These are some of my National Conference Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) notes. It was an outstanding conference in Detroit, MI, held at the General Motors Ren Center. These notes pertain to numerous careers and speakers that were not all just PR majors. Speakers gave insights to Broadcasting, Journalism, Communications, Business and Advertising careers. Numerous types of PR such as automotive and healthcare were represented. Notes are boring to read, I know, especially with being a student but take a look, you'll benefit; even one sentence may give you something you would have never gotten before. I'm not doing paragraph form; that's overwhelming & time consuming. Just one thought at a time.

Establish relationships with clients, journalists, and anyone that is part of the media...also no burning of bridges.

Bring an extra outfit to keep in the office, fashion is key, and accidents happen.

Remember faces and names...make up a rhyme if you have to.

Research clients before first meeting

Back up files; FLASHDRIVE SEPERATE FROM COMPUTER

"The world bursts at the seams with people ready to tell you you're not good enough. On occasion, some may be correct. But do not do their work for them. Seek any job; ask anyone out; pursue any goal. Don't take it personally when they say 'no'-they many not be smart enough to say 'yes'."
-Keith Olbermann, Broadcast Journalist and host of MSNBC.

Write and send thank-you letters, even to declined clients...they may need you one day, again, DO NOT burn bridges.

Network, network, network!

GET INVOLVED with your local community and university.

Be ethical.

The economy right now is bad...calm your anxiety because things will get better.

As part of the millennial group...I know that this is true, we "are more advanced than many college professors."

We are vehicles for change.

"Please call your parents and let them know that you have resolved to be more frugal."
Ofield Dukes, APR, Fellow PRSA, President, Ofield Dukes & Associates

You are the captain of your soul.

Don't be afraid to take an internship out of college...it turns into a job, it works.

If all technology crashed, a paper & pencil & telephone still work. When it comes down to it that's all you need to get the story accomplished...traditional ways still work!

Social Media Expert- a person who monitors, creates, and becomes involved with the most modern forms of communication (facebook, twitter, bloggers, YouTube, etc.)

40% of General Motors communication people have internal communications assignments.
Q. What are Internal Communications?
A. People that work in PR not only have a relationship with the media but also have relationships with everyone within the company.
Example: Chrysler has a website for workers and retirees only. To keep everyone updated with the company and also when crisis' approach.

The tone you set internally most likely will become external (leak out to the public). It's going to leak somehow, somewhere so handle it right, right from the beginning.

"We love research in the automobile industry." -GM spokesperson

"A lot of what we do is internal." -Rose Glenn, APR, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Public Relations, Henry Ford Health System

Details, details and more details...everything counts, everything important.

FALSE MYTHS:

• bury negative news
• advertisements work best when influencing public opinion
• when competitors launch an adversarial campaign, strike back longer & harder
• the CEO should always be the spokesperson for major news

More notes later.
I should be resting.