Graduation season is upon us – it’s evident if you look at your Facebook News Feed.

It was just one year ago that I was posting similar anecdotes about how my life was about to change and how sad I was that college was over. A few weeks later, I began my first job as an Account Coordinator at Kaplow Communications. This past year has shown me that even though college ends, learning never stops.

Here are the top five lessons I learned starting out in PR:

5. Become an organization master

I always considered myself a pro when it came to organization. I even started my own business at age 12 to organize my family’s closets, CD collections and photo albums! Regardless of my natural skills, PR, with its barrage of to-dos and details forced me to fine-tune and improve my methods. Find an organization system that works for you and put it in motion to keep on top of your game.

4. Details matter

When starting in a new career, you need to prove yourself. This means that occasionally, you may be asked to do something seemingly mundane. In these moments, remember that each little job is part of a bigger picture. Every member of the team works toward a common goal and all pieces of the puzzle need to be in place.

3. People notice

With each task conquered, comes the appreciation of the team. People notice when something is done correctly, and trust me, they appreciate it! Something great happens when people notice – you receive higher-level projects because your teams trust the work you can do. But it’s important to master the little things first.

2. Learn on the job

Though it’s certainly helpful to do so, I personally did not study Communications or Public Relations in college. I was an International Business major with a concentration in Finance and a minor in Spanish. So much of PR is on-the-job learning! Diving in head first at your new job is the best way to take it all in, get to know your colleagues and show that you’re eager and hard-working. Always be prepared, ask questions, and find a mentor at your company to look up to.

1. It all comes with time

If I had to pick one phrase I heard most during my first few months at Kaplow, it would be, “It all comes with time.” Understanding team structure, working with different personalities, the jam-packed day-to-day scheduling, and surprise “fire drills” comes when you realize that often, things aren’t perfect the first time you try. If they are, great! But chances are, there will be some adjustments to any new job, and PR is no exception.

Coming up on my one year anniversary with Kaplow, it’s rewarding to see that things I initially struggled with have become second nature. A career in public relations is a marathon, not a sprint (although some days, you might actually be sprinting!), but it is worth it.

When I first joined Kaplow and told my mom I was hired as a Community Producer, she was thrilled for me, but had absolutely no idea what that meant – I got a complete blank stare.

I understand that there is a generation gap between us – she loves Johnny Mathis and Criminal Minds, while I love Drake and Watch What Happens Live. But more than our differing entertainment preferences, my mom was a teacher and when she told other people what she did, they got it. For those of us with careers in the evolving world of social media and PR, the idea of what we actually do every day is a little less clear.

So how do you convey what you do every day to a parent?

I explained that brands need someone to tell their story to the thousands (if not millions) of fans they have online. I told her that brands have to be accessible in this age of the “super-consumer” and that I help do that.

Bringing a brand to life is what I love most about this job. It gives me a chance to be creative and give a little bit of flavor and humanity to things, like body lotion and hair products. You might not think a face scrub could be personified, but I assure you, it can!

Take St. Ives, for example. Their products are filled with fresh ingredients, are available at drugstores nationwide and provide simple, classic and effective skincare solutions. Our fans are passionate about their skin and love talking about their favorites and why they love them. Customers have so many options to choose from nowadays; we love helping St. Ives fans feel like they can identify with the brand and that we are listening and want to hear from them.

Interacting directly with fans is increasingly important in order to develop a loyal relationship between them and the brand. Consumers are inundated with choices. If you don’t make that personal connection with them, they will find another brand that will. It’s my job to make sure that they feel appreciated and loved, because they are!

So, after numerous conversations, I think my mom sort of understands what I do for a living. And if after a few more months she still doesn’t get it, I will be the first to suggest a “Bring Your Mom to Work Day” at Kaplow.

At the beginning of my PR career, it was easy to identify who the key media players were. If you worked for a beauty brand, you pitched the Allures, InStyles, and Vogues of the world. You could easily recite the names of the last few articles an editor wrote at the drop of a dime. Today, things are a bit more complicated.

Print magazines took a massive hit in the late 2000s, leaving many editors to look for new work. Over the past few months, magazines have come back into prominence – however, they look a bit different and are less glossy in the traditional sense. Many outlets have expanded their reach beyond the printed page, influencing consumers via Pinterest boards, Twitter feeds and Tumblr pages, all of which are updated multiple times daily with new tips, promotions, videos and artistic imagery.

