There are many, many great iPhone 4 reviews piling up, so I’ll spare you another one. But I am getting asked one question over and over again: folks want to know if they should dump their new Droid Incredible and formerly new iPhone 3Gs for Apple’s shiny new toy. You’ll find my answer over at HerNashville.com

I will add here at FlackRabbit that from the public relations practitioner perspective, the iPhone 4 and devices like it could allow us to use use new media to tell our clients’ stories in a much more nimble and timely way.

For instance, I think it’s freakishly cool that you could shoot quality video of a client event, edit it with iMovie, add a caption and relevant key words, and then upload it to YouTube–all from your iPhone 4. If you don’t have time to get back to your desk between meetings, it’s okay. And your client will think you’ve cloned yourself. Read More…

The July issue of Her Nashville magazine is here! For those of you unable to hop over to Nashville and pick up a copy, surf on over to the Her Nashville website. There, you’ll read my/the Chic Geek’s thoughts on the importance of surrounding yourself with positive people:

I have an incredibly kind and encouraging foundation comprised of my husband, family, friends, bosses (past and current), and mentors. The power of their kind gestures and encouragement is immeasurable; it has made me the confident, positive person I am today, and I experience that positive power nearly every day.

Do you?

If you almost said “yes,” then thought “not really,” and then quickly started defending the intentions of negative folks in your life, I encourage you to begin seeking out and surrounding yourself with kind and encouraging people. Read the full column here!

I hope you’ll find this column just the motivation you need to wash away negative influences and bathe your soul in the uplifting people who know and love you. I promise your heart, career and health won’t regret it! Read More…

I’ve been tremendously fortunate to have smart, candid folks looking after my best interest early on and throughout my PR career. Here’s a list of six statements various mentors–including bosses, friends and family–have made to me. I’m ever so grateful; I would not be where I am today had they not uttered these words:

“Your writing sucks”–if one of my first bosses had not been so honest, I would not have made it my mission to become a strong, confident writer. I promise to keep working at it, SH.

“You interrupt people too much”–I like to talk. Thankfully, one of my early mentors told me to take a breath and listen to folks more often. That Lady is a one smart lady. But um, I’m much better with not interrupting folks at work than I am at home…sorry, honey!

“You are memorable”–when hear these words, it is always an “ah-ha!” moment. It’s true, folks I work with usually don’t forget me–for better or for worse. Now I realize that my memorable personality is half of what makes me a successful public relations professional; once you understand your unique skill set, you can then learn how to leverage it to achieve your goals. Hat tip to Barbara, Dave, Joe and John for helping me figure this one out.

“If someone asks for your opinion, give it”–you are a PR pro, not a “yes” man. If someone asks for your opinion in a meeting or your edits to a document–give them. With confidence. If you truly don’t have anything to contribute, re-assess your role in the project. Wise words from a wise gal. Thanks, Jen! Read More…

Nothing brings out the worst in folks quite like anonymity. Under the misguided belief that the Internet was created to catalog negative comments and painfully poor grammar, Internet trolls rant and pillage the Web–and leave in their wake you, with a helpless, panicky feeling.

Every public relations person has a different theory on how to handle ridiculous, demeaning and downright false comments; here’s mine:

Don’t delete: folks have the right to disagree with you–even they are snarky and mean-spirited.  As long as the comment isn’t a threat, patently offensive, spam, bigoted, libelous or keeping you awake at night, leave it be. These are comments from trolls, not statements from the Pope.

Count to 4,567: as bad as the troll’s comment is and despite how angry/hurt/sad it makes you, it’s not the end of the world. Take a deep breath, step away from the computer and think before you respond.

Just the facts, ma’am: should you decide to respond to the the troll in a comment of your own, do so with a level head, refuting the troll point-by-point using factual statements with as little emotion as possible (Trolls hate that). Under no circumstances are you to fight with the troll or engage in it in sarcastic comm-versation.

Use your real name: transparency is key when responding to an Internet troll. When you respond, it should be under your real name. In my book, if your comment is anonymous it doesn’t count–and you’ve become a troll, too. Read More…

One minute I’m minding my own business, the next, PR rockstar Amanda Littlejohn has somehow found a way to include me and the DC Flacks in an impromptu Mopwater PR + Media Notes and DC PR Flacks: Coffee for Media Pros DCWEEK event. I love that woman.

