Scripps PRSSA welcomed Dan Burgess to our meeting on Monday, February 14. A superb writer and tactical strategist, Dan directed Doe Anderson’s Public Relations operation for 25 years in Louisville, KY. In addition to his administrative duties with the PR division, Dan also designed and directed major PR programs for Louisville Slugger, Maker’s Mark bourbon, Triumph motorcycles, Valvoline Instant Oil Change, Shoney’s Restaurants, Jewish Hospital, Norton Healthcare, the United Methodist Church, the Kentucky Department of Travel, and the Ohio River Bridges Project.
Doe-Anderson hired Dan in 1991 and he spent the next 30 years designing highly effective public relations campaigns and responding to opportunities and challenges across the spectrum on behalf of the agency’s clients. He retired from his full-time responsibilities in January 2022.
Key Takeaways:
- Pay attention to social media influencers. They have significant power in reaching large audiences. Be sure to treat them with courtesy and credibility.
- It is crucial to keep up with social media trends. The relevance and amount of attention that such trends receive can be used to benefit clients, media planning and campaign work.
- Effective writing is such an essential tool for public relations professionals. Practice your writing whenever you can; it can give you a competitive advantage. One way to start is writing for the Scripps PRSSA blog!
- Aside from writing and following social media purposefully, other ways that you can prepare for a career include participation in PRSSA and completing internship(s).
- The public relations industry has the power to focus on the positive elements of a situation.
Connect with Dan on LinkedIn here.
