Stop.right.there. Before you spend another moment pondering on what next to add to your public relations arsenal, let’s go over what already should be in there:
Left holster: Subscription to HARO, ProfNet, Pitchrate, NewsBasis, and Publicity Hound. Profile on Linkedin, Twitter, and Facebook and monitoring by Hootsuite or Tweetdeck. Short list of Twitter chats (#journchat, #pr20chat, #imcchat).
Blackberry, iPhone, or Smartphone. Free or paid press release distribution sites. The Yellow Book (not the Yellow Pages, the News Media Leadership Directories). Library card (especially for solo practitioners–where else can you access Factiva, Lexis Nexis, and other great resources). Alexa or Google Page Rank.
Backpack: YOUR media list. Note: I’m not talking about a paid list or directory that you or your agency paid for but YOUR media list that was built on your blood, sweat, and tears. These are contacts that you have relationships that don’t immediately delete your email or would report you for spam. Your laptop.
Right holster: RSS feed of your must-follow blogs and websites, PitchEngine or online press room, Mondo Times, Muckrack, your personal blog, your company blog, your website. PR software and monitoring. Membership to national and state organizations like PRSA. Meetup.com. AP Style book. Your favorite book–without it you probably wouldn’t be who or where you are today.
Bulletproof vest: Guards your heart because without it you would have buckled and quit after your first bad client encounter.
Helmet: Protects your dome. You have imagination, creativity, and smarts. You wouldn’t be in PR without it.
In your left hand: Coffee or a stiff drink.
Your posse: Your family. Your friends, Your colleagues. Your mentor.
What is in your PR Arsenal?
I like this one a lot. I especially like the authoritative (but friendly) tone you’ve taken here.
Great list of must-have resources. There is one it’d be nice to see you expand on a bit, however: the Twitter chats. I’ve sat in on a few, including #PRchat, I believe it was called, but I noticed that there were so many people participating, and the conversation so fragmented that I was difficult to pick up much. I’m guessing your experience has been different…
Perhaps in a future post, you might talk about how to get the most from Twitter chats. Just a thought, though.
Great list!! *page bookmarked*
This is a useful article about social media. I’m a student just trying to learn more about this business and I really enjoyed reading your post. Keep up the great work!