PR Nerds Don't Leave Home Without These Apps

by Katelyn Powers, Vollmer Public Relations New York City

The following re-enactment is based off of real events:

Situation: A PR rep is writing a press release about the grand opening of a museum, suddenly develops writer’s block and can’t think of another word for “tourist”.

Solution: PR rep highlights the word tourist, right clicks the mouse and finds the angelic “synonym” option glowing on the drop down menu. Magically, the words traveler, sightseer, visitor, holidaymaker, vacationer, day-tripper magically appear. Glorious!|

Outcome: PR rep finishes writing without having to use the word traveler more than once throughout the entire release and has one happy client!

Sound somewhat familiar? C’mon, we’ve all right clicked one too many times and can mostly agree that it’s been ages since we’ve even set eyes on an SAT vocabulary book. In PR, we’re always looking for the perfect words to keep everyone’s attention, making sure information is being distributed in the best way possible for our clients and their customers. Here’s a couple apps that PR folks can take advantage of when in need of writing assistance:

Flash of Genius App - http://www.flash-of-genius.com/iphone.php

Test your vocabulary skills by using this SAT prep app. Flash of Genius makes special lesson cards tailored to the individual, to help them see the connections.

AP Stylebook App - http://www.apstylebook.com/?do=product&pid=iphone

Search the downloadable listings for the main, sports, business and punctuation sections. This app also gives the ability to add custom entries as well as notes on AP listings.

No one is going to judge the over usage of the synonym short cut – it’s just all too convenient. But if not for press releases and writing in general, these apps can certainly help towards completing that darn newspaper’s crossword puzzle that gets indecently difficult by the end of the week. Happy downloading!

Embracing Change: From Client to Vollmervillian

by Ariana Montelongo, Vollmer Public Relations Houston Senior Account Executive

"Change is as inexorable as time, yet nothing meets with more resistance." Benjamin Disraeli

If one thing has been constant in my life, it’s change. I can always count on it to strike and it never fails to surprise me. As much as I can count on change to happen I can count on it to teach me a lesson.  I’ve come to understand that change, with all its unpredictability and certainty, is like the crazy uncle you avoid like the plague at family gatherings. But when you face him and you’ve been around him for a while you realize he’s not that bad and that he means well, so you learn to embrace him.

***Listen to the podcast version***

Embracing change isn’t always easy but there’s always a valuable lesson to learn from it. I began to embrace change at a young age. I was only six when my family and I moved from the Rio Grande Valley to the east coast and I dealt with culture shock and having to learn English (as with most RGV residents, Spanish was my first language). Then there was the time during my seventh grade year when I attended four different schools in three different states because my dad kept getting relocated for work. There was also the time I lost 150 pounds – though this was a change I highly anticipated, it was none the less a difficult one. But my most recent change came last November when I left the corporate world and went from being the client to being the agency. Here are a few things I’ve learned during my transition as a new Vollmervillian:

• I will always strive to provide my clients the same quality and professionalism that I received as a client.
• I have a fountain of resources in each one of my fellow VPR teammates. Whether I have a question about social media or film production, I know that an expert is only a phone call away.
• My passion multiplies each time I get to work with a new client or a new project. Currently I’m passionate about making every Houstonian count in the 2010 Census, ensuring that credit card consumers know how the new Credit Card Act will affect their spending habits,  promoting the world’s largest car parade, the Art Car Parade, held right here in my hometown of Houston and more.
• I embrace the fast pace of agency life because it challenges me to become more efficient and I appreciate that there’s never a dull moment.  
• Time sheets have been difficult to embrace, but I have hopes that soon we’ll become best buds.

The cool thing about change is that it doesn’t discriminate; it’s sort of an equal opportunity employer. No one is immune to change and I hope we never find its cure because I’d be lost without it; it has always been a faithful companion. Change has given me the opportunity to grow in spirit, mind, and body (or in my case it’s helped me shrink some of my body).  And while I know that change is inevitable, I’m ready to face it because I know that I have the support of my family – both the one at home and at work.

As I reflect on the changes that have happened throughout the last few months that I’ve been at Vollmer, one thing stands out clear in my mind: The most natural transition for me has been to put my Passion and Expertise in Action. It comes so naturally to live out the Vollmer creed.

What Happened to my Spring Break?

by Eddie Rivoldi, Vollmer Public Relations Houston Intern

I have adapted to more changes in these last few months than I have in my last 22 years combined. Spring break is just around the corner and I have accepted the fact that this year I will be staring at a beautiful sunset from a screensaver in my monitor while I sip on some cold and delicious apple juice from the mini fridge. Boy I can’t wait.

