#HAPPO Friday! Lessons in Reaching Out from PR
This week, Gawker’s Hamilton Nolan posted about “The (Potential) Intern from Hell.” It was one of the most popular posts among Gen Y tweeters as I saw it spread around my Twitter feed like wildfire. Even as I’m writing this post, I asked my Twitter followers for the link to the Gawker post and they responded in less than 30 seconds.
So, what makes this post such a favorite among the Gen Y community? Many cannot believe how unbelievably brazen and audacious this job seeker was in his e-mails. After reading the potential intern’s correspondence again, I am also taken aback. With such a difficult climate to obtain a job, how could this individual be so bold and inappropriate?
Let me present to you the flip-side of those Gen Y job hunters who do take the correct approach: Help A PR Pro Out (#HAPPO). Last February, Arik Hanson and Valerie Simon, both incredibly established public relations professionals, saw the need to help out other PR pros find better opportunities to grow their skills. After the official #HAPPO day, the movement garnered more than 9,963 tweets and more than 10,000 mentions in social media. The actual number of PR pros that have found jobs are not certain, but many connections were made and it was a successful event.
The exciting part about this is that tomorrow, #HAPPO is targeting the class of 2010. #HAPPO champions have been tweeting and asking Gen Y PR entry-level job seekers to submit their online portfolios and state their case for employers to hire them after they graduate. Many champions have also been blogging about the do’s and don’ts of networking. Employers in public relations discovered that, in order to effectively reach out to Gen Y, they needed to be creative and allow job seekers to flex their creative muscle in return.
As a mentor, I would rather see this “potential intern” in the Gawker post take the #HAPPO high road than the path they are on. It can be incredibly difficult for employers to network with Gen Y, especially if they might expect a response such as, “I’m sorry your [lack of professionalism has] gotten us off on the wrong foot.” Instead, other industries need to take the example of #HAPPO and empower Gen Y to knock employers’ socks off.
Note: If you’re looking for great public relations professionals, feel free to e-mail me or search #HAPPO tomorrow on Twitter. Also, Heather Huhman is going to feature online portfolios at HeatherHuhman.com.
About the Author
Amy Liz Martin is a PR professional whose work centers on social media, media relations, corporate relations, publicity and cause-related PR campaigns. Amy was a fundraiser and event communications chair for the American Cancer Society, ran small development and communications campaigns for the International Center for Journalists, and led social media publicity efforts for artists at EMI CMG Label Group. She earned her master's degree in mass communications/public relations at Louisiana State University and is a member of the Public Relations Society of America.
