Meet Our Summer Interns: Brittany Kirvan

Posted on 11. Aug, 2011 by

This summer we have seven new additions to our PMG family! Our interns are special to us, that’s why we want to feature them in our blog. Each week we will add a profile of an intern so you can get a sense of who they are and what they are doing here at PMG. Feel free to ask them questions and leave feedback. These interns are ready and excited to share what they have learned so far!

Editors note: This is the last profile in our series of intern profiles.

 

PMGer: Brittany Kirvan

On Twitter: @brittanykirv

Position at PMG: Intern with PMG associate Elizabeth Hagwood 

Background?  I graduated from Champlain College in May with a B.S. in Mass Communications.  Shortly before graduation I decided that I was going to continue to live in Burlington; it is beautiful up here and Vermont is such a unique place.

I am a huge foodie—and so is Vermont.  One of my goals is to own a restaurant and a bakery.  I have so many ideas surrounding my dream: menus, décor, names, events, mental images, etc.  This venture is far down the road but I have not given up.

Why are you doing this internship? As a recent graduate I need to continue to expand my experiences outside of the classroom.  Studying communications gives you a broad understanding of all of the fields within communications itself.  But that’s just it: a broad understanding.  The best way to learn what any career is like is to dive in headfirst.  That is how I ended up at PMG—I wanted to learn more about public relations and what it is actually like to work in it.

What do you expect to gain from this internship? I have been experiencing what it really means to work in public relations.  There is so much you can learn about from a textbook but it is a whole different story when applying the techniques you read about to real life situations.

What have you learned so far? Oh, the Things I Have Learned:

  • How to create killer media lists
  • Writing pitches that are short, sweet, and attention grabbing
  • Follow-ups are just as (and usually more) important than the initial pitch
  • And much more of course…

Interning at PMG has also taught me that not every “nine-to-five” job is so conventional.  I used to imagine that working a job, Monday to Friday, at the same time every day would drive me insane.  This has proven to be a complete misconception.  Everyone at PMG seems to really enjoy the work they are doing, and, while they are very serious about what they do, they have a lot of fun doing it.

What’s it like working with your mentor? Working with Elizabeth is great!  Among many other things, she has given me some very great tips on how to improve pitches and follow ups to be more eye-catching.  Luckily Elizabeth is a foodie, too; often we are exchanging recipe ideas and helpful tips for the kitchen.

Do you have any tips for future interns on PR, writing press releases, pitches, etc.? Pitches need to be short, sweet, and catchy, but they need to answer the essential questions before they are asked (think who, what, where, when, why!). Also, reread your pitches over and over before sending them out—don’t be afraid to read them out loud to make sure you’re not missing anything.

Don’t be discouraged if you do not get immediate responses from your pitches—you are going to need to send out a round (or four) of follow-ups.  Depending on the timeliness of your pitch you may need to do multiple follow-ups over a few weeks or even over a few months to stay on top of the radar.

Don’t forget to have fun but take your internship seriously!

Meet Our Summer Interns: Thomas Renner

Posted on 11. Aug, 2011 by

This summer we have seven new additions to our PMG family! Our interns are special to us, that’s why we want to feature them in our blog. Each week we will add a profile of an intern so you can get a sense of who they are and what they are doing here at PMG. Feel free to ask them questions and leave feedback. These interns are ready and excited to share what they have learned so far!

PMGer: Thomas Renner

On Twitter: @tarenner

Position at PMG: Intern with PMG associate Kristena Morse

Why are you doing this internship? Half way through my first semester of my freshman year I realized that if I ever was going to conquer the PR world I would need to get some out of school training as soon as possible. Also given the current job market and the fact that you need experience to get any good PR job I thought it would be a perfect time to start building my résumé.

What do you expect to gain from this internship? So far I have already learned so much from my mentor Kristena Morse and from other PMGers. I hope to gain more knowledge about the business, the ins and outs of dealing with clients and the press. I am really hoping that after my time at PMG I will have gained all the experience I am going to need to land an awesome PR job.

