Without bothering to research it and without questioning it, everyone would agree with me based on our tacit knowledge of China that it is one of the oldest civilizations on Earth.

As public relations professionals, you come to dread the cliché “grip and grin” photo opportunity which clients love. And why shouldn’t they?

“You can’t punish me today because it’s International Day of Happiness,” says Karla, after I told her I was going to take off my belt because of the outstanding assignment she was working on. I thought that this was a ruse to get out of the bind she was in but nooooo, it really is international happy day.

Being a professional communicator, I have used Twitter lots of times. I promote it to my clients at PRMR Inc. because social media is important. You need to monitor and respond to your stakeholders, and you need to feed them information in the mode that they prefer. Yada yada yada.

Bridgetown, Barbados – In just 14 days, the Glasgow 2014 Queen’s Baton will arrive from Guyana, the 42^nd of its 71 Commonwealth destinations. Barbados will provide an integral link when it welcomes the baton as it travels on one of the most engaging relays in the world. Today the Baton is currently travelling through St. Helena (an island in the South African Ocean).

It’s no secret. The continuing unfavourable economic environment and increasing scarcity of financial resources have combined to make the attainment of corporate goals even harder.

PRMR Communications Consultants are participating in a month long campaign to raise awareness about global hunger. The #WatchHungerStop campaign is an initiative spearheaded by global luxury brand Michael Kors and this year social media played an integral role in spreading the word and raising awareness.

At PRMR Communications Consultants Inc. we have often had to deal with clients facing a crisis. In most cases, at both the individual and the company level, no one is quite certain how to discuss a controversial topic. Crisis communication is seen as scary and intimidating.

PRMR Communications Consultants recently attended the IABC World Conference in New York. Just before we left, everyone was buzzing about Facebook and the introduction of the #hashtag. Was this the move that would crush the competition from Twitter, Tumblr and other platforms? Or was Facebook losing focus?

PRMR Communications Consultants Inc. has long been an advocate for healthy lifestyles and wellness. We have a passion for health and as an organisation based in Barbados we are particularly aware of the problem of chronic non-communicable diseases (CNCDs) facing the Caribbean right now.

Soft skills have become even more important today with the explosion in popularity of the various social media platforms.

Communication is as much non-verbal as it is verbal. Numerous books have been written about this subject and it is amazing what research has revealed.

Communication is all about emotion and what better way to bring that out than through a video.

As a communications consultant, have you ever walked into a meeting with a business and at the end of your pitch been asked – “What is the ROI if we utilise your services?”

Bridgetown, April 12, 2013 - The Barbados Olympic Association (BOA) received an official visit from the Chinese Ambassador to Barbados, H.E. Mr. Xu Hong, on Tuesday.

Public relations companies and communications consultants are often faced with moral dilemmas.

Bridgetown, Barbados – March 25, 2013 – After four decades of outstanding service to the shipping industry in Barbados and the Caribbean, Mr. Glyne St. Hill will be testing the waters of retirement this year. At a recent ceremony hosted by the Barbados Port Inc. (BPI), St. Hill’s contributions to the industry were celebrated and he was hailed as a stalwart and pioneer.

Maintaining ethical principles in the pursuit of business goals – A Public Relations Perspective

The Bridgetown Port recently welcomed its 10^th inaugural visit from a cruise ship this season on Wednesday, February 13, 2013.

I have been pondering on what I wanted my first blog of the year to be about. Should it be about public relations, my other personal interests or should it be about the resolutions that I have made for 2013. It is January 15 and I have finally gotten over my writer’s block thanks to Linked In and Richard Branson. Having just read Branson’s blog on making lists I had an “aha” moment.

Purpose is what gives us the strength to carry on, if not through dire conditions, then through difficult changes, transitions, and situations.

It’s World Diabetes Month! With 3 in 10 Barbadians being diabetic the day (Nov. 14) should probably be declared a public holiday on the island. We at PRMR Inc. try to do our part through the Diabetes Today Magazine.

Right now I am stuck between a rock and a hard place. Do I go after my dreams or do I further my studies based on my promising future in office administration. It may be strange to hear but I do like working as an office professional. Then again I am starting to really become interested in event planning, should I go after that too. I love to cook and think the world or at least Barbados should know about it. Its been a while now since I did any real cooking I was a little depressed for over a year about the direction of my life and stopped baking and cooking. A little rusty now I guess.

