Extraordinary Events & Design on CW’s Eye Opener

Posted on July 26, 2012 by krwatson

Our client, Julie Eastman (owner of Extraordinary Events & Design), was featured on CW’s national morning show, Eye Opener, this morning. We had a blast filming with host Danielle Vollmar and loved how the segment came together. Julie never disappoints on camera, benefitting from our media training and consultation PR services.

Watch the feature here:

Here are a couple of snapshots of the final room:

: Julie added throw pillows, a larger lamp to anchor the corner, coffee table books & candles, and simple DIY artwork over the couch: fabric over cork board!

: Julie decluttered, rearranged, added a throw rug, pillows, art, candles, and books in the living room. For a simple dining room centerpiece, she spray painted vases, grouping them together over a mirror atop a scarf.

Don’t forget to “like” and follow Julie!

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How to Land an Internship in PR and Social Media:

Posted on July 24, 2012 by meghan

Anchor recently hired new Fall interns and after observing the interview process from this side, it got me thinking – how exactly did I get this internship?

Know your audience: This is the most important part of working in PR, so naturally it should be the most important part of your application and interview process. Know who is interviewing you, what they do for the company and how your skills can help them.
Be a good writer: You can have all the people skills in the world, but if you can’t write you can’t really succeed in PR or Social Media. Make sure you have relevant writing samples available for your potential employer to review.
Know yourself: recognize your own strengths and weaknesses and don’t be afraid to discuss them; you have to make sure the job is a good fit for you. Working in Social Media sounds like tons of fun (and it is) but it also requires hard work and intuition, so make sure you’re up to the task. A favorite interview question of employers is “what’s your biggest weakness?” Have a good answer to this and phrase it in a pleasant way. For example, instead of saying “I’m a perfectionist,” say something more along the lines of “I tend to spread myself to thin.”
Be flexible: we all have a dream internship in mind. This happens to be pretty close to my ideal job, but no matter what, you’re going to have to make sacrifices. Whether it be that it doesn’t fit into your ideal schedule or you have to do a little bit of tedious work, just be flexible and you will be much happier and really be able to appreciate the experience. No two days are the same in the PR world, and I have to accommodate for after-office-hours events at least once a week.
Most importantly: show that you’re a fun, happy person who is easy to get along with and willing to work hard for something that you’re passionate about. The right attitude can work wonders in an interview situation.

Remember, PR is all about how you present yourself, and your resume and interview are your opportunity to show the company what you’re about. Look put-together, smile, and be professional and you could be lucky enough to have as great a job as we do.

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The Importance of Pinterest

Posted on July 19, 2012 by krwatson

The viral nature of Pinterest is what makes the social networking platform so important. If you have visuals for your company, you should be pinning. The food, hospitality, and travel industries are particularly popular on Pinterest. Not in those industries? Not a problem! Pinterest can still be a great way to showcase and organize company photos.

Take Anchor’s Pinterest page, for example. Different pinboards have different purposes. We always include attractive photos with press releases, making it easy to pin press releases from our website to the Our News pinboard. Our Public Relations, Advertising, Marketing, and Public Relations boards largely house relevant industry articles that we found interesting and/or beneficial enough to share with our followers. Our In The Workplace board is the perfect place to keep business tips, info graphics, and amusing memes.

One of our favorite Pinterest features is the ability to pin videos. We have a board dedicated to our Anchor Chat web series in addition to the video pins on the Our Office board. We also use Pinterest to showcase our design work, blogs, office, and media coverage. Finally, we pin photos of The Anchor Team so that followers can get to know us and put names to faces.

Having an active Pinterest page will not only provide a hub of company photos and news, it will help you gain rapid exposure thanks to the viral way users share content. Repinning is the bread and butter of Pinterest. The beauty of repinning is that the source always remains the same. No matter how many times a photo has been repinned, every subsequent user who clicks on the photo will still be directed to the original source: your website.

A few of our favorite Pinners:
Sean Knight Custom Homes
PR News
Visit Fort Worth
Extraordinary Events & Design
TCU Career Services
Chobani

Be creative with your Pinterest page, but stay relevant to your industry.

- @krwatson

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Top 20 Things You Need in a PR Emergency Kit

Posted on July 17, 2012 by hayley

Last week the CDC released a Wedding Day Survival Guide and it got us thinking about what should go inside a PR Emergency Kit to assist with impromptu media interviews. News is fast-paced and having a reputation of always being responsive, prepared, reliable, and easy to work with is extremely important.

Our twenty favorite items are:

Bobby pins for last-minute hair mishaps

Blotting sheets to remove excess oil

Comb/hairbrush for last-minute touch ups

Hair spray to tame fly-aways

Glossing spray to keep hair looking healthy and shiny

Hair clip/ties to keep everything in place

Fashion tape & velcro to prevent a wardrobe malfunction

Lip gloss & chapstick for a perfect smile

Concelear to hide any new blemishes

Powder to stay oil-free

Safety pins to ensure clothing fits the way it should

Eyebrow brush to perfectly frame the eyes

Baby powder for oily hair

Neosporin just in case

Band-aids for pesky blisters

Lint roller to always appear clean and tidy

Tide to Go stick because accidents always happen

Deodorant to stay fresh

Q-tips for quick and accurate makeup fixes

Dryer sheets to get rid of static

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Why Your Business Should Have a Mobile Friendly Website

Posted on July 13, 2012 by marnold

As the number of smartphone users continues to grow; there are more and more users reaching your site on mobile devices. What are mobile users seeing when they reach your website? If you still do not have a mobile friendly site, it’s time to start thinking about one.

