The Life of a New Yorker

Interview with a Professional: Irma Damhuis

By: Ashleigh Woodall

While today New York City is a vibrant city known for its historic sites, in 1977 the city was in a severe financial crisis. Crime dramatically escalated as the city began experiencing blackouts. However, that same year the city made a 180, cleaning up the streets and increasing tourism. What caused this dramatic shift? The work of Irma Damhuis, the current director of external communications at the Cardiovascular Research Foundation in New
York City.

Career
Damhuis graduated college with a degree in English. Having always wanted to be a lawyer, Damhuis began looking for jobs that required similar skills – writing, research, planning and communications. She landed her first job at Wells, Rich, Greene, a revolutionary advertising agency headed by the pioneer Mary Wells. It was here she landed her first big account with the State of New York and created the 1977 “I Love New York” campaign. The campaign was designed to attract more businesses and thus alleviated the above mentioned financial crisis through increasing tourism. The campaign was a huge success, transforming the city and pulling it out of the crisis. The campaign remains popular today, with the I <3 New York shirts as one of the most popular selling items in the city.

Damhuis was then convinced to pioneer healthcare public relations on the east coast, a trend that was only popular on the west coast at the time. She worked at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City, creating the “Mount Sinai. Take good care of yourself” campaign that was nationally recognized and put the medical center in a prominent position in the New York market. Finally, in 2001 Damhuis took a job as the Director of External Communications at the Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF) in New York City, where she currently works.

Daily Life
CRF puts on several events throughout the year, including the Pulse of the City Gala, the Innovation Symposium, and the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics Conference (TCT). While her day to day activities vary based on which event is occurring, she says the main components to her job are outreach phone/meetings/networking) to increase awareness of CRF and helping individual business units (Skirball, Clinical Trials Center, Meetings and Education Department) meet their business goals by garnering greater recognition for their programs, meetings and services.

Damhuis’ work is also continually changing with the advent of social media. She now helps manage CRF’s Facebook and Twitter accounts and is finding new innovative ways to use social media to CRf’s advantage. For example, during the 2011 TCT Conference she would “tweet” the key messages of various speakers and the schedule to encourage people to go to different symposiums.

Rewards and Pitfalls
Damhuis says that her biggest reward comes from seeing the positive outcomes from campaigning. For example, the TCT conference was known as a “trade show” when she started working at CRF. Through campaigning, TCT is now one of the premiere cardiovascular symposiums and is being referred to as “TCT” in most cardiovascular publications. Damhuis states the downside to working in public relations is the amount of patience necessary. Campaigns do not take overnight – they require time and effort.

Words of Wisdom
Damhuis encourages students about to graduate to be sure to hone their writing skills. Written communications are essential in securing - and then keeping - a position. She recommends writing, “…as much as you can, whatever kind of writing you enjoy, whether it be poetry, short stories, press releases, letters, and so on. It's a skill that, sadly, is not in great supply. But it will continue to be valued, and will never go out of style - even in the age of "Tweets"!” Also, she reminds students to, “BE YOURSELF! Don't try to be something you are not - people can see through that. Come to a task with an open mind and willingness to learn. It will always serve
you well.”


Sources:
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/15/us/blackout-2003-past-blackouts-65-77-became-defining-moments-city-s-history.html
http://www.crf.org/
http://www.tctconference.com/
http://www.mountsinai.org/
http://www.iloveny.com/

Public Relations: Follow Your Dreams

Choosing a Career Path

Megan Hundahl knew what she wanted to do with her life in grade school. She looked on with teachers and peers as the space shuttle Challenger exploded over the Atlantic Ocean. From then on, Hundahl became infatuated with national television news.

Achieving Goals

After graduating from Baylor University in 1999 with a bachelor’s degree in communications, Hundahl moved to New York. During her junior year in college Hundahl interned with Good Morning America and kept in touch with her boss; as a result, after graduation she began work in the booking department of Good Morning America. For 10 years, Hundahl was responsible for booking all the live guests for the show.

Currently, Hundahl is working in Uvalde, Texas as the head of public relations for Uvalde Memorial Hospital.

Everyday Challenges

In her public relations career, Hundahl finds the most difficult part of her job to be keeping ideas fresh. In order to do that she says, “You have to do a lot of reading and research.”

