Katie Petru

You will never hear another person’s voice more than you hear your own. This is one of my favorite discussion points from my breakout at this week’s PR & Comms Summit. I had the opportunity to host a session about all-things-Executive Presence, and the room full of engaging, curious and supportive comms leaders blew me away (as did the Florida humidity). Among other powerful topics, we talked about being obsessively intentional about the way we speak to ourselves and about ourselves, because… well, we’re listening! If you wouldn’t say it about your best friend, don’t say it about yourself. Here’s an example: Let’s say, you make a mistake. Your first reaction is to say: 🗣️“Gosh, I’m so stupid!” The problem is… Your mind doesn’t know you’re being facetious. What you teach your brain when you say that: “You’re not smart. You’re not capable. You’re an imposter.” Instead, speak about the reality of the situation without talking down to yourself. Say things like: 💬“I messed up!” 💬“Well, there’s a learning opportunity.” 💬“I’ll figure out how to avoid that next time.” What you teach your brain when you say things like that: “This situation isn’t ideal. You are capable of learning and growing. You got this.” This takes practice and accountability. Ask a friend or colleague to help you break the habit of negative self-talk, and offer to do the same for them! You got this. #PRCommsSummit #FPRA #FocusForward2024 Central West Coast Chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association (CWC-FPRA) Florida Public Relations Association (FPRA)

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Mark Mears is the Chief Growth Officer at LEAF Growth Ventures, LLC in Kansas City, with a marketing background that includes major brands like Pizza Hut and McDonald's. He authored "The Purposeful Growth Revolution," which focuses on leadership and personal growth, advocating for intentional acts of kindness and the importance of making a positive impact rather than just pursuing profit. Mears emphasizes leadership, engagement, accountability, and fulfillment as keys to personal and professional growth, believing authentic leadership involves building relationships and developing future leaders. Influenced by mentors like David Novak and David Overton, he values recognition and the relentless pursuit of improvement. Mears has faced challenges in his work, including fear and self-doubt, but he emphasizes the power of faith and purposeful action in overcoming these obstacles. He encourages others to pursue their goals persistently and to connect with him through his website and LinkedIn. Mark gives shoutouts to his mentors and individuals who have influenced his growth and to the community he seeks to inspire through his work and acts of kindness. Connect with Mark Mears and watch the full episode in the comment section below! 👇 Please like, share, and subscribe to our podcast channels! #GASpodcast  #WithMoku  #Toddwestra #Leadership #PurposefulGrowth #ImpactfulLeadership #BusinessGrowth #PersonalDevelopment #FaithAndAction #LeadershipInspiration #ProfessionalGrowth #Accountability #Fulfillment #LegacyBuilding #MarkMears #GrowthMindset #Mentorship #PurposefulLeadership #LEAFGrowthVentures #KansasCity

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Okay, we admit it, we might have been a little hungry when compiling this week’s #Trending newsletter as there are a lot of trends focused on food. But that’s an important part of the travel and hospitality experience isn’t it? Here’s what you need to know this week. CONSUMERS SEEK FOOD EXPERIENCES BEYOND THE DINING ROOM. They want to see where their food comes from and be involved in the harvest, and many restaurants and hotel dining spots are heeding the call. Keeping it green, SEAWEED IS THE NEXT KALE. That’s right, the kale trend has peaked and is on the way down. We didn’t see this one coming: GROCERY STORE TOURISM! Click through to find out more about this one, but it does trend with recent findings on how travelers want to get a more intimate and authentic look at the local culture. MEDICAL TOURISM IS ON THE RISE — expected to increase up to 25% annually over the next 10 years. And the basic vanilla, chocolate, strawberry ICE CREAM FLAVORS HAVE TAKEN A BACK SEAT TO oyster, chorizo, and blue cheese varieties. Check it all out in our three-minute read below. https://lnkd.in/dq5PHkXU #food #sustainability #medicaltourism #icecream #seaweed #foodandbeverage

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"We estimate that about 1,000 people eat at least one meal each week that includes something grown at The Cornucopia...My unique relationship with customers through a farmers’ market setting allows me to learn not only the names of my customers, but I also learn about their lives which gives me plenty of opportunities for sowing." In the latest In All Things blog post, hear from Ana Timmer, a farmer at The Cornucopia in Sioux Center, on what it's like to take part in two different types of fellowship: a Fellowship of Sowing and a Fellowship of Harvesting. https://lnkd.in/g6h6eqiS

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Demo'ing your technology can be an important part of your PR campaign. However, based on the current media landscape, they are very hard to secure if you are not Microsoft (for example). If you do land one with a journalist, the stakes are high to get it right. Based on my experience being involved with demos that have gone awry, here are two things you need to know before going into it.

