ARIZONA STUDENT PUBLIC

RELATIONS SOCIETY (ASPRS)

Meeting #1 Agenda

Introduction of Elected Board and

ASPRS members

Review PowerPoint overview of what

is Public Relations, what PR entails,
where to look for PR jobs and
internships

Discuss potential clients that we will

PRESIDENT: WHITNEY
BESTWICK
SENIOR, MAJOR: COMMUNICATION
MINORS: JOURNALISM, ESOCIETY
Her passion for a career in Public
Relations, began with her publicity
internship at NBC Sports last summer.
There the Princeton native, worked
alongside the 2016 Summer Olympic
Social Media team to help research and
create content that was seen by over 4
million viewers. Bestwick co-founded
this club with the goal of raising
awareness among University of Arizona
students about the roles and
responsibilities that come with working
in this industry. The Arizona Student
Public Relations Society will offer the
opportunity for students to participate
in real-life public relations situations, as
we work with students and local
business.
VICE PRESIDENT: MARLEY
MOOS
SENIOR, MAJOR: COMMUNICATIONS
MINOR: FASHION & CONSUMER
Her
SCIENCES
interest in the Public Relations field
began two years ago during her internship
with fashion label Badgley Mischka. She
enjoyed working in several different
departments within the brand, but
ultimately found her passion in the PR
department. She continued her path with a
PR- specific position the following year in
London, UK at another fashion label called
Zo Jordan, which is when she began to
realize how crucial a good PR team is any
company. Moos co-founded the Arizona
Student Public Relations Society with the
intention to raise awareness about the
industry and its many channels, and to
share what she has learned with peers
who want to go into the field but are
unsure of where to begin. ASPRS will
 LON
AVA
IZ P
R L
: INESS
U E
R : BUS
AS
TREIOR, MAJOT
R
N
SEN AGEME
MAN
Her recent internships have sparked
her interest pursuing a career in the
field of Public Relations. She worked
as a marketing intern for The
Chicago World Trade Council where
she was responsible for planning,
marketing, and executing corporate
events for different companies.
Elizabeth co-founded this club to
meet people with similar
aspirations, as well as to learn more
about the professional PR world and
to take advantage of the networking
opportunities. A dream job would be
one that incorporates her passion
 MARKETING DIRECTOR: ASHTON
UNDERWOOD
SENIOR,
Her career in Public MAJOR:
Relations MARKETING
began this
past summer, where she worked for a
small firm called Kucerak & Co. in New
York City. She worked with seven different
clients that ranged from fashion, to
fitness, to restaurants. Working with a
variety of clients gave her the opportunity
to see how Public Relations can be applied
to almost any industry. She worked
intensively for two months, helping the
firm with day-to-day operations. Ashton
has experience with daily media clippings,
creating weekly and monthly pitches to
clients, supporting the team with planning
and executing events, assisting with
monthly activity reports, updating media
lists, as well as researching blogs,
magazines, and website for clients. With
guidance from the K&Co team, Ashton is
confident in co-founding the Arizona
Student Public Relations Society to
prepare other interested students for a
 WHAT IS PUBLIC RELATIONS?
Public relations is about developing effective relationships and maintaining
a particular image. The reputation, profitability, and success of a product,
organization, or even an individual, can depend on public support of their
goals, policies or actions.
PR people are storytellers. They create stories to advance their agenda. PR
can be used to protect, enhance or build reputations through the media,
social media, or self-produced communications.
A good PR practitioner will analyze the organization, find the positive
messages and translate those messages into positive stories. When the
news is bad, they can formulate the best response and reduce the damage.
But how do PR professionals minimize damaging press and
enhance a companys reputation?
- Writing and distributing press releases
- Speech Writing
- Write pitches about a firm and then send them directly to journalists
- Create and execute special events designed for public outreach and media relations
- Conduct market research on the firm or firms messaging
- Social media promotions and promotions and responses to negative opinions online
 QUALITIES OF A GREAT PR
PROFESSIONAL
1. Be a strong communicator and relationship builder: Relationships are
everything in public relations. The basis of our industry is the ability to form
relationships and build rapport with clients and the media. Working as a public
relations professional requires you to be sociable, friendly and approachable.
Having meaningful conversations with people will show that you are genuinely
interested and will allow you to build strong relationships.
2. Be a good writer: Not only do you have to be good at communicating face-to-
face, you must have the ability to communicate well via written word. In the digital
age we are in today, its important to know how to professionally and comfortably
write a decent email, letter or press release.
3. Be informed: A key to finding success in public relations is knowing your client,
your company, the industry and the media like the back of your hand. Strive to
learn something new about your client or specific product every single day, so that
you are the most knowledgeable person in the room when it comes time to pitch
that particular story.
4. Be detail oriented: Pay attention to even the smallest of details. Carefully
planning out and meticulously reviewing all communication to the media will pay off
in the end when your client gets that positive media attention.
5. Be flexible :In this day and age, adapting to changes in the industry is crucial.
New technologies, new marketing techniques and new media develop and evolve
every single day, so its important to be on the ball and ready to adapt to these
changes.
HOW TO APPROACH FINDING A PR INTERNSHIP
OR JOB
Public Relations firms value initiative; if seeking a job or internship in
PR, it is important to proactively seek out opportunities rather than
waiting for positions to be posted on a job search websites.
Focus your search on the types of organizations that most appeal to
you, though dont focus too narrowly, as PR experience is easily
transferrable across different types of employers.
Establish and maintain contacts at firms or organizations of interest
through networking, informational interviewing, and interning. These
contacts will help in building a solid foundation in Public Relations and
help when you begin looking for full-time opportunities.
Additionally, follow firms of interest on social and professional
networking sites, and when appropriate, engage them in conversations
by commenting on their posts. This will help get the attention of the
firms and show your abilities to contribute to the dialogue on trends in
the industry, as well as demonstrate your comfort with various social
media.
*What to take away: Networking is Key!!! After you apply
to a job or internship search for any U of A alum that
work at that company on LinkedIn and reach out to them.
It often leads to referrals.
WEBSITES TO LOOK FOR PR JOBS AND
INTERNSHIPS
Wild Cat Job Link
LinkedIn Jobs (Download the app)
PRSA Jobs
Zip Recruiter
Velvet Jobs
PR Couture
PR Weekly
Glassdoor
Intern Queen
ODwyers: Inside News of PR & Marketing Communications

*Remember every single company needs PR, so if you are

interested in a company look up their website and then go to their
career page. PR opportunities are usually found under
PR/Communications/Marketing.
TOP PR AGENCIES
1. Edelman-New York, New York
2. APCO Worldwide-Washington D.C.
3. WE-Bellevue, Washington
4. Ruder Finn-New York, New York
5. Finn Partners-New York, New York
6. LEWIS-San Francisco, California
7. Racepoint Global-Boston, Massachusetts
8. Jackson Spalding- Atlanta, Georgia