Advice for a Young Professional

Hundahl offered some valuable advice for those thinking of entering the public relations profession, “You have to work your way up. You have to learn every level because every level is important to your overall strategy—which is to do the best work for your organization.”

Lastly, Hundahl added, “Don’t get frustrated because you’ll learn more from failure than from success.”

Additional links:

http://www.umhtx.org/

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/topics/show/good-morning-america/

http://youngie.prblogs.org/

http://www.pr-media-blog.co.uk/

http://propr.ca/

Molly Myers

Public Relations Pros and Their Cons

            Public relations is not just a people profession, or an exercise in deceit for politicians and big corporations-- It is hard work, and quite a bit of it. Few people see the intense work environment in movies and television programs, and fewer people see the intense competition for opening positions. You are different. Not only do you get to see what the profession is like and how to become a professional, but you also get to learn a few tips from a real professional.

            I interviewed Kristy, a professional who works for Cox Communications. She, like many other professionals, received an education unrelated to public relations. She began her education at Wichita State University, with a Bachelors degree in journalism. After graduation, she began her career as a reporter at the KNSS radio station in Wichita. If you are from a different field like journalism, take heart. Writing experience and communication skills matter greatly in public relations, not just a public relations major.

            Kristy's job required her to cover city hall, which also meant she developed close relationships with the people there. When a public information position opened up at city hall, her relationships helped her take it. In short, a few well-placed relationships can help as much as talent and drive.

            The most interesting and potentially most challenging aspect of public relations, she says, is the need to learn new information constantly. There is "something you always have to get up to speed on," she says, and she loves it. The field moves quickly and can leave practitioners behind if they do not prepare themselves. In short, if you like a dynamic work environment, public relations is for you.

            Her advice to aspiring public relation practitioners: find an internship early and network. First, a good internship is the best way to learn about the job, and provides you with the best training. Second, as a public relations practitioner, you need to know the right people in an organization you want to work for. Success can be tough to find, but with the right skills and attitude, never impossible.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wichita-ks.jpg  - Source for image at top

bls.gov/oco/ocos086.htm

knssradio.com

comprehension.prsa.org

ww2.cox.com/aboutus/our-story.cox

Social Media and the Future of PR

It's no secret that social media is creating quite the buzz in the public relations profession. Websites like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube make it incredibly easy for PR professionals to connect with their target public with more ease than ever before. While having access to these social media outlets is important, it's even more important to understand how to use them effectively.

In the article Social Media New Releases and Social Media Newsrooms-Just Good PR by Sally Falkow she explains the upcoming trend of creating media releases specific to social media. She discusses that the press release has transformed from being targeted at newspapers to radio, to TV (where the VNR was born) so why not for social media? PR professionals have to understand they need to present their information in a format that will get them the best results.

Falkow goes on to explain that in the social media release it's important to include URL links to all social content, all news releases in a social media format, any multimedia assets, syndicate all news content in RSS feeds, and provide embedded codes with images and video so bloggers or journalists can easily use your content.

After researching public relations trends it was easy to see that social media is all that’s being talked about. I feel like it's important for PR professionals to embrace and use social media but I also feel like they shouldn't forget their roots. Networking and getting out into the community is still key for the future PR professional to remember. There are many wonderful things that can be done from behind a desk using social media but you should never forget the power of networking within your own community.

Photo Courtesy of :kellerwilliamskissimmee.com

Looking Towards the Future

Looking Towards the Future

Monday March 29, 2010

By Lynley Kees

When given the assignment to interview a PR professional, I immediately thought of the Make-A-Wish foundation. In the past years my sorority, Chi Omega, has teamed up with theMake-A-Wish foundation. I have seen hands on what an impact this particular non- profit organization has not only on the family and friends who have benefited from Make-A-Wish, but also the impact it has on its employees. I came across Casey Thompson, who I know through a friend of my sisters who was involved with public relations. I am extremely thankful that I decided to interview her because she helped me immensely and only further accelerated my hopes of working in the field of PR and possibly one day working for the Make-A-Wish foundation.