**Listen to the podcast version of this post***

Growing up I moved to many different countries, yet I never understood what culture shock meant until I actually graduated from school and entered the real working world. So, here are my two cents for any recent college graduate or college student about to graduate.

First of all, don’t romanticize the real world too much. Right before I graduated I thought I was going to share a big house with a pool with all my friends. I was going to work hard, work out even harder, and party like there was no tomorrow. Well, the only thing that stuck with me from that philosophy was to actually work hard. The working out and all the partying died after a week of working. Nevertheless, you should still try to get a run in here and there.  As for the big pool house with all my friends…well I have a house with a pool, but my roommates are my parents.

In these times of recession most college graduates have had no choice but to move back home and live with their parents either because they can’t find a job or because they can’t afford to live on their own. I belong to the latter, but I realize now that living at home is practical and convenient. I have food, clean clothes, and I get to save money. Sure it would be fun to live on my own or live with roommates, but – and I can’t believe I am saying this - right now I have to stop thinking about what I want and start thinking towards the future.  I am amazed at the fact that a lot of my friends are getting into debt just to be on their own.  Save, save and save. If you want to have a down payment for a car or a house, don’t go spending it on rent, save.

The third thing I would like to say to anyone who just graduated and has a job is don’t screw it up. If you are one the few fortunate to have found a job, do everything you can to keep it. Get rid of that college mentality and take it seriously. Show up on time, always dress appropriate by and always have a “can do” attitude. I am not the smartest guy but I figured out quickly that if I give it my all and I am honest I will do just fine.  (A little side note… if you are still in school, please take advantage of it. If there is one thing I regret in college it would be not taking classes that interested me just because they were hard or had a hard professor. Challenge yourself because once you find a job you will be challenged all day, so might as well get some practice.)

The last thing I would like to say about entering the real world is to enjoy it. These last months have been nerve-racking, frightening, but very exciting. I am paying attention all day to everything around me. This is the time in our lives where we really start defining who we are as professionals and as people so make the best of it. As for spring break, well honestly I don’t think I will miss spring break that much, I am having a pretty good time working.  

The Power of Conversation

by Amanda Borichevsky, Vollmer Public Relations Dallas

I’ve reflected often lately, with peers, friends and family, about the somewhat lost art of live communication, the value of a conversation, the priceless worth of a live voice. While I know to some I may sound more and more like an ancient generation, but it truly amazes me to reflect on how drastically communication has evolved (or in some cases DE-volved) over the past 10 years. The unquestionable convenience of e-mail, instant messaging, text messaging and social media does come with a price. Perhaps that price is a level of disconnection from the world around us, though under the guise of being more closely connected.

As a professional communicator, I sometimes find myself sliding down the slippery slope of constant electronic communication, lost in my love affair with the “convenience” it provides me, the time it appears to offer me and the accepted simplicity of its nature. But I’ve been reminded of something priceless that it can rob us of if we allow it to…the value of depth, the wisdom often found in anecdotes, the energy of camaraderie.

I was asked several months ago to forge a managers’ roundtable of sorts, Vollmer’s Leaders Lunchbox series,  that would allow an opportunity for leaders throughout the company to connect on issues important to us and to actually….talk. There are no rules, no bosses, no formal reports and, for the most part, no boundaries for discussion topics. It’s a chance to share experiences, learn from one another, help each other and, ultimately, make ourselves better professionals. Over the course of the past several months, it has reminded me of several valuable realizations that I (and we all) often lose sight of. And what’s perhaps most amazing, as is often the case, is how seemingly simple these realizations were:

• Lesson One: Nothing can replace the power of conversation. In my humble opinion, it creates the unique opportunity to gain more insight than any other means of communication.
• Lesson Two: Your peers can sometimes be your best resources! Mentorship does not ONLY have to come in the form of a “boss.”  It’s amazing what you can learn from those around you when you stop to ask and listen.
• Lesson Three: You can learn just as much from sharing stories of mistakes made as great victories achieved…sometimes more. I have the following quote in my office: “Would you like me to give you a formula for success? It’s quite simple, really. Double your rate of failure.”
• Lesson Four: No one has ALL the answers, but together we can uncover a heck of a lot of them!

More lessons learned to come…

Helen Vollmer's Straw Poll

by Helen Vollmer, CEO, Vollmer Public Relations

Okay, I want to take my own version of a straw poll.  Literally.   As I was handed a straw at the movie theater last week and recoiled, I realized that I am straw-averse.  That’s right—I see absolutely no value to those thin plastic tubes that people drink from.  Never have.  Never will.

