If you work in PR and have any interest in social media, you’re likely a fan of Sarah Evans. You have probably participated in the wildly popular Twitter chat she started, #Journchat, an ongoing conversation between journalists, bloggers and PR people. Hopefully you get her daily email Commentz. You may have even hired her company Sevans Strategy for a social media campaign.

As Mopwater readers, you know that I am  fond of profiling PR professionals; the journalist in me enjoys deconstructing each individual path to success and sharing it with you. This interview is no different. I had the pleasure of meeting Sarah in October during the PRSA International Conference. Here is the Mopwater interview.

Are you passionate about your PR projects? The more passion we have for the subject of our client work, the more engaged we will be in the work, the more excited we will be to do the work, and the more energy and time we’ll put into it. And when I’m passionate about my clients and projects, often I find that I’m able to be much more creative.

But something I’ve heard people struggle with is how to systematically go after clients that match our passions so that we always have work that we love. Here is my system for doing just that.

First identify your passions. Leave the PR out of the equation and figure out what you are passionate about in life. I happen to be quite passionate about coffee, Romare Bearden, John Coltrane and women’s empowerment among other things.

Identify Your Specialty Skills If you’re starting out in PR it will be easier to get clients if you can tell them exactly what you offer. When thinking of your specialty skills should ask yourself if you love event planning, crisis communications, speechwriting, helping organizations develop their social media, etc.

Identify a couple of industries you want to mine for your clients. You may find that you love to plan events for restaurants and hotels, so your industry might be hospitality and tourism. Love writing speeches for politicians? Politics and government may be your focus.

Put it all together. Make a statement that begins with “I am…” For example: I am a political speechwriter for politicians that focus on education reform. Or: I am an event planner for boutique restaurants attached to hotels in the New York City Area.

Need more help figuring out your specialty? I created a 56-page workbook to help you. Discover and Win helps you put it all together in a chart form. It’ll help you define 1.) who and where your clients are 2.) what your specific skills are 3.) what you are most passionate about and 4.) how to find clients that match your skills and passions.

Remember: Define. Refine. Position.
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So I broke down and hired a stylist.

And I’ll admit, I feel kind of fabulous saying that. And even more fabulous having photos like these of my own clothes:

I should back up a bit. And explain why I felt the need (and could justify the expense) of hiring someone to essentially pick out my clothes.

I used to feel so put together back when I was what I considered my perfect size, weight, and when I was doing exactly what I wanted to do with my life. I was about 22-years-old and I felt I had figured everything out. I had done pretty well with college, become this rock star English major who consistently wowed her professors with thoughtful papers on Post-Colonialism, the concept of “the Other” and the Negritude movement. I was, in my opinion (with all of the perspective a 22-year-old can muster) at the height of my writing and focused on pushing the envelope in both literature, cultural criticism and journalism. I was confident and sassy with an artsy twist.  But at the same time, I was about my business.

I was this girl:

Then…something changed. As quickly as I found Amanda, I began to lose her. I struggled to eek out a career path that included my interests in creative writing, content production and business. I started out doing public relations work with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, then I worked for a while at a lobbying firm, and got to travel abroad and do some important networking and learn the ins and outs of consulting with government agencies and  foreign countries. But soon that didn’t allow me to flex my creative muscles often enough. So I started freelance PR writing on the side. And then when this story was published in the Sunday Washington Post, I got the journalism bug. I began putting myself out there and  building my portfolio of clips. After a while, I landed a journalism fellowship to Northwestern University’s Medill School that opened the door to a coveted staff writer position at the Washington City Paper.

During all of this change, my style was in limbo, but it didn’t really matter. Because no one was really looking at me, or so I thought. I was simply the writer; the vessel charged at getting the story out into the world.

Fast forward a few years. I’m on maternity leave, and my editor is calling me to let me know that my paper is making further cuts so I have a decision to make: I can give up my job or stick around and take someone else’s spot. I pass on filling the space since I was contemplating getting back to my PR.

By this time I was a mom, and totally without a sense of style. Marriage, another baby, a blog, and a company later puts me here before you, the same soulful writer who is not  (as I waxed poetically back in 1999)

in my milieu

I want

to pack a lunch

and head for the high grass.

