Friday, January 31, 2014

Feature Friday: Aysha Malik.

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  • Brea: Tell me about yourself.
Aysha: Hello! My name is Aysha Malik and I’m currently a senior at Shenandoah University, pursing a degree in Mass Communications with a Public Relations emphasis and an Entrepreneurship minor. It’s crazy that its already senior year- its been a fun ride but I’m ready to get out there into the real world!

I also serve as President for my chapter of Sigma Alpha Iota, a women’s fraternity focused on music and service. I’m involved with a lot of extracurricular activities at my school- people joke that I’ve never met a club/organization that I didn’t like.

  •  B: What do you like most about PR?
A: I love that it gives me the chance to promote people and organizations that truly make a difference. Some people do so much good and have so much to offer the world but do not understand the importance of media or how to really take advantage of their opportunities. I like to be that liason and love to see these people/organizations achieve their goals.

  •  B: How have you immersed yourself in the PR field as an undergraduate student?
 A: It was especially tough for me because my university doesn’t offer many classes in PR. It’s a small, private university so while the professors are amazing, they just cannot teach every single class. So, I took it upon myself to immerse myself. I learned a lot from other blogs from aspiring professionals, Twitter chats, and networking on social media. It’s amazing how helpful people can be as resources! After I felt like I had the basics down, I went out into the Winchester, VA community and started doing PR work pro bono for experience. I’m a kinesthetic learner, so doing this was such a good move for me.

I’ve also done about 4 internships already, all regarding social media and PR work for various offices at my school. I don’t even know if these internships existed before I did them, but if you can’t find opportunities, you gotta make them. Am I right?!

  • B: What have you learned from your internships that you would not have learned without first hand experience?

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

A PR Girl's Wish List: 8 Must-have Items to Survive in the World of Fashion PR.

    

by guest writer: Briea Curington

Public relations is, in not so many words, an unpredictable industry. From last minute pitches and cold calls to editors, to sending emails at 4:00 a.m. you just never know what each day will bring. While that aspect is one of the things I have come to love about the field, it is also the one that makes it extremely difficult to plan ahead of time.

Public relations practitioners are working hard to figure out the best way to capture a certain demographic in a rapidly changing environment. The only industry more off-the-wall than public relations is… fashion. Who can argue that, with trends adjusting and shifting every other week, outside influencers play a huge role in the industry. Even huge brands are investing millions in market research to better understand it! Now, if you throw both PR and fashion in the same room? You better watch out!

While girls have a knack for being prompt and poised and ahead of the game, we still need help from time to time to avoid the fast balls Fashion PR may throw.

Below are the top 8 items every Fashion PR girl must have: