Holiday Social Media Tips

Happy almost Fourth of July weekend!

Photo Credit

As one of the major summer holidays, public relations and marketers work hard to craft 4^th of July social media campaigns to attract their audience’s attention. Most campaigns are made for Twitter but more are happening on Snapchat and Instagram too.

The biggest obstacle is trying to stand out from the crowd and get your message heard. Here are some ways to get your brand noticed on social media.

1. Include visuals

Whether it is a picture, GIF or video, any visual element increases engagement and makes people stop and look. Be creative with pictures and make sure you take them from the best angle with a plain background so it is easy to see, especially since a lot of people will be viewing your content on a small screen. If possible, take high quality photographs with an actual camera and then upload them later onto social media.

2. Make a creative hashtag

Your hashtag is extremely important for people to find your campaign, and it also lets you monitor traffic and engagements. Incorporate the holiday and your brand for users to instantly make the connection. On posts, include your unique hashtag and a trending hashtag to further expand your audience and engagement.

3. Build in giveaways or contests

As per tradition, brands love doing special holiday sales and promotions to increase sales and awareness. Promotions work well to attract new people to your brand because everyone loves getting something for less or even free. Create promotions that require users to share your brand’s posts with their followers. In addition, any promotions or offers also spread through word of mouth too.

The upcoming holidays are a great time to boost your brand and increase traffic on all social media sites. You can also take some of these tips and apply them to your personal social media pages too. 

This blog post was written by PRowl Secretary Shaun Luberski.

Organize Your Inbox

Avoid having an inbox like this!

In the world of public relations, emails flood your inbox constantly from co-workers, clients, the media, venues, newsletters and of course, marketing emails from stores. It is easy to ignore your inbox for a day and come back to 300 unread messages. While this can be very overwhelming, there are some simple steps to filter through your inbox so you never lose important emails.

Set up  Various Folders

For all my emails, I have various folders. My school email has a folder for each semester and student organization I’m involved in. Once I get an email and know it needs to be saved I file it away in a folder for later reference. This clears out my inbox and makes it quick and easy to find the email later if I need it.

Star Important Emails

Starring important emails and leaving them in my inbox lets me know they need a quick response and keeps me from forgetting to reply or take action. I always star emails with deadlines like meetings, scholarships and contests then file or delete them after I replied or once the date has passed.

Unsubscribe from Lists

I have over five emails addresses and somehow get the same emails on several of them from newsletters and stores. I went through and unsubscribed from store emails for all but my primary email address to keep me from having to delete the same emails on four different accounts. It is also helpful to unsubscribe from lists that aren’t relevant to you anymore.

Form Habits

        

       The best way to take charge of your inbox is to keep up with it. Find a time such as on your commute into work or once you get home to delete non-important emails and reply to critical messages.

      After following these steps, your inbox should be a lot emptier and hassle free. For more tips and ticks, check out this article by Forbes on how to organize your inbox . 

     This blog post was written by PRowl Secretary Shaun Luberski.

Learn New Skills to Boost Your Resume

The summer is a time to distress from a hectic school year, take a break from classes and be able to work or intern without having to balance classes, meetings and homework. It is also a great time to learn some new skills and build your resume.

Whether you are a public relations, mass communication, advertising, marketing or similar major, there are countless internship and job opportunities available. With so many young professionals applying for these positions, knowing how to use various programs and software helps diversify your portfolio and supplements your past experiences on your resume.

There is a wide variety of skills and programs such as coding, Final Cut Pro, the Adobe Creative Suite, Google Analytics and others that are helpful in future job opportunities. The job description may not ask for someone with these skills but you can introduce them into your workplace if appropriate and find new ways to complete tasks. Knowledge of some programs also can be used when you are asked to use a brand new program or system because you will be able to see some similarities and work though any issues easier.

Cision is another skill that public relations professionals frequently use. It is a website that serves as a database of journalists and their contact information. Professionals use it to build media lists when they want to send out a press release or media alert. To learn more about it, watch a tutorial here.

