Author: Jasmin Sessoms

The Beauty of Raleigh PR: Day 22 – PDQ Shake

Jasmin SessomsBlog, Clairemont Client News, Entry-Level PR Job, Raleigh PR Agency, , ,

During a team lunch yesterday, we enjoyed a scrumptious treat. PDQ, one of our clients, has recently unveiled its newest seasonal shake, Toffee Coffee. Ready for the official review? The taste is mind-blowing. Decadent toffee pieces mix with the layers of rich coffee flavor for an indulgent melt-in-your-mouth experience. I have to warn you: this shake may lead to instantaneous happiness as well as an uncontrollable need to sing, dance and “shake” it out! We certainly couldn’t resist!

Craving it already? PDQ, a fresh, fast-casual restaurant, offers multiple locations throughout the Triangle, plenty of opportunities to get your “toffee fix”! And please join us in congratulating PDQ as it opens its newest location this Sunday, February 8, in Winston-Salem. (Lucky Winston-Salem!)

Be sure to pop by PDQ and “Shake It Off” with a little Toffee Coffee this weekend.

Editor’s Note: Clairemont enthusiastically welcomes Jasmin Sessoms to our team! Follow this former beauty queen’s journey as she documents her first 30 days in a Raleigh PR agency.

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The Beauty of Raleigh PR: Day 21 – Super Bowl

Jasmin SessomsBlog, Entry-Level PR Job, Marketing, Social Media + Influencer Engagement, , , ,

Although the Super Bowl to most may seem like a thing of the past, fans and foes are still discussing the recent choices made by artist Katy Perry.

Katy Perry’s “flame” dress in which she opened the Super Bowl halftime show was made of detailed orange patent leather worth $15,000 to $20,000, according to ABC News. It is also stated that she worked with the designer over two months to perfect the design. It is reported that her finale dress also cost a whopping $15,000 and had to be slipped on by Perry in just 45 seconds. With four total costume changes, Katy Perry is the only halftime show artist to have changed this many times in Super Bowl history.

From a PR standpoint, I think Katy Perry did the show justice. Not only did she embrace her own identity, but she also left something for her fans to talk about. So I think this falls under branding as well as the importance of social media to PR. The order of public relations and branding is a key difference between the two. Developing a brand must come before engaging in public relations, advertising, marketing or any other communications-related company activity.

At Clairemont, we take a tactics-agnostic approach to devising PR and marketing strategies using both traditional tools such as media relations and event planning and newer tools such as content marketing and social media. We acknowledge the importance of social media followings to help a brand, and Perry has an amazing following on her accounts. With 64.6 million twitter followers and 14.2 million followers on Instagram, Katy Perry is no stranger to social media.

Why? We live in a world of media hype and skepticism where advertising has lost some of its power to influence. Marketers are leaning more to word-of-mouth programs to create the sought after buzz for a brand. Katy Perry does just that, with her larger than life set to include a Lion to ride in on and dancing Sharks her name was trending all over social media channels and even received many spots on the news.

According to reports, this is the most watched Super Bowl half time show in history. Good job Katy Perry — we heard you “Roar” loud and clear.

Editor’s Note: Clairemont enthusiastically welcomes Jasmin Sessoms to our team! Follow this former beauty queen’s journey as she documents her first 30 days in a Raleigh PR agency.

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The Beauty of Raleigh PR: Day 20 – Time Tips

Jasmin SessomsBlog, Entry-Level PR Job, The Clairemont Team, ,

Time: is it really on our side?

In the Clairemont office there are always a plethora of tasks going on at once. As PR professionals, we have to learn how to switch gears efficiently to maximize our time. I think my colleagues do a wonderful job of managing their time. Ready to learn, I curated a few time management tips from the team.

Top Nine Time Management Tips from the Clairemont Team:

1) Early to bed. Early to rise.

2) Prioritize your to-do list. And use it.

2) Take intentional breaks throughout your day. Recharge and refocus.

3) Look at your to-do list at the beginning of the day and tackle the task you want to do the least.

4) Set deadlines for yourself and pursue them with urgency.

5) If you are struggling with an assignment, revisit it later.

6) Allocate a certain amount of time to invest in a task.

7) Take time to proof.

8) Stop procrastinating (or at least put it off until a later date). Take the initiative to jump start tasks.

9) Produce quality, not quantity.

Before you begin work for the day, take some time to think slowly and create a list. Make sure to get enough “shut-eye” tonight, and here’s to a great day tomorrow!

Editor’s Note: Clairemont enthusiastically welcomes Jasmin Sessoms to our team! Follow this former beauty queen’s journey as she documents her first 30 days in a Raleigh PR agency.

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The Beauty of Raleigh PR: Day 19 – Photo Day

Jasmin SessomsBlog, Entry-Level PR Job, Raleigh PR Agency,

A Day in Photos


For nearing my one-month anniversary, I got a special treat from my boss.

Mrs. Hughens has me obsessed with Vanilla Chai. I found her secret stash in the cabinet.

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Cherith works diligently on multiple projects.

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Sarah gets comfortable. We try not to stress at work!

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Mrs. Hughens and Reid exchange laughs over scones from the Yellow Dog Bakery.

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 My workload slowly piles up each day.

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For us, to-do lists are always helpful. IMG_5269

Need to find an office supply? Fret not; Mrs. Hughens is the organization fairy.

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The AP Stylebook has become my best friend.

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We occasionally trade our desks for couches.

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If you are in need of an agency, head to The Clairemont House. Our team is  transforming PR and social media from “blah” to “voila”!

Editor’s Note: Clairemont enthusiastically welcomes Jasmin Sessoms to our team! Follow this former beauty queen’s journey as she documents her first 30 days in a Raleigh PR agency.

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The Beauty of Raleigh PR: Day 18 – Writing

Jasmin SessomsBlog, Entry-Level PR Job, Public Relations,

When I told my friends I was entering PR, I was told there would be a lot of writing. As a recent college grad I was pretty confident in my skills. My research papers always scored high in school; I figured that writing for work would be pretty simplistic.

I have been at Clairemont nearly four weeks, and I now realize just how much writing is involved in PR. Not only do I have my blog post assignment for the first 30 days, but I also have other assignments beginning to pile up on my desk.

After writing a few blog posts, I discovered I have a few common mistake areas: too many commas, not enough periods, incomplete thoughts and stylistic discrepancies on the proper way to write dates and time.

Here are a few of the top tips that I have learned from my colleagues at Clairemont about strengthening my writing skills. If you need a refresher on AP formatting these tips may help you out as well. Even if you are a PR professional, it doesn’t hurt to brush up on the fundamentals of writing to make sure all of your blog posts and client work are perfection.

Here are a few tips:

1) Write to be understood by your reader, not yourself.

2) Keep the article concise and to the point.

3) Keep paragraphs short.

4) Avoid using too many adverbs and adjectives.

5) Try not to use the same word twice in one sentence.

6) Make sure phrases are parallel and make sense together.

7) Try to always use third person. Only on rare occasions do you use first person or second person.

8) Use active voice vs. passive voice.

9) Any time you can find more the one word to say something use the most precise word.

10) Refer to the AP Stylebook or colleagues for help.

Although these tips may seem generic, they have surely been a lifesaver for me!

Editor’s Note: Clairemont enthusiastically welcomes Jasmin Sessoms to our team! Follow this former beauty queen’s journey as she documents her first 30 days in a Raleigh PR agency.

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