Studying Abroad in Public Relations

Today, I landed in Barcelona, Spain, to kick-off a summer of interning in international public relations. Obviously, being in a different country on a different continent from what I’m used to, things here are a bit weird to me. But, you have to understand that our world is a big place, and people are raised in totally different cultures.

Here in Spain, and Barcelona especially, time runs slower; the work day is shorter and work is done at a slower pace. Coming from the United States, this is quite alien to me, because I’m used to work having set deadlines and full 8 hour work days. Here, I already know I’m only working 5 hours a day at the most. Just because something is different from what you are familiar with doesn’t make it bad or wrong, it just makes it different. Our world history has a trend towards blindly rejecting that which is unknown or different, but it’s our differences that make us unique and interesting.

Public relations is about relating to people, and knowing the differences in different cultures can be the key to successful communication. Traveling, studying, and working abroad are key for public relations practitioners, because it will give them a sense of what makes up our world. Rejecting the unknown is no longer an option, so to successfully communicate with the people of our world we must travel and understand them. 

As I spend more time in Barcelona, I will blog more about my experience here.

Do you have any tips or suggestions about working abroad in public relations? We'd love to hear from you.

9,000 Miles Fueled by Social Media

With only a 75-pound backpack, 28-year-old Michael Lee Johnson will be traveling from a Beijing, China to London, England (an over 9,000 mile trek!), entirely by foot.  

Johnson is making history by being the first to walk the entire journey which is estimated to take three to five years and will be entirely fueled by social media.  He plans to tweet his expedition as often as possible along with a video blogging series. Johnson has also launched a fundraising site providing FAQ’s and his position of purpose, “The curiosity about the world and its people.” Johnson also explains an alternative selfless motive:

“The people I’m in for really are the people who are stuck in an office, the people who can’t go out and travel,” he says. “I want them to see it all too. It’s not so much about me, but also the people who are following along. It’s important to show other people what is going on in the world too.”

Funding for the project includes Johnsons own savings of about $13,000 and a sponsorship from Maps.com which he will be paid between $500 and $2,5000 per month depending on how large an audience he accumulates.

“This walk is going to be my job,” he says. “It sounds strange, but that’s exactly what I’ll be: a professional walker.”

Would you follow someone for three to five years on an epic journey? Tell us why. 

Irrive, The New Way To Travel Socially

Have you heard of the new social site which allows you to "weave all of your tweets, posts and check-ins into a sharable story"? Steve Cohn, founder of Living Social, who has since sold the company is beta testing a website called Irrive. Irrive, is a visual story of your travel. It views like a social scrap booking application like Pinterest or Flipboard, allowing you to integrate your photos, video clips,but differs by also including social media posts and narrative in real time. The posts, pictures, video clips and narratives are then turned into one beautiful, streamlined "TripPage". Each "TripPage" has its own unique URL that your friends and family can then follow. All of your "TripPages" are added to your dashboard where you can relive past all of your past and plan your future trips. Below is a screen shot from the website.

I just signed up for a beta trial and cannot wait to use it for my next trip. Have you signed up yet? If so, what are your thoughts?

PR Lessons Learned from Paris

This summer I am studying abroad in Paris and Tuesday marked one week since my arrival. Within a week, I have learned a lot, made countless mistakes, have enjoyed many adventures and have stuffed myself full of more bread and butter than one should be allowed to eat in a lifetime. Throughout the highs and the lows of my trip thus far, it occurred to me that several of the lessons I have learned can be applied to the field of PR because believe it or not, the Paris metro can teach you a few things about social media and crepes, besides being sinfully delicious, can offer some insight to innovation in the workplace.

4 Lessons on PR from a Parisian Perspective:

1. Clear and concise communication is key when communicating with your audiences (or the French waiter who doesn't speak a lick of English). All too often, we pollute the messages we send with overcomplicated words and terminology that are not always accessible to the publics we are communicating with. Put away your thesaurus with the fancy synonyms, throw your technical jargon out of the window and stick to the basics. The same rule is applied to ordering in a French restaurant... don't even bother asking for additions, substitutions or for "free" tap water, because most likely you will confuse the waiter and wind up with duck instead of chicken and a 35€ tab for all the delicious "free" tap water you just drank.

2. Social media has several available channels, however not all of them may reach your targeted destination (much like the Metro and its 9 multicolored, intersecting lines that will take you to the Chinese district instead of the Eiffel Tower if you aren't careful). Just because all of these channels exist does not mean that all of them should be utilized when communicating with your publics. Certain channels are frequented by specific demographics more than others, therefore construct your message in the channel that is most appropriate for your audiences. If you are trying to reach a young professional demographic, Twitter or LinkedIn might be more appropriate than using Myspace or Facebook, just as taking line 7 might on the Metro might be a better option the next time you want to visit the Eiffel Tower, although I'm not complaining about accidentially wandering through Chinatown in Paris by any means.

3. Innovation and creativity is essential when constructing and executing campaigns, however realize when certain ideas aren't as successful as you had hoped (such as a Kirsch soaked crepe with passion fruit icecream and a fresh fruit medley... sounds good in theory but is terrible in reality). As PR professionals, it is our job to ensure that we are on top of the latest trends and that we continue to push the envelope in terms of creativity and innovation, always searching for the next great idea. However, every new idea isn't necessarily always a good one and it is our jobs to realize when to continue to push the envelope and when its best to seal it up and move onto another one. When you continue to force something that isn't meant to work, it can often leave a sour taste with your clients and/or audiences, much like the Kirsch-soaked crepe that left my tastebuds confused and in despair. But when you find an idea that works, run with it, because every so often you come across an ingenious idea, much like the nutella, raspberry, strawberry and vanilla icecream gastronomic invention that must have descended directly from crepe heaven.

