I'm writing this post after seeing that there's not much out there about whether or not to accept someone's proposition to be their Maid of Honor (MOH) in their wedding. There are plenty of websites which describe the ideal person to choose for MOH for the brides, but not much about what to consider from the recipient of the offers point of view.
What you don't think about initially is that it's a major undertaking - the task itself and the financial side of things. This infographic from Mint.com is a good indicator of the reality of the situation. The average cost of being a bridesmaid or MOH in a wedding is more than $1,500! The second the bride asks, you think - how nice! I get to stand up there in a dress of my choosing, in shoes of my choosing, and watch and support my friend as they complete a holy sacrament!
...Things don't always turn out like that. There's a lot of compromise involved. The bridesmaids like a different style for different body types or love those pair of pumps? Well - majority rules, sucks for you! It's the bride's day after all, and she has final say in all decisions.
Now, I'm here to talk specifically to people who are considering being a whole 'nother ball game of MOH - a long-distance MOH. Have to fly in for the shower and the actual wedding itself? Figure another $500+ in expenses. More if you have to foot your own bill for a place to stay during these events, not to mention the extended period of time you'll have to take off from work. The distance adds an additional dimension of hardship in taking on the traditional role of planning the shower without being able to physically get together with the other bridesmaids, mother of the bride, etc.
For these reasons, I would take some time to consider what your friend is asking of you before you give an answer. I was an amateur my first time, but I will know better for next time. I now know hands-on what the task at hand is and what I can and cannot afford to be a MOH for a friend or family member's wedding. You need a lot of support as MOH from the bridesmaids, family of the bride and groom, and if you don't know them that well it can be difficult in making everything happen, especially from far away.
The point of this post is, if you just got asked to be a MOH, consider the distance between you and the bride as a major factor before you answer. Unless you have been best friends for years or you have the money and the deep urge to have the experience, it's okay to say no, and it may be better to politely decline her offer and just attend the wedding as a guest.
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Sunday, January 30, 2011
HR/PR Workshop Post: An Unpleasant Target Experience for a Disabled Customer
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires that employers provide reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities. This can mean physical accommodations such as building a handicap-accessible ramp or it can mean something less tangible like altering the employees' work schedule. The key phrase to understanding reasonable accommodations is that the accommodations must not cause the employer "due hardship."
This introduction to the ADA predicates an experience I had at Target last Thursday. I went to the store with my friend who suffers from a chronic spine condition. It is very difficult for her to sit and get up out of chairs and walking for prolonged periods also causes discomfort. She had planned to use the motorized scooters they offer to get around the store in order to preserve her energy and make it a more enjoyable and less painful shopping experience.
When we arrived at Target, we entered the building to find the motorized scooters. I had personally never used them and it was not evident how they operated. There were three scooters available, and the first one she sat upon had a blinking green light and didn't want to move forward. We tried the second one, which also failed to move forward. Before she got up for a third time, I went to get help.
Cue the painful experience to begin here. Painful because I am constantly critiquing companies on their customer service - ultimately a very important part of PR - and this was one of those "PR Fail" moments as well as an "HR Fail" because I think managers should be trained to handle upset customers with more composure.
I kindly asked the manager at customer service to come take a look. Her attitude was not apologetic, as she took a look at all of the scooters. Nor did it seem that she cared at all that none of them were working and one of their customers would not be able to have the shopping experience she had imagined.
They get used very regularly, she said.
Then you should buy more, my friend said. A former practitioner of labor relations, she wasn't going to give up very easily - not even when the manager finally apologized. "You could get sued for this, you know," my friend said.
The Target manager said that they have four scooters but one was being used, the only one that worked, apparently. "The rest are charging, we usually have signs on them when they are charging." There were no signs.
"You obviously don't want disabled people shopping here if you're not going to provide what I need to get around your store," my friend concluded.
She was forced to use a cart to walk around in pain, laboring her breathing (she recently ceased using an oxygen tank). As requested, another manager met up with us in the aisles of the store. She offered the use of a wheelchair. That wasn't going to cut it. She didn't have the strength to roll herself around. My friend suggested to the Target manager, again, that they should buy more motorized scooters if they weren't going to charge quickly enough for the next disabled customer to use.
"We don't have the resources right now to buy more," the manager replied, not handling my friend's constructive criticism with an ounce of composure. "You don't have money?! Target doesn't have money?" To which the manager replied to my friend that she could leave the store if she was going to speak to her like that. Um....wrong response, Target.
Back to the ADA, I think that reasonable accommodations for disabled customers should also apply, such as providing working motorized scooters to make the shopping experience better. I was unimpressed with how the Target employees handled the situation and how poorly my friend was treated.
