Flackrabbit

I’m so happy I have a contact form on this website. I get a steady stream of mail from you folks; mostly with questions about breaking into the public relations industry, how to handle various PR issues or a comment about one of my Her Nashville columns.

Today’s question comes from new reader JM:

I’m a recent graduate who just moved into the Nashville area from California and have found myself to be one of the millions of fish in the employ-me-sea. Any advice/tips for a upward minded new guy?

FlackRabbit says:

Dear JM: You’ll love Nashville. I was born in raised there. I moved to D.C. a year and a half ago, but Nashville will always be home. Family and friends are still there; I still write for Her Nashville magazine; many Nashville folks believe I still live there. Here’s three ways a recent grad can stand out in Music City:

Talk to strangers: many fantastic job opportunities are discovered by word-of-mouth, so start meeting folks! A great way to meet fellow recent grads and potential employers is through Meetup.com. That’s where the Nashville Flacks PR happy hour lives; the first meetup is Tuesday, August 10 in downtown Nashville.  If you don’t find a Meetup group that suits your fancy, start your own. That’s what I did when I moved to D.C. and DC Flacks now has 270 members! After you meet someone new, stay connected with them with LinkedIn.

Give back/show your love for the town: Nashvillians are quite proud of their city; and they don’t call Tennessee the volunteer state for nothin’. Hook up with Hands on Nashville and find a way to use your skill set and meet movers and shakers around the city. You’ll meet folks, make a positive impact in the lives of others and be able to show an employer that your service-oriented. And since public relations is a service industry, a good employer will understand why volunteering matters.

Contribute to the field: in this economy, you may find yourself employed somewhere doing non-PR work while you’re looking for PR work. No matter your current line of employment, you should still find a way to get your voice out there and make meaningful contributions to the public relations field. Your own blog, leaving thoughtful comments on news articles, etc are a fabulous way to do this. Just because you’re not actually getting paid for PR right now doesn’t mean you can’t share your knowledge and expertise. This could mean that you’re only doing what you love/the real career you want at night, but it’s worth it.

If you have questions about public relations practices,  career advancement or just need a little encouragement, scroll down  to the comment box and holla at me!

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I frequently hear from in-house PR pros that their talents are underutilized at work. The truth is that unless your manager is or once was a communications professional, she probably doesn’t actually know how to best use your skill set, let alone take your career to the next level. Don’t take it personally; one doesn’t know what one doesn’t know. Rather than be sad about it, you should view this as an opportunity to “manage up.”

The most successful PR folks I know have paved their own career path by respectfully teaching their boss, boss’ boss and team members how to make the most of a communicator’s talents. Here’s how:

Show up with your own agenda, get buy-in; then, get to work: you are a professional communicator, which means not an hour goes by without you thinking about something creative, strategic or worth investigating. Take the time to map out those thoughts and put them on paper. Be specific about your goal, tactics, timeline and deliverables. Then, schedule a meeting with your manager and present your plan. I’ll bet you a latte that memo gets the greenlight. More importantly, you’ve proven you are proactive and thoughtful. And if your ideas are successful, you’ll make your boss look like a rock star–and she didn’t have to lift a finger. That means the next time you present a memo, she’s even more likely to approve it.

Take care of your boss(es): managing up is only successful when your manager trusts you. Your actions must prove that you are always acting in her/the company’s best interest. It’s often the little things, like reminding her of deadlines and helping her avoid office drama, that will assure her you’re not trying to take her job; you are simply striving to be fantastic at your own. I can’t stress this one enough. If your managing up is seen as an attempt at mutiny or to disable company hierarchy, you will fail.

Lead by example: your manager may not be outcomes- or deadline-driven, but that doesn’t mean you aren’t. Set deadlines and goals for your work and then hold yourself accountable for those results. When your manager and team sees that you are a sincere self-starter who gets things done, they will likely listen more intently to your feedback and suggestions–or at the very least, begin to view you as a leader among your peers.

Be completely transparent: your boss should never have to wonder about your motives and actions. And if your plans are working, she needs to know that, too! Start sending your manager an email every few weeks that recaps your achievements and current to-do list. If a colleague asks what you’re up to, or why you seem to be setting your own agenda, explain your vision for your team’s communication work; then, ask for your colleague’s feedback.

