Skip to content

615-294-1886

d@clairemontcommunications.com

Clairemont Communications

Clairemont Communications

  • About Us
  • Awards
  • Blog
  • Our Work
  • Services
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Awards
  • Blog
  • Our Work
  • Services
  • Contact Us

Category: Professional Development

Pitch Perfect

Pitch Perfect

September 3, 2019January 31, 2023 Kelli FletcherBlog, Professional Development, Public Relations#mediapitching, #publicrelations, #RaleighPR

For many in PR, pitching media is their one job. Here at Clairemont, we’re in the communications business, so we wear many hats! And one of them is indeed pitching media.

When I first started in public relations, pitching was like a weight on my shoulders. Most days I just couldn’t gear myself up for fear of rejection from media. But with plenty of practice and the right guidance, I conquered that fear and even perfected the process that best works for me. Since then, I’ve had many successes pitching media and securing stories for clients. Below are four things I’ve found that have helped perfect my pitch process.

Top Tips

  • Know your audience. First thing’s first: find the right contact. Don’t pitch fashion to a finance reporter. Use a mixture of tools and personal research to confirm the most current contacts and their beats.
  • Create a strong subject line. It’s the first thing a reporter sees when an email enters his or her inbox, so make sure yours hits the spot. Tip: Make it short and include major keywords up front.
  • Make it clear (and be concise). Get to the point – and quickly. What are you asking of the reporter? State what you are pitching and why.
  • Make it timely. Take note of what’s going on in the world and think about how it applies to your client. Using current events to your advantage can result in coverage and help position your client as an industry expert for future opportunities.

Success Stories

When the pitch is on point, the result can be, too. Take a look at the examples below of a few clients we’ve put in the spotlight through creative, timely pitch strategies:

  • Wendell Falls: To attract media to the community’s location, Clairemont ditched a standard pitch for a more playful angle, sending tangible invitations that included a “wanted” poster and a cowboy hat, which one TV reporter even sported on her station’s morning show! 
  • WGU North Carolina: To highlight a critical partnership for this client, Clairemont used a timely military angle to grab the attention of multiple reporters at TV stations in different markets.
  • Lincoln Apartments: Individualized, creative pitches piqued the interest of targeted media and secured on-site coverage at the Lincoln Apartments ribbon cutting (which was performed by a dog).
  • North Carolina Association of Fire Chiefs: The team landed a 24-minute iHeartMedia interview for several key leaders and volunteers of the NCAFC. The coverage was broadcasted across five major Triangle radio stations and helped to secure needed volunteer firefighters.

Have the perfect pitch all packaged up and ready to go? Make sure you don’t squash your chance of coverage by committing these six slapdash sins. Need help identifying and crafting the perfect pitch to tell your story?

Drop us a line!
Read More
Leveraging LinkedIn

Leveraging LinkedIn

August 27, 2019January 31, 2023 Clairemont InternBlog, Professional Development, Social Media + Influencer EngagementLinkedIn, linkedin marketing, LInkedin Profile, Online Branding

How you present yourself to the world matters.

If you brand yourself intentionally and authentically, you are much more likely to stand out and hone a positive image. While some elements of your brand are beyond your control (you can’t control what people say about you, for example), you can control the passions, skills, experiences and personality traits you share with the world. And LinkedIn is the perfect platform for doing so.

In fact, LinkedIn should be the starting point when building or refining your personal brand. Read on for tips on how to make the most of this popular platform.

Managing your time: LinkedIn vs. Resumes

“What’s better than the best resume? No resume.” These are the wise words of Gary Kayye, a professor at UNC whom I had the pleasure of listening to at a workshop. What he meant by this scandalous phrase is that your online presence should be so strong that you don’t need a resume. And LinkedIn is the perfect starting point for establishing a killer digital footprint.

According to Kayye, for every hour you spend on your resume, spend two or more on LinkedIn. First of all, most hiring managers look for candidates on LinkedIn. Second, the platform has an amazing job search function. Third, resumes have to be one page, but LinkedIn doesn’t even have pages. It allows you to connect your blog posts, upload graphics you’ve designed, link to articles you’ve written and more. LinkedIn is dynamic, whereas the resume is static.