What are your views on PMG? I love PMG, I really do, everything that they stand for, the people who work for them, the clients. The atmosphere at PMG is the best I have ever experienced in a place of work. I think the way the firm has decided to specialize in certain areas instead of trying to take on everything has really led to the success of PMG. I love coming into the office to work and actually miss not being there when I am not scheduled! PMG is a great place to intern and work. Being an intern at PMG is just like being a member of the team, and I think that is part of what has made my experience so great, I am actually working on accounts not doing coffee runs!

What’s it like working with your mentor? I love working with my mentor. Kristena has a great personality and always is  very understanding, it also helps that she has some cool clients. I do not believe that my experience at PMG would be the same without my mentor, the direct guidance and information that I receive from her is key to the success that I achieve and my learning path.

Do you have any tips for future interns on PR, writing press releases, pitches, etc.? At first writing a good pitch even a good subject line can be difficult. Even when you think you have written the perfect pitch there still could be something wrong with it. Those are the times when you will end up going back and forth with your mentor to try to fine tune the pitch. Although it may feel like you have not accomplished anything it is all a learning process.

Meet Our Summer Interns: Brittany Southwick

Posted on 10. Aug, 2011 by

This summer we have seven new additions to our PMG family! Our interns are special to us, that’s why we want to feature them in our blog. Each week we will add a profile of an intern so you can get a sense of who they are and what they are doing here at PMG. Feel free to ask them questions and leave feedback. These interns are ready and excited to share what they have learned so far!

PMGer: Brittany Southwick

On Twitter: @brittsouth

Position at PMG: Intern with PMG associate Tom Kupfer

Background? My name is Brittany.  I am a Public Relations Major with one semester left at Champlain College.

Why are you doing this internship? After completing three years of my education with Champlain College I was anxious to put my knowledge to the test. I enjoy a professional work environment and felt that I was ready to step into the industry. I want to build my resume and strengthen my portfolio. A textbook can only take you so far; working in the field is a great opportunity.

What do you expect to gain from this internship? I have expected to strengthen my writing and organizational skills. I also think I am going to get a pretty good idea of what it is like to work for a firm and focus solely on Public Relations, without Marketing or Advertising thrown in the mix.

What are your views on PMG? I was thrilled to have the opportunity to work with PMG. I am proud to represent a company that represents socially responsible businesses.  My one concern for working in the PR field is having to represent clients with view points that are different from my own. PMG makes that dilemma easy by eliminating the challenge and providing a variety of clients that stand for great causes.

What’s it like working with your mentor? I thoroughly enjoy working for Tom because he provides great direction and has a wide array of knowledge to share. He has helped me strengthen my pitching skills and has a great sense of humor to make the experience more enjoyable.

Do you have any tips for future interns on PR, writing press releases, pitches, etc.? My advice would be to just dive in. Take advantage of every opportunity; get to know your co-workers and the people that you work with. Everyone you meet is a potential contact and Public Relations is about establishing and maintaining good relationships.  As far as writing press releases and pitches: edit, edit, edit. Explore your creativity and all of the different ways you can tell a story. My greatest challenge has been to come up with numerous ways to pitch one story. With the help of my mentor, towards the end of my internship I have definitely seen a growth in my ability to push my pitching further creatively.

Meet Our Summer Interns: Hilary Greene

Posted on 29. Jul, 2011 by

This summer we have seven new additions to our PMG family! Our interns are special to us, that’s why we want to feature them in our blog. Each week we will add a profile of an intern so you can get a sense of who they are and what they are doing here at PMG. Feel free to ask them questions and leave feedback. These interns are ready and excited to share what they have learned so far!

PMGer: Hilary Greene

On Twitter: @hilaryfay

Position at PMG: Intern with PMG associate Iza Socha

Background? My name is Hilary Greene and I am entering my last semester at Champlain College to attain a business/marketing degree. I am a transfer student and have spent most of my college years in Colorado and Utah enjoying the outdoors.

Why are you doing this internship? I am thrilled to have the opportunity to do my internship at PMG this summer to gain first-hand experience that will compliment my current marketing program at Champlain College, which I will complete in December of this year!

What do you expect to gain from this internship? This internship has already provided me with a better understanding of the public relations world; I have little PR background since I am a marketing major. In addition, this internship has allowed me to witness the power of using social media tools as marketing and PR techniques and the outstanding benefits that they can provide for many different types of companies.

