Pitching PR

Today's podcast is about navigating maternity leave and your PR career and is cohosted by Jordana Wolch from Environics Communications in Toronto. It takes a village to raise a child and it takes a team to launch a PR campaign – so motherhood has a lot in common with PR. But adjusting to your new role as a mother and your role as a PR professional can be a challenge – I've heard toddlers are the most demanding clients! So we asked 15 PR Professionals who have had one or multiple maternity leaves to share their stories, wisdom and provide insight on how they navigated their PR careers and maternity leaves. Join us as we read their responses and draw on the experiences from a village of PR moms.

Topics:

• Overview of Canadian maternity leave benefits
• Jordana's experience returning to work after maternity leave
• Tips for telling your employer about the pregnancy
• Dealing with morning sickness and your pregnancy at work
• Common concerns about returning to work
• Professional development while on mat leave
• Advice for returning to work and balancing (or not balancing) it all

Resources:

Jordana Wolch - LinkedIn

Environics Communications

Pitching PR Mainpage

Pitch Graphic Design on Instagram

Pitching PR on iTunes

Quotes:

"For me, the anticipation of going back to work was way worse than actually going back to work. " - Jordana Wolch

"Somedays you feel like you're owning it and doing such a good job, and some days it all comes crashing down. You have to allow yourself to not be perfect for everyone, everyday." -Jordana Wolch

On today's episode, I sit down with Emotional Wellness Coach, Barbara Erochina, about creating a compassionate workplace. The issue of compassion has risen to the forefront as new research suggests that compassionate workplaces increase employee satisfaction and loyalty. We discuss ways to be a compassionate leader and how to create an office environment where compassion encourages high performance and innovation.

Barbara combines psychiatric studies with life-coaching techniques to help people using her own approach to emotional well-being. Barbara also created the BeWith Self-Care Cards for her client's as a tool to help them live a more compassion live towards themselves and others.

Topics:

• Why compassion and self-care has been rising to the forefront
• Benefits of being a compassionate leader
• How compassion encourages risk-taking and innovation
• Compassion vs. Sympathy
• The rewards of compassionate leadership
• Managing the fear of failure at work
• How compassion breeds empathy for others
• How the process of change affects workers
• The power hierarchy and how it affects office atmosphere
• Encouraging a healthy office environment

This podcast is courtesy of Pitch Graphic Design, a Toronto based firm, whose goal is to provide quality graphic designs for Public Relations. If you would like to get in touch with Pitch, please fill out the contact form.

Links and Resources:

BeWith Homepage

Barbara Erochina Coaching

BeWith Cards

BeWith on Facebook

BeWith on Instagram

Pitching PR Mainpage

Pitch Graphic Design on Instagram

Quotes:

"Self-compassion is just that first step of acknowledging something is hard." -Barbara Erochina

"She wrote herself a letter of forgiveness…and it offered her the comfort that she needed to think about the next steps without that kind of harsh self-judgement."-Barbara Erochina

"One of the beautiful things about self-compassion…is that self-compassion automatically builds empathy for others." -Barbara Erochina

On today's episode, my guest Lorna Freeman and I discuss the strategic role music can play in public affairs. Lorna is an Account Director at Environics Communications in Toronto, working in branding strategy and has incorporated music in her campaigns for years. Music and song has been used strategically in US presidential elections since the campaign of John Adams in 1800. Using music effectively can be a great PR tactic, but using it incorrectly can backfire and even cause legal issues. Join us as we discuss the relationship between music and PR, both historically and today.

Topics:

• Lorna's background and love of music
• Music as a marketing tool
• Pros and cons of original compositions vs. popular music
• Best practices of political campaigns using music
• Music as political protest
• Wrong Notes: Poor song choices in politics
• Licensing in US and Canada
• Artist endorsement and PR

Resources:

Lorna Freeman

Environics Communications

Pitching PR Mainpage

Pitch Graphic Design on Instagram

Pitching PR on iTunes

Quotes:

"Using a song intentionally, and NOT using a song intentionally, has meaning." - Lesley Luce

"The way people are reacting to you and the music, becomes part of the news cycle." - Lorna Freeman

"Artists deserve to be compensated" - Lesley Luce

The format for today's minisode is a little different than usual; I have decided to forgo inviting a guest and instead will briefly discuss the 2016 US Presidential Election from a graphic design perspective. It should be noted that this episode contains some explicit content (we are dealing with Trump here) so consider this warning and listen at your own caution!

Today, I get into the current presidential election from the perspective of graphic design; namely, I discuss campaign logos and the strengths weaknesses of their design. It is interesting to dissect something as powerful or off-putting as a campaign logo and I go into detail about the pro's and con's contained therein. Listen in as I explain why I'm With Her...logo.