To find some programs that interest you, watch tutorials on websites like YouTube or Lynda. The tutorials will take you step by step and allow you to learn at your own pace. Some universities, like Temple University, offer free memberships to Lynda, so check before buying a membership.

If you would rather spend your summer days by the pool or at the beach, you can take supplemental classes during the school year to learn these skills. Last spring semester, I took a digital design class where I became proficient in Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop and Design. I added these three programs to my resume and hope to apply my skills in an upcoming job opportunity.

Regardless of your major, never stop learning and discovering new skills to stand out and get your dream job.

What programs are you looking forward to learning? 

This blog post was written by PRowl Secretary Shaun Luberski.

Pros and Cons of Extending Your Internship

Congratulations, you were offered an internship for a company, organization or non-profit. Whether it is paid or not, it is a new and exciting opportunity to grow and learn in the communications, marketing or advertising field. So you spent the semester interning doing a variety of tasks and projects. Now it’s the end of the semester  and you have the choice to find another internship or extend and stay at the same place for another semester. Of my past three internships, I extended two for a second semester and enjoyed every second of it. Keep in mind, there are pros and cons of extending your internship.

Pros

-Continuing to Grow and Learn

By continuing your internship, you can grow more in the same company. You have already spent a full semester proving yourself, and staying longer can help you gain more responsibility and duties. It also allows you to get to know the company better and lets you explore different departments.

-Strengthening Relationships

Staying at the same place for an additional semester will help you strengthen relationships. You will continue to get to know you supervisors and co-workers and vice versa. Being there another semester will allow you to really get comfortable and fully trust each other. It also gives you more time to network and get their advice to help you advance in your career.

- Job Opportunities

Professionals are always on the prowl for new opportunities. You never know when someone at the company you are interning at is going to leave for another opportunity. By extending your internship, you supervisor already knows how you work, so you could be a top contender for the job.

Cons

-Less Internship Diversity

Being at the same place will lead to a smaller number of total employers and less diversity in your work experience. Exploring a variety of internships can help you figure out what fields you enjoy and don’t enjoy so much.

-Stunting Growth

At some internships, you can only grow and learn so much. Thise internship may have been great for one semester but you might have learned and done all you can do there. Staying an additional semester may not help you grow more because you will just repeat the same jobs and tasks. Moving on may be the best to learn new skills.

Whether you stay or search for a new internship opportunity, good luck in you internships and always remember to work hard and never be afraid to ask for help!

This blog post was written by PRowl Secretary Shaun Luberski.

How To Stay Sane In College

College is a busy time. You start with a full class load, add on a couple of student organizations, one or two part time jobs plus an internship and you're already overwhelmed. As a junior with all of the above, I soon realized this year would be more difficult than freshmen and sophomore year combined. I challenged myself with being a Resident Assistant on top of 16 academic credits, an on-campus job, an internship, three student organizations and still making time to eat, sleep and see friends. 

As a PR major, I have found almost all of my friends in the major are in a similar situation, yet we all are able to be successful and somehow keep our sanity. 

Here are the ways I have been able to cope and survive week to week:

My planner is my life. 

Every year, I get a free Temple University planner from my residence hall, and it saves my life. I like it better than putting events and reminders in my phone calendar. All of my meetings, appointments, exams and work schedules go in it right away. Whenever I get an email I pencil it in. My planner keeps me organized and prevents me from double booking myself.

Make "me" time.

Going to the gym and just lying in bed watching Netflix is sometimes 100% my priority. I love going to one of Temple's gyms or group fitness classes;it makes me feel good and forces me to put down my phone or homework. Afterwards, I feel refreshed and more energized. The same thing happens with Netflix because sometimes at 10 pm I just cannot work on my study guide anymore or edit another assignment. I put everything away and lay in bed with my laptop to unwind after a long day.

Prioritize!