Avoid a photo faux pas

Include a photo of yourself on LinkedIn. Profiles without pictures are not taken as seriously! While it goes without saying that your LinkedIn photo should be high-quality and professional, it’s also important that it is reflective of your personality. If you never wear suits, don’t wear a suit in your profile picture. Looking professional doesn’t necessarily require formality, especially if that’s not who you are. For instance, I’m a writer, I’m creative, and I like design; so my cover photo — an aesthetic desk featuring a typewriter — encapsulates these elements of my personality. You can go on sites like Unsplash, Pixabay and Canva to find quality photos you like and re-use them for free.

Experience

For each position you list, include a detailed description. Providing a lot of information demonstrates your full range of skills, your growth and your dedication to your previous jobs. If applicable, upload or link to portfolio pieces you created in each position.

Engagement

Consistent engagement on LinkedIn keeps your profile fresh, deepens your connections and supplies you with up-to-date knowledge on your industry. To stay engaged, it is important to like and comment on posts so that LinkedIn shows you are active. Post your blogs on LinkedIn, share work you’re proud of and mention seminars you’ve recently attended. In essence, you can’t put too much information on your LinkedIn page. Follow outlets, companies and agencies that you admire. This is the equivalent of a “like” on LinkedIn. If you apply for a job at a certain organization, make sure you follow it on LinkedIn.

Connecting

Connect with as many people as possible. Don’t decline invitations, unless the other person appears questionable. The more people you connect with, the more likely you are to have second-degree connections with people with whom you really want to connect. Furthermore, when sending an invitation, always add a note. If you’ve met the person before, mention your shared history in some way. If it is a cold invite, make sure to include in your message why you want to connect.

Recommendations

Ask a supervisor to write you a recommendation on LinkedIn. Similar to how people tend to trust product reviews by customers more than they trust advertisements, they place value in profiles that feature a thoughtful recommendation. It shows that your future success is important enough for a colleague to have taken the time to write a paragraph for you.

Just remember that LinkedIn isn’t a log-in-once-a-year kind of platform. If you want it to thrive after you invest time into polishing your profile, then you need to spend at least 15 minutes on it a week. And these few minutes will be well worth your time once you score a high-profile connection or discover a great professional opportunity.  

Next up, it’s time to grow your professional network on other social media channels. Check out this blog on making the right connections, no matter the platform!

Piper Anderson is a recent graduate of UNC. Check out her LinkedIn here.

Read More
Patriotic PR: Advice From Founding Fathers

Patriotic PR: Advice From Founding Fathers

July 2, 2019January 31, 2023 Clairemont InternBlog, Professional Development, Public Relationsadvice, America, Fourth of July, history, PR, tips, USA

In the public relations world, good advice is a valuable commodity. One of the core reasons we operate this blog is to share the insight that we at Clairemont find useful.

In honor of the Fourth of July, I thought it would be fitting to take some public relations advice from our more patriotic origins. Before the idea of a public relations profession was even in the realm of possible occupations (most sources cite the origins of the term “public relations” to the early 20th century), some of America’s most influential people had quotes and advice that are still relevant to a public relations professional today. Straight from the mouths of colonial visionaries, here are our favorite PR quotes from America’s founding fathers.

“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.”

– Benjamin Franklin
Photo from Pixabay.com

A quote from the endlessly quotable Benjamin Franklin that speaks to one of the hardest skills to learn in writing. Make your words count. In our daily lives we consume so much content that each precious second that someone spends reading your piece should be worth his or her time. Franklin reminds all of us to edit, cut down on wordiness and make sure that each sentence you write is something worth reading.

“You will never be alone with a poet in your pocket.”

– John Adams
Photo from the Library of Congress

John Adams penned this quote to his son (and future president) John Quincy Adams. In my mind this quote complements the previous quote by Franklin. While your public relations piece should be succinct, it should still be elegant. What you say is important, but it is also important how you say it. John Adams (my favorite founding father, by the way) imparted this advice to his son as a reminder to celebrate the written word and the artistry of a well-crafted sentence. Sound advice from our second president.   

“The advancement and diffusion of knowledge is the only guardian of true liberty.” 

– James Madison
Photo from the Library of Congress

Our last piece of advice is from James Madison, the fourth president of the United States. I hope this quote serves as inspiration to all of us writers. This is the reason to write — to tell stories and share knowledge. As public relations professionals, we are positioned to help tell others’ stories — a gift that very few have. By writing, by sharing and by spreading the word about our clients and our communities, we help others learn about the world around them. We are messengers, both an important and in a way noble profession.

