Connector Meetup No.20 – Online PR

by Sarai Fernandez on March 12th, 2010

Connector and Booze `n´Schmooze are partnering to organise Connector Nº20, an event themed around Online PR, with guest speakers who will talk briefly about how social media and new technologies are impacting in business today.

Booze `n´ Schmooze is a new free monthly networking event for  journalists, PRs and other media workers, which takes place every month at d|two Bar.  As usual, Connector is a monthly event for connecting people in Dublin and all are welcome to this event.

So join us to have fun, learn a little bit about Online PR and make connections next March 25th @ 6.30 pm.

Gain social media work experience with Connector

by connector on March 2nd, 2010

Are you interested in Digital Media, Social Media, PR, Marketing, or Event Management? Would you like to gain work experience?

Connector is looking for volunteers willing to gain work experience contributing to Connector.ie content and assist in our offline events.

The areas of activity would be digital and social media marketing, blogging, digital video/ web TV production, contact database and eCRM management, PR and advertising, mobile marketing, sponsorships, attending events, networking & administration.

So if you have excellent communication skills, have  IT skills & experience using the Microsoft Office suite, the ability to work in a team environment, good attention to detail & accuracy and enthusiasm in emerging technologies, send a cover letter and CV to conor@connector.ie.

You can get more info about Connector Campus, which shows the work we have done up to now within the colleges.

Do you trust your business & government connections?

by Conor on February 7th, 2010

Connecting with Des Bishop

by Sarai Fernandez on February 4th, 2010

Yesterday our 10 contest winners, Conor and I went to see Des Bishop at The Button Factory, sponsored by ESB Customer Supply. The gig was excellent, where Des Bishop talked about many things, among others his father’s illness, with his unique style making hilarious things that other people could find uncomfortable to talk about.

After the gig we have the opportunity to do a short interview to Des, who told us some tips for young comedians on why they should engage in social media. The video of the interview is coming soon, but for the moment here are the photographs we took with him.

This event was the final point in the campaign Des Bishop and Jim have run to encourage people to save energy during the last 6 months. We want to thank Des for his time which we enjoyed, to ESB Customer Supply and McConnells for the tickets and Eleanor for a wonderful warm-up at the event.

Connector on Mediascope with Ellen Gunning

by Sarai Fernandez on January 12th, 2010

Yesterday we have had the pleasure to be interviewed by Ellen Gunning for her programme Mediascope, a radio show which deals with issues of interest to public relations, event management and journalism professionals. The interview will be broadcast in today’s programme on Dublin City FM (103.2) at 13.30 hours.

Conor chated with Ellen for 20 minutes about Connector. If you want to discover how Connector started, our new plans for 2010 and much more, listen to the podcast!

Job Hunting 2.0

by Rob Cumiskey on November 20th, 2009

The following is a guest post by Sarai Fernandez, and was posted originally on her blog:

It’s almost a month since I gave up sending CV’s out. Before, I used to sit down in front of my computer for an hour each day, log into different websites and apply for all the jobs that I thought would suit me. The only thing I achieved from this was feeling exhausted, and I have not had a single phone call from these applications since September.

So, my new strategy is focused in two main points: learning and networking. Besides my PR studies, I try to spend all the time I can reading articles on the web about new trends, new systems or anything else relating to Public Relations. They can be blogs, e-zines, or discussions in LinkedIn, it doesn’t matter what, because I am learning a lot and also improving my English.

The second point is Networking. I started this with the Connector Lunches, and the Connector Halloween Party, and I hope to continue with these, and also try more networking events in the future. Besides that, I was at the Monster’s Career Fair today and, as was expected, I didn’t get a job, or even an offer. I did get a few business cards that could be very helpful in the future. I also attended some motivating speeches, and I took some very good tips from all of them.

If I have learnt something during this year, it’s the importance of social media and networking for your own professional development. With these tools you will never be ignored, and that is the most important step in order to achieve a successful career.

#Media140 Connections

by Conor on October 24th, 2009

I did not realise that Monday the 26th is a bank holiday in Ireland and I booked into a Twitter type ‘real time media conference in London, called Media 140 (with reference to Twitter’s 140 character limit). It aims to cover everything a brand needs to know about twitter & ‘real-time social media’.

