 |
Newsletter Archive
Welcome,
WWPR August 2006 Newsletter
In This Issue:
|
CALL FOR NOMINATIONS
THE 2006 WASHINGTON PR WOMAN OF THE YEAR AWARD
We are currently accepting nominations for the 2006 "Washington PR Woman of the Year." This prestigious award is given annually to a Washington,
D.C., area public relations practitioner who demonstrates an extraordinary commitment to the public relations profession and outstanding leadership, integrity and community involvement.
The recipient of this year's award will be honored during an awards
luncheon at The Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C., on November 15,
2006 from 12-2 p.m. Please visit WWPR's Web site at
www.wwpr.org to obtain further details
about the submission process and the nominee qualifications. Deadline
for nominations: September 8, 2006.
If you are interested in sponsoring this event, please contact Erin
Wendel, WWPR Woman of the Year Co-Chair, at
elwendel@apma.org or (301) 581
9227.
|
|
|
WHO
|
: |
Dave Groobert, general manager of the Washington office of Environics
Communications
|
WHAT
|
: |
Webinars are becoming an increasingly common tool used by PR practitioners to reach a diverse and dispersed audience of reporters, analysts, customers, franchisees, investors, or others separated by time and/or geography Webinars are rapidly gaining
popularity as a cost-effective alternative to an in-person press conference or special event. Dave will explain why and how Webinars can be successful in reaching the media and generating news. He will also provide a case history of a Webinar for the launch of a national report from a nonprofit organization here in the Washington area.
|
WHEN
|
: |
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Noon-2:00PM
|
WHERE
|
: |
Herman Miller National Design Center
600 14th Street, NW, Suite 700
Washington, DC 20005
|
METRO
|
: |
Metro Center
|
COST
|
: |
FREE to members; $15 for non-members
|
TO REGISTER
|
: |
http://guest.cvent.com/i.aspx?9C,P1,EC316C21-2BB9-4AD3-BA7C-4B65AA86FE00,53NREQ85DAJ
|
For questions or additional information, please contact Racine
Tucker-Hamilton at
rthmedia@comcast.net
|
WWPR member Lisa Elmore recently moved to Washington, D.C., from Austin, Texas, to attend graduate school at Johns Hopkins University (JHU). She currently works at Manning Selvage & Lee while pursuing her master's degree in communications at JHU's Dupont campus. Elmore was previously
an active member of the Austin chapter of the Association for Women in Communications and, after being a WWPR member for only a month, volunteered to help Kathy Clinesmith-Trupp, WWPR's Web Director, while Clinesmith-Trupp was on vacation.
Elmore's help kept WWPR's operations running smoothly and provided
for a seamless transition.
WWPR applauds you, Lisa, and thanks you for your support, help and
enthusiasm.
~
WWPR highlights the achievements of an extraordinary member in each newsletter. If you would like to nominate yourself or another WWPR member who has gone above the call of duty - either within the
profession or WWPR itself - please send an e-mail to info@wwpr.org with the candidate's name, a paragraph explaining the member's accomplishments, and your name and contact information. We will notify
you before the next e- newsletter if your candidate is selected. ~
|
We are pleased to announce that Debbie Friez, vice president, major accounts at BurrellesLuce, and Carla M. Julian, director of
communications for the Associated General Contractors of America, are joining WWPR's Board of Directors as Co-Chairs of the Marketing/Communications committee, effective immediately. Friez, who
has been a member of WWPR since 2004, is extremely active in the industry and community and serves on the boards of AWC and PRSA. Julian, who is a University of Alabama graduate, moved to the area in 2001 and
joined WWPR in 2006. In addition to her specific communications specialty in the engineering, energy and construction industries, Julian is proficient in graphic design and will create this year's WWPR Woman
of the Year Awards luncheon invitation. Friez and Julian are replacing Ritza Hendricks, who had to step down due to work obligations. WWPR extends Hedricks their sincere thanks for her exemplary service during
the first half of the year.
Please join us in welcoming Debbie and Carla!
If you would like to volunteer for the Marketing/Communications
committee, or to write feature articles for the e-newsletter, please
contact Debbie and Carla at info@wwpr.org
|
On June 21, WWPR held its annual media roundtable lunch. Panel speakers included Garrett Graff, editor-at-large, Washingtonian Magazine and editor of Fishbowl DC, a blog that covers journalism and the media industry in Washington, DC. Scott MacFarlane, correspondent for COX TV,
Greg Tantum, Program Director for Washington Post Radio, and Jennifer Nycz-Conner, reporter for The Washington Business Journal, also served as panelists. Nan Tolbert, former television news reporter and executive
communications coach for the Communications Center, served as the moderator for the event.
|
|
 |
|
(L to R) Garrett Graff, Jennifer Nycz-Conner, moderator
Nan Tolbert, Greg Tantum, and Scott MacFarlane |
As
many WWPR members know, the media roundtable lunch is often a time when PR professionals learn the tricks of pitching to local media contacts.
For instance, did you know that the editor at The Washingtonian only receives four pitch calls a day on average? Other lessons learned include:
-
Despite The Washington Business Journal releasing a new issue every Friday, the journal also launches news stories everyday at 3 PM. The best time to pitch is
that morning as they are always looking for new content. In addition, they have a weekly Q & A section for CEOs twice a week and
they are looking for more CEOs to fill that content.
-
Twice a month, Washingtonian holds an editorial board luncheon, so be sure to pitch an interesting individual from the local community with a
human-interest angle.
-
The Washington Business
Journal also holds monthly breakfasts for PR professionals and offers tips on how to pitch them.
When asked how they prefer to receive pitches, WTOP still prefers faxes while others on the panel favor e-mail but emphasized the need for
follow-up calls due to large e-mail volume. Each panelist asked that you look for the "rh" factor when pitching guests, meaning the "real human"
aspect. It is important to focus on the potential guest's bio and background, not their expertise.
Panelist speakers were also questioned about pitching to online editors in addition to producers and reporters. The audience was informed that Washington Post Radio and WTOP both have online editors, as does COX TV.
When asked who to pitch to - assignment editors, producers, or news reporters, each of the panelists stressed to not pitch two reporters that write about the same topic. Tantum from Washington Post Radio said
all pitches could be sent to him.
In
addition, Nycz-Conner from Washington Business Journal stressed the importance of returning a reporter's call immediately in order to build credibility. MacFarlane from COX TV emphasized that a good pitcher is
able to answer any question a reporter or producer throws at them.
Each panelist offered thoughts on how they envisioned media to be in the future. For instance, Graff felt that all daily newspapers will be online in the next 10 years and print versions will only be available
for Sunday issues. Graff also commented that people coming of age are the most well informed in the history of the U.S., due to new media.
Discussion also revolved around new trends in the media. All of the panelists agreed the biggest trend was downloadable newscasts on blogs and ipods and the ability to receive your news quickly. In fact, 22
million American adults now have podcasts, which encourages more publicists to utilize this tool to increase their PR.
The lunch ended when the panelists were asked by long time WWPR member, Denise Graveline, about their dream story. The answer, "Give them exclusives, before the press release."
|
The awesome atmosphere of Dragonfly set the tone for the July happy hour. Members and non-members mingled and exchanged cards over cocktails. We are looking forward to future networking opportunities.
|
^
top
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
:: info@wwpr.org
:: http://www.wwpr.org
|
 |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
What
people are saying
about WWPR... |
|
|
WWPR now has
rolling membership.
Your membership is good
for one year from the date you become active. Join Now!
|
 |
|