Have you ever felt like no matter what you try to do your life was a routine? Work, home, sleep, work, home, sleep and the cycle just continues to be the same. Sometimes I just think it’s my laziness that stops me from getting up and going out there and making life more than routine but enjoyable. Most times I stay at home going crazy with boredom just because I cannot be bothered to move.

In 2006 I was the proud recipient of a driver’s permit. However, at 2012 I am not the proud recipient of a license. How pathetic, some may say, but I guess in my mind it was something I could always get and I kept on putting it off.

Have the young people in our society forgotten their manners? The first thing we are taught is how to address someone in authority.

How much money, advocacy, brokering and creativity went into making Wendy’s pigtails news? That was the question that popped into my mind when my daily Genieo pop-ups flagged the tittle “Wendy’s Pigtails Are Getting A New Tweak”. Of course that is an excellent headline for sparking anyone’s curiosity so I clicked on the link and read the news which lead to a video feed, and guess what? The video clip was of ABC reporting on Wendy’s pigtails. ABC! Can you imagine that? Excellent work Wendy’s PR team!

Even within a small communications company, communications can be ineffective. My boss always says “come on, we are selling communications we must be able to do it ourselves effectively every time.” Of course this is not always the case because effective communications is not simplistic. As human beings we communicate with every inch of our being and sometimes our intentions and what we communicate do no not match, there is a disconnect. Emails can be worst, as what we write may not be interpreted in the way we intend.

“No man is an island!” This is one of my favorite sayings and with this as my mantra my goal after successfully completing my IABC accreditation was to get other professionals through this daunting but highly satisfying process. When five or more persons get together to do accreditation from a single chapter it is called an Accreditation Completion Program (ACP). The benefits are that you get a discount on your registration, you have a senior leader to help you through the process and of course a community, so to speak, of other individuals doing the program that you can use as sounding boards.

One of the most demotivating and demoralising experiences in any working environment is dealing with a moody employee, be it your boss or a co-worker. Sometimes it seems as if they are directing anger from their personal lives toward you.

I am a firm promoter of the saying “Perception is Reality” after all, it is the business that I am in and I have even used this phrase in the PRMR Inc. slogan.

Working at PRMR Inc., I have come to love the work that I do for the first time. Not only do I want to come to work in the morning but also I actually wake early enough to make breakfast and eat it before leaving home. This has never happened before.

Organizations should strive to have a culture that embraces change. This is important so that when change comes, as it always does, employees would not sabotage the organization because they already operate in a culture that is dynamic. In situations like mergers and acquisitions for example, managers can be sure that employees would be less resistant and would make a smooth transition into new cultures and territories if the culture already promotes development.

A serious sports enthusiast, I was an Olympic Games junkie. I sat for hours in front of the television and watched sport after sport, living vicariously through the athletes. Appreciating fully the sacrifice, dedication and discipline that each athlete at the games had to endure to reach, let alone medal in the games.

There was a show on television which highlighted the fact that humans respond to what they think they are going to hear without even listening to the question. They gave a series of questions. All of the participants in the surveyed failed at answering the questions, including me, the at home participant.

It is important for businesses to incorporate training and development processes in the organization.

Wow! We have finally done it! The first Summer Edition of the Diabetes Today Magazine has been published, and we at PRMR Inc. are tickled pink. Since the first Edition in 2007, we have been toying with the idea of having a bi-annual publication but despite our best efforts, be it financial or production, we have been unable until now to do it.

I am not at all for living legends. Yes I believe in letting persons know how we feel about them when they are alive but the legend status should be reserved for the dead and the statutes and monuments erected long after you are gone so that your track record could be documented and debated and you are not around to make any faux pas after the statues are up.

Continuing from last week...

Congratulations and best of luck to my good friend Dr. Sharon Marshall who took over the reigns of IABC Barbados as its 3^rd president this month.

Recently I tried reaching a client on the telephone but no one was answering the telephone at the company. I wondered how busy the workers were that no one was answering. A few calls to almost all the extensions resulted in someone calling me back a few minutes later. I was informed that it was family day and no one other than the lady who answered was in office.