It made me wonder two things:  1) how many others are there out there like me that think straws are stupid? (hence the straw poll); and 2) what other weirdnesses do I have/ share with other people?  

In taking a quick mental inventory, I immediately came up with three other specific things that I don’t like even though the rest of the world takes to them like a duck to water. 

• Running shoes.  Call them what you like—tennis shoes, sneakers, whatever— the thought of putting my feet into these podiatric sweat lodges is horrifying to me.  And, yes, I do own them and wear them for athletic purposes but I truly believe that the reason I prefer Pilates, dancing, bicycling and swimming is because my feet don’t feel claustrophobic during these activities.
  
  
• Gum.  That’s right—what is the point of chewing gum?  After about a minute your jaws hurt.  Plus, the flavors that gum typically comes in are downright disgusting.  And I don’t care what the experts say; chicle is no substitution for chomping down on a piece of candy.  And, of course, with gum you also have the burden with what to do with that wad that’s taking space amongst your molars.
  
  
• Oysters.  I swear I have tried to like oysters—in fact, every year I try. Oysters raw. Oysters fried. Oysters deviled. Oysters baked.  It doesn’t matter—it all either tastes like I am either swallowing my own tongue or I am eating tire rubber.  I just don’t get it.  At this point in my life it’s just easier to tell people I have a food allergy.

As far as I can tell, there’s no reason I don’t like any of the above.  The nuns in third grade didn’t try to force feed me oysters.  No love of my life made me run a marathon.  And even though my mother always told me that ladies don’t chew gum, if I’d believed her then I probably would have become a Wrigley’s addict.

So now that I’ve confessed that I’m just not on the same page with the rest of society on certain popular items, who’s with me?  Take my straw poll and let’s start our own Oyster party!  Let the people speak!

For or Against?

Straws

Running Shoes

Gum 

Oysters

How to Use Every Day Life Skills to Get Your Point Across

by Helen Vollmer, Vollmer Public Relations CEO and Founder

1. Presentation training is not a replacement for knowing the facts. Enthusiasm and salesmanship will not replace knowledge, understanding of the facts and the simple truth that all actions have consequences.

2. Not everyone is a born salesman or a great presenter.  For some of us, it takes more effort and more preparation.  The good news is that you can always improve.  For those to whom this comes easy, preparation is still a critical factor.  Developing agendas, writing out angles to discuss with media in advance still needs to be the rule.

3. I truly believe at the very heart of giving great presentations or getting an editor to go for your idea is listening.  But only if you are prepared in advance and have an understanding of your own direction can you be a pro-active listener.  Your agenda should always appear to take a back seat.

4. And listen to what's not being said as well as the words you hear. Listen for "power" words -- key buzz words, repeated phrasing, descriptors of their style, product or service.  And then turn it back to your audience -- repeat those words, get them to define what they mean by "value" and ask them to repeat key messages -- they may change.  Listen to body language.  All of these things may absolutely change your presentation -- and that's okay. React to the moment and the energy level and the environment.  And at the end of the conversation, try to recap -- okay, what I heard you say -- so, the next steps are -- what you're really looking for is.

5. Don't think about presenting strictly in the context of your professional life.  Consider practicing with everyone you contact. Any time you have a point to make, have a differing opinion or want something from somebody is when you can use the basics:

• Spouses. You want a dog/he wants a cat.
• Sales people.  You want to take back the watch.  He doesn't want to give you your money back.
• Friends.  They want to go to the movies/you want to barbecue in the back yard.
• Family.  They want to feed you a piece of cake and you don't want to hurt their feelings.

6. Consider how you are getting your point across, not only with clients and media but your peers – both administration and fellow account executives.

• It's after 4 p.m. and you really need some help.  Don't just send an email.  Talk to Pam or Robin about what it is, why it's important and their role in helping.  Get them to be a part of the team not just an after-thought in thank-yous.
• At the last minute, you need Jean's help in food styling a shot.  You've not done any job work orders, she really has no idea of what's going on. Take the time to fill her in and be specific as to what you need and again, why you need her help.
• Your immediate supervisor is telling you that the lead you've just written is inappropriate.  You disagree.  How do you background her and give her enough detail and rationale to your approach that she comes around to your thinking?
• Work very closely with another AE on a specific project.  He thinks your approach on the next project is way off the mark. How do you resolve this before wasting valuable hours on a strategy that may come back to bite both of you?

7. Communications.  That's our job.  And, we better be better at it than anyone else.  We can help each other practice our skills, give each other tips, share knowledge, help each other be prepared. That's really one of the greatest benefits of working with a group of professionals.