“Mentoring is a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction.” —John Crosby

As grads pour out of colleges, armed with degrees in public relations, journalism, marketing and communications, we’ve received numerous requests for unsolicited interviews and jobs. Every time I read one of these requests, I can’t help but empathize. I am immediately taken back to times in my life where I was eagerly, anxiously and courageously trying to forge a new career path.

The rejection letters piled high and most were quick to say no with a simple, “Thank you for your interest is ACME Inc., however we have decided to go with another candidate.” Or, “Thank you for your interest. Although your skills are impressive, we currently have no openings. We will keep your resume on file.”

Michelle McGowan on mentoring

We’ve all received these cold form letters at some point or other. Always looking on the bright side, I figured these notices at least gave me some idea where I stood in the process ~ after all, at least they took the time to respond!

Now, after more than 20 years of being both the interviewee and the interviewer, and as a seasoned communications professional, I’ve come to realize we owe these grads more than some pleasant rejection letter.

Oddly, what has meant the most to me throughout my career is not necessarily the folks who gave me a job. Instead, it’s actually the ones who took the time to talk to me about their profession, whether they had a job opening or not. These are the people who left an indelible impression and gave me courage to move forward.

These thoughtful professionals showed me the power of networking and mentoring. These gestures are simple and our time spent mentoring is invaluable. By taking some time out of our busy schedules, we empower up-and-coming professionals. In pointing the way, we help build confidence in young people and we provide something sometimes more beneficial than a job; we provide hope and courage to pursue their passion.

I love the public relations profession and I hope I play a small part in bettering the profession by helping enthusiastic, young people find their way. Sometimes all I have to offer is the name of someone who may be hiring, or to point them in the direction of PRSA or Andrew Hudson’s Job List, or sometimes just answer questions about the real world of PR (which they’ll learn is miles away from academic PR). Regardless, I want to give them a sense that they are supported and have someone to turn to, just as my cherished mentors did for me.

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” —Maya Angelou

For those businesses diving into social media, you have probably realized how easy it is to set-up a Facebook or Twitter account. In my earlier post I cautioned against, Taking the plunge into social media without a plan. Today, I caution against falling into the trap of blatant self-promotion. Contrary to what appears to be a growing craze, a business Facebook page and Twitter are not the places to “pimp” your products or services.

Alex Marcoux on Social Media

Often, I see people getting frustrated when they don’t see immediate results from their business social media efforts. They wonder why no one follows them back or why they haven’t seen an improvement in their sales. Face it – who wants to follow someone who repeatedly pitches their products or services?

Social media venues are to build community with your followers and develop relationships with existing and potential customers. Social networking is to integrate technology and social activity, by sharing words, videos, and articles. Keep blatant product-messaging to other marketing arenas, like PPC (paid-per-click) campaigns or your website, but use social media to build community and become a trusted advocate within your network.

As hard as it may seem – nobody cares about your products – except you. In social media, it’s not about you – it’s about how you can be a value to your connections. This isn’t to suggest that you shouldn’t occasionally post a promotional message, but don’t keep regurgitating the message.

Here are some simple tips to build community on Twitter and Facebook:

• You’re an interesting person – share interesting things happening at your business or line of work.

• Retweet or post articles or video links that you find interesting or helpful.

• Tweet or post tips that your followers may benefit from.

• Share interesting quotes that may involve your area of business.

• If you blog about your area of interest, tweet or post a link to it.

• Respond to your followers’ direct messages and send direct messages to your friends or followers.

Social media is about relationship building. It’s not about quantity – it’s about quality. I’d rather have 100 good followers interacting with me than 10,000 people in which I haven’t a clue who they are. Use other marketing tactics to sell your products and leave Twitter and Facebook for building community.

Social networking is one of newest and best tools to promote your company. But, if it’s abused, you’ll quickly learn it’s a sure way to lose friends and irritate people.

Learn more about Alex Marcoux on Our Team page.  Follow M-Squared Public Relations & Marketing on Twitter.