The bottom line: life is too short and you are too talented to sit and wait for your boss, a mentor or fate to boost your career to the next level. There is no guarantee that someone “older and wiser” is ever going to give you appropriate marching orders or come up with something brilliant for you to do. Stop waiting; manage up and pave your own path to success.

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Nearly one year ago, I moved to D.C. declared a PR people happy hour and was shocked when a dozen folks actually showed up. Now, DC Flacks is more successful that I could have ever imagined. We are 250+ members strong, each happy hour is attended by anywhere from 25 to 60 flacks and we’ve even got a fancy-pants sponsor: Vocus!

Building on the success of DC Flacks, I’m proud to introduce Nashville Flacks, co-organized by the lovely and talented Cindy, Jena and Mary Beth. I can’t hardly wait to see what the future holds for this group!

If you’re a PR or communications pro in the Middle Tennessee region, I hope you’ll join us. Membership is free. Like DC Flacks, the group meets once a month for beverages, conversation and ranting laughs. We’ve only been an active group for two days and already have 40 members! Pretty cool.

Now, for those of you not living in D.C. or Nashvegas, you should start your own ____ Flacks chapter on Meetup.com. If you need help, tips or encouragement, just shoot me an email at Margie (at) Flackrabbit (dot) com.

Oh, I’ve had a couple of folks ask and, no; just because I’ve started a Nashville Flacks doesn’t mean I’m moving back to Nashville next week.  I just love Nashville and know that when I eventually do move back, I’ll want there the same type of PR people social hour that I have here in The District.

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There are many, many great iPhone 4 reviews piling up, so I’ll spare you another one. But I am getting asked one question over and over again: folks want to know if they should dump their new Droid Incredible and formerly new iPhone 3Gs for Apple’s shiny new toy. You’ll find my answer over at HerNashville.com

I will add here at FlackRabbit that from the public relations practitioner perspective, the iPhone 4 and devices like it could allow us to use use new media to tell our clients’ stories in a much more nimble and timely way.

For instance, I think it’s freakishly cool that you could shoot quality video of a client event, edit it with iMovie, add a caption and relevant key words, and then upload it to YouTube–all from your iPhone 4. If you don’t have time to get back to your desk between meetings, it’s okay. And your client will think you’ve cloned yourself.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg, of course. But it’s still pretty exciting to think about.

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The July issue of Her Nashville magazine is here! For those of you unable to hop over to Nashville and pick up a copy, surf on over to the Her Nashville website. There, you’ll read my/the Chic Geek’s thoughts on the importance of surrounding yourself with positive people:

I have an incredibly kind and encouraging foundation comprised of my husband, family, friends, bosses (past and current), and mentors. The power of their kind gestures and encouragement is immeasurable; it has made me the confident, positive person I am today, and I experience that positive power nearly every day.

Do you?

If you almost said “yes,” then thought “not really,” and then quickly started defending the intentions of negative folks in your life, I encourage you to begin seeking out and surrounding yourself with kind and encouraging people. Read the full column here!

I hope you’ll find this column just the motivation you need to wash away negative influences and bathe your soul in the uplifting people who know and love you. I promise your heart, career and health won’t regret it!

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I’ve been tremendously fortunate to have smart, candid folks looking after my best interest early on and throughout my PR career. Here’s a list of six statements various mentors–including bosses, friends and family–have made to me. I’m ever so grateful; I would not be where I am today had they not uttered these words:

“Your writing sucks”–if one of my first bosses had not been so honest, I would not have made it my mission to become a strong, confident writer. I promise to keep working at it, SH.

“You interrupt people too much”–I like to talk. Thankfully, one of my early mentors told me to take a breath and listen to folks more often. That Lady is a one smart lady. But um, I’m much better with not interrupting folks at work than I am at home…sorry, honey!

“You are memorable”–when hear these words, it is always an “ah-ha!” moment. It’s true, folks I work with usually don’t forget me–for better or for worse. Now I realize that my memorable personality is half of what makes me a successful public relations professional; once you understand your unique skill set, you can then learn how to leverage it to achieve your goals. Hat tip to Barbara, Dave, Joe and John for helping me figure this one out.

