Mike Herman was a friend of Clairemont, PR mentor to more than can be counted and considered family (by blood or not!) by people all over the world. He inspired us to do our best. In honor of him, we are supporting the Michael Lee Herman Memorial Award Fund.
Mike, we promise to do our best to continue to encourage, teach and support the next generation of public relations professionals. We love and miss you, buddy!
xoxox
Public Relations is possibly the most misunderstood profession. If you are still wondering what people who work in PR do, go ask your mom. Better yet, ask Abbie Fink’s mom.
My dear friend and fellow PR pro wrote my favorite post about PR for the HMA blog four years ago. I still think about it when people ask me to explain my chosen career path. With Abbie’s permission, below is public relations as explained by Abbie’s mom, and you can view the original post here.
Now I know all of us in public relations have tried for our entire careers to explain what it is we do. And if you are like me, you’ve always been sure your parents really have no clue, “but as long as you’re happy, we’re happy.” Right? We were in Minneapolis for a family wedding. My 85-year-old cousin asked my mom “just exactly what does Abbie do for a living.” And this is how my mom explained it:Let’s assume you are a lettuce farmer. (The salad had just been set so it was the best she could do.) And you want everyone to know about your crops; well, you hire someone like Abbie to tell the newspaper and television reporters how great your lettuce is. But maybe you have a bad crop one year, but thanks to the work that Abbie does, she’s able to tell the reporters about that and also tell them some of the other great things you are doing at the farm.He goes on to ask, “how does she do that?”
She makes it a point to know all the reporters and editors at the different newspapers and television stations. You know she’s quite the busy-body so this is perfect for her. (yeah, I know, my mom has that part dialed in 🙂 )
So then he asks my mom if “Abbie does the Twitter thing.” And to that she says:
Yes, she does all that social media stuff. She uses the Facebook and the Twitter thing all the time (I’m sure there was a big emphasis on ALL and she probably rolled her eyes a bit as well.) She even teaches other people how to use it.
Not bad, right? So after 25+ years in business, I guess my parents really do know what I do.
Creating a positive work environment is the responsibility of every employee. I think it’s a good idea to get to know your co-workers. I find that in many settings no matter what walk of life you come from, you can always learn something from someone else.
Sarah Hattman, APR, has a passion for storytelling. From a decade in television news to creating award-winning campaigns for her clients, she is always searching for a memorable way to tell the story. Sarah spent nearly 10 years in television working as a producer, reporter and anchor at WECT in Wilmington, N.C. and KRQE in Albuquerque, N.M.
She made the transition from journalist to public relations practitioner with James Korenchen Public Relations in Albuquerque. In 2013, Sarah earned her Accreditation in Public Relations designation. As a member of the Clairemont Communications team, she oversees multiple accounts and provides clients guidance in all aspects of public relations.
Today, I interviewed Sarah to learn more about her experiences at Clairemont and her career switch from journalist to PR practitioner.
Jasmin: “Sarah, How did you know you wanted to make a career change?”
Sarah: “During my ten years in news, I worked with a lot of PR professionals and one of them really stood out to me. I met James Korenchen, president of James Korenchen Public Relations, while working at KRQE and he really influenced my career path. A lot of PR people are former news people, and when I first thought about making the switch from news to PR, I reached out to James to learn more about the PR profession. At the time I wasn’t sure I was quite ready to leave news, but it just so happened that he had an opening and made me an offer. I decided to take the leap and have never looked back or regretted my decision.”
Jasmin: “Since you made the career switch, I observed that you have found a love for PR. What exactly does Pubic Relations mean to you?”
Sarah: “For me PR is another version of storytelling. The difference is that in PR I don’t just tell the story, I get to shape it.”
Jasmin: “What attracted you to Clairemont?”
Sarah: “The people behind the agency. In 2012 when I moved back to North Carolina, I became active with the local PRSA chapter. It was there that I first met Tracy and Dana. I admired their hard work and dedication to the profession and considered myself lucky when I had the opportunity to join the Clairemont team in 2014.”
