One year on and I’m still here!

So this week it’s my turn to write the blog. It conveniently coincides with my one year work anniversary. That’s right, I’ve been back at the University for one whole year! I can’t believe it either – where has the time gone?

How did I celebrate my work anniversary? Covering graduations of course! Last year I had been on the job for just over a week and I quickly had to get to grips with live tweeting and getting the message out to our local press contacts that the ceremonies were happening. I’ve now become a bit of a pro at the old live tweeting, which has saved me time and a whole lot of stress!

Last year may have been a baptism of fire, but it meant that this year, I knew what to expect and I was able to plan media activities and tweeting in advance. As a result, the engagement from @uobnews went through the roof. I think James Bay might have had something to do with that – check out what he had to say about receiving an honorary award.

And our hard work on promoting Graduations has paid off. Our efforts on 2016’s campaign have earned us a spot on the shortlist of this year’s CIPR PRide Awards. For those of you who don’t know, these awards celebrate the achievements of Public Relations professionals from across the country, working in a huge range of sectors.

We made it onto the shortlist of the Best Low Budget Campaign, which is extremely pleasing, seeing as our only expense for Graduations is photography, although we do pay for it with lack of sleep and frayed nerves sometimes.

So proud to been shortlisted for Outstanding In-House PR Team #PRideAwards @CJacobi16 @claudia_mayr1 https://t.co/E9UkcVFnl4

— UoB Press Office (@uobnews) July 21, 2017

I am over the moon with this nomination on a personal level as I worked hard on this campaign, having only been in the job for a matter of days, with the support of my fabulous colleagues of course. Their guidance was essential in helping me pull it off and at least give the illusion that I knew what I was doing!

We also made the shortlist for the Best In-House PR Team award, which is amazing news. Last year we were a team of two and a half people. This year, we were only two. We may be small, but my God we are mighty. To have our efforts acknowledged by our PR peers is an amazing feeling, even if we don’t win.

The awards ceremony takes place at the end of September – hopefully I will have a positive update for you then!

#PRideATC Outstanding In-House PR Team shortlist is @EastNorfolk @uobnews #PRideAwards pic.twitter.com/8wBYrPSnRC

— CIPR Awards (@CIPR_Awards) July 21, 2017