Happy Fourth of July! Enjoy the day, celebrate with friends and family, and eat a hot dog for me. If public relations work is still on your mind, you can find all of our professional development blogs here.

Will Hornbeck is a rising senior at Wake Forest University. He’s named after a Taco Bell. Seriously.

Read More
The Beauty of Life’s Uncertainties

The Beauty of Life’s Uncertainties

June 21, 2019January 31, 2023 Clairemont InternBlog, Professional Development, The Clairemont TeamCareer, chaos theory, experience, internship, Lyon, risk

Chaos Theory and the Importance of the Process

I graduated from college last month — a phrase which still feels weird to say. For the first time in my life, I’m not a student, and this resulting identity crisis has stirred up a lot of self-reflection. In the spirit of this period of transition, I think it’s fitting to write about the beauty of life’s uncertainties as I look toward my own future.

The traditional way of thinking touts a linear career path. You major in finance; you become an accountant. However, this linear approach does not work in the 21st century, where most people have multiple careers, and the majority of students do not end up in careers related to their majors. Chaos theory — which states that a path to a career is influenced by all sorts of variables like the job market, network, talent, and so on — fits much better. According to Katharine Brooks in You Majored in What?, chaos theory allows for change and the unexpected. It takes into account one’s diverse interests and range of knowledge in order to leverage how the job search actually functions today. The chaos theory encourages one to explore: try new ideas and mindfully take advantage of new opportunities.

I find this chaos theory comforting, because it takes the pressure off of the idea that I, at 21 years old, need to know exactly what I want to do for the rest of my life. Similarly, in the book Designing Your Life, the authors say it is okay if it takes 10 or 30 or 50 years to figure out what you want to do, because life is really about the process. It is an experience, and the fun comes from creating and enjoying those experiences.

Like this Lyonnaise clock, there is beauty in complexity, and the answers don’t always have to be straightforward.

Taking Risks

I love David Sedaris, and earlier this year I was watching an interview of him on Stephen Colbert. He was talking about the commencement speech he would give at Oberlin college, and he said something that really stuck with me. He encouraged graduates to forget their fallback plan, because it can tempt people away from going after their passions. “If you find something to fall back on you’re going to fall back … at 22 you’re built for poverty and rejection. In part because you’re good looking.” This resonated with me (and I don’t just mean the good looking part!). After all, I’m young. Why do I have to do the safe, stable, expected thing? I have never before been better positioned to take a risk. 

There is nothing wrong with choosing the more secure path. I will probably choose that path at some point in the near future. However, I do not want to choose stability simply because I’m afraid to fail at another dream. Right now I want to travel and write about my experiences, so I’m making that dream happen.

Embracing Uncertainties

I knew I wanted to travel post-grad and that I needed funding. So, after months and months of research I finally decided to be an au pair in France. I will live with a really sweet family in Lyon, have plenty of time to travel, (hopefully) become fluent in French, figure out my next step and try my hand at travel writing. I am beyond excited, but sometimes I get scared and filled with self-doubt when I think about things like student loans and career viability. But then I just have to take a deep breath and remember to embrace the chaos of it all and the fun of the experiences. I find myself thinking back on a piece of wisdom that my inspirational travel writing professor imparted. She said that a beautiful life is about having as many different, enriching experiences as possible; she said we never know how much time we have left so we have to do what we want when we can; she said that the road is always waiting.

So I’ve decided to take to the road and see what I find there.

Lyon at dusk — who knows that other golden, glowing experiences await me there?

Written by Clairemont intern Piper Anderson, a recent graduate of UNC.

Read More
Ways to Cultivate Your Daily Creativity

Ways to Cultivate Your Daily Creativity

June 14, 2019January 31, 2023 Clairemont InternBlog, Marketing, Professional Developmentcreative, creativity, personal growth, tips, tricks

One of the hardest things to do is be consistently creative. Great ideas can come from anywhere, but it can be a challenge to always be in that head space to create those ideas. At times, the idea of being creative can seem nebulous. Personally, the beginning of my life-long quest to be creative began with a revelation. Creativity is a skill. We need to treat it as such. Like lifting weights or doing math equations, creativity requires training and commitment to cultivate. Here are some meaningful ways to cultivate creativity in a daily setting. 

