Managing the Media for an Event

If you're interested in tips on how to attract media publicity to your resume writing or career coaching business, then read on!

One great way to attract publicity is to sponsor an event, such as a career-oriented workshop.

One key consideration is how to manage the media for your event. Here are some tips to help you prepare:

1. Once you've set the date and time, invite the appropriate representatives from local television news programs, daily newspapers, industry or trade publications, etc.

2. Determine in advance if media will be invited as guests to the entire event or just a particular segment of it. If media are invited to cover only a specific aspect or portion of the event, be clear about this in your invitation. Make sure to allow plenty of time for media members to arrive so they will be able to capture the action and key aspects of the event.

3. Remember to count media members in your food and beverage calculations. Also figure out if you want them to sit in a specific place (TV camera operators in particular will need a spot with a clear view of the "stage" or "podium.")

4. Ask the media in advance what their deadlines are, and keep those in mind when creating the event schedule. For example, if an event is to be broadcast on the evening news, the film crew and editors will need time to create an appropriate clip.

5. Prepare media kits ("press kits"). This can include biographies of you and any other speakers; background information about the event, host organization and sponsors. Be sure to keep track of media no-shows so that a press kit and follow-up correspondence can be mailed to them.

— Excerpted from "Meetings and Conventions" magazine.

Wendy Enelow Leaving Career Management Alliance

Wendy Enelow has announced that she is leaving as Executive Director of the Career Management Alliance, effective Dec. 31, 2007. Wendy was the original founder of the Career Masters Institute (CMI), which was acquired by Kennedy Information. Wendy had returned to helm CMI in January 2007.

In an e-mail to members, Wendy wrote:
I love the fact that Career Masters/The Alliance and I have perhaps, to some degree, helped you to succeed in your businesses and your careers. The satisfaction I get when I hear how well one of our members is doing really does make me feel great. I find tremendous personal pride in knowing how far our industry has come over the past 20+ years as I have watched my colleagues grow, expand, launch new ventures, create new opportunities and so much more. What a magnificent group of people you all are and what a vibrant community we have created.

Liz Sumner will be taking over as Executive Director, effective January 1, 2008.

Bonnie Partridge will continue as The Alliance's Membership Services Director, while Liz will be taking over the E-Bridge, coordinating the associations' weekly teleseminar and webinar programs, responding to member inquiries, exploring new member opportunities and developing new programs.

Enelow says she will continue to write, teach, and serve clients.

Interview Questions to Assess the Candidate's Teamwork Talents

Is your client prepared to answer these eight questions designed to assess his or her teamwork talents?

1. Describe your relationship with your supervisor, your peers, or your subordinates (if applicable).
2. What would your present supervisor say about you? How about your peers? How about your subordinates (if applicable)?
3. What was the most difficult work relationship you encountered during your last job (or career)? How did you handle this difficulty?
4. Without using names, describe two or three of the worst people you've ever worked with. Why were they so hard to work with? How did you manage to work with them?
5. What do you look for in a supervisor? In co-workers?
6. What kind of supervision do you need?
7. How did your supervisor give you feedback in your last job? How did your peers assess your work?
8. Give me an example or two of your teamwork skills.
   

-- Reprinted from "50 Great Interview Questions," Richard G. Ensman, Office Solutions magazine, November/December 2006.

Craiglist Charging for Employment Ads

For the past month, Craigslist began charging $25 for help-wanted ads in 11 markets, including Sacramento. The effort is not one to raise revenues, rather, to improve the quality of the employment ads posted.

According to an article in the Sacramento Bee, The fees don't represent a change in philosophy for Craigslist, which is a for-profit corporation but styles itself as a quirky nonprofit "community." Rather, the San Francisco-based site said the fees will weed out the "duplicate and illegitimate ads" and make the remaining listings more effective.

According to the article, "Craigslist's free ads have helped fuel a massive migration of classified advertising to the Internet, a trend with enormous implications for the newspaper industry. Publishers such as The McClatchy Co. of Sacramento, which owns The Bee, have reported significant drops in classified ad revenue in the past year or so."

We'll have to watch and see if the charges reduce demand on Craigslist and if this has any impact on online job-related advertising.