Introducing Strategies & Tactics Live

We’re trying something new on PRSA’s LinkedIn account: Strategies & Tactics Live takes you behind the scenes of a story in the paper, offering further insights and takeaways with contributors, as well as conversations with interesting newsmakers.

Our goal with the livestream is to provide you with deeper clarity and context on articles and introduce you to our regular writers and fellow communicators.

We hosted our first segment on Feb. 17 with Mark Weiner, chief insights officer at PublicRelay, a media analytics company for communicators and marketing professionals. He is also the author of “PR Technology, Data and Insights: Igniting a Positive Return on Your Communications Investment,” published by Kogan Page in 2021. In our January issue, he wrote a piece titled “5 Ways to Measure PR Performance, Value and ROI.”

During the LinkedIn Live segment, Mark and I discussed measurement, research and analytics. Mark has contributed to the publications since the mid-1990s, and we have a very jocular relationship. So, it was challenging to always stay on topic! A playback of the event is now available on our LinkedIn page if you’d like to go back and watch it.

Look for more details about upcoming S&T Live segments on our @PRSAtactics account on Twitter, as well as on PRSA’s social media platforms. We hope that you will like this extension of our award-winning publication.

Sparking creativity

Speaking of LinkedIn, each month we pose a question here and reprint several of the responses in our What’s Trending section of the paper.

This time around, our question — What are the best ways to spark creativity or get into an innovative mindset? — prompted many readers to share what works for them. Here are some more thoughts to pass along, in addition to the answers you’ll find on Page 4: 

“Surrounding myself with nature. It helps enlighten my mind, and helps me think clearly and creatively.” — Jessica C.

“I walk or listen to music. (The type of music depends on my mood.)” — Lyndon Johnson

“Being a contrarian to the popular opinion, making it to be absurd, having fun being a radical and laughing at different outcomes until one makes sense.” — Tamar Lewis

“I deeply research the topic that I want to write about and promote. Often, I find that exploring different angles of a project uncovers tangents. Those spark creative directions that did not present themselves initially.” — Judith Drucker, M.A.

“Spending time around/with our youth. They are effortlessly innovative. Mentor a college student and you’ll be blown away by the creativity that flows organically from those conversations!” — Anna R. Chafen

“Travel — meeting new people and seeing new places puts me in a very creative mindset.” — Cynthia Portalatin 

“Asking good questions, if only to yourself. It helps create a space where we can (early mornings), or must (deadlines) focus.” — Nancy Wiggins

“Reading!” — Andres Muñiz

Commemorating 28 years

This month marks my 28th year with PRSA. (March 28 is the exact anniversary date!) I’m grateful for my time here, meeting so many people who have become an extended family of sorts. Thank you for being part of PRSA — and my professional journey.