What are your views on PMG? PMG, People Making Good, is a great company and I could not be happier about doing my internship here. Their name, PMG, tells all…they truly are, good people – making good. (They might as well change their name to G-PMG!) As a Vermonter, I appreciate the work that they contribute to the community and genuine support of their clients that are socially responsible.

What have you learned so far? Thus far, I have learned a lot of new things and have been able to apply my education from Champlain in a professional environment. Some exciting projects that I have been involved with at PMG include;

  • Organizing a Tweet-Up
  • Drafting Twitter messaging
  • Writing editorial calendars
  • Editing video footage
  • Writing a variety of blog posts using WordPress
  • And; researching different brands, markets and trends

What’s it like working with your mentor? My mentor, Iza Socha, is fantastic and is the Social Media Manager at PMG. She is very talented and open to sharing new concepts with me; she knows all the new trends! It is really fun working with her and she guides me in the right direction to complete finished work that both of us are proud of.

Do you have any tips for future interns on PR, writing press releases, pitches, etc.? My advice for any intern would be to be fully appreciative of the opportunity and learn as much as you can! It helps to stay knowledgeable about new trends because these days, it seems like techniques and applications change and improve constantly.

What to Do When Your Hashtag Gets ‘Jacked

Posted on 15. Mar, 2011 by

#WTH?! The Burlington, Vermont Twitter hashtag, known as #BTV, has been usurped. I’d even go as far as saying it has been hijacked. By a television station. Half a world away. In Bahrain.

First it stated slowly, a couple tweets a day. And as the action in Bahrain heated up, well, so did the tweets. It has been interesting to watch, really. And has provided me with an education about what is going on in this small country in the Persian Gulf. Now, I truly do empathize with the people going through civil unrest in Bahrain and the protests surrounding that. In fact, the New York Times says, “It is one of the most politically volatile countries in the Gulf, and one of the most strategically important for the United States, which bases its Fifth Fleet there.”

Here’s the rub: people in Burlington have been using this hashtag for local news, happenings and to communicate with our neighbors online for some time – even before I joined Twitter more than two years ago. It’s our local airport code. Now, with things getting volatile in Bahrain, there are more people using the #BTV hashtag to talk about the unrest and it is really hard to sort through looking for local news important to those in the Vermont community known as #BTV.

I know, what you’re thinking… Nicole: you live in a beautiful lake-side-mountain community where you are not experiencing political protests that could determine your everyday reality.

And to that, I say: You’re right! But, I would still say “hand over” the tag!

Here’s why:
I believe if you chose to use social media tools, you should do so responsibly. Part of that is educating yourself on how to use the tool and the etiquette of engagement. Sure, there will be gaffes from time to time (I have been known for a few), but by and large it all works well. So, how was Bahrain Television to know if the #BTV tag was up for use? Well, they could have done a a couple of things:

  • Check the activity on the tag by looking at it within the stream. If there are frequent posts, it clearly is in use. If not, go for it!
  • Visit WTHashtag and see if it is registered as anything. (I visited this link many, many months ago and actually registered #BTV with the description of the community.)

There are people in Burlington taking to the Twitisphere suggesting that we ditch our use of “#btv” and move over to “#bvt”. I don’t agree with that – and not just because I am stubborn (though I am). I think that eventually, the stream will become less active as that country (hopefully) becomes at peace. To me, giving up use of #btv sounds like The University of Vermont should call Virginia Tech and let them know that they can not use “VT” any longer as their school’s logo or initials, as it is the initials of our state, and therefore should be used for the University of VT. The other factor here is that others are using the tag #Bahrain, it is only the commercial entity – a television station – that started the use of #btv.

Here’s what I am going to do: I plan to still use #btv when I tweet locally. And if I have space, I am going to add #vt to the tweet. Sure, I will check the #bvt tag to see what is happening, but chances are I am just going to build a list of the people that I follow who I know live or work in the BTV area and check that more often. I built a similar list for the Vermonters that I follow.

The other option? For Burlington, Vermont we could use #winning. I don’t think Mr. Sheen would mind. Do you?