PR practitioners - What would you do to rectify this situation from a customer service/PR standpoint?
HR practitioners - What recommendations do you have for the managers' reactions?
This introduction to the ADA predicates an experience I had at Target last Thursday. I went to the store with my friend who suffers from a chronic spine condition. It is very difficult for her to sit and get up out of chairs and walking for prolonged periods also causes discomfort. She had planned to use the motorized scooters they offer to get around the store in order to preserve her energy and make it a more enjoyable and less painful shopping experience.
When we arrived at Target, we entered the building to find the motorized scooters. I had personally never used them and it was not evident how they operated. There were three scooters available, and the first one she sat upon had a blinking green light and didn't want to move forward. We tried the second one, which also failed to move forward. Before she got up for a third time, I went to get help.
Cue the painful experience to begin here. Painful because I am constantly critiquing companies on their customer service - ultimately a very important part of PR - and this was one of those "PR Fail" moments as well as an "HR Fail" because I think managers should be trained to handle upset customers with more composure.
I kindly asked the manager at customer service to come take a look. Her attitude was not apologetic, as she took a look at all of the scooters. Nor did it seem that she cared at all that none of them were working and one of their customers would not be able to have the shopping experience she had imagined.
They get used very regularly, she said.
Then you should buy more, my friend said. A former practitioner of labor relations, she wasn't going to give up very easily - not even when the manager finally apologized. "You could get sued for this, you know," my friend said.
The Target manager said that they have four scooters but one was being used, the only one that worked, apparently. "The rest are charging, we usually have signs on them when they are charging." There were no signs.
"You obviously don't want disabled people shopping here if you're not going to provide what I need to get around your store," my friend concluded.
She was forced to use a cart to walk around in pain, laboring her breathing (she recently ceased using an oxygen tank). As requested, another manager met up with us in the aisles of the store. She offered the use of a wheelchair. That wasn't going to cut it. She didn't have the strength to roll herself around. My friend suggested to the Target manager, again, that they should buy more motorized scooters if they weren't going to charge quickly enough for the next disabled customer to use.
"We don't have the resources right now to buy more," the manager replied, not handling my friend's constructive criticism with an ounce of composure. "You don't have money?! Target doesn't have money?" To which the manager replied to my friend that she could leave the store if she was going to speak to her like that. Um....wrong response, Target.
Back to the ADA, I think that reasonable accommodations for disabled customers should also apply, such as providing working motorized scooters to make the shopping experience better. I was unimpressed with how the Target employees handled the situation and how poorly my friend was treated.
PR practitioners - What would you do to rectify this situation from a customer service/PR standpoint?
HR practitioners - What recommendations do you have for the managers' reactions?
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
"Your Insurance Agent Did What?"
In August, my boyfriend and I drove about 3,500 miles cross-country from Connecticut to California. Some of you may have read my tweets about the trip with the hashtag, #MBgo2CA. Besides going to college in Burlington, Vermont, I'd never moved before, especially not across the country. Luckily, fellow Champlain alumna, Grace Boyle, has a lot of experience in that area and I followed her blog posts about relocating closely.
Preparing to relocate is a momentous task, and one of the things you have to do is secure new insurance, in my case, auto and renter's insurance. In July, one of those catchy State Farm commercials, "Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there," (now you're all singing that little rhyme in your head - I apologize), prompted me to try out their online form for a car insurance quote. Why not? We all know and love how online forms work, so I didn't have all the information in front of me at that time and didn't complete the form.
Later the same day, I received a personalized and friendly email from Steve at Heather Copeland's State Farm in Davis. Smart how they have you put your contact information in right away on that form! He noticed that I hadn't finished it and wanted to help me get a quote. He even put a smiley face in at the end of his email. So, I gave him a call.
Now read closely, this is the important lesson of the day...
We did the usual inputting of the vehicle information to get my quote, and he even said that I would get renter's insurance and a discount for having both on my plan. The crucial component to this conversation was that Steve asked me why I was moving to Davis. I explained to him that I had recently graduated with a degree in PR and had been looking for work in Davis prior to my move.
He prompted me to check out a PR firm where his friend worked, one that I hadn't seen in search results in Google. Steve even went the extra mile to get in touch with her and called me back saying "Send your resume over!" This I promptly did, including a personalized cover letter after doing some more research about the firm.
This little act of my insurance agent getting to know me ended up leading to an informational interview, an interview, and finally to a paid internship which I start next week. Pretty nifty, huh? So, if you're moving to California where the unemployment rate is 12% and people think you're crazy for moving here, or even if you're not moving, you've got to go back to the basics: network, network, network - even with your insurance agent.
