Kory Mello and Jon Backus

It’s been several weeks since PAN’s summer interns joined the staff here in Andover, and already they’ve made a big splash in the PR waters. Kory Mello and Jon Backus are both 2009 graduates of the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. Today, they share with us their experiences so far with PAN and the public relations profession.

How did you first hear about PAN?
Jon: I had the pleasure of taking two classes taught by Phil during my last semester at Syracuse. I loved how he spoke highly of PAN and used real-world examples from the agency in class and decided to take a closer look.

Kory: One of my professors mentioned that there was another professor at the school who runs his own firm in Andover—I was like, ‘Wait a minute, Andover?’ I’m from Dracut; I’m literally right next door. I attended a roundtable of Boston-area PR firms that Phil was hosting and he invited me to submit my resume for the summer internship.

What has been your experience at PAN so far?
Jon: I’m impressed by the variety of things that we’re given and challenged with. I’ve done media lists and competitive reports, but at the same time I’ve also edited video and helped on podcasts

Kory: I’ve also been surprised by the responsibilities and the different things that I get to do. I’ve never worked in an agency before—we read in a textbook about what you’re supposed to do (and what you’re not supposed to do), but to be able to get the hands-on experience here in my first four weeks is fantastic.

What does a typical day for you look like?
Jon: When I get to my desk, I open Outlook and my Google reader. It takes me a little while to go through my RSS feeds for relevant news and coverage, and when there is coverage I make clips right away. Other than that, my day includes activities like preparing competitive reports, building up media lists and helping out in the office reception area. We’re also starting to get into pitching.

Kory: I don’t know about you, but my day starts with coffee. Only then do I take a look at e-mail, Twitter and my RSS feeds. I also help run a portal for Airwide Solutions called Mobile Messaging 2.0, so I spend time reading and filtering through various articles.

What has been your favorite task so far?
Jon: For me, the Mirror Image team heard that I had video editing experience and asked me to help them pull together a video for the client. It was a lot of fun, and along the way I was able to teach them a little about editing as well. 

Kory: I was able to work on the First and Main project. We just had an event where they rebranded a new shopping center in downtown North Andover, where not only was I able to pitch the media, but also get involved in the event planning. Several of my reporters came to the unveiling ceremony and I got to work closely with them answering questions and even helping set up the cameras. I’ve never done anything like that before, but it was cool to be in charge.

Do you have any PR “pet peeves”?
Jon: Two stand out for me. The first is grammar. Obviously, everyone slips up once in a while, but there are simple mistakes that people make over and over. It makes me cringe. The second is when a client pulls out the “no comment” comment. There’s always something that you can say, even if it’s a blanket statement.

Kory: Definitely grammar. For instance, reading a press release or an article and seeing writers use the wrong homonym, misplace an apostrophe or forget a hyphen.

What do you like most about PAN?
Jon: Working at PAN, not many things go unnoticed. If you put work into something, someone is going to say something or appreciate you for it. It’s awesome how appreciative everyone is for everyone else. I also love how I can get along with every single person here.

Kory: The atmosphere here is fun. PAN has so many different things that it does, whether it’s workshops, interviews, the newsletter, brown bags or PAN Pub—there are always new things to help everyone stay on top of the game. It’s a friendly atmosphere, and it goes from the top down, starting with Phil.

What impact would you like to have in the PR industry?
Jon: I’d like to be another person in the PR field that does it right and can take away from the stigma that public relations has. Not everyone has it. I know a lot of reporters that greatly appreciate all the help that PR professionals do for them, but many others buy into this stigma.

Kory: I agree we’ve got a bad rap. And not only do we have a bad rap, but people wonder what we do. It’s awful, not even my family gets it. Changing that image—that’s my goal.

What’s your favorite source for news and information?
Jon: I don’t have a single source. I rely on my Google Reader—it has everything I need to know. In my down time though, my favorite thing to read is the Arts section of the New York Times.

Kory: I don’t know what I’d do without my Google Reader. Everything comes into my RSS feeds. I’m also constantly watching CNN and keeping an eye on Twitter.

This year, the internship program is being led by Senior Associates Susan Forshner and Mike O’Connell, who help manage the interns’ schedules and serve as the buffer between them and the teams requesting their assistance.

According to Forshner, the goals of PAN’s internship program are different this year. In addition to integrating Kory and Jon into the world of PR through various account and administrative work, they will have the opportunity to work closely with other departments at the agency as well.

“It’s going to be a three-pronged approach when it comes to gaining experience this summer. Our goal is to give them a broad experience over all areas—PR, marketing and new business.”

According to Yahoo, “Economists at Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley say the U.S. is heading for its first-blown recession in 16 years, and a recent CNN poll found that 57 percent of the public believe the U.S. is in a recession already.” So what does this mean for recent grads and first-time job-seekers? Not good. Come May, most of us won’t be reveling in our new grey cubicles and starched-collar corporate wardrobes. Instead, we’ll be sporting our orange and blue ‘cuse sweatpants and the top we slept in last night as we aggressively produce cover letter after cover letter from the comfort of our own home and ever-familiar MacBook Pro.

Don’t get me wrong…I’m optimistic us Type-A, Newhouse grads, will be just fine. After all, the people who work at the CDC (Career Development Center) will be out of a job if they don’t help us get one, right? All things considered, don’t fear the R-word. Stick to networking. And if all else fails, become a bartender at Chucks.