I want to slide my Doc Marten’s on

then kick them off

to wait for me outside

the enchantment of a grass-covering blanket.

But I can’t do that now. Doc Martens? Yeah right!

This stylist is amazing. She told me candidly: “Amanda, you have to represent your company, now.” Recently we were preparing some looks for my upcoming trip to San Diego for the NABJ Conference.  I’m speaking on a panel about Turning Your Passion Into a PR Career, and I never know what to wear to these things.

We picked out a few different things to wear and Robin, (the stylist), helped me pair everything together with accessories and the right shoes. When she pointed to pair of wide leg black pants and said “You can wear these on the plane, with a nice cardigan…” I laughed.

“I can just wear my yoga pants,” I said.

“Amanda,” she said sternly. “You’re going on a business trip to make a presentation. Who do you think you’re going to see on the plane? Your audience. You can’t look great at the event, and look a mess on the plane.”

That’s what she said. But you know what I heard?

Keep your branding consistent.

Is your branding consistent? You may have the most amazing logo, the most clean copy writing and beautiful brochures. But what about you? Is your personal presentation pulling the package all together? Or are you failing your brand, causing the house you’ve so carefully built to fall apart once people meet you in person?

Ouch.

So now, I try to be cognizant whenever I leave the house because while I may have the heart of the poet, I have to have the sheen of your publicist.

I’m interested to know how you are navigating this terrain. Is your branding consistent? How much time/effort do you put into your outward appearance and how important do you think it is? Have you had to do a rebrand?

Want more heartfelt observations from the front lines of my PR path? Order my book,  The Mopwater Manual.

The other day I caught up with one of my PR faves Robert Udowitz, a very well-respected, long-time PR soloist who, despite never doing any formal marketing, has kept a steady flow of work for years! If you’re in the DC area, you probably know Robert because everyone knows him. He’s at every PRSA-NCC event, and most major communications events. We’re working together on the International PRSA conference that will be held in DC this fall.

He met me at the newly renovated Northside Social in Arlington (formerly Murky Coffee) and obliged me with a quick interview because I knew it would be helpful and inspiring for those of you who are hoping to break into “the game”. Pull up a seat and take notes as he shares his experience in the public relations industry.

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Mopwater PR + Media Notes is proud to be a media sponsor and official blogger for the 2010 Vocus Users Conference in Washington, DC on June 10-11. I’ll be bringing you my take on the sessions and live tweeting under the #vocus hashtag. You can follow me on Twitter at @amandamogul.

If you’re not familiar with the Vocus conference, it’s a pretty big deal and boasts some of the biggest names in the PR 2.0/social media game namely, the man who coined the term and wrote the book (literally) on PR 2.0 Brian Solis and the lady wrote the book that made me fall in love with this facet of online communication, and wrote the foreword to my book-Deirdre Breakenridge. David Meerman Scott is also giving a keynote. Both will be playing big roles in the conference as they did last year.

A couple of the sessions I’ll be attending, covering, tweeting and blogging:

The New Age of Blogging and Twittering (a keynote address by Washington Post media columnist Howard Kurtz); From PR’s Past to Social Media Power; PR’s Role in the Integrated Marketing Process; and Integrated Marketing Communications: Engaging Audiences Online.

Sound tempting? If you haven’t registered for the conference, there is still time.

Name and News Organization: Kate Michael, KStreetKate.net and The District Dish
Beat: DC topics (People, places, events, charities, businesses)
Job Title: New Media Personality
Length of Time in this Role: 3 years
Web Site and/or Blog: K Street Kate/ The District Dish
Twitter Handle: @kstreetkate

Mopwater: What kind of stories/people/companies are you most interested in covering, and in what context?  KM: Both the online magazine and talk show feature the best of DC, lifestyle stories that highlight the real District of Columbia and its eclectic neighborhoods.

Mopwater: What’s the best pitch you’ve gotten recently and why?  KM: A unique and interesting business (trapeze school) moved into the area and featured lessons with the instructor who taught “Carrie” on the trapeze episode of Sex and the City.  We booked him immediately to tell people about the trapeze school on The District Dish!