Right now, Casey works under the Make-A-Wish foundation, where her official title is Public Relations Manager. Casey’s job includes working to accomplish publicizing wishes, where she collects the information from the program services team. She writes press releases and media alerts and then will send them to the media. Casey also works on national programs which are managed be the foundations national office and executed locally. Her most recent national program that she was involved with was with Macy’s department store. Casey’s job was to help raise money to publicize Macy’s wish, so that she an also have them cover the fund raising efforts Macy’s is currently working on. Casey is also in charge of the foundations newsletter, editing, website management, and publicity record keeping. She said that editing would probably be most important because she typically sees all the material that leaves the office.

After Casey explained to me her current job, I was interested to know more about her education and previous work experience. She graduated from Southern Methodist University with a degree in Corporate Communications, Public Affairs, with a minor in English. She had several internships starting from Publicist Dialog to Jet stream public relations. At Jet stream PR, she went from an intern to assistant account executive. She knew that agency life was not for her and after having an internship with the Dallas Centerfor the Performing Arts Foundation, which was a non-profit organization she knew that was where she belonged. That’s how Casey came across Make-A-Wish. She knew she wanted to be involved with a non-profit organization and when a professor told her about the job opening she applied right away and after interviewing she was hooked. She fell in love with the people at the office and noticed how everyone got along so well. Casey says that this feeling has remained the same since she has been working with the company.

Casey has helped me tremendously in sharing with me details of her current job and previous experience. Learning about her job made me open my eyes to the wide world of PR. I would say I have more of an understanding and open mind now about the field. Overall, I think this experience made me more excited to start my career in PR.

Image: Logo
Web Source: Make- A-Wish


Image from above:
Web Source: Foundation

Making it big in Media

Making it big in Media
By:Lauren Hale


The more I browse the wide variety of public relations related professions, the more I realize that developing skills for success in this field is like a connect the dots picture. The more skill and experience you can offer, the bigger your picture gets. I currently intern with a woman who has made a career out of public relations. Sarah Burris is the Director of New Media for the Askins for Governor campaign in Oklahoma City as well as the Managing Editor for the popular online blog, Future Majority. Since graduating from the University of Kansas as an English Major, she has spent the past seven years working in various fields of PR. Her work in politics stems from her solidified beliefs and passion for policy and social justice. Burris has worked for Rock the Vote, Emily's List, Politicorps and Skyline Publics Works. Currently she is a writer for Future Majority, which is a blog dedicated to increasing involvement of America's youth in progressive politics, something that Burris is very passionate about. She is also a partner in a Kansas based media company, Mixed Media, where she serves as a consultant for many companies and campaigns on social media and networking. Burris believes that a top public relations professional much possess excellent writing skills, impeccable organization, the ability to quickly develop influential relationships and honest relationships with media.

These relationships include but not limited to reporters, bloggers, media outlets." Burris said, " you can't forget the catch all skills: good event planning skills, ability to quickly adapt, ability to quickly learn new media skills as they are developed relating to technology."

Burris is an advocate for hard work and dedication to professions. She believes that loving what you do makes you better suited to execute anything thrown your way. When I asked her what her advice for future public relations professionals was, her straightforward and non-flowery answer matches her work ethic.

"Don't ever assume that your education will get you a job. No one cares about where you went to school, how well you did, whether you volunteered, what clubs you were in, or what your GPA is. Did you intern? Where did you intern? What did you learn? What skills did you develop? Do they set you apart from your main competition for the job? What relationships do you have that can give you a better edge over your job competition? These are the only criteria on which I base a hire - that and their ability to work really hard and have the knowledge I outlined above."

The Personal Side of Public Relations

The Personal Side of Public Relations

By Lacy Barnes

“Just keep trucking.”

This simple, yet direct and to the point statement was the best advice Cassie Gage had for graduating seniors wanting to pursue public relations careers. In the whirlwind that is my last semester college, it is comforting to hear something so easy. With graduation growing near, my final classes lingering over my head and multiple people asking what I plan to do with my life come May, simple advice is refreshing to say the least.

Gage is an Assistant Director of Communications at The University of Oklahoma where she works in OU’s athletic department in media relations. As the media contact for both volleyball and softball programs at OU, Gage is never in one place for long. Having my own career aspirations of working in athletics, getting the chance to sit down and talk with Gage was both encouraging and helpful.