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And here it is: Your 2024 QSR Drive-Thru Report, in partnership with Sarah Beckett and the team at Intouch Insight. Some quick highlights: This was the first year Raising Cane's was included in the two-plus decades we've been doing this. How did they perform? Kind of similar to Chick-fil-A in some areas (high satisfaction, high customer service ratings). But more widely for all brands, recent trends showed yet again. Taco Bell has been the fastest drive-thru in America for four consecutive Reports. Chick-fil-A topped in accuracy and customer service (it won this metric by a full 7 percentage points), and scored a 99 percent on guest satisfaction, which I'm not sure I've seen before. CFA also moved individual cars the quickest. But as you'll see as we get into the insights behind the data, restaurants are evolving toward a more digital, elevated drive-thru. Customer expectations out of COVID brought the channel more in line with some other ordering habits in people's lives. A rush to order confirmation boards, some flirting with AI, and the reign of accuracy as the metric that results in "perception of speed" as much as actual clocked time. As always, though, the drive-thru, like the restaurant itself, is an exercise in understanding what your core customer expects and continuing to deliver against that, whether its speed, service, or, as is increasingly becoming the case thanks to technology, some combination of all of the above. Here's a full look at the results, which without much question, is probably the most complex thing I write every year. But nothing, in my opinion, is more reflective of the overall QSR dining landscape than what happens in the drive-thru. Want to know what the consumer is doing? Follow how they're eating. And this is where it all begins.

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Let's keep learning! So many lessons came out of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the importance of clear communication about what we know and what we DON'T know about emerging infections. I'm happy to be part of the Council for Quality Health Communication: a group working to improve the quality of health information and increase trust among the public. New article by founding members Ken Rabin and Scott C. Ratzan on H5N1 in MedPage Today.

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Announcing leadership changes is a critical responsibility for communications teams. Developing the optimal timeline, crafting clear and transparent messages that address the why, and running the gauntlet of approvals can be daunting, yet exhilarating. Thanks Casey Weldon for the chance to share lessons from my share of these announcements. #PR #media #investors

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There are many eyes watching what will happen with the potential merger of grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons, Joe Abbott, CFA and Senior Research Analyst, shared his views with Cincinnati Business Courier’s Steve Watkins. Joe believes the case boils down to these three key arguments: - How the grocery market is defined - Whether the deal would weaken labor competition by eliminating a big player - Whether C&S would be a relevant competitor Read the full Cincinnati Business Courier article at the link in the comments. #Kroger #Merger #Albertsons #BusinessCourier #JohnsonInvestmentCounsel #JICCincinnati Disclaimer: Johnson Investment Counsel cannot promise future results. Any expectations presented here should not be taken as any guarantee or other assurance as to future results. Our opinions are a reflection of our best judgment at the time this material was created, and we disclaim any obligation to update or alter forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. 

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Zurich North America's crop insurance business, RCIS: Rural Community Insurance Services carries the voice of farmers and ranchers to Washington D.C. as Farm Bill negotiations continue.