Why is it that when people hear the job title Office Administrator, they tend to think that the person’s only duty is to sit behind a desk and answer the telephone? Not even a receptionist has that few duties.

It has been almost 2 weeks since I started a diet. This is an extremely challenging undertaking for me since I have never monitored what I ate and would usually stuff myself with as many bad and unhealthy foods as possible in one day.

While catching up on my reading, I came across the story “Creativity Crisis” in the Public Relations Society of America’s Strategist Journal, Spring 2012. It spoke of public relations professionals getting high marks from their executives and business leaders for their “relationship building, political acumen, compelling writing and good strategy”. For creativity however, they looked elsewhere.

I have always been pretty busty. From age 9 I was already in a bra and it seemed to me as if each year my breast grew larger and larger. During Secondary School I had to face the fact that my breasts were an unusual size for my age, which made me refrain from participating in any sporting exercise. As I got older my breasts always became an issue when it came to wearing certain clothes - paying high prices for one shirt. There was also the issue of occasional pains in my back and my breasts.

­9 Phrases Graphic Designers Hate to Hear

Discussion 3.

Recently I questioned why I decided to cut my hair. Really, are the advantages and disadvantages of having short hair any different to having longer hair? Honestly, short hair takes a lot of maintenance but at the same time is very manageable. Longer hair, on the other hand, yes it requires maintenance but we tend to brush it back into a ponytail or just clip it up or wear it down. In my opinion, shorter hair also tends to suit those with a little extra flesh on their faces, like me.

Being into technology, especially the type that can make life easier, I get pretty excited every time I stumble onto a really nifty (yes I said nifty) app! Now we should all be pass the stage of just taking our ipads to meetings to show clients the beautiful masterpieces that we as Designers create on a daily basis. But what if the client, after seeing your work has a new idea they’d like to see? Oh sure, you can just take out the old paper and pencil and start sketching. Oooor you can bring your sketch to life on your ipad, right on the spot!

As a reputation specialist I am always tracking with interest the public’s response to issues.

Are you a small business or a large corporation, looking for new and innovative ways to promote your business in Barbados? Then take advantage of this opportunity to raise brand awareness, increase sales and support a worthwhile cause. The Breast Screening Programme is hosting its inaugural Walk and Extravaganza at the Garrison Savannah on June 16, 2012.

We are constantly bombarded by logos on a daily basis, from the moment you open your eyes and turn to look at your Quartz clock sitting on your Ikea side table. Look around where you are right now, how many logos can you count?

As a newcomer in the world of PR and to PRMR Inc, I now have the pleasure of writing a blog at least once a week on something informative and interesting.

The economic crisis has herald a worrying paradigm for the consumer and that is the reemergence of monopolies. With small businesses crumbling under the economic pressure, large conglomerates are taking the opportunity to buy up limping companies to build capacity.

Dr Alfred Sparman has changed the face of Health Promotions in Barbados forever. Pushing the envelop, the entrepreneurial cardiologist whose entry to Barbados in 2001 was met with some resistance, has on top of this, made many turn to the fraternity’s professional code of conduct with regard to advertising.

The Breast Screening Programme of the Barbados Cancer Society will be hosting its inaugural Champions in Pink - Walk and Extravaganza on Saturday, June 16, 2012 at the Garrison Savannah.

My blog post this week is more up Mariama’s street, she being a Christian, but when I stumbled on RD Magazine’s Blog Post on “Five Social Media Trends That are reshaping Religion,” I could not help but think about the meeting we had just last week with the PR Manager of the Barbados Port Inc., Freida Nicholls and her telling us that church is not the same without her ipad since she uses her Bible app in church, which she prefers to the physical bible.

It seems like everybody and everything is on Facebook. From Farmer’s Choice to more upscale brands like BMW, Cartier etc.

Now I understand totally why I am spending so much money on hair colour every week trying to keep up with my rapidly greying head of hair. According to PR Newser, it’s my job to blame! PRNewser has quoted CareerCast list of best, worst, most stressful, and least stressful jobs for 2012. At number seven on the most stressful list is the PR executive. My dream job, My passion!