Mopwater: What’s the worst pitch you’ve gotten recently and why? KM: The sister of a local woman asked me to do a feature on her because she was “so nice” and “people should know about her”… I’m not sure why.

Mopwater: What’s the easiest way to get ignored by you when pitching?  KM: Forget to take out the name of the other publication you were pitching when you were cutting and pasting your pitch.

Mopwater: What’s your preferred method of contact? Phone, email, your web site, your twitter account, your Facebook? KM: Email and twitter, equally.  My actual e-mail is listed on my facebook page, so why use a facebook message?? Read the full story

The Dos and Don’ts of Working with Freelancers

Happy Hump Day. As promised, I spoke to Sarah Caron, a “real live” freelance writer to get some thoughts on how best to work with freelancers. Sarah divvies up her writing time between Parenting/Children, Cooking/Food and Technology.  You can check out her blog for more of her insights.

But after chatting (typing) with Sarah, I noticed that there’s a pretty common thread coming from reporters, whether they are freelance writers or staff reporters. Always remember that writers are people. Always respect the writer’s time. Never practice spam-pitching (pitching off topic, sending releases blindly). Media relations are all about the relations! So develop relationships with your media contacts, this includes freelance writers.

Sarah Caron’s  Dos and Don’ts

Do Take Time to Read the Writer’s Former Work

As with any writing professional, PR people really need to take the time to understand a writer’s role at publications and who they are writing for. This can easily be done with a little research or even just asking the writer.

Don’t Pitch Off Topic

Freelancers can be an excellent resource for PR professionals, especially if they write for multiple publications online and in print. However, it’s important that the PR pros take note about what the freelancer writes about and only sends along pitches that really fit their topics of interest. Trying to twist a subject to fit the writer’s interest seldom works if it’s not a natural fit. One important thing to realize though is that there are different types of freelancing: there is contract work, where you write on a regular schedule for a publication. There is also one-off work, which is most often garnered through pitching. And pitches take time. Read the full story

Freelance writers are really a publicist’s secret weapon.  Building relationships with freelancers can be a great way for PR pros to get coverage for their clients, because freelancers often write for multiple publications. And if a particular publication folds, a freelancer will often have relationships with editors at other outlets that publish similar content. The main downside to working with freelancers is  they are often much harder to reach than staff writers or editors, because they don’t have a permanent home at any given publication. But hard to find or not, freelancers present an awesome opportunity for publicists.

Why They’re Great

Freelance writers are generally passionate about the subjects they cover. They have to be since they are usually working outside the comfort and security of a staff reporter position.  Freelancers, generally speaking, are self-motivated go-getters who hustle their content to editors until they get someone to buy.

They’re a great resource because they’re often hungry for content. Since freelance writers aren’t on staff, the more they write, the more money they make. Simple as that.

Freelancers can write for more than one publication.  A business writer could easily freelance for Forbes, Entrepreneur Magazine, and their local Business Journal.  Many often do.  This bodes well for publicists and people looking to get coverage because you can go “multi-outlet” shopping when working with a freelancer.  The down side is that you could work with a freelancer on a story for months only to have them pitch it without success. But that’s the gamble. Read the full story

Marketplace. Morning Edition. All Things Considered. Fresh Air. News and Notes. The segments that make up the programming for what we fondly know as National Public Radio-NPR for short.

NPR is headquartered in Washington, DC (near my Shaw/Convention Center neighborhood, no less) and describes itself as an “internationally acclaimed producer and distributor of noncommercial news, talk, and entertainment programming.”  But  how does one get covered on the ubiquitous news radio network ?  While the news organization’s Web site has what appears to be some pretty helpful advice about getting your story on, NPR has hundreds of local affiliates, so it’s a little more daunting than the Web site makes it appear.

Jamila Bey to the rescue!  Jamila is a full-time freelance journalist and frequently works as an editor and producer for NPR- her former full-time employer before she went freelance. She also co-owns Tactical Productions Company and does sound and video production for music and fitness organizations. Here’s how to pitch Jamila for NPR.

