Year: 2020

Making Our Own Summer Fun

Clairemont InternBlog, Inspirational, The Clairemont Team, , , , , ,

What has your favorite PR team been up to this summer, you ask? Here’s how we’ve been spending our warm days while working from home!

Tracy Lathan

The Lathans are moving! I’m not sure if moving during COVID is perfect timing or the worst idea ever, but nonetheless we are packing up! Much of our summer has been filled with house projects, sorting, packing and making a few more memories. While we are excited about this next chapter, we are also sad to say goodbye to the house where we raised our babies. Here’s to a new adventure! 

Dana Phelps

Photo scavenger hunts have helped me keep my sanity this summer! They get me out of my house, and instead of thinking about the alarming headlines while I’m walking, my brain is occupied with what I’m going to photograph. Sometimes I engage a group of friends via text and ask each person to name an item for the scavenger hunt. One day that meant that I took pictures of an ant, a bee and berries, and spent a lot of time trying to find a lily pad that was nowhere to be seen on my walk! However, my default is flowers. I love flowers. Thank goodness Raleigh offers months of different blooms so that when all else fails, I can always lace up my sneakers and head out to find flowers that I haven’t yet photographed. 

Anna Beth Adcock

This may not sound like too much fun, but I’ve spent almost every day this summer running! While the heat during a North Carolina summer is no joke, running has been a great way for me to clear my mind, listen to my favorite songs (Taylor Swift just came out with a new album), and catch up on the latest podcasts. Sometimes, I can even convince a friend or two to join me on a socially distanced jog! In addition to running, I have enjoyed one of my favorite foods (avocado toast) with one of my favorite people, my sister, several times over the course of the summer.

Cherith Andes

This summer, my sister and her family jaunted down to North Carolina to visit my parents. We scrapped our traditional vacation travel plans and instead concocted our own theme park in the suburbs of Raleigh. In addition to a gigantic inflatable water slide (12 hours of wet, splooshy adventures), we rented an at-home cotton candy machine for all-you-can-eat North Carolina State Fair goodness. 

Kelli Fletcher

This summer has been all about family for me. My sister, who is expecting her first baby, left NYC with her family to come to Emerald Isle and stay for three months. We visited them multiple times, and I got to watch her belly grow – something I thought was going to be impossible when the pandemic hit in March. She’s back in NYC now, and I don’t know when I’ll see them again/meet the baby. But the memories we made during this summer, which we all thought was surely canceled, will carry me through until that day.

Hungry for more? Eat up a few inspirational ideas from the Clairemont team.

By Clairemont intern, Anna Beth Adcock, a rising senior at NC State.

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Use LinkedIn Company Pages for Growth

Cherith AndesBlog, Professional Development, Social Media + Influencer Engagement, , , ,

During our current work-from-home culture, online connections have become a vital lifeline for business growth — especially on platforms like LinkedIn. LinkedIn provides a hub for conversation, idea sharing and community in a time when in-person events are not always possible.

More than ever, now is the time for businesses to leverage their LinkedIn Company Pages to cultivate connections and foster business growth.

Why LinkedIn for Business Development?

The stats are quite compelling.

  • LinkedIn has 675 million users and gains two new members each second.
  • 63 million users are in decision-making positions, and 90 million are senior-level influencers.
  • LinkedIn is the top channel B2B marketers use to distribute content.
  • LinkedIn has 17 million opinion leaders and 10 million C-level executives.
  • Users are seeking professional and industry connections. Professional content gets 15 times more impressions than job postings.
  • More than 50 percent of all social traffic to B2B websites and blogs comes from LinkedIn.

In short, LinkedIn is a hotbed for industry connections and partners, especially those in decision-making roles.

Naturally, your LinkedIn Company Page serves as a springboard to showcase what you do, who you do it for and the results you get. It makes sense that you should maximize this channel to grow and connect with your target audience.

Grow Your Audience

Beyond organic growth, you can leverage LinkedIn’s features to cultivate and build your audience. First, invite your own connections to follow your LinkedIn company page through the Invite Connections feature. You can invite up to 50 people each day, an easy and effective way to remind your contacts where you work and what you do.

Invite your employee base to follow the page through company emails, direct messages and personal asks. Alert your employees to your most important posts through the Notify Employees of Updates functionality at least once a week. This increases engagement, triggers LinkedIn’s content algorithm and in turn surfaces your post to the top of the newsfeed for further engagement.