“If someone asks for your opinion, give it”–you are a PR pro, not a “yes” man. If someone asks for your opinion in a meeting or your edits to a document–give them. With confidence. If you truly don’t have anything to contribute, re-assess your role in the project. Wise words from a wise gal. Thanks, Jen!

“Defy mediocrity”–amen. Thanks and R.I.P., DHC.

“You catch more flies with honey than vinegar” –translated into the workplace: you get a better work product by showing respect than fostering fear. From my mother I learned to begin every critique with something positive.  Her parenting technique is one of my signature management techniques; and it has worked wonders for me for nearly 10 years. Thanks, mom!

No doubt your work approach has been influenced by someone’s wise words or leadership; share your inspiration and ah-ha moments in the comments!

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Nothing brings out the worst in folks quite like anonymity. Under the misguided belief that the Internet was created to catalog negative comments and painfully poor grammar, Internet trolls rant and pillage the Web–and leave in their wake you, with a helpless, panicky feeling.

Every public relations person has a different theory on how to handle ridiculous, demeaning and downright false comments; here’s mine:

Don’t delete: folks have the right to disagree with you–even they are snarky and mean-spirited.  As long as the comment isn’t a threat, patently offensive, spam, bigoted, libelous or keeping you awake at night, leave it be. These are comments from trolls, not statements from the Pope.

Count to 4,567: as bad as the troll’s comment is and despite how angry/hurt/sad it makes you, it’s not the end of the world. Take a deep breath, step away from the computer and think before you respond.

Just the facts, ma’am: should you decide to respond to the the troll in a comment of your own, do so with a level head, refuting the troll point-by-point using factual statements with as little emotion as possible (Trolls hate that). Under no circumstances are you to fight with the troll or engage in it in sarcastic comm-versation.

Use your real name: transparency is key when responding to an Internet troll. When you respond, it should be under your real name. In my book, if your comment is anonymous it doesn’t count–and you’ve become a troll, too.

Don’t expect to win: you have a life, Internet trolls do not. This means they will always have the last word. That’s okay. You should only respond to a troll’s comment to clear your name, clarify a statement, defend your belief or correct a fact on the record. You aren’t in this to win an argument; say only what you need to say and move on.

Think about the Google: there are some PR folks who’d tell you not to respond to comments on the Internet no matter what. But if the commenter has said a statement like “and since I heard that YOUR NAME hates children and kicks puppies” that means that when you Google your name, you’ll find this blog comment. This is why you should have a comment under your name that factually refutes that statement, such as “Hi, there. Actually, I have three kids and volunteer at the humane society.”

Bottom line: clear your name, but don’t play their game. Trolls feed off of confrontation, sarcasm and adrenalin; if you’re denying them those essentials, the troll will eventually move on to more abundant corner of the Web.

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One minute I’m minding my own business, the next, PR rockstar Amanda Littlejohn has somehow found a way to include me and the DC Flacks in an impromptu Mopwater PR + Media Notes and DC PR Flacks: Coffee for Media Pros DCWEEK event. I love that woman.

If you’re going to be in the DC area on Tuesday, June 15 at 4 p.m, join me, Amanda and Gia at the Corner Bakery Cafe at 1828 L Street NW from 4 – 5:30.

For those who don’t know, tonight marks the launch of Digital Capital Week (DCWEEK), a 10 day festival in here in DC focused on technology, innovation and all things digital.  It’s such a thrill to be a part of the DCWEEK schedule; thanks for thinking of DC Flacks, Amanda!

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If you are a professional communicator, you MUST maintain your own personal slice of the Internet. (You can’t convince a client, boss or co-worker of the importance of online reputation management if you don’t even manage your own online reputation.)

More than a blog, you should have an online portfolio to communicate to the world your talents, skills and experiences. Creating an accurate, impressive web presence is especially important if you are on the lookout for a new job/client. And let’s face it, if you’re a good communicator, you’re always networking for the next opportunity.

Before you panic–or send me more emails about how you don’t know how to create a website, nor have the cash to pay someone to build one for you–I’ll remind you of a little something called Linkedin.

Linkedin is free, it boasts a fabulous Google Page Rank and now features most of the bells and whistles you’d want on your website (like syncing with your Twitter account). So, mosey on over to your Linkedin profile and start spreading your news. And please, don’t be so humble; tell the world all about your irreplaceable skill set and achievements. Seriously, tell us. Because if you don’t, who else will?