Goodbye to Adrian Randall a steward in the fight against Heart Disease in Barbados. It’s paradoxical that what would eventually take his life was complications from this disease since he had made the fight against heart disease and strokes his passion since he and his late wife retired to Barbados.

I could not help but jump all over this “I love JetBlue -- Customer Service Done Right” story in Forbes, especially after Mariama brought up the topic of customer service in her blog last week. Being a bit of a flight snob myself, Jet Blue never appealed to me because there is no business class service. The current economic climate however forced me to revaluate how I spend my money and since the back and front of the plane arrives at the same time, I made the decision that flying first/business class was one of those non-essential luxuries that could be cut.

This is a wonderful age to be living in - electricity, telephony, air travel, Satelites in outer space, A Black American President and now a blind woman, President of the Barbados Senate. Good going Kerry-Ann Ifill. This is brilliant on 2 counts: first female President and a differently abled person to boot.

I love kids. Especially boys. And another boy stole my heart yesterday at the Barbados Port Inc.’s 50^th Anniversary Schools’ Essay Competition Awards Ceremony. He was so small that the Hilton Hotel staff had to put in a riser for him to stand on to read his winning essay in the 9-11 age group.

PRMR Inc. was pleased to be a part of the official groundbreaking ceremony of the Barbados Diabetes Foundation’s, Diabetes Care Centre. The Diabetes Centre will be located in Warrens adjacent to the Warrens polyclinic and the new Warrens Healthcare Complex, and is estimated to cost Bdos$5.5 mil.

One of the projects that will kick off our year is the opening of the Warrens Healthcare Clinic in Warrens, St. Michael. The clinic, located in Warrens (opposite the newly constructed Barbados Red Cross complex) will be an ultra modern facility, outfitted with the newest equipment for effecting diagnostic care. This includes x-rays and MRIs.

This year marked the 50^th Anniversary of the Barbados Port Inc. As one of our clients, we have provided them with several PR services including crisis management, event coordination and general media relations.In coordinating events for the Port our work has extended from within the Port itself, to Farley Hill and even to the Harrison’s Cave. The latter occasion we enjoyed a spectacular cultural evening sponsored by the BPI for the Caribbean Shipping Association’s 41^st annual general meeting.

The Public Relations Society of America has launched a project to have its members and others submit definitions for Public Relations. I read a number of stories surrounding this project and felt as if all of them were mine. Especially Rosanne Fiske’s story on your family not understanding what you do. When I worked at the Nation Newspaper as it Corporate Communications Manager, my mother was fine with that because she understood the concept of working for a reputable organization no matter the job. When I set up my own PR Agency she was however very worried for me because she could not fathom how I would make money and what service I was truly offering.

Diabetes Global Village is 5 years old. Born on November 14, 2007, the event was my second after leaving my 10 year job at Nation Publishing Co. Limited as it Corporate Communications Manager.

Bridgetown/BARBADOS. Local entrepreneurs are not taking full advantage of financing and business advisory services available to them.

One of my favourite pastimes is reading. I try to read a book a month. Not always possible but I think that this exercise is important not only as a source of entertainment, but also as a source of education and inspiration.

As mundane as the topic of punctuation might seem, at some point in our lives we will have to write a piece of literature. As a result, we will need to understand the basics of punctuation and how best to use them. The semicolon is one of those forms of punctuation that most people try to avoid. This is usually because they don't know how and when it should be most appropriately used. The below blog will provide you with the three basic ways that semicolons are used. I encourage you (especially those of you in or thinking about working in the field of public relations) to embrace them on your journey to becoming a better writer.

The comma is one of the hardest working forms of punctuation. It does not matter the type of piece that is being written; whether press releases, scripts or speeches, commas are an integral part of written language. In part 2 of the series on the Perils of Punctuation, I invite you to review some more uses for the comma.

Unfortunately, being a junior in the area of business writing, I am guilty of not being an expert in the area of punctuation. I know of course that I am not alone:).

The Diabetes Today Magazine Summer Edition 2011 has been generating a great buzz. The magazine now in its fourth year features on the cover a pretty little girl called Nia and yes, she has diabetes. Her story is a touching one because in her 4-year-old innocence she declares that she doesn’t want to be diabetic anymore.