I will use the time to catch up with some old friends and colleagues and report back some learnings from the conference.  The one day conference will explore the impacts of real-time social media on agencies, marketers and brands.  The hashtag for the conference is #Media140 & I hope some of Ireland’s social media heads follow the day online.

As they say – “If brands are your business, Media140 is a conference you can’t afford to miss.  Are your brands social? Are they staying ahead of competitors in the social media space? If you answered ‘no’ or ‘um, not sure…’ to either of those questions, you need to come to Media140 in London, on the 26th October 2009.”

Connecting with students at gradireland

by Greg Fry on October 22nd, 2009

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Connector visited gradireland in the RDS yesterday. Despite the rain the turnout was fantastic and unlike many events I have attended this year there was a buzz around the place. It was wonderful to talk to so many upbeat and positive people. Many of the companies exhibiting were keen to connect with students and anticipated increasing their headcount over the next 12 months.

Companies exhibiting included:

Irish Distillers, Unilever, Proctor & Gamble, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Microsoft.

Busy Busy at the RDS

A large number of the students I talked to were actively looking for internships and work experience. I was also told about a new scheme called Gradlink led by companies aimed at providing students internships in leading companies. Check out – www.ibec.ie/gradlink for more info.

There was also great advice to be had from many of leading Colleges and Universities offering a range of post Grad courses.

Well done to all involved organising gradreland, it was a super event. Visit – www.gradireland.com for more information.

If you are a Marketing or Event Management student looking for “real life” experience, contact greg@connector.ie for details of our internship programme and find out how you can get a connected in the industry before you graduate.

Connect @ McDonnell Connor’s launch party

by Conor on October 6th, 2009

Michelle Connor is the lovely wife of EightyTwenty’s David Connor and is making a big name for herself as a professional photographer.  Michelle is very well suited to being the other side of the lense as you can see and as it happens her sister Suzanne McCabe is a well known Irish model.

Michelle is busy organising a night out in Krystle for a small launch party to kick off McDonnell Connor photography next week with her new business partner, the highly accomplished photographer, Tim McDonnell.  The event is on the 15th October in Krystle Night Club and starts at 8pm.

Guests on the night can enjoy having their portrait taken in our portable studio – all images will be professionally edited and available for our guest to see the next day on our fanpage.  We have a top makeup artist there on the night to provide the ladies with last minute touch ups before they hit their shoot!!

Friends of Connector are all invited, especially those with an interest in digital photography & I look forward to checking it out.  If you want to come along, pls RSVP to michelle [@] mcdonnellconnor.com

Their fields of expertise range from Corporate Assignments to family portraits and fashion photography. Special studio opening offer is a full photo session, all images professionally edited and your favorite image supplied in contemporary 12×18 inch bloc – all this for only E100.00 for a limited time only.

With hi-spec studios in Howth and Ranelagh, they cater for all photography requirements.  Check out their large work showcase at www.mcdonnellconnor.com or become a fan of their Facebook Fanpage.

“What’s In Your Handbag?” Connections

by Jamie Richardson on August 13th, 2009

Last night we had a wonderful opportunity to see some “handbag (or manbag) therapy” in action!

Kildare Village has launched a fun new digital campaign that allows people to upload pictures of the contents of their bags for a chance to win a €1,000 shopping spree. That’s a pretty great prize for revealing the insides of your handbag!

The “What’s in Your Handbag or Manbag”campaign looks like it will be an enjoyable way to interact with others and reveal what the contents of your bag says about you! When you upload your picture others can comment and vote on the contents. The bag with the most votes wins the prize!

Check out this new site >here>>

Debbie Percy is the Handbag Therapy specialist, at the Kildare Village stand, at the forthcoming Ultimate Girl’s Day Out in the RDS on 28-30 August 2009. We got a chance to hear all about this campaign from her via a Skype conference call at the WHPR offices at Ely Place.

A great night of connections and some revealing discoveries about the contents of some very interesting bags! I recommend that you check out this campaign and reveal the contents of your own bag!

A special thanks to the lovely Heidi O’Sullivan and the people at WHPR and Kildare Village!