I’ve been out of college for a couple of years now. But, my thirst for knowledge has not been quenched. I’m always on the lookout for the opportunity to learn more. After all, being a member of the Emerging Media team means that I will always be challenged with changes in technology and the way we communicate with others. So lately I’ve made it a mission to set aside personal time to devote to learning more about the public relations industry. Here are a few resources that I have tapped in to lately:

Media Bistro – This site offers great courses taught by media professionals. If you sign up for the Avant Guild program, you will receive discounts on all of your classes. Programs range from PR to social media to copywriting to magazine writing. The content taught by the professionals is very informative. And there are weekly chat sessions scheduled with the instructor so you can ask any questions you may have about the topic. In addition to online classes, there are workshops held in a variety of cities including Los Angeles, New York City and Chicago. It’s also a fun way to network with other professionals in your field of interest.

Boulder Digital Arts – I am fortunate enough to live in a city that offers a program that teaches digital workshops in the evening. A major requirement of the industry is to have digital media skills. Many journalism schools are just now realizing that they need to add digital media to their curriculum.  The workshops at Boulder Digital Arts have made impossible software programs like InDesign, Dreamweaver and Final Cut Pro seem like a breeze. After spending endless hours trying to figure out these programs on my own, I discovered BDA and took a chance by attending a class. Within three hours, I had a comprehensive overview of how to use the program to suit my professional needs. Workshops like this are a huge time saver.

Books – While I haven’t upgraded to a Kindle yet, I do have a growing collection of PR books to inspire me. I frequent Amazon on a regular basis to see their inventory of PR, social media and marketing books and textbooks. Even if the book was published in 1992, I find some lessons in the books are timeless for our industry.  Plus, it also gives me hope that some day I can find time to actually write a book while keeping up with a busy public relations career.

Web Tutorials – Never underestimate the power of the Internet. With sites like eHow and YouTube, you can watch a video on how to do just about anything. Need to learn how to get over the fear of public speaking? No problem. There’s a tutorial for that. And I have been able to find a ton of digital tricks through watching videos that walk me step by step in to completing a task. The Do-It-Yourself movement has really taken off online thanks to these tutorials. And, the best part is that these videos are submitted each day so there’s always something new to learn.

Get out there and learn something new. Then come back and tell us about it!

It’s official. We have moved our NY office to a new and improved location. We are feeling refreshed and excited to work in this space. Thanks to all who made the transition much easier for us!

Our new address is 264 W 40th, Suite 802, New York, NY 10018

We think you should celebrate with us. So, turn up “Empire State of Mind,” by Jay-Z/Alicia Keys on your iPod and later watch some old episodes of Friends, Sex and The City, SNL and Seinfeld to remember all of the wonderful memories you’ve had or want to some day have in the beautiful city that is New York. We’re so thankful to work in one of the most amazing cities in the world!

March 15 is known to most as the ides of March.

It is the famous day when Roman dictator Julius Caesar was assassinated. In Shakespeare’s famous play,  Caesar was forewarned by a soothsayer to “Beware the ides of March.”

Since then, many people have become wary of the date. Legend has it that this day continues to bring bad luck.

At Turner PR, we find this day to be a celebration. March 15, 2010 signifies our 13th anniversary as a PR firm. We are confident that it’s going to be a “Lucky 13” year for us.

Many thanks go out to both our NY and Denver employees for making us “the best damn PR firm there is.” Here’s to another 13 years of success for Turner PR!

Given the state of the current job market, many students and recent grads are finding internships more valuable than ever before. As a result, the internship market is more competitive than ever. Trust us, we’re looking to hire some new ones in Denver (scroll to the bottom).

The bar has been raised and the qualification standards to land an intern gig are much higher than before.  Fear no more! Having been one of the many on a hunt for an internship in the past, I know what it’s like. However, I’m now in a position to hire them, so with help from the TPR gang, I have come up with 5 Ways To Rock a PR Internship Interview.

If you take these helpful hints seriously, you will be one step ahead of the list of intern candidates.