Real Simple has taken Pinterest by storm thanks to its visual tutorials and storage solutions. It is now arguably even more influential in this new medium than it is in print (more than 92,000 followers and counting)! Eva Chen, Teen Vogue’s  Beauty & Health Director, has become a go-to guru for teens and twenty-somethings via her popular Tumblr and Twitter pages, where she documents her wardrobe choices and encounters with different beauty brands, giving readers an inside view of her life.

Several long-time print journalists have made the switch to short-lead, online outlets, which gives them more flexibility to cover time-sensitive content. Dawn Spinner Davis, formally of Cosmopolitan, recently began writing for Total Beauty. Jane Pratt, former editor of Sassy and Jane (my teenage favorites!) launched a women’s lifestyle site called xoJane and established it as a top lifestyle destination for women within a year (as named by Forbes).

With all of these new communication tools, the way we communicate with media influencers has changed, too. No longer can you just pick up the phone and expect to get a moment of their time. Media influencers are busier than ever, so developing strong relationships is key to getting your point across. When you do have the chance to speak with an influencer in person, take a few moments to ask them questions about themselves and how they’d like to be pitched in the future. Let them know that you’re listening by following their instructions. Comment on a blog post or repin/retweet something interesting they’ve shared so they see your name outside of their (jampacked) inboxes.

When you put the same time and care into your communications that influencers put into the content they write/post/pin/etc., you’ll start seeing results!

(photo via evachen212.tumblr.com)

When you’re a consumer-facing company, it’s important to remember the responsibilities that come with that designation – keeping up with the Joneses, sustaining the happiness of your employees and clearly delivering your overall brand message to the public. A key way to accomplish all of the above is choosing the right Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative that aligns with your business model.

As we have already seen, CSR programs are becoming key fabrics of any successful business. The realization that companies can and should play an important role in their communities—and across the nation and around the world—while making a profit, is quite a step up from the past.

That is awesome news because strategic corporate social responsibility executed well is effective corporate social responsibility.

Since I absolutely hate negative examples, let me share two positive ones. Take Skype’s social good initiative, Skype in the Classroom. Skype in the Classroom came into existence quite organically. Various teachers all over the world sent emails to Skype saying they used the service to share stories and projects with other classrooms around the world.

From the overwhelming response, Skype created Skype in the Classroom, a free global community that invites teachers to use Skype to connect their students with others to collaborate on classroom projects, as well as share ideas and inspiration. So far, Skype in the Classroom has 28,000 members and growing.

Another favorite is Godiva’s newly launched CSR program. As homage to their leading courageous heroine, the company recently launched the Lady Godiva program. This national and local campaign celebrates women who give back to their communities and inspire others with their selflessness, generosity and leadership.

This US program will recognize an inspiring woman and support the national charity that she is passionately committed to.  Godiva will also launch a local component through an online community, where regional nominations will be shared and allow Godiva to recognize and honor local community leaders and their causes.

As you can see from Skype and Godiva, these companies strategically chose the right CSR initiatives because they kept these three ideals in mind:

• The right CSR initiatives can increase your brand equity
• CSR does improve consumers’ view of firms when it’s seen as a good fit and socially motivated
• The most successful CSR programs are the ones that have consumer engagement

So, take note my fellow CSR hunters and choose wisely.

We all know that national print and broadcast are the “Holy Grail” to clients, but there is a certain allure to local and regional coverage as well. Perhaps it’s the appeal of having your grandma see your product mentioned on her local news channel or reading about your event in her hometown newspaper.

Whatever the draw, it’s undeniable that regional news has credibility to its loyal audience and therefore should be a target we take seriously in our outreach. Here are a few things I’ve learned to keep in mind when pitching locals:

1.       Do Your Homework

Especially when pitching local broadcast, do a quick Google search of the city before you dial. There might be sunshine in New York City, but a tornado watch in St. Louis. You’re not going to make any friends if you call in the middle of that. Also, if you were never quite sure where Tulsa was on the map, or how to pronounce Des Moines, now is the time to find out, so you can speak credibly about the city.

2.       Adapt, Adapt, Adapt!

I’m sure your PR cover letter said you were detail-oriented, flexible and adaptive. Put those skills to use when pitching local media! Especially on the phone, take cues from the person you’re speaking with. This will put them at ease, increase the chances that they’ll want to engage with you and hopefully, agree to what you’re asking. For example, when pitching media in Charlotte, NC, I found that I was more successful if I spoke slowly and started the conversation by asking the person how their day was going. In New York City, I’d get hung up on for that.