Topics:

• The Hilary "H" logo and personal branding
• George W. Bush's branding
• Why having a simple logo is wise
• Hilary gets social
• The functional aspect of the "H" logo
• Trump/Pence campaign's initial, now-defunct logo

This podcast is courtesy of Pitch Graphic Design, a Toronto based design firm, whose goal is to provide quality graphic designs for Public Relations Agencies. If you would like to get in touch with Pitch, please fill out the contact form.

Links and Resources:

Pitching PR Mainpage

Pitch Graphic Design on Instagram

Pitching PR on iTunes

Hillary Clinton's Official Campaign Website

Donald Trump's Official Campaign Website

The old Trump/Pence logo

On today's podcast, I have the opportunity to speak with blogger and social media consultant, Lizzie Benson. Together, we discuss feeling burnt out from work; why it happens, how to prevent it and how to come back after a burn out.

Lizzie is an active blogger and owner of OctoberJune.com and blogs extensively. She is also a freelance social media consultant and understands what it is to be burnt out. As such, she has developed techniques to help avoid the stress and frustration of burnout. Listen in as she shares her insights on how to bounce back after experiences work and career burnout.

Topics:

• The definition of burnout
• Lizzie's burnout and how she dealt with it
• Scheduling personal time
• Putting back-up systems in place when you need a break
• Taking breaks and why "Netflix & Chill" isn't enough
• Finding inspiration and avoid comparison
• Remaining persistent

Resources:

OctoberJune.com

Lizzie on Pinterest

Lizzie on Twitter

Lizzie on Instagram

Pitching PR on iTunes

Pitching PR Website

Pitch Graphic Design on Instagram

Quotes:

"I think the biggest [consequence of burnout] is complete lack of energy for personal projects." –Lizzie

"Life runs so much more smoothly if you stick to a schedule." –Lizzie

"Take a break. Sometimes you just have to," -Lizzie

Today, I welcome back Kamara Toffolo to discuss the cringe-inducing issue of rejection. Rejection is something we all face in both our personal and professional lives. During our conversation, Kamara finds a positive way to spin rejection and how it can be beneficial to creating better work.

As a career coach, Kamara knows the right steps to getting what you want out of your job. Every day, she helps her clients dare to not only work differently, but pursue what they love. With all her experience as a coach, Kamara is the perfect person to discuss rejection.

Topics:

• Benefits of facing rejection
• Spinning rejection
• Dealing with too much rejection
• Pushing through fear

This podcast is courtesy of Pitch Graphic Design, a Toronto based firm, whose goal is to provide quality graphic designs for Public Relations. If you would like to get in touch with Pitch, please fill out the contact form.

Links and Resources:

Kamara Toffolo's Website

Kamara Toffolo on LinkedIn

Kamara Toffolo on Facebook

Kamara Toffolo on Twitter

Branded.me

"Work Differently" on YouTube

Pitching PR Mainpage

Pitch Graphic Design on Instagram

Quotes:

"We have to be good at hustling to make things happen." –Leslie Luce

"Rejection truly trumps silence." –Kamara Toffolo

"In order to strive for what you want…you need to just push through that fear…" –Kamara Toffolo

Today's episode is a special one for me, as I get to speak with my former boss from P&G Canada, Melissa Karis. The two of us discuss one-to-one meetings and how important they are to creating positive office culture and advancing projects.

Melissa is the Director of Beauty Communications and leads the development and execution of PR programs for P&G's health and beauty brands. In her time at P&G Melissa has participated in over TWO THOUSAND 1:1 meetings and knows from experience how these can strengthen or weaken a team. We discuss how to set objectives for a one-to-one meetings and how to lead and listen in these meetings to motivate and support your team. Melissa also boils it all down and provides 5 key tips for having effective and productive 1:1 meetings. If you manage a team of any size, this episode should prove particularly helpful.

Today's Topics:

• Objectives of setting up a one-on-one meeting
• Prioritizing these meetings
• Who should set the meeting agenda and why
• Prioritizing meeting agenda
• Adding a personal aspect to these one-on-one's
• The importance of listening
• 5 key tips for creative an effective one-on-one meeting

This podcast is courtesy of Pitch Graphic Design, a Toronto based firm, whose goal is to provide quality graphic designs for Public Relations. If you would like to get in touch with Pitch, please fill out the contact form.