Mobile internet usage has gone far beyond checking emails; many users depend on their mobile devices while on the go to aid in shopping or finding local services. If your website cannot be viewed correctly on their device, you could be missing out!

Think about who is using mobile devices to find your website, what are they doing? They are most likely away from home; looking for the services, products or information that you are providing. If the user is unable to see this information, they will quickly find an alternative site that has the information they are searching for. This can be a missed opportunity. As a business it’s important to be sure you are thinking mobile while building your website.

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Personality is Key in Video

Posted on July 10, 2012 by randerson

I recently returned from the online video conference known as VidCon! It was an amazing experience and I had the opportunity to meet so many people whose videos I watch on a daily basis.

Upon leaving VidCon I thought about what brought me there. It wasn’t to go to panels to learn about the inner workings of YouTube to better my channel, or at least that wasn’t the main reason.

The reason I was at VidCon was to see and meet PEOPLE! There are several channels on YouTube featuring people who share their lives with the internet and when you watch these people online, you feel like you know them.

Events like VidCon allow you to make that connection with people online tangible and then you not only become a follower, you become a face and a person to the people that you admire online.

People want to watch videos that are interesting, but also authentic. That’s what brings me back to watching them week to week and even day to day. When making a video ask yourself, “How much of my personality is in this?” It will help you build an audience that will come back for YOU!

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The Andy Griffith Show Leadership Model

Posted on July 5, 2012 by bcaldwell

With Andy Griffith’s passing this week, I’m reminded of how truly great the Andy Griffith Show was. Characters in the show were always getting into trouble and Andy Taylor, the sheriff and leader of the town, had the responsibility of teaching people lessons.

Most consistently, Andy was teaching lessons to his right hand man and deputy, Barney Fife (played by the late Don Knotts). Though Barney was a bit of a klutz to say the least, he thought quite highly of himself and his knowledge of, well, just about everything. More often than not, Barney would get himself into trouble as a result of his wild ego. No matter how bad of a situation Barney dug, Andy always had an answer for it.

The variable, however, was that Barney was a very sensitive human being. His large ego would bruise like a peach if he ever found out he was wrong. And boy was he stubborn as a mule, too. So instead of scolding Barney and telling him he was (obviously) wrong, Andy could always find a way of leading him to discovering (on his own) the right answer or showing that he was the hero of the day. There are just so many episodes of Andy Griffith that contained this plot, but it was different and entertaining every time.

So the Andy Griffith Show really taught us how we can be leaders. Andy Taylor was never one to take credit from someone else, in fact he was the largest promoter of others. He believed that people were genuinely good at their core and that with a gentle nudge, help get people on the right track.

Andy never represented the “me too” and “look at me” mentalities that have become so common. He was selfless, authentic, and respected in the community. And he always found a good life balance as a single father.

So I encourage you to go watch some Andy Griffith. Take some tips from one of the greatest leaders on television. No, he may not have revolutionized the world with his leadership, but he certainly made an impact on the small town of Mayberry. Just ask Barney, Opie, Aunt Bee, Floyd, Gomer, Goober, Otis, or the others.

Rest in Peace Andy. And by the way, my grandmother, who was a member of the Davis Sisters, had the opportunity to sing with Andy in the 1950s. Here is a photo of them waiting in a basement (for hours – great story behind it) prior to going on stage.

: Georgia Davis, Davis Sisters with Andy Griffith

Can you remember any great Andy moments? What was your favorite episode? Do you recall any episodes that prove my blog wrong?

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Getting a Return

Posted on July 3, 2012 by acaldwell

Do you want an expert to explore creative strategies to solve a problem and position you in the marketplace, or do you want a vehicle in which to carry out your own ideas of what the competition is already doing, because there is little risk?

This is an important question to ask yourself before searching for and choosing an advertising or marketing agency. Why? It is the difference between creating a lasting partnership with a team of experts versus hiring the high school kid next door, that has a laptop and Photoshop.

For example, while a sophomore can most certainly copy the website design of your fancy, there is no strategy or research behind it. It was built for someone else, possibly in another industry. Assuming that a beautifully built site was your muse, even still, the research behind it was not intended for you.

It is important to come to the table with input, not a decision. A true partner in your business will listen to you, perform an audit based on the end goal, and then come to a conclusion, that may or may not include your original concept. The process for a website and its design is more than making something look “pretty”; it solves problems and serves as visual navigation. A website is truly an investment and it should be entrusted into the hands of an experienced professional to get your maximum return.

@Caldwild
inspired by http://www.winwithoutpitching.com

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