Jasmin: “What is your personal mantra?”
Sarah: “Be present. (laughs) It’s so cliche, but in a PR agency you often find yourself switching tasks quickly which can make it difficult to focus. When I have to switch gears quickly, I always try to take a deep breath and give the new task 100 percent of my focus. It’s something that is easier said than done, but I strive to do it each and every day.”
Jasmin: “Describe your best moment at Clairemont.”
Sarah: “That’s a tough one. There have been so many great moments but the one that stands out the most in my mind is the night of the T.MAC social at the Clairemont House. The event was developed as to way to introduce T.MAC to influencers in the Triangle. After weeks of planning and hard work, it was fun to see the house bustling in the moments before we welcomed our first guest. The head chef from T.MAC was cooking in our kitchen as well as in our driveway under a tent. Furniture was being a re-arranged, tables and linens were being delivered and Fortnight Brewing Company was setting up a tasting station. It was a fun night and a great feeling to see all of the team’s hard work come together to create a great event.”
Jasmin: “What skills have you found that you didn’t know that you had until you entered the PR world?”
Sarah: “I would say creativity. In news it’s all about the facts. Sure, you can be creative with reporter standups and when editing the video for the story, but its nothing compared to the creativity that I have found in the world of PR.
Jasmin: “What advice would you give to someone like me who is fresh in the PR world that you wish you would have been told?”
Sarah: “Don’t take it personally. It’s actually something I have been told for many years and am still told on occasion. There are times when you will take your best idea to a client, journalist or contact only to be told no. Don’t let it get to you. It’s not that they don’t like you; they just don’t like your idea as much as you do.”
Jasmin: “What legacy do you want to leave behind in this field?”
Sarah: “I want to be known for my go-getter attitude. I love a good challenge and finding a way to work through it.”
I think its safe to say, Sarah is qualified for this gig, and is an amazing asset to the Clairemont team. She is a joy to work with, and I am proud to be her co-worker.
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.
When I was approached by the president of the North Carolina Public Relations Society (NCPRSA) about attending the Leadership Rally in New York with our chapter’s president elect Tony Arnold and website chair Lauren Parker, I was flattered and excited. The Leadership Rally is an annual event designed to help prepare leaders for the next year and beyond with important orientation, networking and of course leadership sessions. It was an amazing experience! Not only did I have the pleasure of meeting industry leaders and getting a lot of great ideas, I also got to spend three days in the Big Apple (but that’s for another post).
I gleaned important information on topics ranging from increasing engagement among members to financial literacy, and the highlight for me was keynote speaker Fred Cook. He is the CEO of GolinHarris, one of the world’s largest and most successful PR firms. Cook has worked with big companies including Nintendo, McDonald’s and Walmart, and big names ranging from Sheldon Adelson to Steve Jobs.
Cook’s presentation discussed highlights from his new book “Improvise: Unconventional Career Advice from an Unlikely CEO.” He told us about his unusual path to success that began with odd jobs ranging from tour guide to chauffeur. Eventually he found his passion for PR and realized there are many paths to success. Cook gave us his best advice from his long, winding and (what many would consider) unconventional path.
Here are a few of my favorite tips from Cook that can be applied to evoke the leader in us all, no matter where you are in your career.
1. Expose Yourself – No, it’s not what you are thinking. It is about getting outside of your comfort zone and experiencing new things. Pick up a magazine that is not necessarily of interest to you. For example, I often find myself reading Southern Living, Better Homes and Gardens and People, but in order to expose myself Cook says I should be reaching for the latest issue of Guns & Ammo. The idea is to get you to experience new things. You will benefit from exploring ideas outside of your comfort zone and learn a lot about the world around you.
2. Ask the Captain – By literally asking the captain, Cook was able to talk his way into a job as a cabin boy on a tanker ship heading to Asia. In the business world the “captain” is usually a senior executive who can be intimidating to anyone just starting their careers or new to a profession. But Cook’s advice is to not be shy because the captains are the one who can guide your career. He says if you aspire to be a captain, you should talk to them and ask questions every chance you get. After all, you never know where it might take you.