Let’s face it, Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites have become the norm. In fact today, it’s rare to find anybody who hasn’t entered the game. According to the video, Social Media Revolution 2, based on the book “Socialnomics” by Eric Qualman, 96% of Generation Y has joined a social network and nearly 13% of married couples in the U.S. met through social media.

Alex Marcoux on Social Media

Another growing trend is the use of social media for business. When you look at the statistics, it’s ill-advised to think that social media is a fad. It took four years for 50 million people to use the internet, three years for 50 million to try I-Pods. In less than one year, Facebook added over 200 million people. Today, there are over 400 million active Facebook users and Twitter has hit more than 50 million tweets in a day. Additionally, people spend over 500 billion minutes per month on Facebook. When you look about these figures it is no wonder that business owners are recognizing the value of social media for their business.

We help small businesses with their marketing, public relations and social media, and while it’s clear that social media has become a standard public relations tool for businesses, I still see clients resisting to enter the game. Conversely, I also see companies jumping in head first because they fear being left behind. For those businesses taking the plunge into social networking, I routinely caution my clients to avoid a common mistake – proceeding without a plan.

Social networking is a commitment. While it may take little time to develop a site – it takes hours to execute your programs. Without a map to know where you’re going, and how you’re going to measure your results, you’re setting yourself up to invest a lot of time, money and to potentially become frustrated.

Have a plan. Set realistic goals and benchmarks and understand how you’re going to measure the social media site’s success. Know what you want to accomplish before you invest the time. Understand what you’re using as a control or baseline to compare “before and after.” The number of friends or followers will probably not be a good gauge for your ROI (Return on Investment) or success. Perhaps your success could be measured simply by the traffic going to your website, in which case use the tools available to you. You can find excellent material on Mashable, including HOW TO: Measure Social Media ROI.

For those business owners still reluctant to enter the craze, I’ve posted the video Social Media Revolution 2 (Refresh) below. Don’t get left behind, but before you move forward, be prepared and have a plan.

Whether you need training to develop or execute a social media plan, or you desire to get your website ranked using social media, blogging with SEO (search engine optimization), M Squared Public Relations & Marketing is positioned to assist your company to use this significant tool.

Michelle McGowan

 One of the greatest things about public relations is helping clients connect with the public in ways that show their generosity, community outreach and their genuine desire to make a difference in the communities in which we live.

This year’s Denver Hospice Mask Project is a prime example of how our clients “step-up, step out and shine” to make a difference
for all of us.

Right now, the Mask Project 2010 is on display at the Cherry Creek Mall in Denver. This brilliant display of art, features more than 400 masks created by renowned artists, celebrities, sports figures, community leaders and culinary experts.

M Squared is proud to say three of our clients: Rum Cakes By Kelli, Lola’s Sugar Rush and Missie Moosie are all participating. Not only have they created fabulous masks to represent their businesses, they have generously added significant value to their masks, by donating
their products which will also go to the lucky bidder! (See each mask for package details)

RCBK Yummy Rummy

Missie Moosie

Candy Spell

By supporting Colorado’s oldest and largest hospice — which marks its 32nd Anniversary this year — our clients are proactively helping people in our community dealing with end of life issues either for themselves, or loved ones.

As someone who’s benefitted from the comprehensive and compassionate services of Denver Hospice, I say thank you to the caring professionals of Denver Hospice, all the people who have so generously donated their time and talents to the Mask Project, and to all the bidders who make this such a successful event!

In addition to seeing the masks at the Cherry Creek Mall until May 2nd, the mask collection is available for viewing and bidding online. Bidding closes on May 2, 2010.

The Gala held on May 1st at 7:30 in the Cherry Creek Shopping Center (put on by M2PR’s rock star client, Kelli Kindel Events, Inc!) includes an evening of entertainment, festive décor, gourmet food and beverages, plus a lively auction of masks beginning at 7:30 p.m. on May 1, 2010 in the Cherry Creek Shopping Center, 3000
E. First Ave.