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Join us in conversation on the topics we believe matter...to our industry, our city and our society.

Design Trends for 2016

By Kris Travis | Jan 14, 2016

Happy New Year! Do you have any big design plans this year? A rebrand, some new print materials, perhaps an updated website? I’ve been curious about what design trends to expect in 2016, so I looked around to see what the internet creative hivemind is saying. Here are some recurring predictions I noticed: Monochromatic Color […]

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Promote Your Client’s Business with Meetup, the Antidote to Traditional Social Media

By A.wordsmith | Jan 13, 2016

A client recently asked us about using Meetup.com to expand their reach. Meetup, if you aren’t familiar, is a social network that allows users to organize real life, face-to-face events. Think of Meetup as the antidote to traditional social media. If Facebook is diluting good old-fashioned friendship and Twitter disconnects us from our neighbors, Meetup […]

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Pinterest Increases Engagement for Brands

By Christy Caplan | Jan 11, 2016

In news this week is Pinterest. Both the Content Marketing Institute (CMI) and Social Media Examiner are saying that Pinterest is the fastest growing social media platform. A CMI post says that when compared to Facebook’s 6% member growth, Pinterest increases engagement for brands and experienced a huge 57% jump in members in 2014 and […]

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Audience Analysis: What to Do During a Presentation for Effective Communication

By Gretchen Hoffman | Jan 7, 2016

A few weeks back, we wrote about effective audience analysis and the role it plays in effective communication. More specifically, we went into detail about the first phase: before you are speaking in front of an audience. In this post, we’ll delve a little deeper into what to do during the second phase – once […]

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3 Tools for Staying on Top of News & Trends

By Natalie O'Grady | Dec 18, 2015

Working in public communications means you’ll likely spend a decent amount of time each week perusing news headlines, industry publications, and social media hashtags. In order to best represent your clients and find prime opportunities for coverage, you need to be aware of the top trends and breaking news. This includes public relations news, industry talk […]

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Don't do this: the worst brand blunders of 2015

By Kelda Rericha | Dec 15, 2015

‘Tis the season for recaps of the year’s best and worst! In recent year’s past, it has been easy to blame brand blunders on social media. Fast twitch communications developed by junior-level social media staff will always be a recipe for disaster. But the worst of 2015 features a diverse blend of goof-ups, many of […]

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Free Holiday Fonts

By Kris Travis | Dec 3, 2015

‘Tis the season for festive holiday cards, gift tags and party invitations. In case you’re going the DIY route, here are a few lovely and free holiday fonts that inspire the spirit of the season (without getting too hokey).* Enjoy! *Please note copyright permissions–all are free for personal use, while only some are free for both personal and […]

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5 Reasons PR Pros Can Be Thankful For Social Media

By Natalie O'Grady | Nov 26, 2015

As public relations professionals better understand social media metrics and analytics, we get better at proving these platforms’ worth to clients. Everyone knows social media is an integral part of a communications campaign now; even though the platforms shift and change, the need to have our clients on them remains. But necessity doesn’t mean social […]

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Audience Analysis: Get the Right Message to the Right People

By Gretchen Hoffman | Nov 24, 2015

Not long ago, A.wordsmith manager Lisa Lavora-De Beule published a useful post outlining 5 steps to enhance your public speaking. Every effective speech, however, shares a common beginning, one that happens long before the speaker gets to the podium: audience analysis. Understanding one’s audience is one of the most important elements of effective communication. It […]

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A Day in the Life of a PR Practitioner

By Christy Caplan | Nov 23, 2015

One of our clients, iFLY, Oregon’s only Indoor Skydiving operation, opened a few weeks ago, and I had the opportunity to fly in the tunnel this past Friday for the first time. As a PR practitioner I was nervous at first but the experience was life changing. I’ve been pitching the grand opening for weeks, and […]

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