I had the pleasure of meeting today’s TDMJ PR Pro a few weeks ago, and was so compelled by her story that I knew you would be, too. In addition to being a new wife and mother like myself, Mrs. Lara is a tenacious public relations professional who started out in the world of academia and leveraged a thirst for knowledge and willingness to work hard to create her own  opportunities. For Lara, this has translated into a pretty impressive career track only a few years out of college-not bad for someone who didn’t study communications in college! Already a senior account exec with several  agency positions under her belt and a consulting practice in the works, Mrs. Lara is one to watch.

Name: Jacqueline Lara
Age: 26
Current City: Silver Spring, MD
Job Title: Senior Account Executive, Lyons Public Relations
Owner, Mpact Communications
Length of Time in this Role: 18 months

Web Site |LinkedIn|Twitter

Mopwater: Describe your path to PR. How did you wind up in this field?

JL: My path to PR was nontraditional, but I wouldn’t change it for the world because each step has molded my experience. I received my B.A. in Sociology and a business certificate from the College Park Scholars program at the University of Maryland.  While I enjoyed my major and loved analyzing groups of people and their behaviors, as well as organizations and the key factors influencing their effectiveness, I often wondered what profession I’d pursue after college.  I felt pigeon-holed between working in HR and becoming a social worker.  Neither of these options appealed to me, so I took a few communications courses and was intrigued by the power of words and the way media pundits ‘spun’ messages to advance their platforms. Read the full story

You know the feeling. You’re working on a new project and you’re in the zone. Your brain is rapid firing idea after idea; you’re drowning in a deluge of creativity. You’re thinking to yourself, “Wow...this client is doing some amazing work in the community,” or “This campaign is briliant; it’s so cutting-edge, the PR element needs to be over the top…” Especially when you have a new client whom you are trying desperately to impress, it seems that the ideas just keep coming and coming; you’re ready to produce the YouTube video and tie the Twitter campaign to a creative giveaway. PR superhero to the rescue!

Not so fast. Hang your cape back up on its hook.

If you find yourself working on a project and the scope seems to grow in medias res, take the time to solidify the details of your compensation before you continue doing your work. It can be nearly impossible to do for those of us who tend to get inspired and want to just do the good work. But a big part of our jobs as communications professionals, frankly, is communicating these evolving scopes with our clients.  Educating the client on how long things take, what steps are involved and how much things cost is all a part of that communications challenge.

Should you find yourself ready to rush to save the day, keep these things in mind first:

Don’t Squeeze: The same way you wouldn’t try to squeeze size 8 thighs into size 2 jeans, don’t try to fit a 2-Year campaign Into a 6-Month Contract. When you do, you’re setting yourself up for failure. If your client has limited time and goals that would normally exceed the time frame, let them know that in the future they should plan ahead so that everyone has the time to do a great job. And then let them know what in your professional opinion can be successfully achieved in the time they have left. Read the full story

Name: Colleen Moffitt
Age: 39
Current City: Seattle
Job Title: Founding Partner & Author

Company Name: Communiqué Public Relations
Book Title: “Strategic Public Relations: 10 Principles to Harness the Power of PR”
Length of Time in this Role: Five years since founding Communiqué
On the Web
Facebook
Blog
Twitter: @SeattleCM

Mopwater: Describe your path to PR. How did you wind up in this field? (Be sure to mention your course of study in college).
CM: My path to PR was not direct or necessarily a traditional one. I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Puget Sound with a minor in Business Administration. While in college I also earned a certificate of study from Centre Universitaire d’Etudes Francaises (CUEF) of the University of Grenoble III.

After graduation I worked in the public sector for a few years before being hired at Microsoft as a recruiter. There I was responsible for finding and attracting some of the nation’s top technical talent to the company. I developed strategic recruiting plans for Microsoft’s consumer and hardware divisions and helped attract key talent from Moscow as part of an acquisition.

I joined RealNetworks (Progressive Networks at the time) in early 1997 to drive technical recruiting for the company. Ready for a new challenge, I moved into a program manager position in 1999 where I managed product-review programs, key customer relationships and product development. During my seven year tenure at RealNetworks I had an opportunity to work on it server solutions as well as its Windows and Mac based consumer products.

The experience I gained in these roles – influencing, negotiating, interviewing with various audiences including technology editors, product reviewers, customers, partners and executives – led me to public relations, to found Communiqué PR and to author “Strategic Public Relations: 10 Principles to Harness the Power of PR” Read the full story

I had lunch with a PR colleague last week and we did what we PR folks always do: talked shop, dished about our clients and ultimately built each other up. I have these sort of sessions often with my brothers and sisters in the public relations and marketing world, but for independent practitioners especially, I find it’s almost a required activity.