When meetings overlap and you get asked to do 5 things at the same time, pick what is most important. It is okay to say no to people or organizations. You cannot be everywhere all the time. If you said yes to something last time, give something else a chance next time. It can be very hard, and I struggle with not making everything a priority but have gotten better at it over time.

How do you stay organized and handle all of your obligations?

This guest blog post was written by PRowl staff member Shaun Luberski.

PRSSANC: Where Phone Batteries Go To Die

This past weekend, 10 other Temple PRSSA and PRowl students and I had the honor of attending the PRSSA National Conference in Washington, D.C. Each year, this nationally recognized professional development conference is held in a different city. Last year, it was right in Philadelphia, but this year we got to travel a few hours south to the nation’s capital. After four days of packed sessions where we learned about various types and aspects of public relations, endless live-tweeting and some sightseeing of national monuments, I am finally able to reflect and absorb what I learned from several professionals sessions I attended.  

 Agency experience is invaluable

One common piece of advice from many guest speakers was to get agency experience. They stressed the importance of gaining various skills like media relations, pitching, multi-tasking and social media development that all come from working at an agency. One speaker during the tourism and hospitality session, Sarah Lipman, a public relations manager for Hilton Worldwide, stressed how agency gives you the best options and skills that are transferrable to any other sections of public relations that you may go into later like corporate. It is also well-known that it is good to try an agency internship in college because it’ll help determine if the fast paced agency experience is for you or not instead of taking a job at an agency and not liking it.

Stay in contact with Linkedin

Today, with so many different ways to contact people via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, email and telephone, it can be hard to actually get through to that people in your industry you want to reach out to. At conference, I learned that Linkedin is essential to keep in contact. One speaker, Anthony LaFauce, VP of Digital Communications Group at Porter Novelli, stressed how Linkedin is the best way to network and contact professionals in your desired field just to ask them questions and meet up if you’re in their area. He talked about how networking can be causal like going to happy hours but that following up with a personalized Linkedin request is the best way to maintain that connection. Before sending out all your new invites, make sure your Linkedin is updated with all your past and current positions and includes skills you possess like Google analytics, SEO, and Vocus or Cision.

Better to be last and right

In the 24/7 world of public relations, it is easy to want to push out content and be the first to break news for a client. The reality is that hurriedness often ends up to incorrect information getting out and incomplete stories. Our field is built on trust and transparency as professionals stressed all weekend to us. Speakers like Jason Mollica, Temple alum and president of JRMComm, spoke about how important it is to have and keep trust from both your clients, publics and the media. He admitted that he would rather be last and right then first and wrong. Always take your time to double check you work whether it is an email or press release or tweet.

The conference was a wonderful opportunity to immerse myself in public relations and refocus my short and long term goals. It was great meeting other students from around the country and seeing what steps they have taken professionally to put themselves ahead and continually grow. Next year the conference will be held in Atlanta, GA, so be sure to start saving now to travel to the south because learning about public relations never ends.

Do you have any tips you received from a fellow student or professional that resonated with you? Comment below! 

This guest blog post was written by PRowl staff member Shaun Luberski.  You can follow Shaun on Twitter at @sluberski94.

Ready, Set, Conference!

It is time to register for PRSSA National Conference 2014! Last year, I had the honor of attending National Conference in Philadelphia. I attended with several of Temple’s PRSSA and PRowl members, and it was one of the best weeks of my life. Each day was filled with a variety of sessions, networking events and career opportunities. It was such a rewarding experience, and I learned more 5 days about public relations than I did my whole freshman year.

lu

There are a countless number of benefits of attending this conference. Here are just four reasons why you should register for conference!