Thanks, Steve! :)
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Authentic German Beer Brews up Business at the Trapp Family Lodge in Vermont
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to visit Vermont's newest brewery at the Trapp Family Lodge which just celebrated its grand opening this past weekend. These photos highlight our trip to one of Vermont's historical places which has a European connection.
First, we got a tour of the brewery from the brew master, Allen Van Anda, who was kind enough to show us each part of the brewing process at the Trapp Family Lodge. We were impressed because it's just him doing all the brewing!
Though I would highly recommend a trip to Stowe to get the full experience, you can try the new Lager on tap at other venues in Vermont. The Trapp Lager is currently being distributed to 26 Vermont bars and restaurants according to the Burlington Free Press blog post, including The Daily Planet and American Flatbread in Burlington according to Allen.
You can enjoy the view of the Vermont mountains with your brew - just $5 per .5 liter.
Pictured here is their Vienna Lager which tastes "Just like a classic beer in Vienna" according to a student who studied abroad in Vienna last spring. Their Dunkle, which is a German-style dark beer is also pictured and tasted just as delicious. We couldn't decide which one we liked better!
Pictured here is their Vienna Lager which tastes "Just like a classic beer in Vienna" according to a student who studied abroad in Vienna last spring. Their Dunkle, which is a German-style dark beer is also pictured and tasted just as delicious. We couldn't decide which one we liked better!
Be sure to check out the brewery at the Trapp Family Lodge and enjoy a local brew which has the authentic taste of a Vienna Lager!
Special thanks to Allen for giving us a great tour, even after a VERY busy opening weekend.
Prost!
Special thanks to Allen for giving us a great tour, even after a VERY busy opening weekend.
Prost!
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Tweeting Takes Over #Campchamp | Written for the Champlain Current
Tweeting Takes Over #Campchamp
By Marissa Bentivoglio
Whether it's an assignment for a media communications course, to advocate for a club on-campus, to locate a job, or just to complain about the internet at Spinner Place, students, faculty and staff at Champlain, or #campchamp as it is known to the Twitterverse, are flocking to Twitter to connect, share, learn and gripe.
PC Mag, an online magazine focusing on e-business, defines Twitter as, "A very popular instant messaging system that lets a person send brief text messages up to 140 characters in length to a list of followers. Launched in 2006, Twitter was designed as a social network to keep friends and colleagues informed throughout the day. However, it became widely used for commercial and political purposes to keep customers, constituents and fans up-to-date as well as to solicit feedback…Twitter messages ("tweets") can be made public and sent to anyone requesting the feed, or they can be sent only to approved followers" (http://www.pcmag.com/
The typical Champlain student's exposure to Twitter most likely began with Elaine Young's internet marketing course. "I started playing with [Twitter] in March of 2007, and talking about it in class a little during Fall 2007. Then Spring 2008 I started doing more with it. Fall 2008 was the big push," said Young, Assistant Dean of Business as well as a business professor. As part of Champlain's hands-on philosophy, Elaine has her students dive right into the new technology, even if some people are hesitant.
That was then, now many media classes including Rob Williams' Contemporary Media Issues courses (also known as #MCM315 on Twitter) are tweeting about what they're reading, links to their assignments on their blogs, and submitting questions to the professor. Young's senior level marketing students are graded on their "live-tweeting" efforts which require students to summarize the content of a presentation and send tweets throughout the duration. The point of this "live-tweeting" is so that people who are reading and following the feed on twitter can benefit from the presentation without being physically present.
What started with a class assignment has lead to job opportunities for some ambitious individuals. '08 Champlain graduate Grace Boyle, who majored in Public Relations, is the college's case study for using social media to land a job after graduation. Boyle wanted to pursue a position in Boulder, Colorado after Champlain and did so with the power of networking via social media (and a lot of hard work!). She works for Lijit, a start-up in Boulder. "Your Twitter profile is like your resume - it's where your ideas, thoughts, interests, profession and network resides. The power of Twitter shouldn't be overlooked," commented Boyle.
Current students are also making use of Twitter by tweeting what's good in the dining hall, or what clubs are having meetings and where they are located. The Environmental Club, Student Government Association, Ski and Ride Club, LEAD, and other organizations on campus have a twitter account that the various representatives update about activities happening on campus. Students can "follow" librarians at Miller Information Commons (@champlib) whose account is run by Andy Burkhardt, Emerging Technologies Librarian and Sarah Cohen, Information Literacy Librarian. Besides answering students' questions, they will often will tweet pictures of the view of Lake Champlain from MIC's third floor vantage point.