1. Do your homework. Don’t just look at our website for client lists; every other interview candidate will do that. Try looking for articles we may have placed for our clients, or check LinkedIn and Twitter for information about the TPR team. The more you know walking in, the more you will impress us. Also, do your homework on industry trends. Turner PR Denver focuses on the luxury travel and hospitality industries – read recent issues of Travel & Leisure, Conde Nast Traveler, Hotels – and know what’s hot and relevant in the industry now.
2. Proofread your resume, once, twice, a dozen times. PR is all about communication, so your resume is a direct reflection of your writing skill and attention to detail. Check your spelling, grammar and formatting and have three other people check it. Even one error is a red flag!
3. Dress to impress.  Don’t get us wrong – fashion creativity is awesome. But if you have anything questionable on – change.  As a PR professional, you are the face of your clients, so professionalism is always the most important look to convey.
4. Come prepared and be confident. If you aren’t confident in yourself, how can you expect anyone else to be? We want interns who are proactive and willing to bring ideas to the table. Be sure to convey this in your interview. Don’t be too rehearsed, but be ready to answer expected questions.
5. Follow up. Make yourself stand out from the crowd. Take the extra step to follow up with us after the interview. Send an email, drop a letter in the mail or stop by the office to personally give us a thank you note. Make us remember you!

If you’re looking to get your career started, consider doing so with Team Turner. Our Denver office will be hiring Spring 2010 interns soon, so let us know if you’re interested. Click here for details!

The Turner PR Denver team attended a luncheon yesterday about “The Digital Future of Travel Media:  Print, Online & Bloggers.”  Hosted by PRSA Colorado and PRSA Travel & Tourism, the lunch featured a panel of leading experts on digital travel content, who discussed issues surrounding travel media including:  the type of content that is surviving these days and the trends we can expect in 2010.

Overall, the tone was exceedingly positive and a wide variety of perspectives were provided, as each media attendee represented a very different area of the industry.

The media panel included:

• Kyle Wagner – travel editor of the Denver Post; an active blogger, tweeter and foodie.
• Lois Friedland – a freelance journalist, and editor of national and regional magazines and newspapers.  Friedland is also About.com’s adventure travel guide, and the Colorado Ski Resort Examiner for Examiner.com.
• Tim Shisler – a published writer, videographer, photographer, speaker and founder of Plus Ten Media, a digital content agency for outdoor and travel brands. Shisler’s work has appeared in numerous magazines, including Backpacker, Bicycling and Mountain Bike. (www.timshisler.com)
• Jason Hussong – an independent blogger who narrates stories about his travels around Colorado and the world at www.jasons-travels.com.
• Kara Williams – an award-winning freelance journalist with more than 18 years of national and regional print experience. She also is a founding member of both the successful www.travelingmamas.com and TheVacationGals.com.
• Kris Wagner – the map editor for Backpacker, Bicycling, and Mountain Bike magazines. His work in interactive media, GPS, and maps has garnered more than 20 web and publishing awards, including three national magazine awards. His research on the limited lifespan of digital gadgets was also published in Wired magazine.

Here are some of the key learnings:

• Travel trends we will see in 2010:  experiential travel, luxury travel deals/specials, volunteer travel, organized tours.
• As the media industry continues to evolve and print content decreases, the digital arena is becoming increasingly significant.  That doesn’t mean that print is totally dead (as some people love to claim),  it simply means that you shouldn’t ignore the digital world.
• Along with sending journalists a pitch from which they’d lift copy for a print outlet, send them a 40-character or less phrase that they can lift and use as a Twitter message to promote your story.
• Travel coverage may get more regionalized as local papers have fewer resources for national/international stories, and readers continue to take more driveable trips.  To this end, the future of print newspapers will be led by the larger, national dailies, with regional bureaus providing them with local news feeds.
• Travel content is more fluid than ever, and we’re seeing an evolution in formats. Audio slideshows, geo-coded maps and video are being used as regular parts of travel features.
• Not surprisingly, Twitter should be used to engage in a conversation with journalists and build a relationship, not just to push your ideas and pitches on them.