Do or Do Not, But You Must Try

This tip is the hardest, and it is by far the least convenient truth. The only way to be creative every day is to try every day. You must write, draw, paint, sing — whatever form your creativity takes — every single day. Behind every great idea are dozens of ideas that never came to fruition. Your imagination and your creativity deserve to be trained and exercised like any other part of your body. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither are most great ideas. When I was in high school, I had a theatre teacher who before every rehearsal or performance would tell us to “Go and do.” The best way to work on creativity is to go and do.

When to Change (and When Not to Change)

This tip will mean different things to different people. Each of us works differently. For some, the best way to spark great ideas comes from constant change and variety. For others (me included) creativity comes most naturally in a familiar and consistent environment. The most important thing is to find what works best for you. If you do best in new locations, go find some! (If you need some advice on where to go in Raleigh, check out our blog on places to work remotely in Raleigh.) By learning which environment suits your personal brand of creativity best, you can ensure that your days are as creative as possible.

Food for Thought

One of the easiest ways to get a little more brainpower into your day is by adding some brain-healthy foods to your daily diet. If we are going to train our brain like we would train our bodies, it makes sense to include a regiment of healthy eating on to our plate. Some foods that are easy to add into your day include green tea (full of creativity boosting antioxidants) or pumpkin seeds (contain zinc that has been linked to increasing memory and critical thinking). Foods like these, or those that are high in other nutrients like vitamin K or amino acids, can help set you up for successful “a-ha” moments.

While these ideas are great for cultivating creativity in the long term, sometimes you need an immediate creative boost to get you past your biggest mental blocks. Don’t worry; we’ve got you covered with our blog all about mental blocks. Check it out.

Will Hornbeck is a rising senior at Wake Forest University. Any naming similarity between him and the editor of the movie “It’s a Wonderful Life”(1946) is just a cool fun fact.

Read More

Posts navigation

Older posts
Newer posts

Categories

  • APR
  • Awards
  • Blog
  • Case Studies
  • Clairemont Client News
  • Copy Cat
  • Counselors Academy
  • Entry-Level PR Job
  • Fashion
  • Free Advice
  • Furniture PR
  • Hiring a PR Firm
  • In Our Community
  • Inspirational
  • Internal Communications
  • Marketing
  • Oh Momma Monday
  • On the Record
  • Our Work
  • Owning a Business
  • Photo of the Week
  • PR People
  • Professional Development
  • Public Relations
  • Raleigh PR Agency
  • Real Estate PR
  • Restaurant PR + Hospitality PR
  • Social Media + Influencer Engagement
  • Starting a business
  • Sustainability
  • The Clairemont Team
  • Travel
  • Trends
  • Wonderfully Random

clairemontcommunications

Have you heard about Meta’s newest social media Have you heard about Meta’s newest social media platform? It’s called Threads, and it’s being referred to as “the new Twitter.” Read everything you need to know about Threads in our latest blog post - link in bio!
SNEAK PEEK! @dellthepig landed at @wendellfallsnc SNEAK PEEK! @dellthepig landed at @wendellfallsnc (client) today, and rumor has it that @blah2voila has already been hamming it up with Dell! We know you want a selfie with Dell to post on Pigstagram, too!
We are proud to represent Raleigh as a member of P We are proud to represent Raleigh as a member of Public Relations Consultants Group, allowing us to offer clients expertise and support across the country! Clairemont founder, Dana Phelps aka @blah2voila, recently attended the PRCG conference in Oklahoma City.
2022 has been a fantastic year for Clairemont Comm 2022 has been a fantastic year for Clairemont Communications! Visit our blog for the full 2022 year in review!
As communications professionals, we wear a variety As communications professionals, we wear a variety of hats to meet our clients’ needs.
 
We’re writers, social media managers, photographers, marketers, editors, content creators- the list goes on and on.
 