You DO have a website. It’s called Linkedin; use it wisely.

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In the June issue of Her Nashville Magazine, I offer up my favorite tech toys for your summer travels and sun worship. Here’s a teaser:

Get Inspiron-ed
Hitting the road with the fam, but still desperate to check Facebook and your online bank account balance? Dell’s itty bitty Inspiron Mini is the perfect solution. Don’t get me wrong, I’m an Apple gal. I’d love nothing more than for you to run out and spend $599 on an iPad, but I’d DIE if ever I found out you took The Precious anywhere near water. Or sand. Or your fifth piña colada. So, the more practical alternative is the Inspiron Mini; it’s only $279 and surfs and sends like a champ. This way, when your toddler puts her sticky little paws all over it, your boyfriend sits on it, or your girlfriend accidentally drops it in the lake, you’ll be sad, but you won’t spiral into a murderous rage. See? It’ll keep you connected AND out of prison. Sweet!

READ MORE.

And speaking of the iPad, Team Newman remains conflicted about adopting one into our technology family. I’ll keep you posted on our progress. While you wait for a resolution, you can read all the past Chic Geek columns here!

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{In today’s guest post, Stacey Viera asks how you feel about bringing gifts to an interview. Is gifting brown-nosing, ignorance or smart marketing? Participate in the poll after the jump.}

Recently, I learned from a colleague at LyonsPR, a Washington, D.C.-area firm specializing in radio, that an interviewee for their summer internship slot brought brownies to the interview.

I thought such a gesture was a fluke, a desperate attempt to get hired in an incredibly competitive industry in an even-more-competitive town. I’ve hired and been hired for jobs and internships since I was a teenager, and never once have I come across a similar situation.

But then journalist Jeff Sonderman at the new TBD.com news organization noted on Twitter that a potential hire sent flowers after an interview. I wondered aloud what the accompanying card read. “You had me at ‘hello!’” was my snarky guess.

These two examples got me thinking about what it takes to stand out from the crowd. My experience on Capitol Hill and other areas of the industry taught me that being seriously committed to one’s work, working smart and having a “gimmick” – such as my 1995 interview with newly minted House Speaker Newt Gingrich at the age of 15 – separated me from other applicants.

Though unemployment rates are dropping, today’s industry is incredibly competitive. My first job out of the University of Maryland as a U.S. Senate Deputy Press Secretary recently opened up again, and my former boss reported that she received 264 applications.

When I applied for that slot nine years ago, I was in a pool of 100 candidates. And if I know anything about my former boss, nothing would’ve gotten my name crossed off her hiring list faster than bringing brownies to an interview.

But Dan Lyons, owner of LyonsPR, said that the only reason the brownie baker wasn’t hired is because “our kick-ass intern from last summer wanted to come back, so we were able to skip the whole ‘training/learning the ropes’” process.

Am I totally traditional/stodgy/short-sighted because I think that this kind of brown-nosery is in poor taste?

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

(By the way: anyone want to guess why I was hired for the Senate press job? All other things being equal, my story about the Newt Gingrich interview impressed the boss.)

Stacey Viera, freelance PR pro and photographer with Best Light Communications, LLC in Washington, D.C., works with clients in food, government relations and other industries to present them in the best light.

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A couple months back, I called for guests posts offering up your take on PR, social media and communications; I received a delightful response and I’d like to do it again. This time, I’m looking for submissions on four topics:

The importance of internal communications

How a mentor has shaped your career

The trials of being someone’s “replacement” at a new gig

What’s next in journalism

I’m interested in thoughtful posts that are no more than 400 words; please include a short bio, too. You may email your submission to margie (at) flackrabbit (dot) com. All opinions are welcome–even by folks who already have their own blogs.

A clever headline every now and then is nice, but if you look at your blog and find that every post’s headline is nothing more than a vague pop culture reference and/or shout-out to an inside joke, it is a disservice to your readers.

Your headline is especially important if you are only sharing a partial snippet of each post in your RSS feed; if I subscribe to your post and can’t tell what it’s about from the feed headline, why would I click on it? I probably won’t. Same goes for the short teaser to the links you’re sharing on Twitter, FriendFeed and Facebook.

