Public Relations at the End of the Semester

It is the end of my third semester being a public relations student and I am ecstatic at the opportunities.

I am really interested in the fundraising, special events, campaign and multimedia. There is so much to learn with so little time and a lot of money to spend.

I must say that I am grateful for Professor Norman Lewis, Professor Steve Johnson, Ms. Quenta Vettel and Ms. Lindsey Stevens at the College of Journalism and Communications who have helped me advance my skills as well as will be helping me out with future opportunities.

I can't wait to continue working with NABJ as well being more instrumental with PRSSA.

Public Relations Principles from Toy Story 3

            I was watching Toy Story 3 and I was thinking “I want to be like Woody”. I want to be the person who you know will come through, loyal to the end, compassionate, caring, persistent and calm. It is not to say that I am not those things currently but while watching the movie his character pulled at me. I connected with Woody; he was the person I wanted to be. Everything I think now has to relate to public relations – if write it here, I must find the PR angle. Here it is: Before one gets in the communication or business field, whether it is titled Public Relations specialist, Integrated Marketing Communications or whatever – decide who you are going to be.

            It gets hard representing an organization, are your principles going to be integrated into the organization or are you going to keep your principles separate from that of the business.

            Also, if the people who you surround yourself with are attracted to another business venture will you have the courage to defend your own principles and thoughts. I really enjoyed the movie, it was nostalgic, but at the same time it really ended the series on a wonderful note and made me think about who I am and who I want to be. Each day I work on the principles I want to have in my Ms. Ann-Makir Magloire person bag and I try to reinforce the ones I’ve added whenever I’m faced with a challenge. (There have been times where I’ve failed or miss an opportunity but I keep on being ambitious).

Pitching Stories as a Public Relations Practitioner

            PR practitioners’ need to be able to pitch stories on the first throws because there isn’t a “three strikes and you’re out” rule– there’s only one chance to get it right.

            While taking my multimedia reporting course one of the additional sources students were given as reference was an article about pitching stories. I really found the guidelines informative and easy to understand. It can work great for someone in PR or a journalist who is pitching stories to an editor.

Story pitches should primarily be short and also have these four elements as written by

 Alison Rogers, How to Pitch a Story:

·         What the story is

·         Why the story is timely

·         Why it belongs in that particular publication only

·         Why you are the only person on Earth to write it

What the Story is: Story subjects can be characters – the clown who is always handing out piñatas for national holidays- but they shouldn’t be topics- financial aid (vague/too general).

      “You don’t want your ideas stolen, understandably,” –Rogers But the subject for a story is very important.

Why the Story is Timely: Why write the story now? Thanksgiving feature or hard news is/may be relevant in November. But, why is a story about white teeth a good ‘now’ topic.

Why it belongs in that particular publication only: Teeth, Gums, Toothbrush stories may relate to a Dentistry magazine. Why should a story about the latest Jimmy Choo be in a Women’s Health Magazine? (Possibly because it affects Women’s Health, but if it is just to talk about the price and which celebrities are wearing them, that should be saved for Essence magazine and similar fashion or celebrity magazine. Same subject but different angle.)

Why you are the only person on Earth to write it: Connections make the world smaller and helps you get or/and keep a job. Having special knowledge, knowing sources, different perspective or other form of relationship to getting the story can make a person the right candidate for a story.

             

            Some final touches for pitching a story include always having contact information left behind for the person receiving the pitch by you (the person who is pitching the story). Email and phone are primary ways that individuals use to contact people. Although, phone can be instant (may vary person to person and on work style).

            P.S. It is important to include days, dates, times and locations for events. All four information together can be pertinent in case additional persons may need to be involved for the story, such as a photographer or videographer. By knowing the day, it can be a quick reference for a person who needs to schedule.

            

© Ann-Makir Magloire

Public Relations Advice from CEO Debbie Mason

"Don't let the "PR" title confine you," said Debbie Mason, the CEO for the United Way of North Central Florida.

Mason graduated from the University of Florida in ’85 with bachelors in journalism on the public relations track. Public Relations was not a stand-alone major in 1985.

Mason is saying that while one is looking for a job position it is not enough to only look for positions titled “public relations” but note that other titles such Communications specialist, Media specialist, Marketing Communications, require the same skills one learn by going through a public relations track.

“Go where you want to be,” said Mason.

She continues on to say not to rule out the non-traditional path as one search for the next step after school. She encourages participating in AmeriCorps, Peace Corps or Teach for America.

Debbie Mason, CEO of United Way of North Central Florida and UF alumnus. photo by Ann-Makir Magloire.

The skill that is necessary to hone and practice is writing. Mason said in whatever she may do requires writing, whether it is in house or press releases. She also stresses the importance of writing for a nonprofit organization that may have to request funds from outside sources.

“What am I willing to do to get what I want,” Mason said.

It is important to be involved in the different aspects of public relations whether it is through volunteering, shadowing a public relations specialist or being involved with the different chapters.

What is behind confidence is knowledge and courage, Mason said. There’s no reason to not pursue a goal if one is willing to find the right information and have courage to pursue it.

Public Relations Toolkit: Social Media

Social Media is not just for staying in touch with friends. Businesses want to be a part of the social network of their consumers so that they can better understand what consumers want and how to give it to them. A public relations practitioner will need to know his or her way around the different types of social media. 

         

            In the year 2012 some popular social media platforms are;

Facebook: multimedia form of social networking.

Tumblr: multimedia form of social networking also referred to as a blog.

Twitter: sometimes referred to as micro-blogging.

YouTube: video platform used to interact with a public.

Instagram: photo sharing form of social networking.

There are several more social media site and each can be used to achieve different purposes.

More information about when each social media may be useful is coming soon.

   

© Ann-Makir Magloire