Melissa Hoffmann
PRNEWS
New York, NY, United States
Contact Melissa
Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
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Past articles by Melissa:
A Journalist Tells All: Grabbing This Huffington Post Writer's Attention Is Tough
When you look at Huffington Post senior reporter Emily Peck’s career, she’s been deliberately revving up her pace. Peck has gone from the monastic rhythm of a monthly magazine, to a daily newspaper, to an exclusively digital news source. These days, she doesn't have time for pitches. Or press conferences. You have one chance to catch her with an informative email subject line. Here are some more… → Read More
First Person: Pauline Draper-Watts, EVP at Edelman Intelligence
In this regular feature, PR News asks movers and shakers in the industry to share a little bit of their personal history and personality through answering a series of 10 questions. → Read More
Platinum PR Awards Gala to Honor Amazing Brands, Agencies and People
PRNEWS' Platinum PR Awards honor the best of the best, the professionals and teams who have driven tremendous successes for the brands and charitable causes they champion. At the gala, which will be held Sept. 17 at the Grand Hyatt in New York City, several hundred communications professionals will gather to celebrate the top communications and marketing campaigns of the last year, as well as… → Read More
First Person: Andrew Bowins, SVP of Comms at the Entertainment Software Association
In this regular feature, PR News asks movers and shakers in the industry to share a little bit of their personal history and personality through answering a series of 12 questions. → Read More
PRNEWS Honors Incredible Women Leaders in Healthcare Communications
Healthcare is without a doubt one of the most impactful, polarizing and challenging spaces in which to work in PR. And being a woman in any industry is also a challenge. At the Women in Healthcare Communications Awards Luncheon at the Yale Club, PRNEWS recognized a handful of women who are not only owning their senior communications leadership roles in the healthcare space, but also striving in… → Read More
Amazon Is Prime Example of Need for Internal Comms Crisis Planning
Today is Amazon Prime Day. It's a day (or two) of deep discounts on everything from electronics to apparel and household items. But the highly publicized event has grabbed headlines instead for timed global protests and a work stoppage in Minnesota. Some Amazon staff are upset with working conditions and employment policies. Amazon has not publicly responded—and what happens next is an important… → Read More
First Person: Carmen Collins, the Social Media Strategizer Behind #WeAreCisco
In this regular feature, PR News asks movers and shakers in the industry to share a little bit of their personal history and personality through answering a series of 12 questions. → Read More
Wayfair Walkout: How Not Taking a Stand Can Hurt a Brand
Companies like Nike and Ben & Jerry's have demonstrated the power of brand activism in marketing. With consumer expectations shifting in a tumultuous political environment, what happens when a brand decides to take a neutral approach? Online home furnishing company Wayfair is right now finding out the hard way. → Read More
First Person: Mark Weiner, CEO of PRIME Research and CIO of Cision
In this regular feature, PR News asks movers and shakers in the industry to share a little bit of their personal history and personality through answering a series of 12 questions. → Read More
Did Unilever's New CEO Just Irrevocably Change Purpose Marketing?
Brands taking a position on social or political issues has been all the rage. Alan Jope, the new Unilever CEO, might be pushing things to the next level. At Cannes Lions he said Unilever will "dispose" of brands that lack purposeful messaging. Is this strong statement a shot across marketing's bow? → Read More
The Jon Stewart Effect: 3 Things to Mull Before Getting a Celebrity Activist
Nearly 18 years after a terrorist attack on America snuffed out thousands of lives, the first responders who fought to restore order and rescue the injured that day are back on the front pages. Former Daily Show host Jon Stewart's appearance on C-SPAN yesterday in testimony to a congressional subcommittee was powerful and relentlessly on-brand. But a celebrity face and voice isn't a guarantee… → Read More
PR Fail? Sephora Denies Doing the Right Thing for the Right Reasons
If you are following the crisis communications playbook, you know that taking swift, deliberate and public action to right a wrong is enough to not only mitigate a brand's crisis—it can even flip the narrative and earn that brand new followers. So after singer/songwriter SZA was racially profiled in a store and blasted the brand on social media, Sephora's declaration that it would shut down… → Read More
Pride Month: PR's Work for LGBTQ Equality Is Never Over
Pride Month is not just a celebration of how much better things have gotten in a country that once treated LGBTQ people as social pariahs and where Don’t Ask Don’t Tell forced those who wished to serve their country to hide their identities. It’s also a reminder that we still have a long way to go to true equality. And PR needs to be at the forefront of those efforts. → Read More
How a Solid Brand Persona Can Boost Your Business
Brand personas as a concept has been gaining ground as businesses seek for new ways to differentiate themselves and gain competitive advantage in the face of increased competition and generational shifts in loyalty. Differentiation through personality is a way to keep consumers loyal to a brand even though other elements may resist differentiation (i.e., service, product selection, and price).… → Read More
Nike's Quick Response to Maternity Snafu Shows Brand's PR Acumen
Nike found itself in the midst of a major PR crisis when The New York Times published an opinion piece on Mother's Day revealed Nike did not provide pregnant athletes with paid maternity leave. Nike has now released a statement saying that all future contracts will be written to protect pregnant athletes from discrimination. In this action, Nike is clearly following the crisis management… → Read More
How to Make the C-Suite Understand the Value of PR
It’s an unfortunate reality that some C-suite executives are either unaware or unconvinced of how communications and PR are providing value to their business, which can lead to slashed budgets and high turnover rates. Proving PR's worth to the C-suite is one of the most hotly anticipated sessions at PRNEWS' upcoming Measurement Conference April 17-18 in Washington, D.C. Here are six steps you… → Read More
First Person: Anastasia Khoo, CMO for Conservation International
This is the first installment of a feature in which PR News will ask movers and shakers in the industry to share a little bit of their personal history and personality through answering a series of 10 questions. This is the first installment of a feature in which PR News will ask movers and shakers in the industry to share a little bit of their personal history and personality through answering… → Read More
Buzzfeed's Layoff Debacle Shows the Need for Robust Internal Comms
Buzzfeed was initially quiet about one detail—it was not going to pay out earned PTO as a part of its severance packages. → Read More
How to Make a Great PR Infographic [INFOGRAPHIC]
Infographics continue to be a great way to deliver information to your clients and those your clients want to reach. A study by Demand Gen report found → Read More
A Crisis Double Play: How the Washington Nationals Fielded a Nationally Televised Fight
It was a nightmare scenario for Jennifer Giglio. Leading communications for the Washington Nationals Ball Club, she was accustomed to player tempers flaring and even some battling and fights behind the scenes. But nothing could have prepared her for the televised altercation between closer and team "bad boy" Jonathan Papelbon and "golden boy" right fielder Bryce Harper. → Read More