I’m not advocating “link baiting.” I’m tired of seeing cute/funny/pithy headlines that in no way explain to what the heck it is people expect me to click on. Pointless blog headlines are an epidemic these days; I’m not clicking on those posts…and I’m unsubscribing from those feeds.

Copyblogger says it best: “a compelling headline must promise some kind of benefit or reward for the reader, in trade for the time it takes to read more.”

A reader’s time is valuable–don’t waste it.

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Last week, I sat 800 miles away and watched as my hometown drowned. I’ve lived in D.C. for one full year now, but Nashville is home. I’m a communicator–a good one–but I don’t know how to express how much my heart hurts for my city. I can’t find a way to verbalize it. My fingers refuse to put pressure on the keys when I try to type it out.

The good news: I don’t have to worry about my inability to explain how I feel, folks like Patten Fuqua,  A.C. Kleinheider and countless others have said it all for me–for all of us. Powerfully, honestly, beautifully.

My one contribution to the discussion is over at Her Nashville magazine. As the post says, I’m completely in awe over the way Nashvillians are using social media platforms to communicate, connect and share information in such a meaningful way. Facebook, Twitter, text messages, YouTube, Flickr, blog posts, websites.  Nashvillians have taken to the Web and it’s working.

I’ve never been more proud to be a Nashvillian; I’ve never felt more helpless than to be so far away when my friends and neighbors are in need:

Click here to view the embedded video.

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An email address should communicate some form of your name, company or cause. It should not recap the “About Me” section of your Facebook page. If you want folks to take you seriously, the burden is on you to present yourself seriously.

With that in mind, please do not send your resume to a potential employer, query to a potential business partner or request for career help to anyone from an email address that reads anything remotely similar to the following:

• miss kitty pants at email dot com
• social media guru at email dot com
• future mrs timberlake at email dot com
• team edward 4 eva at email dot com

I’m begging you: get a Gmail account, pick some version of your name and then send business and career stuff from that email address only.

Promise me you’ll do this. You’re a professional; your email should communicate that. I’m looking at you, Hotmail, Aol and Yahoo! users. You know I’m right.

______

UPDATE: Brazen Careerist featured this post; check out the comments! Man, folks get real defensive when you start picking on Hotmail, Aol and Yahoo! To clarify, I only called those platforms out because those users tend to be the worst “silly username” offenders.

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…it’s not merely a business mantra, it’s the latest social media trend.

In the May issue of Her Nashville magazine, you’ll find a brief tutorial on location-based social networks Gowalla and Foursquare, which utilize GPS and those fancy smartphones to allow you to “check in” to places you visit, tell folks where you are, and post your thoughts along the way. Here’s a teaser and–of course–a little “surf with caution” reminder:

Both Gowalla and Foursquare give you the option to share your check ins and travels via Facebook and Twitter. I don’t do this, but you may want to. How much info you share and who your “friends” are is all yours to control. For these location-based networks — unlike Twitter, which is designed for stranger-to-stranger info sharing — I only friend my actual friends, but I’m sort of protective like that … with who knows my whereabouts at any given time.

Like most technological wonders, what the Gowalla and Foursquare creators conceived now makes up only a fraction of what they actually do. Just think about Twitter as geeks knew it in 2007 compared to Twitter as the world knows it today. What started out as an odd text messaging service known to a few thousand people is now a global, real-time, information-sharing phenomenon. READ THE FULL COLUMN!

I usually base my Chic Geek columns on reader questions, ideas from co-workers and/or brainstorming sessions with my husband, but no one has really asked me to write about location. In fact, no one outside of my geek friends ever mentions location-based apps, which makes me think it’s time I wrote about them.

If you fancy yourself on top of your social media game, you’ll need to be familiar with the location trend–and the exposure it can give to your small business, bar or coffee shop. Ya know, so you can say you already know all about this stuff when it becomes a household name.

