xoxo, intern girl

AND i told myself not to cry, yet when my manager Simone gave me one final hug and made me pinky promise i will write to her often, i teared. I guess, all good things come to an end, my internship with the City of Stirling has finally, came to an end. 

With all the things i have picked up during my time well spent there, i emerged with not only more experience of how it feels like to work in the real world and work under the pressure of tight deadlines, 

i was also blessed with the opportunity to meet wonderful warm genuine people (that certainly changed my initial perception of scary bosses and over critical colleagues).

I must confess, i wasn't thrilled with the idea of having to juggle work placement with uni work and project work plus i live an hour and a half away from school and Stirling to Bentley isn't exactly near. Days when i had to will myself and drag myself to uni at 6pm just to attend project group meets after work drained me physically and mentally. I have to check the time constantly too to ensure i do not miss the last bus. Yet now, when all is over, i feel strangely sad.

On a lighter note however, my experience with the City has opened my eyes to many things i thought i knew but didn't really grasp. My writing skills have improved, sharpened under Simone's watchful eyes. (: My reading and analytical skills have been working so hard under useful pressure that they have unknowingly honed and tidied themselves.

I smile, because i know these experiences and skills i have developed during my time with the City will stay with me for life. I know these are the essentials that will possibly differentiate me from job competitors. 

To sum it up, my time with the City of Stirling has enriched me in many ways. Today, before i leave with my last post, i'd like to leave all with this information i've obtained from RMWALKER86"s PR blog:

"PR practitioners are responsible for maintaining relations between a variety of publics, which requires them to possess necessary skills and traits. The top five skills I believe are most important for the success of a PR practitioner in no particular order are: versatility; persuasiveness; relationship management; organizational skills; and of course people skills. If a PR practitioner uses all five of these skills simultaneously, along with various other attributes, he or she will maintain a successful career."

If a career in PR is what you're seeking for, make sure you make every second of your placement count, you'll never know what you might learn during a short 2-3 months attachment.

All the best y'all for your internships ! 

xoxo,

intern girl,

Jolyn Law

14662708

oh, Media Release...ME

For me, a normal day at placement starts off like that:

Manager: Hi Jolyn, i need this in by 10am.

(proceeds to lay down a stack of reports from council meeting)

Me: (stares blankly) Yup got it! Will get all these back in by ten am.

Ten minutes later im still in the same position with the same expression on my face.

You see,i am a confused girl. What is it that i am supposed to come up with? 

A report? A summary of minutes?! A compliation? Or am i supposed to turn it into a newsletter style tittled issues and challenges the City if Stirling faces? 

I leaf through the reports. Oh trust me, they were thick reports with graphs, charts, pictures, figures, statistics, backgrounders, factsheets, social, environment and government concerns and impacts etc etc you get my drift. NOW WHERE AM I SUPPOSED TO START?

I mailed my manager from my desk (although she was just 5 tables behind me) i was embarrassed you see, so i tried my luck. 

Me: Hi, just for clarification purposes, are these reports meant to be summarised and tabulated filing-style or do i make the appropriate phonecalls to double check if all these proposals have been received, acknowledged and put through ? And if so, should i write up media releases for them?

Manager: Oh Jolyn good thing you asked, yes i want media releases out of them. They are thick reports but i do not expect you to read through everything there are alot of useless and redudant information inside these reports. Just go with the flow and choose the angle and see whats right.

So here goes....

Media release writings are perhaps, in my opinion, the simplest and most basic of all the writing pr techniques. I have been writing them so often now i remember turning tonnes of reports and a feature article into media releases just because i spotted a newsworthy angle for it, that came of course with a more thorough investigation into the news angle and a triple check of facts.

Media release writing is the ability to compile an informative, enticing and well summarised piece of news to possibly get media coverage. Its almost like a short answer to getting free publicity.

So here are some tips i've learnt over time after close to a hundred pieces of media releases. This is one i've found online related to my company- The City of Stirling.

PREPARATION: 

1. Jot down major points relating to your story: always include information the media and the public needs/wants to know

2. Place your points in descending order-most important to least important

3. Find a creative angle that makes your story sell: This is especially important if there are similiar new releases on it.

For eg: Event launch- What is different about this year's event? How does it differ from past years'? What is planned in this event that makes it unique?

4. Find a possible human angle to make your story 'warmer'.

START WRITING:

1. HEADLINE: can't stress the importance of a solid headline more. Include big figures, numbers, crazy facts, puns or famous names. 

2. Keep the headline short and simple. Instead of writing "Gorillas are dying out and the wildlife conservation centre is launching an event in a bid to raise funds for them." How about "Fundraising for the dying gorillas"

3. State the date where you want your media release to be released. Eg: For immediate release or "not to be run before 6 May"

BODY: 

1. The first par should always consist of the 5 wives and 1 husband: who what where when why and how.

2. Put in the points you've jotted down earlier on in descending order

3. Write the release in the way you would like to see it reported on. Imagine you are the reader and really, a media release is all about clear simple english and good structure.

4. Avoid jargon, phrases, catch phrases and acronyms unless previously stated.

5. ALWAYS use QUOTES from relevant people or people of importance whose statements are impactful.

6. ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT the BENEFITS, ACHIEVEMENTS and possible POSITIVE OUTCOMES. (Freebies sell well too)

7. Include event location or any relevant dates/time/locations/fees to be paid/ticket prices etc.

8. Include a media contact.

PROOF READ your work!

I proof read my media release up to three times before submitting them and i always end up shortening my sentences or replacing a short sentence with a few words. Remember its not about the quantity but the quality!

Hope this helps those who get stuck once in a while (:

Jolyn Law

14662708