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One of THE most important jobs of PR in any organization is evaluating ALL opportunities for downside risk vs potential upside. Sometimes (and by that I mean often) PR guides the org to do things that will protect the brand and not put it in jeopardy. If you find an org stepping in it that is because PR didn't do its main job. This is a "first, do no harm" type of situation. Good to be creative. Bad to be creative—and stupid. So let's say you're working for the Paris Olympics Opening Ceremonies and someone comes in and says "I really think we should do a parody of The Last Supper using transvestites...." If it's me on point, PR kills that idea almost instantly (probably before the sentence ends)—and if PR isn't gonna do it, you can almost ALWAYS count on Legal to step in. Evaluating Downside Risk—It's a real thing. PR needs to step up in these companies that are being very careless and reckless with their brands. #publicrelations, #pr, #strategy, #risk

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Apparently tomorrow is National Fast Food Day, which means now is the perfect time to listen to this week's Take-Away featuring Wayback Burgers president Patrick Conlin. Wayback is all over the national food holidays and Pat shared how its marketing campaigns around those holidays have led to sales records across the system. Give a listen to the whole episode here: https://lnkd.in/euDkKVHC Nation's Restaurant News #podcast #conversations #leadership #marketing #advertising

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Let’s connect good jobs with good folks who are looking. I know several people who do awesome work in communications who are looking for work right now. Some have deep ag experience, others have a more diverse background that is inclusive of ag but not exclusive to it. Some are deep in marketing communications others are deep in public relations. * If you have roles you are looking to fill, especially in the Midwest, please let me know. Either drop a link here or message me. I keep messaging people I know well the jobs I see that fits them. * If you are looking, take this opportunity to let some of my network know or message me about what you are looking for. I have limited comments to my connections but some connections may want to drop names here. That’s cool I just don’t want to deal with layers of LinkedIn that letting anyone comment will bring cause I ain’t got time for that

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It was less than a year ago when Casey's acquired Douglass Distributing and its Lone Star stores, giving Casey's a position in the coveted DFW market. As far as deals go, that transaction was relatively modest but critically important. Douglass and its Lone Star properties were run by the venerable Bill Douglass and his son; and his daughter, Diane McCarty, had crafted an excellent moderate-size retail chain https://lnkd.in/ewer2-qx. I reference that deal because it was a pacesetter for today's significant deal, in which Casey's is acquiring the nearly 200-unit CEFCO network run by the Fikes family. This, coupled with Yesway's major investment in the Dallas-Ft. Worth market and 7-Elevens purchase of Cal's, now makes this market one of the most hotly contested... will be fascinating to watch as the 3 heavyweights operate very different business models. #cefco #caseys #yesway #lonestar #7eleven

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As we round the corner on the 20th anniversary of Lyons Broadcast PR, there’s much to celebrate—and many people to thank. 🥂 But instead of the usual “we’re so grateful” post, I figured I’d share one of those behind-the-scenes business stories that rarely sees the light of day: A story of our team getting the boot. Not as a result of our work (which is stellar of course), but the boot nonetheless. If you’re a fellow PR pro (or really any entrepreneur) who’s just venturing out on your own, remember this—no matter how well you do your job and provide exceptional service and results, sometimes the rug just gets pulled out from under you. Over two decades, we’ve lost a few clients due to organizational restructuring, shrinking budgets, and leadership shake-ups. It’s never fun, but if you’re going to last in this industry, you’ve got to develop some serious resilience and very thick skin. So without further ado, story #1 of us getting canned by a long-time client: About 10 years in, one of our best clients had a change of leadership at the very top. Our work with them, which included satellite media tours, video production and more, continued as planned for a few months before the new CEO requested an in-person meeting. I was more than happy to accommodate so I could showcase the great work we had done, and continued to do, on behalf of the organization. When the new CEO walked into the room stone-faced and cold, I instantly knew we were toast. Rather than focus on the work we were doing or were planning to do, I was grilled about about why we hadn’t taken on projects and responsibilities that were never part of our scope. My response of “we’re happy to adjust, but that’s not what we were hired to do initially” was clearly not acceptable. My explanations fell flat and to nobody’s surprise, our contract with this organization was terminated shortly thereafter. Was it fun? Nope. And it had an impact on our bottom line. But looking back it was another experience that helped build resiliency. And while that organization is no longer a client, our main contact we worked with there remains a friend to this day. Starting a small business is not easy. And even after two decades, there are obstacles, rejections and unplanned changes. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. **Misery loves company—would love to hear other stories of being unceremoniously “un-hired” in the comments.**

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The new arm within US Beverage will leverage its existing network to accelerate time to market for craft and emerging spirits brands.

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