3.       1 Mile: 100 Miles

You’ve heard the observation that people are more concerned if one person dies one mile away than if 100 people die 100 miles away. Apply that to regional outreach. When pitching local breast cancer walks for the Avon Foundation, we generally have more success securing interviews for local breast cancer survivors than for the president of the Foundation. I know this may come as a shock to our New York-centric sensibilities, but sometimes even a celebrity has less appeal to the folks in your hometown than your grandma does.

Several weeks ago, a very prominent sports reporter tweeted that Twitter Chats were the place to be if you’re interested in working in the sports industry. Since I work with a few of Kaplow’s sports clients, I decided to participate in one. I thought perhaps I would gain some insight on cutting-edge tactics or interact with a power player to connect with at a later date.

So, for the past few weeks, I’ve spent my Tuesday nights with the folks in #sportsPRchat, going back and forth on the latest developments in sports.  What have I learned from my time spent with these folks?

If you are a student, these Twitter chats are EXACTLY the sort of thing you should be participating in.

Aside from the larger group conversation (easy to follow by tracking the #sportsPRchat hashtag), I found myself breaking off into side conversations with individuals who I either agreed with, or completely disagreed with. Most of these discussions occurred with current students looking for work after graduation, or testing the “PR waters” to see if it’s a profession they want to go into. In my eyes, these college students truly set themselves apart from the rest of the pack – what a great way to get noticed by professionals in the field and learn something while you’re at it.

However, I didn’t feel that I personally learned much – at least I didn’t walk away with any eye-opening ideas to use in my day-to-day work experience. That said, you cannot completely discount these sorts of gatherings once you have a diploma. They are a great means of networking with professionals from across the country, something that is normally reserved for awkward cocktail parties at nearby 3-star hotels. Through #sportsPRchat, I met publicists from five states and heard sports perspectives from fans in over a dozen states.

Cutting edge PR ideas – haven’t gotten any of those. A greater network of like-minded sports enthusiasts/professionals – goal!

Over the years, I’ve had many moments of revelation when I realize that my love for public relations stems from my passion for sharing compelling stories.

My first came when I was a little girl in fourth grade and I presented my book report for A Tree Grows in Brooklyn on parents’ night.  I will never forget what it was like to take a story and make it come alive for someone else; actually for 25 or so different parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends.  I remember one conversation in particular: after giving my spiel to one of the parents, he asked me my favorite part of the book. I told him that it was when Francie Nolan, the protagonist, was allowed to pour out half a cup of coffee down the sink every day to feel that they weren’t so poor, that they couldn’t waste something. The man I was talking to liked that scene and told me that even though he was 38 years old and this was a 4th grade class, he was going to read A Tree Grows In Brooklyn.  He told me I “sold” him through my enthusiasm for the scene.

I always wondered why this moment resonated with me.  I think the reason is, at that moment, I knew that I was destined for this business. Unlocking the joy in a story and sharing it with someone else is the basis of what we do at Kaplow. You hear it almost every day in PR and sometimes it’s the part of the story that no one saw at first glance.  It’s always about an emotional connection and I believe that it’s the heart and soul of this business.  It can take many forms today—from sharing a timeless brand’s story to unlocking the mystery and voice behind the world’s next great brand. One thing always remains the same: when you have an amazing story to share, it never feels like selling.

When April rolls around, it means one thing: Baseball!

Each April, thirty-two teams begin their quest for the Commissioner’s Trophy. Awarded to the World Series Champions since 1967, it represents the end of the marathon season a team must survive in order to be crowned champions.

As a Phillies fan, I catch a lot of flak from the Yankees and Mets fans in New York. But what I want to discuss goes beyond team allegiance; it’s about the love of the game and what is being done to bring fans more of what they love!

Professional baseball has survived world wars, recessions, several strikes and lockouts and a still lingering steroid scandal. Yet, it keeps on evolving and its popularity waxes more than it wanes.  Fans used to be able to catch a game for less than 50 cents. That is now a fraction of what a fan pays for a pretzel at Yankee Stadium! Fans used to huddle around radios or the television set to enjoy a game, but the internet has given fans the ability to experience baseball in a whole new way.

Major League Baseball (MLB) has played a significant role in this transition, finding new ways for every fan to enjoy America’s game – and it’s all because of social media!

