Lessons learned in PR
My first quarter teaching is coming to a close this week at DePaul. I decided to ask on the final exam what was the most important thing the 38 students learned from our “Principles of PR” class. I imagined an incentive was needed to get the answers. So I offered an extra credit point. Twice a week for 12 weeks I’d seen them for 90 minutes. If I did not ask now, and they walked out of this room for the final time, I wouldn’t know the answers. Had I conveyed the most important concepts? Did those concepts ‘stick’? This course was now a part of their...
Read MoreEight ways PR is like sailing (3 of 3)
Eight ways PR is like sailing Part three of a three-part blog series published as seen in PRBreakfast Club PR Pro’s: would you add anything? Sailors: what do you think? Other professions: how can you relate to these metaphors? 7) To tell a great story, as with sailing, you must always connect the dots. On the water, the sails are connected to the mast which is connected to the hull that is connected to the tiller and to the hand that steers the boat. That hand is connected to the eyes that are always watching the compass that is connected to the “Windex” at the top of the mast...
Read MoreEight ways PR is like sailing (2 of 3)
Eight ways PR is like sailing Part two of a three-part blog series published in PRBreakfast Club PR Pro’s: would you add anything? Sailors: what do you think? Other professions: how can you relate to these metaphors? 4) PR and sailing represent teamwork at its finest. Most boats over 15’ are best operated, but not required, with a team. Each person, when racing, has his or her role. If you are fortunate the team understands the bigger picture and moves toward the common goals of safety, fun and crossing the finish line first. The PR project or campaign can’t be done alone either....
Read MoreEight ways PR is like Sailing (a 3-part series)
Eight ways PR is like sailing Part one of a three-part blog series published in PRBreakfast Club PR Pro’s: would you add anything? Sailors: what do you think? Other professions: how can you relate to these metaphors? 1) PR people, like skippers, tend to have a ‘Mother Nature’ resiliency. A PR person’s day can be planned with great predictability but each hour, let alone each day, can bring twists, turns and interview requests that become opportunities not to be missed. Whatever Mother Nature may throw your way during a 2-3 hour sail, be prepared. We have not figured out how to...
Read MoreWelcome Raving PR Fans
PR students, interns, practitioners, and (ahem…) flacks like me, plan to gain and share something in this blog. Whether you are aligned with an agency, have your own business, work on the corporate, government, nonprofit or other sides, we want to hear from you. I suppose I have earned a right to share experiences from my time on the front lines. Now as an entrepreneur and adjunct professor, I am jazzed to learn from the newcomers in our field and the self-starters of social media technology. When I landed in PR, intranets were the hottest thing. And the Internet was Al Gore’s dream. I...
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