3.Enlist an Entourage – You’ve probably heard the phrase, “It takes a village to raise a child.” Well this saying can also be tailored and applied to successful people too. Behind every successful person, whether it is a billionaire, a politician or an entertainer, there is a team of people responsible for making them look good. According to Cook, there is always someone one step ahead of you, and you are always going to be competing with people who have more experience and better connections. So in order to get to the top, you need to start compiling your entourage now.
As an attendee of PRSA‘s Counselors Academy conference for several years running now, I get to meet a lot of really wonderful PR people from around the country and some special Canadians. 🙂 Daniel Tisch, president of Argyle Communications, is certainly one of my favorites. I think it was Dan’s first Counselors Academy conference that he fell in with the bad kids and ended up crashing the prom. That’s really another story, but I’m including the photo as proof. You can ask Ken Jacobs, Martin Waxman or Tom Garrity for the details later.
Now, back to today’s story. Because Dan is quite the globe trotter and in high demand to speak internationally, it is a real treat that attendees of this year’s conference will get to hear his presentation, “How PR is Changing the World: What Your Agency Needs to Know.” Eager to learn more about his global perspective on the evolution of our industry, I conducted the following pre-conference Q&A with Dan:
Without giving too much away, how is PR changing the world?
The first decade of the twenty-first century has rewritten the rules for our clients, because we’ve seen a simultaneous concentration of economic power in corporations and a diffusion of communication power to individuals and stakeholders. Since audiences have never had more power, organizations have never had less control – and that means the most powerful organizations will be those who excel at earning attention, engagement, loyalty and trust through public relations.
Knowing that you’ve conducted and studied global research, what countries are leading the changes in our industry, and why do you think that is the case?
Thirty countries were involved in the Global Alliance’s research, and I’ve been part of events in at least 25 countries in the last four years. The global PR community is a story of amazing diversity – and yet surprising unity of purpose. My greatest takeaway is that while public relations is being practiced in so many different countries, cultures and contexts, the core challenges of professionals and agencies are amazingly similar.
I see different countries showing leadership in different fields. For example, while North Americans were the pioneers in social media, Asia now has more than four times as many social media users as we do, and the most rapid growth forecasts are from the Middle East and Africa. On corporate social investment and sustainability, I find professionals in Latin American and African countries speaking a very sophisticated language, perhaps because the social role of the corporation is different. Scandinavian countries have an exceptional level of professionalism – with Sweden and Norway having among the world’s largest professional PR associations despite small populations.
As PR agency managers, what should we be doing to prep our teams to be change agents?
The good news is the need for PR has never been greater; the bad news is that we’re entering an era of unprecedented competition from non-traditional competitors – such as ad agencies and management consultants. We need to “skill up” in many areas: for example, to enhance our employees’ business literacy; to get better at the visual and emotional side of brand-building; to avoid being stuck in the media relations “box”; to get clients to see social media as intrinsic to PR; to know more about behavioral science; and to start measuring results in ways that are more meaningful to business.
Is change synonymous with success in this day and age?
Change can bring both risk and opportunity. Success means embracing both – managing the former, and positioning ourselves to seize the latter.
Why is this an important topic to the senior practitioners attending the conference in Key West?
In North America, we can get a bit insular! I find looking at how the broader global community is conceiving of our profession’s challenges – and enunciating the role of value of public relations in the twenty-first century – is invaluable. I hope my peers will come out of it with a few new ideas on how to make the case for what we do, and a bit of a road map on the skills we need to develop in our people. Finally, I hope that as independent agencies thinking globally – while maintaining our unbeatable local expertise — we can gain an even greater edge on our multinational competitors!
Thanks to Dan for taking time to answer my questions! If you are going to the Counselors Academy conference May 4 – 6 in Key West, make sure to check out his session. I promise you’ll get a lot out of it and enjoy meeting him! If you aren’t attending, follow Dan on social media via the links in the first paragraph of this post.