Check out our recent blog post to learn what @olivia.noles , account coordinator here at Clairemont, does on a weekly and monthly basis.
#communicationsagency #communicationsmajor #pragencylife #pragency #raleighpr
This Friday, Clairemont’s Dana Phelps, @blah2voi This Friday, Clairemont’s Dana Phelps, @blah2voila , will be speaking at the 2022 @nc_prsa Strategic Communication & MarCom Conference! Phelps is a repeat presenter at this annual conference, and this year she is leading a session called Growing from Communication Technician to Strategic Counselor during which she will share three of her coined concepts: knowcasting, morecasting and collabolighthing. Visit our blog for the link to register for the conference!
@clairemontcommunications and @yellowdogcreative g @clairemontcommunications and @yellowdogcreative go together like the bacon and eggs! And speaking of bacon and eggs, have you been to @therainbowluncheonette yet? YUM!
Later this year, Clairemont client @wendellfallsnc Later this year, Clairemont client @wendellfallsnc, a master-planned community just 15 miles from downtown Raleigh, will welcome @parksideraleigh, a Raleigh-favorite restaurant known for its fresh, made-from-scratch dishes, to the community!
 
Visit our blog to see the @trianglebizjrnl coverage and read the full feature in the TBJ to learn more about Parkside.
“What exactly does a PR Agency do?” Because we “What exactly does a PR Agency do?” Because we get this question often, we have a series on our blog where we dive into our recent projects to give you a look at what a PR Agency really does.
 
For example, a statewide resource for small businesses recently hired Clairemont to devise an executive visibility campaign to help position the organization and its director as the leading small business resource in North Carolina.
 
Head to our blog to read what exactly an executive visibility campaign entails and to learn more about our services!
So you say it’s National Coffee Day? We say let So you say it’s National Coffee Day? We say let us tell you about our new favorite @drink321coffee ! If you are in Raleigh, go see Paul, the other Paul, Emma  or whichever smiling faces are working today. We LOVE this place and the coffee! ❤️❤️❤️
Our client @wendellfallsnc, one of the largest mas Our client @wendellfallsnc, one of the largest master-planned communities in the Triangle, closed on its first age-eligible rental community plan, Arden at Wendell Falls, that will offer 140 open-concept units and exclusive onsite amenities!
 
Visit our blog to see the @trianglebizjrnl coverage and read the full feature in the TBJ to learn more about Arden at Wendell Falls.
Staying in Raleigh this Labor Day weekend? Stop by Staying in Raleigh this Labor Day weekend? Stop by client @vitaviteraleigh for good snacks and great wine!🍷 Both locations are open normal hours Friday-Sunday and closed on Monday.
You never know who might be hanging out at The Cla You never know who might be hanging out at The Clairemont House. Thanks to @yellowdogcreative for helping save this buddy. Notice that we speak lizard. Or skink. Or gecko or whatever he is. Or maybe it’s the extra caffeine before our client presentation.
Yep, our town is pretty cool. #raleigh Yep, our town is pretty cool. #raleigh
Who wants to have a Friday afternoon porch meeting Who wants to have a Friday afternoon porch meeting?
Congrats to our new neighbor on Bloodworth Street Congrats to our new neighbor on Bloodworth Street South @raleighwineshop ! @blah2voila was there today representing Clairemont at the grand opening festivities and enjoying the @grandchamphospitality sandwich pop up. Yum! 🍷🥪
It’s National Volunteer Month, and volunteers ar It’s National Volunteer Month, and volunteers are needed more than ever! Many organizations with scarce resources rely on volunteers and would not exist without them. Visit our recent blog post to read about the organizations Clairemont has supported and how you can make a difference in your community!
Authenticity is trending, and research shows that Authenticity is trending, and research shows that consumers are 2.4 times more likely to view user-generated content as authentic. Read our recent blog post to learn about UGC, how it can benefit your brand and how to use it in your marketing strategy.
From social values to behavior patterns, COVID-19 From social values to behavior patterns, COVID-19 has left an impact on every sector of life, including marketing. Read our blog on marketing in a post-COVID world to learn how things have changed and how that should impact your business strategy.
We are so excited to share that Clairemont earned We are so excited to share that Clairemont earned eight awards, five gold🥇and three silver🥈, at this year's Sir Walter Raleigh Awards hosted by the Raleigh Public Relations Society!🎉 We are beyond grateful to work with so many amazing partners, clients and industry friends!
Follow on Instagram
  • 2023
  • 2022
  • 2021
  • 2020
  • 2019
  • 2018
  • 2017
  • 2016
  • 2015
  • 2014
  • 2013
  • 2012
  • 2011
  • 2010
Proudly powered by WordPress | Theme: realy-store by inverstheme.
Cleantalk Pixel