While lunching with my colleague, she said the most insightful thing.  One of the reasons our professional lives are filled with so much anxiety, aside from the fact that our jobs are built on countless uncertainties–the impossible to guarantee media coverage, the unforseen bad weather on the day of an outdoor event–is because we’re always trying to silence that annoying little voice in the back of our heads that says we’re only as good as our last project.

You know the drill. You do a great event, then another and another. But inevitably, you’re working on a project that was the victim of the organization’s poor planning, unrealistic expectations, or both.  The budget runs short and time runs out. You have to jerry-rig your way through, and you do, but you’re left with that unsavory taste in your mouth because as a PR professional, you take the good with the bad. You take full responsibility for the slightest mishap; and you’re understandably unnerved when the small  details don’t quite come together.

But you are not your last project, or even your next. Your career will not be judged on a tiny mistake, nor will it ultimately be gauged by a singular success. And since the big picture is so hard to see from the eye of the storm, here are a few ways to calm your nerves and boost your confidence when you’re in the middle of a public relations or marketing maelstrom.

Review the Home Runs: Every now and then, it does the ego good to glance back over your portfolio and take a gander at those projects that exceeded you and the client’s expectations.  Own that success and give yourself a pat on the back. Read the full story

Rebekah Lovell of Renown Promotions in Atlanta

Rebekah Lovell, 24 Woodstock, GA (Atlanta)

PR Strategist to Small Business

Owner of Renown Promotions,  going on 2 years

Renown Blog

Twitter: @Renown

Mopwater: Describe your path to PR. What made you want to get into the field?
RL: Back in high school I was elected to the Public Relations seat on our Student Council and something clicked. Since then, I’ve always gravitated towards managing people, business, and events and loved the idea of creating value for businesses and organizations by doing so. I started in college as a Dance Pedagogy major, then Journalism, and then quickly changed to PR upon learning what it was really all about. I was the nerd who sat on the front row and actually read the textbooks and started a blog upon my professor’s suggestion. After a stellar experience at my internship, I took a job in Marketing with a top Atlanta Real Estate Firm. I couldn’t wait to strike out on my own once I saw the depth of small businesses in our area needing counsel and direction. I like to be behind the scenes, and position people and causes for success. It seems PR is a natural extension of my personality and gifts and I’m very passionate about what I do. I enjoy the fast-paced climate of PR and always learning what’s next.

Mopwater: What aspects of the industry are you most excited about?

RL: Strategy and Campaigns, Writing, Social Media, Causes and Events. I like to help businesses get from A to B, and help them look back at how far they’ve come.

Mopwater: Describe your office and workplace. How many co-workers do you have? Where, how, and how often do you collaborate with them?
RL: I work from my home office and communicate with the world outside non-stop via phone, email, and social media. I work hand-in-hand with a couple of other PR companies and freelancers to accomplish everything on my plate.

Mopwater: Describe a typical workday including your work hours. What do you do all day?
RL: My days are always different-but that’s half the fun! I start early and end late, and even work weekends most of the time to catch up. I may have a few office days a week, but I travel a lot to meet clients, attend events, and network.

Mopwater: What are your favorite and least favorite PR tasks? Do you love to pitch? Do you dread writing releases?
RL: Reverse of your example answers-I love to write and don’t enjoy pitching! I have a knack for the written word and really enjoy getting a client’s message across so that a certain media’s listeners, viewers, or readers can relate to and identify with the idea or story behind the feature. Read the full story

Name: Claudio E. Cabrera, 25

Current City: New York City (Manhattan)

Looking For: A Sports PR Position, Freelance PR / PR Internship Leads, Journalism Opportunities

Our Notes: He’s fashionable, award-winning and game-changing. He won the Independent Press Association 2006 Award for Best Article on a Social, Racial, or Immigration issue. The article, Punishing Phone Call Tax for Prisoners’ Families forced the New York Congress to confront the issue.

Skills: Writing, Editing, Public Relations

On the Web: Live Above Mediocrity

Mopwater: Where do you see yourself fitting into this industry?

CC: Well, I can’t say that I dreamed or even still dream of becoming a publicist; it’s just something that I have experience doing and actually like. But, I don’t like the agency side of it [because] I don’t like being hovered over. I feel I’m at my best when I’m able to sit down and speak with a client one-on-one and develop a plan of attack to garner him/her press. Not to say I wouldn’t take a position with a firm, but I prefer freelancing.

