Starting in 1995, I felt integrated messaging – earned and paid – made an incredible amount of sense, and my career became a hybrid advertising and public relations. My experience includes business launches, copywriting & web content, creative direction, branding, rebranding and budgets – and public relations including communication planning, news release writing and media relations. Today, I read a lot about how this is a “new” thing.
Beginning in 2015, a friend suggested I contact an author in need of help formatting his book for self-publication. He then needed assistance in building a WordPress site. Since then, I have become an expert in Office WORD for Mac offering copyediting, formatting and manucript preparation and I enjoy hands-on development of Facebook business sites and WordPress web development.
I guess you can say that I’ve evolved along with the industry, continuing to learn and experience the changes we’ve seen in technology as well as messaging, just showing that old dogs do learn new tricks. Arf.
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Fun facts:
- My first position in public relations was actually in the late 70s, supporting a New York theatrical press agent.
- I was the first deejay on Holland-America’s flagship the ssRotterdam; I played disco records in the Sky Bar with dimes taped to the turnable arms to keep them from skipping.
- In 1980, I lived two blocks away from the Dakota and heard the shots when John Lennon was shot.
- My partner (now spouse) and I just celebrated our 40th anniversary together. We moved to Asheville, NC after 9/11. We were living in DC at the time.
- In high school, the first computer I worked on created punch-cards. The first computer I owned had a 40mb (not a typo) hard drive, which was 14″ x 14″ by 6″ high, an amber 12″ monitor and a 12 pin printer. It cost $3500.
- In college, I had to stand in-line at the bank on Fridays to cash a check in order to party on the weekend. There were no ATMs.
- I learned to type on a manual typewriter. Copies were made on carbon paper.
- I’m left-handed.
- I record (DVR) all broadcast television so I can avoid interruptive advertising.
I earned my accreditation while serving on the board of the Florida Public Relatons Association in 1994, joining PRSA in 2000. I became a member of the International Association of Business Communicators in 1997. I have always followed the PRSA Code of ethics (sometimes a slipper slope!) when dealing with “marketing” and advertising messages.