1.     Find your way in public relations

As a student, finding a particular type of public relations to work in is extremely difficult. There is nonprofit or corporate or agency or sports or publicity… the list goes on and on. Luckily, there were sessions for all of these at conference. Some of the sessions I attended included “Step up to the Plate: Sports PR,” “Fashion PR: More than Selling Items in a Store” and “Juggling Life at an Agency.” Each had a handful of professional that told stories of their experiences, weighed the pros and cons of each industry and of course answered questions. I enjoyed the session and wish I could’ve attended all of them, but it solidified my interest in working at an agency.

2.     Learn a little each day

The whole experience is such a great learning experience. I got tips on how to best pitch stories to the media, how to stand out in an interview and write a strong cover letter to prospective employers. The best thing I did to absorb as much information as possible was always have my notebook on me. I took notes at each Keynote and session. I now can go back and utilize the advice from all of these professionals and put it to use at my future internships and jobs.

3.     Network, network, network

Being at conference was such a unique experience. I participated in a Twitter chat hosted by PRSSA National a couple of weeks before the conference. The chat included tips of what to bring and expect for first time conference goers. The whole night I was favoriting and following fellow eager public relations students. Later, I went back and direct messaged them and talked about with they do for their PRSSA chapter and where they’ve interned for. Then at conference, it was easy to meet up with them and talk in person. I also made sure to sit next to other students at the sessions rather than Temple friends to branch out and introduce myself. Lastly, there was a career fair where I talked to different firms and companies about their internship opportunities.

4.     Travel

Being in Philadelphia last year wasn’t too exciting since I grew up right around the city, but students from other schools loved going to the landmarks like the Love Statue, Liberty Bell, the Art Museum steps and more. Washington D.C. will be just as great with all of the historic memorial and monuments. I have been on family vacations to D.C. a couple of times and love going to the free Smithsonian museums and memorials. Conference is like a mini field trip away from school. Take the time after sessions and lunch breaks to go explore the capital!

Conference is a unique and highly rewarding experience. It is the prime place for anyone interested in public relations even if you’re majoring in marketing or journalism. It’ll show you new opportunities to grow and learn.

Register for the 2014 PRSSA National Conference here. I hope to see you in D.C in October! 

This guest blog post was written by PRowl staff member Shaun Luberski.

Get Ready To Blog!

Ever since I attended PRSSA National Conference last October, I decided I wanted to start my own blog. There are some lifestyle blogs I have been following for years , and numerous speakers at conference stressed how beneficial personal blog are for your personal brand.

I have always loved to write and decided to start my blog as soon as school ended in May because I was too busy during the school year. I really didn’t know where to start, so I began asking mentors and friends how they began their blogs. I got some great advice and launched my blog June 1. Here are some tips to anyone out there that is considering starting their own blog.

Decide what you want to write about

First, brainstorm ideas to figure out the best theme for you and your blog. Some blogs are super specific and only write about fashion or food or are strictly public relations related. Think about what you’re passionate about and what you enjoy. For me, I wanted a life style blog where I could write about several topics like work, school and family.

Choose a platform

There are many different websites to create your blog. Some of the more popular ones are Wordpress, Blogger and Blogspot. I went with Wordpress because many people said it was one of the most professional and popular platforms. Play around with a few and see which one suits you because they all have pros and cons.

Personalize it

After picking a platform, customize your blog. This is the best way to stand apart from the thousands of other blogs out there. Find a font and color that represents you. In my blog, I added pictures and quotes that showcase my personality. There are definitely a lot of restrictions using the free themes on Wordpress, but every details speaks volumes.

Make a schedule

 Most blogs start out strong , but slowly the blogger loses interest and gets too busy to post. Don’t let this happen to you! Pick a schedule of how often you want to blog. Right now, I am blogging about once a week. Make time in your schedule to sit down and write. Ideas will come to you at random times like when you’re at work or eating dinner. Jot them down and go back later to see if you can create a post from it.

Overall, have fun and take chances. If you don’t like sometime you can always go back and fix it. Don’t forget to check your spelling and grammar over and over. Please check out my blog here Do It With Passion Or Not At All.

Are you thinking of starting a blog? Comment below and we can learn something new together!