Mopwater: Describe your work history, including relevant internships, up to this point.

CC: While I was in college, I was a paid intern for over two years for the NY Amsterdam News, one of the oldest black newspapers in the country. I was brought on by the owner, Elinor Tatum, and former Editor in Chief Jamal Watson. I covered news in the Harlem community and garnered close to 100 clips at the weekly publication.

I also interned for TravelwithVal.Com, a website that focused on travel deals and destinations. It was a great experience because it exposed me to  a field of writing I was never familiar with. I’ve also interned for the Columbia Records A&R and Universal Music Enterprises Catalog Department.  I was also a writer for DefJam.com profiling artists and generating news pieces.

After graduating [from Brooklyn College] in the summer of 2008, I was worried that I wasn’t going to be able to find a job considering the direction the economy was headed in. But I contacted a company called yoonew, whose focus is in sports tickets; and considering that I have experience doing ticket re-selling and journalism, I was brought on as their PR Manager. Read the full story

Melissa Cassera,29

Marlton, NJ

Cassera Communications

Owner : 3 years

Mopwater: Describe your path to PR. What made you want to get into the field?

MC: I grew up in the entertainment industry working as a model/actress, but always loved to write and am an avid storyteller. I graduated from Rowan University in 2002 with a BA in Communications and began my career in corporate PR. I didn’t enjoy working in a corporate environment so I switched into sales before ultimately deciding to go back into PR…this time on my own terms. I started my own firm when I was 26 years old working with small business owners, professional speakers, authors and industry experts.

Mopwater: What do you love most about doing PR?

MC: I love landing big placements for small business owners – there’s something exciting about getting in on the ground floor and watching a business grow with your efforts. I also love seeing direct ROI from placements and helping clients leverage placements into sales or into ongoing coverage (like regular columns or correspondent opportunities).

Mopwater: Describe your office and workplace. How many co-workers do you have? Where, how, and how often do you collaborate with them?

MC: I have a home office and do not have employees. Instead I collaborate with other industry experts in marketing, copywriting, advertising, social media, etc and outsource work to them when necessary. We collaborate by phone, email and Skype.

Mopwater:Describe a typical workday including your work hours. What do you do all day?

MC: I usually start work around 7:30am. Every day I start with a plan and just check off tasks as I go. The hours between 9-5pm are spent pitching clients (new pitches, follow ups, coordinating interviews). I also use Profnet and HARO as a leads source and respond to those queries throughout the day. The evening I reserve for writing, social networking and any housekeeping that needs to be done for my business.

Mopwater: What are your favorite and least favorite PR tasks? Do you love to pitch? Do you dread writing releases?

MC: My favorite task is pitching. I love crafting pitches tailored to each individual outlet and really envisioning how my client will fit in their program/publication. My least favorite is writing press releases, because I rarely use them. 95% of my media placements are from a well-crafted pitch. Read the full story

Name: Amy Kauffman, 23, on the right

(with BBPR partner Kristen Kouk, left)

Current City: Dallas, Texas

Company: BlueBird Public Relations
Founder, Partner
Est. Oct. 2008

Mopwater: Describe your path to PR. What made you want to get into the field?

AK: While I didn’t “fall into the PR field” so to speak, I did take an interesting route. Sometimes you have to figure out what you DON’T want to do before you find what you DO find value in pursuing.

I was originally a Nutrition major when I went to The University of Texas at Austin and I quickly realized (after a brutal organic chem class) that being a dietitian was not the career path I wanted to take. If I didn’t enjoy learning and executing the material then, I knew that there was no way it would help me lead a fulfilling life down the road. So when I took some time and thought about my true passions I realized my whole life I have always loved writing and communications; always enjoyed literature, was the PR Class Officer for our high school, spent time writing for a newspaper and also sold their ad space. After taking time to reflect on this, I decided to apply to the Communications School. I knew I had no interest in being a journalist, but decided that Public Relations was the way to go. I am so blessed that I made the decision and was true to myself even though there was a possibility of not getting into the school, graduating late and an unspoken pressure to not change majors.

Mopwater: What were you doing prior to launching your business?

AK: I spent time in Austin as the Director of PR for Texas Campus Compact, a state-wide education nonprofit and my last position was leading the communications at a start up advertising/media agency in Dallas.

Mopwater: What kind of clients does your company serve and what services do you provide?