Besides the Champlain community of #campchamp is the greater Burlington community or #btv. This hash tag provides information about what is going on around the city of Burlington. Many local eateries such as Handy's Lunch, August First, New Moon and many others will tweet what their specials of the day are. Most recently Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry's was a topic of discussion using the #btv hash tag.
The school is also finding many ways to promote Champlain on Twitter. The Office of Admission has a twitter account @champlainedu while Public Information Officer Stephen Mease uses Twitter to get the word out about Champlain College (@Champlaincolleg) by linking press releases to tweets and "re-tweeting" or quoting what students on twitter are saying about Champlain. What's a better way to get the true feel of a college than directly from the students themselves?
Twitter is a technology people can use to crowd source information. Students, faculty and staff on Twitter were asked to comment on the #campchamp community using the hashtag #CCcurrent. Here's what they had to say:
The responses are generated here: http://twitter.com/#search?q=%
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Looking for Opportunities in PR and/or HR
I was honored to be included today in a blog post with 25 other PR students on PR at Sunrise written by Andrew Worob. This post labeled us as "Future PR Stars," and I am so impressed by the students who are on there.
Throughout the day, PR professionals have been reaching out offering their support which I am very grateful for! I decided it would be best to write a post detailing what I am looking for post-graduation.
First, a little (more) about me:
I will be receiving a Bachelor's degree in Public Relations from Champlain College on May 8, however I am also highly interested in Human Resources to the point where I am a student member of SHRM and planning on taking the exam to be a Human Resource Manager this summer. My internship at Lake Champlain Chocolates, located in Burlington, VT, has accommodated both my interests in HR and PR allowing me to intern in both departments. I have been actively assisting with HR at a small geriatric care management company called Growing Options since 2008, helping with hiring, creating job descriptions, etc. I won't go into too many details to keep this post succinct, but if you'd like to view my online resume you can visit it on LinkedIn.
Searching for opportunities:
I'm looking for a position where I can utilize both my PR and HR skills. The locations I'm most interested in for opportunities are:
Throughout the day, PR professionals have been reaching out offering their support which I am very grateful for! I decided it would be best to write a post detailing what I am looking for post-graduation.
First, a little (more) about me:
I will be receiving a Bachelor's degree in Public Relations from Champlain College on May 8, however I am also highly interested in Human Resources to the point where I am a student member of SHRM and planning on taking the exam to be a Human Resource Manager this summer. My internship at Lake Champlain Chocolates, located in Burlington, VT, has accommodated both my interests in HR and PR allowing me to intern in both departments. I have been actively assisting with HR at a small geriatric care management company called Growing Options since 2008, helping with hiring, creating job descriptions, etc. I won't go into too many details to keep this post succinct, but if you'd like to view my online resume you can visit it on LinkedIn.
Searching for opportunities:
I'm looking for a position where I can utilize both my PR and HR skills. The locations I'm most interested in for opportunities are:
- Fairfield/New Haven County, Connecticut
- Sacramento/Davis area, California
- Dublin, Ireland (where I studied abroad last Spring)
Monday, February 8, 2010
Valentine's Day: Spreading the love!
The past few years on Valentine's Day, I've had a tradition of handing out hand-made valentines to everyone I come in contact with. It's nice for everyone to feel appreciated, and I think Valentine's Day is about reminding the people in your life that you care about them. The idea of passing out valentines shouldn't end in elementary school, so continue the tradition and make someone's day!
A Valentine's Day two years ago, I wasn't going to be able to physically hand out my valentines to everyone, so when I was done cutting them, I laid them out on a desk and took a photo. I posted it on Facebook where I tagged everyone I couldn't see that day in the picture so they felt like they received a valentine. I just wanted them to know I was thinking of them.
This year, I am interning in a chocolate factory. This is awesome for many reasons, but now I can be more adventurous in personalizing my valentines. I want to include a chocolate heart with each valentine (If only this delicious treat would transfer well through Facebook!), and since this year I do have a significant other to worry about, I wanted to do something special for him.
Lake Champlain Chocolates' Retail Manager, Emily, decorates each of these hearts by hand with a personal message at the factory store in Burlington, Vermont. This year alone, she has over 160 requests of personalized messages to transcribe onto these dark chocolate, raspberry truffle-filled hearts called "Heart Throbs!" I put my order in early, and I decided to write a message to my boyfriend in German because he studied in Vienna for a semester where he spoke German.
Just wanted to offer a few pointers on how to make the holiday a little more enjoyable, personal and fun. If anything, get a box of chocolates, go skiing or riding, or watch a movie with a friend and enjoy yourself. You deserve it!
What's something special or fun you've done on Valentine's Day to differentiate yourself?
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