Merriam Webster defines a team as both a number of persons associated together in work or activity and a group on one side.

While these are rather vague definitions of what a team actually is and the way it functions, it does provide us with a basis for the way in which we can properly work together in a business environment. For some industries, it is not essential to work on teams and for even some public relations agencies, working on teams is not a must when it comes to servicing clients. Here at Heron Agency, we have taken this definition of team and molded it into something that is necessary for success both internally as an agency and in making our clients successful. Working at Heron Agency is something that is more than just working with a group of people in the public relations industry, it is joining a special team of individuals with various skills that have come together for a common goal. Just like there are many components that go into winning a sporting game, there are many components that go into making PR campaigns successful. We have included some of these components below:

1. Ability to understand there is no I in TEAM.

There is no successful sporting team on this planet that can attribute all their success to one person. As most of our clients can attest, here at Heron Agency, we work cohesively as a team. Every member of the team plays a key part in making our client campaigns successful. We CC everyone on our emails as we believe that it takes the whole team to secure a placement. From the inception of a strategy idea to the creation of a press release and pitch to the labor of finding the right media lists to send the pitch to, everyone plays a key part in this “game”.

2. Right coach.

Successful teams cannot function without the proper guidance from a professional who has been playing the game for years. Here at Heron Agency, we can all attest to the fact that we have the best “coach” in the game. Noreen Heron is the best mentor to have in the PR industry and the way she runs the Heron team is unbeatable. From years of experience working internally in the hotel, restaurant, and entertainment industries, Noreen is a constant source of advice and knowledge when it comes to what our clients need. She takes the time out of her day to teach us new ideas and skills in the industry and we are beyond lucky to have her.

3. Right players.

In order to be a winning team in a sporting game, you need the right group of individuals with various skill sets. On our team, everyone has their specialty set of skills that help us meet our end goal. From our Executive Vice President, Lianne, building out an amazing strategy for a client to our Senior Publicists, Sarah and Emily, digging the deep dark holes of the internet for the right press contacts to our Publicists, Megan and Katie, crafting the right pitches to our Writer, Amy, developing the right wording for our press releases to our Social Media Specialist, Ellen, creating strategic engagement plans and content calendars for our client’s social media channels to our Marketing Manager, Holly, securing the right partnerships with the right organizations to elevate our client’s brand to our Bookkeeper, Caryn, ensuring that every penny our clients spend with us is producing results, we all have a unique and special place on this team that creates success.

4. Ability to learn.

As humans and team players, we know that we are not perfect. Here at Heron Agency, we are constantly adapting our strategy in the PR game to ensure that we are giving our clients the best campaigns. From finding new ways to handle social media to the way in which we can go about reaching a media contact, we learn from each other on a daily basis. We are constantly learning what works and what doesn’t in the industry and, through this, we are able to grow together and become a stronger team.

5. Right mindset.

In order for success on a team, everyone has to have the right mindset. Everyone has to have their eye on the prize and properly use their skills to elevate their team members. We cannot stress how important this component has been at Heron Agency. A great example of this is Monday morning meetings. Every Monday morning, we meet together and discuss every single client. We bounce ideas off of each other and everyone gets so energized on what they are going to do for their part in making their client successful that week. This can be equated to a “pregame pep talk” in a sporting game. This “pep talk” is essential in getting our team on track and setting the right mindset.