships. Two relevant part-time jobs. President of my fraternity, and a good gpa. Sounds impressive, right? These kinds of accomplishments impressed a hiring manager and got me a job, but they meant very little once I started work.

We all make mistakes as first time full-time employees, but mine was a big mistake. I acted as if I knew everything.

Just because you had four or five internships, doesn’t mean you know everything about Public Relations. I’m happy to report that I stopped making that mistake quickly. My attitude quickly changed once I realized that pretending to know everything was the worst thing one can do.

Entry-level employees often are afraid to seem inexperienced so they pretend to know all the answers. The point of an entry-level position is to learn about the industry you work in, develop yourself as a full-time employee, and grow your skill set. Your boss isn’t expecting you to be perfect nor is your boss expecting you to manage yourself. If your boss wanted those traits in an employee, they would not have been seeking an entry-level employee.

As a new professional you will undoubtedly make mistakes (whether accidentally or on purpose). The key is to learn from those mistakes. Study what you did wrong and make sure it doesn’t happen again.

Another key to your entry-level position is to master your entry-level tasks. Once those are accomplished, your boss will feel more comfortable giving you higher level tasks. Developing your skills takes time. You can always be a better writer, listener, and practitioner.

Your skill set isn’t going to develop overnight and no matter how many internships you have, you never stop learning in this industry because Public Relations is continually evolving.

__

BRIAN CAMEN is a Public Relations Specialist at a top-ranked international b-school in Glendale, AZ. Read his blog The PR Practitioner (http://www.theprpractitioner.com). He can be reached at brian.camen@gmail.com or @BrianCamen