Links and Resources:

Career Opportunities with P&G (Canada)

Career Opportunities with P&G (United States)

Melissa Karis on Twitter

Melissa Karis on LinkedIn

Snapchat: @MelKaris

Pitching PR Website

Pitch Graphic Design on Instagram

Pitch Graphic Design on Twitter

Quotes:

"There's always something new to learn, even for a more experienced manager." –Melissa Karis

"Each person and relationship is different and it's important to know the employee and adapt your one-on-one meeting accordingly." –Melissa Karis

"…Being a good leader means that you're also a good listener." – Lesley Luce

In this episode of the Pitching PR Podcast, we chat about the five key questions you should be asking all your prospective clients – even before you agree to the first meeting!

My guest today is Rhonda Page, a veteran business developer who now coaches agencies and freelancers on building and growing their business. Through her experience Rhonda understands the frustration and stress that comes with wasting your time on prospective clients who don't pan and how to spot those that will turn into bankable revenue. Rhonda's five key questions will help any PR professional decide which clients are genuine, and which should be avoided at all costs.

Today's Topics

• Rhonda Page's experience in graphic design and business development
• Asking for background information and getting the inside scoop on a project
• Who's the boss?
• Listening to your intuition: deciding if you want to work on the project
• Getting comfortable talking about money and asking about budgets
• How to ask if your client is serious about the project
• Why you should ask about your competition and what to say
• Having meaningful conversations with a prospective client
• How to bring the right energy to your first meeting

Links and Resources:

Rhonda Page's Website

Rhonda's four-month course, The Business Development Breakthrough, will be starting on August 18th 2016. This course is perfect for any freelancer, design firm owner, or business development manager who wants to significantly increase their revenue! Interested? Chat with Rhonda by emailing her at [email protected].

This podcast is hosted by Lesley Luce from Pitch Graphic Design, a Toronto-based firm specializing in the design needs of PR agencies and freelancers. More episodes of the Pitching PR Podcast can be found on iTunes or online.

In this episode of the Pitching PR Podcast, we speak with Creative Director Daniel Francavilla and Sales Strategist Ali Hanif of Now Creative Group. The three of us discuss how to use content marketing to promote your PR business, define an Agency's target audience and how to stay top-of-mind with potential clients.

Now Creative Group was started three years ago by Daniel; he wanted to create a one-stop creative agency that helped businesses and entrepreneurs establish their brands and grow. Ali joined soon after, and leads their business development and creative sales, with a focus on content. In this podcast we explore how they used content marketing at Now Creative Group to generate new business and then re-apply these learnings for Pitching PR listeners and business owners.

Today's Topics:

• Finding the time to produce content
• Defining your B2B audience and how to create original content for them
• Tracking engagement
• 4 key steps to produce content
• The benefits to repurposing content
• Efficiently managing different content platforms
• Delegating social media management within the agency
• The importance of experimenting with new social media platforms
• Key advice for to promoting your PR Agency with content marketing

Links and Resources:

Now Creative Group Homepage

Now on Facebook

@NowCreates on Twitter

Now on Instagram

Now on Tumblr

Now on Pinterest

More episodes of the Pitching PR Podcast on iTunes or online

Pitch Graphic Design Website

Pitch Graphic Design on Instagram

Pitch Graphic Design on Twitter

Theme Music:

"Not Going Home" by Great Good Fine Ok

Great Good Fine Ok Website

Great Good Fine OK on Twitter

This podcast is hosted by Lesley Luce from Pitch Graphic Design, a Toronto-based firm specializing in the design needs of PR agencies and freelancers. More episodes of the Pitching PR Podcast can be found on iTunes or online.

In this episode of the Pitching PR Podcast, we discuss a topic close to my heart: starting your own Public Relations business. My guest, Lisa Pasquin, and I discuss the challenges of starting our businesses and what we have learned from those experiences.

Lisa Pasquin and I met at Harbinger Communications, and since then she as worked at several large PR firms and founded Craft Public Relations.

In this podcast, we share our experiences of starting our businesses and insights that are helpful to those thinking of taking the plunge and doing freelance PR or starting their own agency.

Today's Topics:

• To write or not to write a business plan
• Dealing with the fear of going it alone
• Dealing with failures and successes
• Finding success without a large team
• The desire for flexibility
• Time Management

Links and Resources:

Craft PR on Twitter

Read: Craft PR wins the Nintendo Business

Read: Craft PR wins the GE Business

More episodes of the Pitching PR Podcast on iTunes or online

Pitch Graphic Design Website

Pitch Graphic Design on Instagram

Pitch Graphic Design on Twitter

This podcast is hosted by Lesley Luce from Pitch Graphic Design, a Toronto-based firm specializing in the design needs of PR agencies and freelancers. More episodes of the Pitching PR Podcast can be found on iTunes or online.