AK: Right now we are serving small to medium sized organizations from very diverse industries; entertainment and retail to industry machining and nonprofits.  We help build our clients’ brand and image assisting with internal and external communication; help build awareness through traditional and non traditional media and form partnerships with sponsors for events and charitable causes. Read the full story

Robin Caldwell

Cleveland OH

The J Standard Media Group, LLC

Principal, 5+ years

Web: The J Standard

Blog: The Black PaPR Report

Mopwater: Describe your path to PR. What made you want to get into the field?

RC: My motto is ‘I was born to do this…’ and that’s because if I go back to my childhood I can see the evidence. For example, I was always ‘reporting’ something and my grandmother, Irene, would always say, “If you don’t want it repeated, do not say it around that one.” I can see the evolution of the little loud girl who became the little loud woman who has this ability to connect people and influence decisions. Plus, I was bossy and if that’s not a trait of most PR practitioners and publicists, I don’t know what is. On a practical note, I began college as a broadcast major with the goal of becoming an anchor, but a major melt down (stage fright) while taping audition reels led me to change my major.

Mopwater: What aspects of the industry are you most excited about?

RC: There are two aspects that I find not only exciting but delightful. The first would be the Barack Obama presidency, which I believe from a practitioner’s perspective will ultimately become the Obama Era. As a former college instructor who taught mass-mediated images of African Americans, nothing delights me more than to see a shift in our image on the world media stage. The leader of the free world looks like me and has a background that is not only similar but relatable. It gives me hope that my niche will become commonplace and more of us with great African American or underrepresented minority clients will be able to translate their value to a broader market in mainstream media. The second thing that excites me most is the inclusion of social media and Internet strategies as a part of our campaigns as practitioners. News can be relayed more quickly and efficiently than ever before. Moreover, I love the social media news release because it gets to the heart of your story and offers another way to tell it. Read the full story

I have a love/hate relationship with Thursday. On the one hand, I hate Thursday because it means the week is almost over and since I’m a workaholic, I only have two more days to squeeze in everything I wanted to get done before the official business week ends.

On the other hand, Thursday is Test Drive My Job Day on Mopwater PR + Media Notes. I get to take your jobs out for a spin to see how they fit.  I love this!

Today, I’m featuring two TDMJs  because, well, I just want to. First up: Matthew Fenton, Founder and President of Three Deuce Branding.

Matthew Fenton
38 years old
Founder and President: Three Deuce Branding

Cincinnati, Ohio

Web: Three Deuce Branding
Blog: That Branding Thing
1 employee (me)
12 years in this role

Mopwater: Describe your path to PR and marketing. What aspects of the industry are you currently most excited about?

MF: I entered the University of Cincinnati as a quantitative analysis major.  While the problem-solving aspect was fascinating, I didn’t want to grow up to be an actuary.  I was very interested in psychology, motivation and human behavior, so marketing was a natural choice.

Through UC’s strong co-op program, I was able to spend a full year in market research, in both supplier and client jobs, prior to graduation.  That background allowed me to get into brand management, my ultimate goal, immediately upon graduation.

I joined Van Melle USA (now Perfetti Van Melle) in 1992, when the company had just two brands – Mentos and AirHeads.  The Mentos “Freshmaker” campaign had just launched and the buzz was beginning.  I managed marketing for AirHeads for 5 years, during which time we took the brand from partial to full US distribution, tripled total sales, and earned the top sales spot in the non-chocolate category.  In addition, it was a great environment in which to learn truly consumer-centric branding, which was not widely practiced at the time.

In 1997, I made the decision to found my branding consultancy.  The mission of Three Deuce Branding is the same now as it was then: “To help good people build great brands.”  Every day is a new opportunity to make branding clear and actionable for those who practice it.

What I like best about branding is that, when properly practiced, it makes the world a better place.  You simply can’t build a long-term consumer relationship without serving.  Lately, I’m most excited about the ability of consumers to connect and to have their voices heard; brands have always belonged to consumers, but now that fact is becoming impossible to ignore.  I’m also excited about the opportunities for brands to live their stories and values in a manner that involves consumers and employees alike.

Mopwater: Describe a typical work day including your typical work hours.

MF: No such thing as a typical work day!  A given day might find me doing public speaking, leading an inventing session, building a positioning statement or strategic plan, interviewing clients and their customers, writing my column and blog, reading relevant books and newsletters, and staying in touch with the talented people with whom I’m fortunate to work.

I tend to work unusual hours – I may work as early as 6 a.m. or as late as 3 a.m.  I usually break up the work day with non-work activities, as I find I’m more productive and creative that way. Read the full story