A Glimpse at Agency Life

Shoe allowance. The only two words that needed to be said during our Red Shoes PR, Inc. tour this past Friday to make me become a fan of the organization. I mean, don’t get me wrong, the company as a whole has certainly found its niche and has been running with it (in red shoes might I add), but offering employees a shoe allowance? What shoe aficionado, such as myself, could image anything better? I was hooked the remainder of the visit.

On March 12, PRSSA members were given a tour of the small, full-service public relations agency, located in Appleton, and was able to see not only the perks of being a Shoes employee, but also what the organization offers its clients. The agency focuses on content development, media relations and social media and by the looks of it, is doing so quite well. Started in 2008, the company is on the fast track of success. Just take notice of the Starbucks coffee machine in the corner; a sure sign you have made it.

The agency visit was a beneficial event for PRSSA students, allowing us to learn about the agency life. The informal visit gave students the opportunity to ask questions and discuss public relations with two friendly, knowledgeable public relations professionals, Karen Buckoski and Rachel Wollersheim.

The discussion sparked great conversation about the public relations field and allowed for the Shoes women to pass on some insider knowledge. A great tip they shared was to ensure that we, as public relations professionals, keep up to date on national news, as it can be beneficial to clients locally. Also, they advised us to Google ourselves. A somewhat strange tip, but proved important after the women explained the importance of search engine optimization (SEO) not only as a tool for public relations professionals, but employers as well. Making ourselves easily accessible on Google shows that we are familiar with the magnitude of SEO. Two very sound pieces of advice.

The agency is also very receptive to mentoring students. They welcome anyone interested in job shadowing and invited us all to keep in touch. You can become a fan of the agency on Facebook: facebook.com/redshoespr and follow them on Twitter: twitter.com/redshoespr. For more information about the organization, visit their Web site http://www.redshoespr.com/.

Red Shoes PR will also be visiting UW Oshkosh PRSSA on April 1 to give a presentation on social media. I hope to see you all there.