Missteps in advertising, marketing and on social media are highly visible. The Dove ad from earlier this month? How about Adidas’ “Congrats, you survived the Boston Marathon” email? Or when Cheerios sent out a nice-enough tweet that many perceived to…
I always tell interns and junior staff that their first media hit is a gateway. We all remember that first time a journalist responded to our pitch. That first time a camera showed up at our event. That first time…
On the first day of journalism class at University of Delaware, one of my favorite professors told us a story that has stuck with me these many years since. He told us that when he was a fresh-faced journalist, he…
It's 3 a.m., and I’m lying here in the dark, staring up at the ceiling. I’m sick and so exhausted that I’m not even sleepy anymore. My toddler, Carmen, half-sleeps across my neck, partially choking me, but I’m too afraid…
I recently returned to Buchanan PR after giving birth to my son Carmen on New Year’s Eve. Upon careful observation over the past four and a half months, I reached the conclusion that working at a public relations agency is a lot like taking care of a baby. Seriously? Yes, and here’s why.
My name is Blair Kahora Cardinal, and I’m about to fly the coop.
In late December, my husband and I are due with our first Baby Bird Cardinal. Not only are we scrambling to assemble the nursery and read every parenting book on the planet, but I’m also hustling in the office to create smooth account transitions for my clients and colleagues. What I’ve found is that there’s no shortage of things to consider when you’re going to be out for three months.
Poor Al Roker—at least he’s taking this all in stride. After oversleeping for the first time in 39 years, Mr. Roker is enduring a friendly thrashing by his colleagues and across Twitter for failing to show up for “Wake Up With Al,” his (very) early morning show on The Weather Channel.
On a whim, I performed in my very first Story Slam about a year ago. The way it works is that, if your name is called at random, you stand up on stage and tell a 5-minute story related to the given theme in front of an audience of 50 to 100 people. I was shaking in my flip flops the first time, but braved my way through the entire thing. And I wasn’t bad.
Over the past year, participating in the slams got me thinking — “This is a lot like what we do in PR.”
Last weekend, I ran the 10-mile Broad Street Run here in Philadelphia. This was the first year that I did not yearn to be trampled by the masses so that I could peacefully succumb to an overwhelming exhaustion. Where I’m typically ready to give up at mile 9, I actually felt ready to tackle mile 10 with vigor. With college graduations in full swing this time of year, the run got me thinking of my nine years post-undergrad and the things I’ve learned that have prepared me for this 10th year of my public relations career, my mile 10.
I like to think of myself as a Rita Hayworth of public relations. I give good face.
No, I’m not lauding what my mama gave me. I’m talking about the care I take to, as often as possible, meet the reporters I regularly work with or those with whom I want to work. But, it’s not about impersonal networking and pitching my clients. It’s possible to accomplish challenging media placement goals via email or over the phone, but isn’t relationship building at the very core of our profession?