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I could actually hear your collective eye roll. I’m sure there are times when you’d rather be forced to sit through the Transformers sequel again than talk about metrics. And Lord knows you hate writing memos. But humor me and read these three reasons why you should learn to embrace both:

1. Measuring things helps you prove your worth: There’s no easy way to say this: new media offers communications professionals the opportunity to document, track and measure just about every aspect of our productivity and if you’re not taking advantage of it, you’re crazy. Metrics are not just for corporations and/or folks who like to avoid doing things unless they are measurable. Metrics give you proof that your ideas, risks and strategies work. That people are moved by/take action because of what you are doing. And that, my friends, makes you an in-demand pro. Flacks who measure things are getting hired left and right because they can prove they know what they’re talking about. Can you?

2. Writing things down shows you’re a strategist: Memos are a total buzz-kill after your brainstorming session. I get it. But don’t let taking a moment to put your FABULOUS/CRAZY/INNOVATIVE idea down on paper get you down. I guarantee that when you write it down in a clear, thoughtful way, you’ll actually think of more fabulous/crazy/innovative ideas. Writing stuff down also helps you troubleshoot your obstacles, as well as think through how the heck you’re going to sell this idea to your boss, client or board. Most importantly, a well-written memo shows you have the attention span to be strategic. Always a good quality–but not always present–in a PR pro.

3. Understanding the value of metrics and memos tells me you’re wise beyond your years and should be hired immediately.

So, lose your angst. Give’ em a try. If they don’t work–or they harm you in any way–I’ll buy you a Coke.

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Nothing makes you appreciate something more than having it taken away.

I’ve been in D.C. for a year now, but Tennessee is still home. Every morning, I still scan my Google Reader for TN political news, Nashville happenings and what my former clients are up to. Over this past year, I subscribed to just about every major political blog in the state, but I truly relied on SouthComm’s A.C. Kleinheider.

Not only could I spell his name without looking it up, I trusted he’d serve up the odd, timely and important things I actually needed to know–24-7. I’d wake up on Sunday morning to at least ten new posts of political whatnot that had come to light in the middle of the night. It was magical.

But then, SouthComm sACKed him. (Don’t even get me started on what a strategically poor idea that was.) His former site, Nashville’s Post Politics,  is still up and doing fine, but the person I assumed would always be there to keep me up-to-speed is “taking a break” and I’m left desperately trying to fill my TN politics/odd stuff void.

For the past few weeks, I’ve been speed-dating with various blogs. I’m getting by. But am all scared to get attached to these folks again.

What if they go away?

To prevent this informational tragedy, I’ve decided I’m going to start doing my small part to be sure the people I rely on to get my news stay employed.

Today, I gave $25 to TNreport.com (I just recently discovered them and I like their multimedia and reporting style). Then, I surfed over and gave $35 to my “local” National Public Radio affiliate, WPLN Nashville Public Radio (I listen to it online).

I take from these and other sources, but I don’t give back. I don’t work for free. Why should I expect journalists to work for free? And last time I didn’t give back, my lifeline to TN politics got laid off. If you use non-profit or volunteer journalism–and they are smart enough to ask you for money–give back.

We’re not talking paid subscriptions here–though I’m not at all opposed to them–we’re talking making donations to keep the lights on. Tiny ones, but still, now I can sleep better knowing this time I tried.

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You guys call, IM, email and DM me with lots of questions! It’s humbling. And the wonderful thing about being the go-to geek for the technologically curious is that I have the opportunity as a PR professional to do two of my favorite things: teach you how to be a better communicator while increasing your self-confidence.

However, it’s often challenging for me to give a “correct” answer when asked questions like, “can you tell me the best tools for non-profits?” or “can you tell me what blogs to read” or “can you tell me how to convince my boss we should Twitter?”

My answer, as many of you have recently discovered, will likely be: “it depends on who you’re trying to reach and/or what you want out of it.”

Good PR–no matter the medium–isn’t one-size-fits-all. The use of new media should be strategic. Be it technology that advances your client’s cause or enhances your own personal craft.

Any flack worth her salt knows you can’t go communicatin’ before considering your audience and overall goal.So, when you ask me these questions without giving me this context, it’s difficult for me to answer. I’m just not capable of giving you a generic response without feeling uncomfortable.

To be clear, I love that folks ask me questions, just know that my answer will likely put the burden back on you to ask yourself/your client more questions and come up with your own answer. You know, because I’d rather teach you to fish than throw you a halibut.

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