This month’s Diary of a PRo features the fabulous Allyn Lewis of Relevé PR, a full-service boutique PR firm based in Pittsburgh. As owner of her own firm, Allyn has her hands in every aspect of running and working at a PR firm and is always open and willing to chat with fellow #PRgirls about any and everything.
What inspired you to work in PR?
I never dreamed of becoming a PR girl (hence the Psychology degree), I sort of just fell into Public Relations. I guess you could say PR found me rather than the other way around. When I started college, I was a Neuroscience major and had my heart set on going to med school. Outside of school, I had been pursuing modeling since high school. I loved how fast paced the fashion industry was as well as learning how to market myself as an untraditional model (not being a 00 and 6 feet tall). For fun, I began to get more involved with the production and promotional aspects of the fashion shows and photo shoots I was involved in. Some time after that, I met my former business partner during Pittsburgh Fashion Week. She began talking to me about this dream she had to start a public relations firm, and we just went for it! After a year and a half, I had developed my own set of dreams, aspirations, and values of what Public Relations should be like and decided to branch off with my own firm in May of 2014.
How did you get started in PR?
Aside from the story in my previous answer on how I got into PR, how I actually started becoming successful at it is completely different from most. I didn’t learn anything about marketing in college. I never had a PR internship. I never even had a job in any field remotely related to PR. While at the time that was scary, I now look back and realize how much value there was in being a clean slate. No one taught me what I was supposed to do, so instead, I had to learn it all myself. I had to figure it out. I got to find out directly what worked for me and what didn’t rather than having a professor or previous boss push their opinions on me. My skills were generated completely from passion, a genuine desire to learn and succeed, and an open mind. I’m sure some people out there would say that my lack of formal “education” and experience decreases my credibility in the PR field. I think, however, that my unique perspectives give me a creative advantage in the fresh approaches I can offer clients!
What is the best advice you’ve received about PR?
This isn’t exactly exclusive to PR, but “charge what you are worth”. PR is hard. Anyone who tells you otherwise isn’t doing their job right. Because it’s hard, you have to have your whole heart in it. Your motivation needs to be derived from passion and not money or the desire to live the so-called “glamorous” PR girl life. You’re also not Super Women – you can’t create more hours in the day or turn nagging clients to mute while you tackle your to-do list. Time is the most valuable thing you have in your career. How you spend it is up to you. When you start giving away your skills or letting each prospective client negotiate with you, you devalue your own skills and time. This then leads to the need to bring on more clients with an already full schedule so that you can barely manage to pay your bills. Even when you’re just starting out, you need to carefully consider how much time each project will take you and how much money you need to make out of that time spent so that you can keep working out of passion and not the struggle to pay rent!
What is a typical day like for you?
There is no typical day in the life of a PR girl. It’s different all the time. Some days I’m running to back to back meetings, some days I’m emailing and exploding on social media from my couch. Some days, I plan to catch up on my emails and then end up running to spur-of-the-moment meetings. You have to be ready for anything. You never know what curve balls will be thrown your way. While I do plan out my days, I also always try to have an emergency plan in my pocket on how else I could arrange my schedule in case my day gets out of control. This is also why you should never wait until the last minute to get things done. If you have the time now, do it because you don’t know what’s about to come up next!
What is your favorite thing about working in PR?
There are not any limits on anything (except for how many hours are in a day). It’s one of the few careers where the possibilities are literally endless. It’s always evolving and changing, which means I have to keep learning and growing as well. PR challenges you to be the most efficient and passionate version of yourself that you can possibly be, which ultimately carries over positively into other aspects of life too.
What’s your least favorite aspect of PR?
Those clients who pay me for my skills, but want to try to micromanage me and not listen to my advice. Side note, sometimes you just don’t click with certain clients and that’s OKAY. If someone doesn’t trust you or approve of your style, don’t be afraid to let them go or refer them to another publicist that they may fit better with. Keeping yourself sane has to be a priority!
What has been the highlight of your career so far?
Securing big
press placements for clients in huge magazines that I’ve been growing up reading religiously. It’s such an exciting feeling when you get a response of interest from an editor! I’m also very grateful that I’ve been able to attend and cover three seasons of
New York Fashion Week, each of which have been filled with experiences of a lifetime!
What is your dream PR job?
Exactly what I’m doing now!
What social media advice do you have for PR girls?
Social media is your best friend. Don’t just post to promote yourself and your clients, use it as a tool to build meaningful relationships. It’s another form of communication – just like emails, phone calls, and face to face meetings. Interact with editors – and not just to ask them if they got your email. Show a consistent interest in what they’re doing and treat them like they are a real person. A little bit of being personal truly goes a long way and shows a lot about the kind of person you are. The same goes with clients, if there’s a business you’re considering pitching services to, take some time to genuinely engage with them beforehand to show you’re a kind soul that cares about their brand and not a pushy sales person trying to make money.
What is in store for you in 2015?
Lots of exciting surprises! You’ll need to keep your eyes on us to be the first to see them! 😉
What goals do you have for 2015?
To focus on establishing a strong, close-knit team that is open to learning, adapting, and exploring the unique perspectives I have developed within the PR world.
What advice do you have for aspiring PR girls?
No one cares how hard you work, it’s all about results. It doesn’t matter if you spent 500 hours last month pitching to press, if you committed to your client (or boss) that you were going to have placements and/or leads, you better have them. Likewise, if you’re spending a significant amount of time on something and you’re not getting results, that’s a huge red flag that you need to reevaluate your strategy and try a different way to reach your goal. Be able to be honest with yourself and recognize when something you’re doing it’s working. Don’t sit back or keep going threw the same motions crossing your fingers something will happen. When you are able to accept something isn’t working, don’t get down on yourself. Focus on brainstorming new solutions and how you can actively go about applying them. You have to be open to trying new things and figuring out skills for yourself!
To learn more about Allyn, check her out
online and chat with her on
Twitter.