Host Virtual Events

One of LinkedIn’s newer features allows you to host virtual events, such as networking and sales/marketing seminars as well as webinars and e-trainings. Event organizers and attendees can send invitations to connections, and much like Facebook, you can monitor the details and converse on the event’s newsfeed. Host trainings, free seminars and virtual coffee chats in lieu of those you might have done in person.

Create Connect-Worthy Content

Maximizing your page’s newsfeed to foster connection requires a blend of traditional marketing knowledge and real-time flexibility.

1. Know Your Audience. Nothing has changed with this ground rule. To explore your page’s follower demographics, leverage LinkedIn’s Follower analytics tool that provides a breakdown by location, job function, seniority, industry and company size. Competitor audits can also provide helpful insights into content that has performed well for companies in a similar industry space.

2. Identity Your Audience’s Top Needs. In 2020’s shifting landscape, change seems to be the only constant. Use this time to provide support for your audience and offer generous, authentic solutions in any way you possibly can. Offer resources that are highly educational but low-pressure for the consumer, like free e-books, instructional videos and webinars. More than usual, prove your value and position yourself as a go-to resource, which can pay off later.

3. Pinpoint Content That Builds Your List. For higher engagement, aim to showcase visual media, such as photos and videos. According to LinkedIn itself, videos get five times more engagement, and native LinkedIn video entails an added bonus as they autoplay in members’ newsfeeds.

Things to share? Company news, staff spotlights, behind-the-scenes peeks, how-to videos or product launches. You can also link to your e-books online and prompt followers to provide an email address prior to downloading, adding subscribers to your newsletter list. Check out additional tips to maximize LinkedIn’s content algorithm.

4. Make It Manageable. Create a sustainable content calendar and utilize scheduling tools, such as Hootsuite, Sprout or Sprinklr. This will minimize the last-minute content crunch and posting fatigue. It also allows you to ensure a strong mix of high-performing content and media types.

5. Follow Up. If you see the same followers engaging with your posts, drop them a line to begin a personal conversation. Forge warmer connections by asking to learn more about what they do and what their most pressing needs are in the industry. This jumpstarts the conversation for future collaborations. In addition, you can create a rotating panel of brand ambassadors to discuss industry trends and foster relationships for future partnerships.

With its continuing evolution, LinkedIn is still leading the pack as one of our strongest virtual networking tools. Don’t miss out on these gains!

Learn how to strengthen
your personal LinkedIn presence!

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Thanksgiving in July

Clairemont InternBlog, Inspirational, The Clairemont Team, , , ,

While we might be months away from the turkey, mashed potatoes and pecan pie of Thanksgiving, there’s no time like the present to acknowledge a few ways we’re grateful! Without further ado, welcome to the Clairemont team’s rendition of “Thanksgiving in July.”

Tracy Lathan

During all the craziness of the past few months, I have been so very thankful for the opportunity to spend extended time at our family home at Harkers Island. Everyone is happier there, and it feels like life is normal, even if only for a few days. This porch is the perfect place for morning coffee, afternoon reading, sunsets, family dinners and especially “God winks,” like this one:

Dana Phelps

During the pandemic, I have been so grateful for my front porch. It is a respite from being inside my home that gives me a safely distanced connection to my neighbors. I love seeing families walking together, kids riding bikes by my house and most of all, neighborhood doggies out for their evening strolls!

Anna Beth Adcock

Over the past few months, I have been especially grateful for my family and for any opportunity I can catch to spend time outdoors. When I’m lucky, family and outdoor adventures combine, like the backpacking trip I recently took with my brother along with a few sporadic trips with my sister to visit our aunt (and her dog) in Wilmington. Family, time at the beach and a precious pup makes for three really big reasons to be thankful!

Cherith Andes

When COVID quarantine hit, I needed a “something” — a hobby to channel my attention. And for the first time, I tried my hand at being a green thumb. These potted plants grew from tiny little sprigs into these lovely blooms, and they have brought me so much joy and a reminder to enjoy life, growth and vibrancy.

Kelli Fletcher

As we wrap up month FIVE of this COVID craziness, it has gotten a bit harder for me to find those sparks of joy in each day. However, I remain so grateful for my family. We are lucky to see both sets of grandparents who live not too far from us in Raleigh. At their houses, the kids can explore new backyards, visit community lakes to feed the fish and get a whole new set of snacks! Through these actions, I’ve become MOST grateful for my kids’ simple – almost naive – outlook on the world. Seeing such a strong joy and wonder in their eyes makes it impossible to not feel the same and during this time, it’s a nice mental break. 