Arturo Tappin is indeed one of my favourite artists. We blogged earlier about Rihanna during the frenzy of her LOUD concert here in Barbados and of course you understand...

Having spent the better part of my Saturday developing my professional skills learning the intricacies of websites and networking; in one more week (if I pass the test) I will be a CIW (Certified Internet Web Professional) Site Development Associate. This means I will be competent in building basic websites.

Having worked in an NGO environment at home here in Barbados, and at the Caribbean and international levels; I know that public relations is one of the major tools in the arsenal of these organisations.

As PR practitioners its not unusual to respond to hundreds of emails daily from our clients around the world. My personal email account is chalked full of emails from persons as far away as Australia, the UK and Africa.

On PRMR Inc.'s blog this week Mariama pointed readers to 101 tips for leaders and reading the post I could not help but think what tips are there not just for a manager, but also for a business owner especially in these harsh economic times. Being a public relations consultant who preaches employee engagement and creating a positive work environment, I am very cognizant about practicing what I preach as a business owner.

At its quarterly meeting earlier this month, the 17-member Board of Directors of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) voted to renew the employment contract of...

"Blog" is a shortened version of the word "weblog". Information is stored online either for private viewing or open to the general public. A blog can often report diary-type commentaries and provide relevant links to articles on other websites. The articles follow the order in which they were updated to the blog site. Blogs address all the different phenomena that we face as a people. Blogging isn’t limited to a particular age group or profession. People blog about fashion, cars, politics, social issues and more…

PRMR Inc. is pleased to announce our sponsorship of the 2011 IABC Southern Region Conference, slated for New Orleans, in the Jazz and Blues category.

Last night I retained the presidency of IABC Barbados. Having been a founding member of the chapter I am witnessing first hand its struggles and its mini victories. We started with just about five members, grew to 15 last year and now at the start of my 2^nd year as president, we have 23 members.

Marketing by nature is customer oriented, therefore research is vital for the growth and development of any business venture. Data collected by research methods can reveal the real wants and needs of internal (employees) and external customers or clients.

The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) has elected nine PRSA members to the prestigious PRSA College of Fellows. The 2011 Fellows candidates will be inducted Oct. 15, at a ceremony at the PRSA 2011 International Conference in Orlando, Fla.

I read the Mail Online story “Insider reveals: PR men would think up a story and Rebekah’s Sun and News of the World would run it word for word. Some were complete fiction” (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2013046/Rebekah-Brooks-Sun-News-World-run-fictional-stories-insider-claims.html) and was pretty much disgusted as a former journalism student and more so as a seasoned PR practitioner.

The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) is encouraging and celebrating the philanthropic work of its members through a new awards program.

With a new search function, improved navigation for job seekers, and updated resources available by career level and specialization, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Jobcenter debuts its new look today.

The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) announced today an open call for entries for the PRSA Technology Section's Awards for Excellence in Technology Journalism. The awards recognize articles that are significant in disclosing, interpreting and reporting technological innovation.

Communications is easily overlooked, but the ability to communicate effectively is necessary to convey the thoughts and visions of an organisation to people. Speech and words are the mediums to convey directions and provide synchronization. Without communication, there is no way to express thoughts, ideas and feelings.

'Stand Up Barbados'

Everyone has something they are good at or know for. No matter where I go sports and health follow me. It should be no surprise then that I found myself teaching the Event Planning course for the Barbados Olympic Association last Saturday and PRMR Inc. is coordinating the Inaugural Exercise Event at Ilaro Court for the National Task Force on Physical Activity and Exercise.

There is scope for Barbados to create its own prosthetic limbs to fit many amputees on the island.

This observation was made by the President of the Barbados Diabetes Foundation, Dr. Oscar Jordan, who noted that while this may be a long way in coming, such a facility could assist in the rehabilitation of amputees, recognising that there are over 200 amputations performed annually in Barbados.

In spite of the high number of persons on this island being diagnosed with chronic non-communicable diseases on an annual basis, almost half the adult population is engaged in low physical activity.

Early childhood development (ECD) and family support programmes are showing promising results in reducing and preventing youth violence and crime.

It is time to take diabetes seriously; Diabetes in Barbados is increasing: it is time to act.