This guest blog post was written by PRowl staff member Shaun Luberski.

Find Your Balance

Wake-up. Internship. Class. Meeting. Class. Work. Night class. Homework. Sleep. Repeat.

Does this sound familiar? This seems to be the normal schedule for many public relations majors. We are the type-A, really busy students that somehow find time to breathe. It is great because we are ambitious and driven, but sometimes we need a break from all the stress and multitasking. After all, it will not get easier once we graduate.

To help us all distress a little, I have complied a list of things to help step away from work and class to get some “me time.”

1.      Turn off all devices (or at least put them on airplane mode)

You read that right- turn off your phone and shut down your laptop or tablet. In our busy world, we are constantly checking social media or emails. It is really liberating to sometimes get away from it all; you don’t have to be connected 24/7. Stepping away from your phone allows you to do other things like watch a television show in peace or grab lunch with a friend without seeing your phone light up every three minutes.

2.      Go to the gym

I absolutely love going to the gym as much as possible. It could be that the endorphins released during exercise make me happy (and that I love wearing my gym clothes) but this is one of my favorite ways to distress. I will sometimes put my phone on airplane mode, so I can focus on my work out. Luckily at Temple, we have three different gyms available, so I can always find an open treadmill to burn some calories and take my mind off of work.

3.      Have an outlet

Find a hobby! I love photography and sometimes will sit on my laptop just to edit pictures from events and add fun filters. Some people love to run because they can blast their favorite songs and get some fresh air while clearing their mind. Whatever your outlet is, find and embrace it. At the end of a crazy week, it’ll help you find your sanity again and relax a bit.

In the end, the most important thing is to have a balance. Yes work is important, but so is having a life outside of public relations. Take the time to do some of these things because that media pitch and press release can wait until Monday morning when you get back into the office.

Do you have any tips on how to relax after a long week? Share below!

This guest blog post was written by PRowl Staff Member Shaun Luberski.

Searching for Your First Internship? Find One That Suits Your Interests

Finding an internship is tricky especially for your first one. With so many options to choose from where do you start?

For me, I thought about what area of public relations I would enjoy working in, and this ultimately pointed me in the right direction. I have always had a passion for photography and dance. My mom instilled in me a love for documenting everything, and I also have been dancing for 14 years studying ballet and pointe.

At Temple University, I received an email about an internship with the community relations department at The Rock School for Dance Education in Philadelphia and it definitely caught my eye. I previously heard of the dance School and knew they trained several professional dancers including Beckanne Sisk, who is now on CW’s show Breaking Pointe.

Before I applied, I made sure to research the school. I looked over their website and saw that the department does both public relations internally and externally in the community. I applied, interviewed for the position and have been interning there since September. It has been such a great experience writing pieces for their newsletter and assisting with events. I recently renewed the internship for this semester.

One reason I love this internship is because I am back in the dance industry. For 14 years, I was just a dancer taking classes and performing. Now, I am able to assist behind the scenes and learn what happens to make shows a success. This has fueled my love for my internship because I am so invested in their mission to provide excellence in dance training. It is great to see — through my press releases and pitches — that I am helping raise money to provide opportunities for the School’s dancers.

In addition, I have utilized my past experiences as a former dancer to develop strategies that promote the School and its mission to the community. Overall, I love how I am able to combine my passion for dance and public relations in a way that not only benefits The Rock School and its dancers but also myself.

Finding your first internship can be hard because there are so many to choose from. The first thing to do is look for internships that relate to your interests or hobbies. Like many people say if you do something you love, you will never work a day in your life. If you search for internships locally, it will be easier for you to travel and start small, but gain valuable experience along the way. If you enjoy using a company’s products or services, see if they have an internship available. Be proactive in your search and take chances — every internship is a learning experience.

What internship will your interests lead you to?

Written by PRowl staff member Shaun Luberski, this blog post was recently published on PRSSA National blog Progressions.