Curious about more of our quarantine chronicles and other team-related escapades? Check out the Clairemont Team section of the blog!

By Clairemont intern Anna Beth Adcock, a rising senior at NC State.

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Time Management in the Time of COVID-19

Tracy LathanBlog, Public Relations, The Clairemont Team, , , ,

For someone who used to frequent no fewer than four grocery stores per week, I have really been missing running errands and wandering around Whole Foods reading labels and drinking a latte.

But one of the many things the COVID-19 shutdown has taught me is that maybe I had it all wrong.

Before the coronavirus outbreak, I considered myself to be quite skilled in time management. After all, I manage my PR career, the running of our household and schedules for two very busy kids, as well as various volunteer positions at school, church, etc. Several friends raved about ordering groceries online, but I quickly dismissed the idea because, quite frankly, I am very particular about my produce.

Fast forward six months, and let me tell you, this self-proclaimed germaphobe has mastered the art of managing almost all my interactions via online orders.

Queen of Curbside

It hit me last week when I was running a few “errands” with the kids in tow. Our first stop was Benjamin Moore to pick up the paint samples I ordered and paid for over the phone earlier that morning. The nice gentleman walked them right out to the car.

Next up was Seaboard Wine for our biweekly call-ahead order. Then we headed to curbside pickup at The Container Store. We are moving this week, and not even a global pandemic was going to get between me and the mecca of organization. Then we swung through Harris Teeter and Target to grab our online orders. We pulled in and popped the hatch, and just like that, we are stocked for the week. (Who am I kidding? At the rate these people are eating, it will be gone in three days tops.)

Our last stop, or so I thought, was NoFo to grab dinner from the prepared foods section. I called in the order while we were in the car, and a staff member walked it right out to us. Even though we had never left the air-conditioned Suburban during our outing, the kids proclaimed they were hot and needed some ice cream. Kilwins to the rescue! I called in the order, and within minutes we pulled up to the door and were greeted with two ice cream cones at the curb.

The New Normal?

Wondering where I am headed with all this? In less than one hour, I accomplished what would have taken closer to four or five hours if I would have had to park, shop, wait in line to check out and drag two kids through seven stores.

It got me thinking about time management and how we can be more efficient. Has the way we shop been forever changed, even after COVID-19 is behind us?

Don’t get me wrong, when all this is over, you will definitely find me back at Whole Foods or wandering aimlessly around HomeGoods from time to time, but I will certainly be more intentional about how I schedule my errands. And I anticipate retailers will see that this level of customer service will need to be integrated into their ongoing business models. There is not a great deal we can control these days, but how we spend our time is certainly one of them.

I am curious to know if I am alone in this new world of online ordering. Has anyone else been embracing the convenience of call-ahead ordering during the pandemic? Head over to our Facebook Page and tell us what you think!

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Good Food for a Good Cause

Kelli FletcherBlog, Clairemont Client News, Restaurant PR + Hospitality PR, , ,

These past few months have been a doozy. We’ve all done our share of coping in one (or more … ) ways. I’ve tried a few different tactics myself. But mostly, per the advice of Mr. Rogers, I keep my eyes peeled “looking for the helpers.”

Once it was a family on my street who walked the dog of their elderly neighbor after she experienced a bad fall shortly after lockdown. I’ve also seen it in an individual on the listserv who offered to collect grocery lists and shop for people who are high-risk. Every day I spot more and more helpers who #wearamask.

This month, it has been our client, PDQ, the fast-casual restaurant beloved for its famous chicken tenders, signature sauces, fries and shakes. To celebrate its grand re-opening, PDQs in the Triangle partnered with the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, which has seen a 35 percent increase in the number of people facing hunger in the service area since the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

At its kickoff on July 12, PDQ donated a meal for every meal purchased at its Triangle locations in Durham, Raleigh and Wake Forest. Since then – and for one more week at each of these stores – customers have the option to round up their checks to further support the Food Bank.

Image courtesy of PDQ.

So, if you have a longing to DO SOMETHING while also hankering for delicious chicken tenders, wings or a shake that will take you back to simpler times (aka your childhood), swing by the closest PDQ and round up that check to give back locally during this unprecedented time.

We’re proud of the work we do, especially when it not only helps our clients but also the broader community. Want to read more about our clients and the work they’re doing? Check out our Client News section on the blog!

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