Mopwater: What types of stories do you write and produce?

JB: I write stories that focus on either fitness, African-American and women’s issues, free thought and separation of church/state issues, and within the last year- parenting stories.  My background, however, is that of a political reporter, but I haven’t been in the daily government grind since the election of 2000!

A recent story I pitched and produced, but I didn’t report, was for NPR’s show, Tell Me More with Michel Martin.  There was a hilarious commentary in TheRoot.com about the absurdity the author felt about celebrating Kwanzaa.  We brought her in for an interview about the “True meaning” of the holiday and a consideration about what it means today.  I LOVE stories with a twist of some sort.

Mopwater: What kind of stories are you most interested in covering, and in what context?

I like covering fitness and protest stories best.  I love the fact that they both lend themselves to the obvious before and after.  However, one story I produced for NPR really stuck with me.  Zimbabwe in turmoil was the title, and I found a journalist there on the ground to talk about the nation  that was once known as “Africa’s breadbasket” is now facing famine and political breakdown. When I work as a radio producer, I will often call and do a lot of reporting of a story and then hand over my notes and questions to the on-air host.  In this case, Michel Martin.  I enjoyed this story because it allowed us to get a very good sense of what was happening in Zimbabwe and a good historical perspective as well. You can listen to the story here. Read the full story

Peter Shankman’s service Help a Reporter Out (HARO) has revolutionized the way publicists and PR practitioners find and respond to reporters’ queries. Based on the premise that “everyone’s an expert at something,” the thrice-daily free email service delivers dozens of queries to a subscriber’s inbox every day. All you have to do is sign up, check your email, and scroll.

But such services have also given any and everyone with an email address access to media contacts. As an advocate of free services, I believe the democratization of media relations is great. But as a former reporter, I know that in the wrong hands, such power can be potentially hazardous.

Dealing with the media requires a certain brand of etiquette, and that may escape an artist or small business doing its own PR.  And that’s completely understandable. That’s why there are professionals that do this sort of thing.

I recently caught up with Jennifer Thomas, a Florida-based travel columnist and editor of an online travel magazine.  She regularly posts queries on HARO.  Should you ever find yourself responding to a posted query, here are 6 tips from Jennifer on how to respond:

1.PITCH ON TOPIC. I know this sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised how often I receive pitches that have zero to do with my query.

2. ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS POSED IN THE QUERY. Please do not say “I have an expert for you, click here,” or “I wrote about this, visit my blog at X”. I want to hear what you have to say about the query and how you think you or your expert fits in. Do not make me work for it. There are too many people responding to posted queries, so those who actually take time to provide relevant information will likely receive follow up questions or be included in the article.

3.MEET THE DEADLINE. If a deadline is included in the query, please, please, please, respond in a timely fashion.  Just today, I am still receiving pitches responding to a specific query from 6 days ago. The article has already been written. If by chance you or your client fit perfectly into a story, then start off by saying “I know your posted deadline has passed, but I have a great source for you. I’ve included specific content below in case you might still be working on the article. If not, I appreciate you considering this client for any future article opportunities.”

4. PROVIDE THE WEB SITE FOR MORE INFORMATION. You’d be surprised how many pitches I receive, particularly for consumer products, that do not include the Web site. I then have to ask for the Web site, which could be a huge delay if the client contact is not immediately available, or I do a search on my own for the appropriate Web site and it may or may not be the right one the client/source wants me to include.

5. USE CONTACT INFO WISELY. I don’t mind being added to press lists for additional press releases or unsolicited pitches personally. Often this received proactive content might spark a story idea for me. So, bring it on. As a general rule though, only pitch me 2x a month per client unless you have a brand like Oprah.

6. KEEP FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS TO A MINIMUM. If I’m working with you/your client on a story and it is evident that I am including your information, please keep follow up to a minimum. I personally do alert my sources when an article has posted, but that’s not needed…it’s just polite on my behalf. That’s what Google alerts and the pr firm’s searching is for. I ignore the continuous “do you know when it’ll be posted” or “what is your circulation” type questions. Reduce the back and forth please…I am on deadline!!