New Professionals March 2010 Newsletter
2010 March Newsletter
In This Issue:
A Message from the Chair
Mentorship Opportunities – What’s on the Horizon
Growing the New Pros Section - Membership Update
The PRSA e-Groups are back!
PRSA New Pros Blog – Check out February’s Posts
Upcoming Events
Industry Articles of Interest
Call for Member Spotlights
-------------
A Message from the Chair
2010 - It's the beginning of the New Professionals' second year as a full-blown Section in PRSA! I mention this not only to mark the occasion but to reflect on the efforts of the 2009 Committee in preparing us for the years ahead.
Because so much goes into getting a Section up and running, I'd like to take a minute to recognize our out-going Chair, Jake Day. Last month, Jake resigned after more than seven months as Chair of the New Pros. Jake forged connections between our Section and PRSA national, as well as hammered out New Pro's first strategic plan. Thanks to him for helping to lay the groundwork for our Section to have a strong future, and good luck to him as he takes on more responsibilities at his job.
So what does this mean for the New Pros Section?
To fill in the gap, I will be advancing to Chair, and Sarah Siewert will become Chair-Elect. Sarah and I joined the New Pros Executive Committee last year, she as the Programming Chair and me as Communications Chair. We worked to provide members with useful and insightful benefits, such as teleseminars and social networks. This year, we look forward to working with our fantastic team of Executive Committee volunteers to grow and improve the New Professionals Section and bring more benefits to you, our members.
Onward to a great year!
Janet Krenn
Chair, New Professionals Section
-------------
Mentorship Opportunities – What’s on the Horizon
Coming this year, New Pros will have new opportunities to be matched with a professional mentor from the College of Fellows. Plans are in the works to provide a connection point for New Pros Section members to be matched with the cream of the crop professionals in their own industry or city. Stay tuned for more mentorship program information in the coming months.
Attention local chapter New Pros leaders - We want to pick your brain! We want to know what your plans are for the coming year, what support you need and the ideas you want to pass along to the national team. Contact me to set up a brief phone call or email interview.
Crystal Olig
Chair, Mentorship, Chapter Outreach and Sponsorships
-------------
Growing the New Pros Section - Membership Update
I am beginning my second year as Director of Membership. So, what did I learn from 2009? Here’s the equation: when you add more members than you lose, your Section grows. Brilliant,eh? Wait, there is more.
People decide whether to join, stay or leave your organization when they find value. “Value” is not always easy to define, but if you listen to your members (the current and prospective ones), its perception becomes clearer. And last year we did a lot of listening. From PRSA membership surveys, online forums, bloggers and comments through our social media sites, we heard what people want from their New Pros experience: programs and events that will enhance their careers, build their skill sets, keep them aware of emerging trends in the profession, enable them to connect with their peers and support each other as they transition from school to work.
We followed that advice and saw steady membership growth in 2009. Then came the Recession, and our losses reflected those across the profession. This last quarter, as the economy began to stabilize, our membership is growing again.
So we will stick with what worked in 2009. I hope you will stick with us.
Mike Greenberg
Director of Membership
-------------
Do you need a recommendation or feedback on an idea? Do you need help researching a topic or just simply have something to share? Post a discussion on the PRSA e-Group. In the past, e-Group were the preferred social network among New Pros members for posting industry discussions and requests for advice because these posts are read and commented on by PR industry peers.
To refresh your memory, with e-Group, users can create and update their shared profile, post discussions, and manage their PRSA national and Section memberships. Users also can subscribe to receive email updates on discussions and comments posted in e-Group. As before, the New Pros e-Group is restricted to current New Pros members.
To access the New Pros e-Group and view the latest discussions from your New Pro peers, click here.
-------------
PRSA New Pros Blog – Check out February’s Posts
- The Changing of the Guard: New Professionals Section Relaunches Blog, by Andi Wilmes and Brian Camen
- 10 Steps for Successful New PR Professional Networking, by Crystal Olig
- Mentorship: What New Pros Have to Offer, by Sommer Caraway
- Intro to Series...Higher Education PR, by Brian Camen
Contribute to the New Pros Newsletter and Blog
Do you have ideas about recent and upcoming events? Do you have career tips? Have you had recently had a PR success you’d like to tell us about? Contact the Communication Co-Chairs, Brian and Andi, to see how your ideas could be highlighted on our New Pros blog and newsletter.
This month, we’re looking for members who are attending the 2010 Media Relations Best Practices Summit – presented by PRSA and Ragan’s PR Daily – in New York, March 2-3. We would love to include a short write-up on the event for the April newsletter, so send Andi any interesting presenter quotes, a short paragraph or seminar review.
-------------
New York, NY – Social Media and New Media PR Master Class – Tune Your Strategic Understanding of Social Media
One-Day Seminar
Friday, March 26, 2010
9 a.m. – 5 p.m. ET
Already know how to monitor news, blogs, Twitter and Wikipedia by keyword via RSS? Know how to embed widgets into blog templates, subscribe to podcasts and upload video clips directly to YouTube? Ready to advance your new media communications skills to the next level? If yes, then the "Social Media and New Media PR Master Class" is for you. For more information or to register, click here.
San Francisco, CA – Pitching Secrets of the Pros – Tips and Tactics for Doubling Your Press Coverage
One-Day Seminar
Friday, March 12, 2010
9 a.m. – 4 p.m. PT
Looking for a boost in your media coverage? Examine dozens of tried-and-true public relations and communications techniques for pitching the media that will help gain increased coverage and increased confidence in your pitch ability. Margo Mateas will show you methods that have been statistically proven to secure substantial national, regional and local coverage. For more information or to register, click here.
Teleseminar – Speed Pitching – Condense Your Pitch Into High-Impact, Instantly-Useable Information That Reporters Crave
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
3 p.m. – 4 p.m. ET
National editors, TV assignment editors and reporters have no time or patience for small talk. They want the facts FAST — in 10 seconds or less. This interactive one-hour teleseminar with Margo Mateas will give you concrete examples of effective phone and email pitching techniques and lead you through an exercise and practice session so you gain real-world experience before trying it with your own public relations and communications campaigns. For more information or to register, click here.
-------------
- Twitter Ad Platform 'Imminent' – Laurie Sullivan, MediaPost
- Are We All Asking to Be Robbed? – Jennifer Van Grove, Mashable
- I Might Have Received Your Press Release But I'm Not Telling You – Diane Schwartz, The PRNews Blog
- Five Reasons Companies Should Not Block Access to Social Networks – B.L. Ochman, Advertising Age
- Study: Social Media Study Examines Usage by Global Companies – Burson-Marsteller
-------------
Would you like to be in a future Member Spotlight? Send an email to Brian and Andi. Please include a headshot and the following information for consideration.
- Type(s) of work performed
- Specializations or areas of interest
- Educational background
- Hobbies
- Community service and extracurricular activities
- Awards/Honors
-------------
We Want to Hear from You!
The newsletter committee welcomes content for its newsletters and monthly e-blasts. Consider submitting information about recent and upcoming events, career tips, feature spotlights (Chapter, member and mentor) and any other ideas. Send your questions and/or recommendations to the PRSA New Professionals Communications Co-Chairs, Brian Camen and Andi Wilmes.
Please note: All submissions and articles are written by and for members of the PRSA New Professionals Section.