• In 2011, MLB introduced the MLB Fan Cave: Two fans were chosen from a pool of 10,000 and given the chance to watch all 2,430 regular season games and the postseason, and provide unique insights on their experience through Facebook and Twitter.

• This year, a “Starting 9” was chosen to vie for a spot in the cave and fans will decide who stays and who goes, ending with a champion being crowned to report on the World Series. This takes the concept to the next level and creates celebrities and brand journalists out of everyday fans.

• In the early life of professional baseball, fans used to be close enough to the players to touch them. Social media brings that closeness back to the sport, and Major League Baseball has taken recent steps to ensure that players, coaches and front office executives can use social media in a fun, exciting and responsible manner.

Bravo, Major League Baseball, thank you for thinking about the fans first – it is my hope that professional sports leagues and other brands follow suit. And of course, let’s play ball!

A picture is worth a thousand words.

This is increasingly true for brands on social media. Last year Twitter prioritized images by bringing native photo sharing to the platform layout; Facebook’s newsfeed algorithm shows preference to posts with photos; and the new Timeline format allows brands to add a huge banner cover image to their pages. Not only that, but social sites based around visuals are taking off – Tumblr, Pinterest, Polyvore and Instagram.

The most photography-focused of these is Instagram, the iPhone app that allows you to take, edit and share photos with your friends. It was the first social app to cross a million users in just three months, and today, over one million users add the app each week. Why is it so popular? Everyone wants to be an artist and looking at pretty pictures inspires people!

Brands are now entering the Instagram scene by showing off images that convey their core message, without looking like they came straight from Corporate. The emerging role of brand journalists is helpful for this. They look at your brand as an outsider would, and create content (in this case, filtered photographs), that is real and that others will want to look at. Brand journalists are experts at finding these unique nuances and interesting facets of a company.

The beauty of a photograph is that a person can truly “get” a brand through an image, without the brand having to spell out the approved marketing messaging. Here are a few examples of brands using Instagram well:

Levi’s: At the beginning of this year, Levi’s announced plans to cast their next ad campaign using Instagram. Users of the service could take any photo of themselves and tag it #IAMLEVIS for a chance to star in the September ad. Here was their announcement image:

Tiffany & Co: To celebrate Valentine’s Day, Tiffany & Co. asked fans to submit their favorite images of love with the hashtag, #TrueLovePictures and it then created a gallery of the top submissions within its What Makes Love True microsite, full of real love stories, a playlist of romantic songs, and Tiffany’s Tips for “when love gets serious.”

The City of NY: New Yorkers are known for being smart and savvy, so the city’s latest campaign, an Instagram Facebook photo contest announced last week, is sure to be a hit. Users are encouraged to snap pictures of the reasons they love NYC with the hashtag, #loveNYC for a chance to have their photo featured in Times Square, the city’s Facebook, YouTube and Twitter pages.

An image allows you to capture your personality, your point of view and your purpose, all through a single snapshot. Don’t you feel like you understand these brands so much better after looking at these images? Gives me the warm fuzzies and makes me appreciate the brands (and the city I live in!) that much more.

The major barrier companies face when embarking on an Instagram campaign is that it limits exposure to iPhone users. It depends on your target demographic – campaigns using this platform will resonate better with Gen X & Yers, and those who enjoy social sharing and trying fun new technologies. Good news, though – Instagram should be launching on Android phones any time now!

Recently, I had the pleasure of attending the book launch of my renowned novelist friend, Agapi Stassinopoulos.  With the help of her sister, Arianna Huffington, and drawing on the influence of their Greek heritage and love of mythology, Unbinding the Heart is a beautiful collection of stories of Greek wisdom, generosity and unconditional love.  John and Margo Catsimatidis hosted the A-list event at Philip Johnson’s Four Seasons Restaurant in NYC in early February. The evening was filled with top industry editors, authors and celebrities who came to celebrate Agapi and her wonderful new book.

It’s only fitting that Agapi’s name means unconditional love in Greek as she has created a map of how to unbind your heart.  Through her book, Agapi hopes that by sharing her story, she can open the door for others to share their own.  In it she recounts 32 intimate, personal stories of her life, as well as the wisdom and fearlessness her mother raised her with.  For Agapi, one such instance came to her on a crosstown bus, going home after she did not get the part in a Greek play.  Instead of hanging her head, Agapi put on a show for her fellow passengers, performing the soliloquy of St. Joan and bringing her audience to tears.  That moment changed her life and she gave up her pursuit of fame to journey on for herself.  The book is a treasure not to be missed.