If you’re going to be in the DC area on Tuesday, June 15 at 4 p.m, join me, Amanda and Gia at the Corner Bakery Cafe at 1828 L Street NW from 4 – 5:30.

For those who don’t know, tonight marks the launch of Digital Capital Week (DCWEEK), a 10 day festival in here in DC focused on technology, innovation and all things digital.  It’s such a thrill to be a part of the DCWEEK schedule; thanks for thinking of DC Flacks, Amanda! Read More…

If you are a professional communicator, you MUST maintain your own personal slice of the Internet. (You can’t convince a client, boss or co-worker of the importance of online reputation management if you don’t even manage your own online reputation.)

More than a blog, you should have an online portfolio to communicate to the world your talents, skills and experiences. Creating an accurate, impressive web presence is especially important if you are on the lookout for a new job/client. And let’s face it, if you’re a good communicator, you’re always networking for the next opportunity.

Before you panic–or send me more emails about how you don’t know how to create a website, nor have the cash to pay someone to build one for you–I’ll remind you of a little something called Linkedin.

Linkedin is free, it boasts a fabulous Google Page Rank and now features most of the bells and whistles you’d want on your website (like syncing with your Twitter account). So, mosey on over to your Linkedin profile and start spreading your news. And please, don’t be so humble; tell the world all about your irreplaceable skill set and achievements. Seriously, tell us. Because if you don’t, who else will? Read More…

In the June issue of Her Nashville Magazine, I offer up my favorite tech toys for your summer travels and sun worship. Here’s a teaser:

Get Inspiron-ed
Hitting the road with the fam, but still desperate to check Facebook and your online bank account balance? Dell’s itty bitty Inspiron Mini is the perfect solution. Don’t get me wrong, I’m an Apple gal. I’d love nothing more than for you to run out and spend $599 on an iPad, but I’d DIE if ever I found out you took The Precious anywhere near water. Or sand. Or your fifth piña colada. So, the more practical alternative is the Inspiron Mini; it’s only $279 and surfs and sends like a champ. This way, when your toddler puts her sticky little paws all over it, your boyfriend sits on it, or your girlfriend accidentally drops it in the lake, you’ll be sad, but you won’t spiral into a murderous rage. See? It’ll keep you connected AND out of prison. Sweet!

READ MORE.

And speaking of the iPad, Team Newman remains conflicted about adopting one into our technology family. I’ll keep you posted on our progress. While you wait for a resolution, you can read all the past Chic Geek columns here! Read More…

{In today’s guest post, Stacey Viera asks how you feel about bringing gifts to an interview. Is gifting brown-nosing, ignorance or smart marketing? Participate in the poll after the jump.}

Recently, I learned from a colleague at LyonsPR, a Washington, D.C.-area firm specializing in radio, that an interviewee for their summer internship slot brought brownies to the interview.

I thought such a gesture was a fluke, a desperate attempt to get hired in an incredibly competitive industry in an even-more-competitive town. I’ve hired and been hired for jobs and internships since I was a teenager, and never once have I come across a similar situation.

But then journalist Jeff Sonderman at the new TBD.com news organization noted on Twitter that a potential hire sent flowers after an interview. I wondered aloud what the accompanying card read. “You had me at ‘hello!’” was my snarky guess. Read More…

A couple months back, I called for guests posts offering up your take on PR, social media and communications; I received a delightful response and I’d like to do it again. This time, I’m looking for submissions on four topics:

The importance of internal communications

How a mentor has shaped your career

The trials of being someone’s “replacement” at a new gig

What’s next in journalism

I’m interested in thoughtful posts that are no more than 400 words; please include a short bio, too. You may email your submission to margie (at) flackrabbit (dot) com. All opinions are welcome–even by folks who already have their own blogs.

A clever headline every now and then is nice, but if you look at your blog and find that every post’s headline is nothing more than a vague pop culture reference and/or shout-out to an inside joke, it is a disservice to your readers.

Your headline is especially important if you are only sharing a partial snippet of each post in your RSS feed; if I subscribe to your post and can’t tell what it’s about from the feed headline, why would I click on it? I probably won’t. Same goes for the short teaser to the links you’re sharing on Twitter, FriendFeed and Facebook.

I’m not advocating “link baiting.” I’m tired of seeing cute/funny/pithy headlines that in no way explain to what the heck it is people expect me to click on. Pointless blog headlines are an epidemic these days; I’m not clicking on those posts…and I’m unsubscribing from those feeds. Read More…