Latest statistics indicate that given the size of its population, Barbados has more persons affected by Diabetes and more amputations as a result of diabetic complications than any other country in the world.

Barbados has one of the highest rates of Diabetes globally and nearly everyday someone has an amputation related to diabetes.#160#160 It is for this reason that the Barbados Diabetes Foundation has renewed its efforts to put the disease high on the public#8217s agenda and is calling on the private sector to get on board in the fight against this remorseless disease, through exhibiting at the 3rd annual Global Village Expo.#160

I remember my first crisis communications plan. It was for the Nation Newspaper. My boss at the time looked it, said that it was a great document to have and it sat on both his desk and mine.

The local tourism sector received a major boost recently with the launch of Barbados#8217 newest catamaran, Jammin#8217 where featured speaker at the launch, Deputy Chairman of the Barbados Tourism Authority Mr. Austin Husbands, said that the sailing service was integral to Barbados#8217 tourism product.#160

Attorney at Law, Dr. Claude Denbow SC launched his latest book, Life Insurance Law in the Commonwealth Caribbean, on Friday June 19 in the Faculty of Law at the University of the West Indies

IABC Members were treated to an engaging chat from one of Barbados' leading entrepreneurs, Dereck Foster of Automotive Art. His presentation was a testimony in good...

I copied this from Judette's Facebook. Why? - because only last weekend someone asked me about putting merchandise from my company PRMR Inc. in a bag of give-a-ways for a Jazz show.

I have been working for a number of non-profits recently and one thing is true of all of them - they are very budget conscious. Sometimes you find the program you are working on has to be self sufficient.

IABC Barbados is gathering momentum. Members are trickling in and the organisation will host its first event since its launch this September.

Since the launch of IABC Barbados I have been too busy to blog. Sacrilege, according to Christal Mc Intosh, President of the Chapter who has recently made a commitment to blog every day.

The Diabetes Association of Barbados has stepped up its campaign
to bring about an awareness of diabetes, especially for local children.   Following the International Diabetes
Federation declaring the focus on children for two years straight, the
Association has examined its projects and has enhanced its educational
programmes.  According to President of
the Association, John Grace “education is the corner stone of any movement for
change” therefore this is where his Association has placed this year’s
emphasis.

You know the saying the more things change, the more they remain the same.Well I was at a gathering of pr professionals recently and a number of issues came up.None of them were new, which was no surprise.But what did surprise me was that the topics that received the most attention were not new media and social networks on the web, what received the most dialog were the century old press release and press conference.

Press Release/ Pamala Proverbs/PRMR Inc./ May 25, 2008

The Cricket Legends of Barbados will be adding their contribution to the Australian Cricket tour of the West Indies with a cruise on board the MV Harbour Master for the Barbados leg on Tuesday, June 17 from 5pm to 9pm.

May 15, 2008/Bell Pottinger USA

Apart from the celebration of mothers, the month of May
is being highlighted around the world for the treatment and prevention of
arthritis.  This may be coincidental, but
the fact is that the two marry well together as women are prone to arthritis
and losing their bone density as they age.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, May 1, 2008

Members of the online forum, BajanPR.ning.com will host their inaugural face-to-face meeting at 6 – 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 8, 2008 at the Small Business Development Centre on Fontabelle.

T.S. Elliott referred to April as being the cruelest month. He probably was a Bajan hotelier because April signals the end of the booming winter season and the start of the low occupancy period for hotels. April however for the rest of the world is a glorious month ushering in spring - flowers, butterflies and all things bright and beautiful.

I found myself in the midst of what most people in Barbados were calling a Polo War in February of this year.

March 31, 2008/Bell Pottinger USA

The results of a five-year study show that Cod Liver Oil can reduce the amount of anti-inflammatory drugs taken by Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) patients by over 30 percent.
Anti-inflammatory drugs, such as Ibuprofen and Aspirin, are heavily prescribed
to relieve pain for those with Rheumatoid Arthritis. However, fears are growing
among consumers about the dangers of long-term use, with reported side-effects
including stomach bleeding, high blood pressure and an increased risk of heart
attacks.

Waterhall narrowly defeated Wintershall in the opening match last Sunday at Apes Hill in the Digicel 8 goals match up, 6 goals to 5.