4. Lastly, when you make a mistake, acknowledge your error and apologize (just as Je suis désolé has become one of the phrases I use most frequently over here). We all make mistakes. Rather than trying to avoid them, cover them up or pretend they never happened, it is always best to admit any faults, errors or mistakes while vowing not to make the same mistake again. This is how credibility and trust is created and earned with your publics (and the Parisians). So the next time you tweet something inappropriate (or stand on the wrong side of the escalator designated specifically for those who are running because they are in a hurry), apologize, move on and most importantly... never do it again.

For those who have spent time abroad, are there any PR lessons you have learned from your travels? Let us know!

Going Global to Help Your Job Search

As a junior in college, the majority of my friends have spent a semester or summer abroad. Although it has always been my dream to spend my time exploring new parts of the world, I believed that dedicating such a large chunk of time to travel would eventually harm my professional career. Whether it meant having to step down from a leadership position in a student organization or miss out on an internship opportunity, I continued to tell myself that my resume would be stronger because of it. Sure, if I decide to travel to England or Ireland, I could find an internship while abroad. However, with an interest in traveling to France or Italy, and not being fluent in either language, job and internship opportunities seemed scarce.

However, after talking to several friends and professionals about studying abroad, I have finally come to my senses that studying abroad is one of the best ways to build your resume and marketable skills when entering the job force! The article Maximizing Your Study Abroad Experience in the Job Search from Come Recommended did a great job at outlining basic yet necessary skills and experiences learned while abroad that didn't require an internship or a job to learn.

The article mentions these tips:
- Inform employers about how you were able to navigate your way throughout a foreign city with patience and understanding. This shows that you are able to tackle obstacles effectively with a clear mind.

-Discuss how you handled the foreign language barrier and how you were able to work with others from a different culture. This shows that you can handle diversity well in the workplace.

-Talk about how your study abroad experience allowed you to strengthen your independence, flexibility, awareness, problem-solving skills and leadership and explain specifically how this was a direct impact from your time abroad.

As stated in the article, although studying abroad is a fun experience, it can also be incredibly beneficial when it is marketed correctly during an interview. I plan on trying to study abroad this summer and I look forward to all of the invaluable experience and lessons I will learn.

What do you think about studying abroad and how it can help while job searching? Let us know!

How Does Philly Rank in America's Favorites?

According to Travel+Leisure Magazine's "America's Favorite Cities" reader poll, Philadelphia does not seem to be one of America's favorites in many categories. The best rankings for Philly came in the categories of pizza, historical sites/monuments, and museums/galleries. The worst rankings came in the categories of cleanliness, barbeque, and relaxing retreat. A notably negative result from the survey was Philly's ranking as the third rudest city in America, following New York and Los Angeles.

A Philly.com article suggests the reputation of Philly sports fans may have contributed to the city's high ranking on the rudeness scale. The tales of rowdy and highly intoxicated spectators at Philly sporting events, especially those which gained significant media coverage this past year, may have reflected poorly on the demeanor of the city as a whole.

To some, the results of this type of survey come as nothing more than entertainment. To others, such as those in the tourism and hospitality industry, these rankings may be more important. The economic structure and job market in cities such as Philadelphia thrive on tourism, so it is important to keep the visitors coming. From the PR perspective, the city may need to take the low ranking categories into consideration for making improvements and emphasize the high ranking categories to visitors.

The accuracy of this type of survey is questionable, as it is based purely on reader responses. However, the results are interesting and could be beneficial to the city's tourism and hospitality industry. What do you think about the rankings? Would any of them affect your decision about whether or not to visit a city?

Worldwide Connected Travel with Gtrot

I may not have the available funds in my bank account to be the traveling fiend that I yearn to be, however, I do on occasion find the opportunity to pack my bags and explore.

I recently took a little trip to a small beach that I had never visited before but had heard several great recommendations about. While I was visiting, I ran into two friends from high school that I hadn't seen in a few years- a great added bonus to my vacation. It was crazy to think that we all would have been in the same small town at the same time without having a clue if chance hadn't brought us together.

It is experiences such as these that served as the inspiration for gtrot, a web portal used for helping travelers better sync up their plans with their globetrotting friends. Started by Harvard alum Zachary Smith, the website is now home to over 3,000 users.

The website links users' Facebook profiles to pull in information on their friends who have entered rough travel itineraries into the gtrot site and plots the plans on a map. Your gtrot account creates a travel profile that includes previous trips, future plans and modes of transportation. The site also allows you to directly book flights, hotels and and cabs through Kayak.com and Hotels.com and then puts that information into your profile (you can choose to keep it private as well).

Gtrot allows travelers to connect with friends to plan trips and also allows users who have already booked vacations to see if any friends will be in the surrounding areas.

The second phase of the company is now in the works- one that will focus on integrating users' social media posts about their travels and placing them into their travel logs. This way, travelers can not only see where their friends have visited but also read about their various experiences at different venues and locations. Gtrot will utilize tweets, Facebook updates and foursquare check ins to generate an extensive travel log of every traveler.

The website's next plan is to enrich travelers' experiences by connecting users with Groupons- the fastest growing source of group-powered discounts for entertainment, food and salon-type venues.

As a traveler, I am incredibly excited to create my own profile on gtrot and connect with friends all over the world. I think the site is an incredibly useful tool that will only serve to enhance all of my future travel experiences.

Check out the rest of the article on gtrot here to learn more about the great upcoming site.