Working in big-time Division I athletics, Gage has gained public relations experience unique to most other work environments. Cassie travels full-time with the softball team and part time with the volleyball team in order to cover their games and regulate media coverage. This type of public relations on the fly has taught Gage how to be efficient, thick-skinned and accepting of change.

The biggest changes during her career in public relations have been personal, in order to adapt to her environment.

“What surprised me the most about public relations was how much I had to change to survive,” Gage said. “Five years ago, people could run over me and make fun of me and I would just take it. I’ve had to learn how to step up, speak my mind and be confident in myself and my work.”

Growing up in a family surrounded by athletics, Gage said she always knew she wanted to work in sports.

“As a senior in high school I received the opportunity to write for a high school Web site network called iHigh.com which led to a position as a sports correspondent in the local paper,” Gage said. “From there I was offered a sports information scholarship to East Mississippi Community College and the rest they say is history.” Gage went on to earn her Bachelor of Art in Communication with an emphasis in public relations from Mississippi State University.

After being in the profession full-time for four years now, two at OU and two as the Assistant Director of Athletic Media Relations at Mississippi State, Gage says the majority of her job involves writing.

According to Gage, “The top skills students who want to pursue public relations need are writing to get the job along with desire and passion to keep you there. It’s important to know your audiences as well because I need to write for an audience that’s critical of what I’m saying about my team.”

Gage also touched on the importance of timeliness in her career, “It’s really important to make deadlines in public relations. We live in a world where everyone wants information as soon as it happens.”

With all the technical advice that could be given about finding and starting a career in public relations, Gage finds it’s the simple life-lessons that are most useful when trying to succeed in a profession.

“If you want it, go for it and don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t. When people knock you down, and they will, dust yourself off and keep going. And when you do fail, which you will, learn from it and make yourself better. I’ve always been a believer in remembering where you come from. There’s a difference between being arrogant and being confident and distinguishing that can be the difference in getting what you want or having everyone hate you.”

Picture of Cassie Gage is courtesy of the University of Oklahoma Athletic Department

Let Your Passions Guide You

Let Your Passions Guide You

By Shagah Zakerion

As the current public relations intern for the Norman Arts Council, I did not have to look far to find a PR practitioner to interview. Holly Jones, now working as a public relations specialist for the University Of Oklahoma Weitzenhoffer Family College Of Fine Arts, worked for the Norman Arts Council for several years before taking the job at OU. Even though she has left the arts council behind, Holly still serves as the public relations coordinator on the committee for the Norman Music Festival. There is no doubt that Holly’s passion for art has paved the road for her career.

“I have always loved creating art, writing and talking with people. I went into PR because it was a field where I would be able to promote causes that I support,” Holly said.

Graduating from OU with a BA in Journalism and AAS in Photography, Holly worked a slew of jobs before ever entering the field of PR. She started in retail management, spent two years in journalism, worked as a library assistant and finally found her place in public relations just a few years ago. Her first experience was with the Norman Arts council, where she worked for a year and half as an intern.

“I took an internship with the Norman Arts Council where I was exposed to how a community comes together to help support and build the arts,” Holly said. After her time with the NAC, Holly had found her niche in not only public relations, but in promoting the work of those in the arts. And, Holly says she really enjoys working for the College of Fine Arts because she gets to do just that.

“I love being able to promote what our students and faculty create,” Holly said. “There are always fresh and creative ideas coming from our college, it is a great environment to work in.”

Holly has been lucky enough to work in a field she likes so much, and for her, it was an easy fit. With her history in journalism and as a library assistant, she already had many of the skills she considers the most needed for any PR professional: creative writing skills, AP style and the ability to research well.

I have had the pleasure of working with Holly for several years and she serves as a great leader and role model for me. Above everything, Holly gave me the opportunity to work for the Norman Music Festival, which eventually got me the job I have today—something she says is advice any PR professional should take to heart.

“To be successful, you have to take risks and make connections,” Holly said. “Take internships in your fields of interest and use those opportunities to find ways to get a head.”

For Holly, her passions guided her to the career she has today and she serves as a great example for all aspiring PR professionals to emulate.

Photo by Lindsey Allgood