Halloween costume ideas: PC style

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Thursday October 27, 2011 | No Comments

PC is getting into the Halloween spirit! Are you still struggling to find the perfect costume idea? No need to fret—we’ve got you covered whether you’re planning on going it alone this year, partnering with a friend or putting together an ensemble cast. We’ve even got options for expectant mothers! Check out our topical, easy-to-pull-off ideas, as well as some throwbacks. Got a great costume this year? Send us your pictures and we’ll post them on our Facebook to share with everyone. Enjoy!

For Singles

Amelia With a Twist – Did she really disappear? Or did she actually just get transported into the future? Haul out your black leather cat suit, add a few judiciously placed reflective strips, get your ‘30s bob on and don’t forget the white silk scarf. BYO spaceship.

Jim Beam – In a hurry? Doesn’t matter if you’re male or female – just dress for a day at the office, slap on a nametag with JIM in big letters, and randomly shoot people with your laser pointer. Jim Beam!

Charlie Sheen – Throw on a pair of jeans and grab a cigarette. Talk in a rough low voice and say crazy things! If you want to get others in on it, grab a couple of friends to be your goddesses, or Ashton Kutcher.

Cameron from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off – Got a Red Wings jersey? You’re set! Now, just act depressed and pessimistic about things. Don’t forget to flirt with your bro’s girl.

Lindsey Lohan in Playboy – All you need is a blonde wig for this one. Works best if you appear sickly skinny, but if you’re not, the irony is always good for laughs.

Amy Winehouse – A black wig in an up-do, too much eye-liner and a mini-skirt. Don’t forget to carry a bottle of wine for good measure.

Rebecca Black – Grab a long, straight black wig, wear a purple tank top and a backpack. This costume instantly allows you to annoy everybody all night. Singing (or sing-talking) is a must.

Pairs

Casey Anthony & Nancy Grace – You’ll need a couple of decent wigs, perhaps, but this one is all about playing the part. Nancy should be extremely condescending. Casey should probably just keep quiet.

James Lipton & Bradley Cooper – James needs some wire rim glasses, some index cards and a thoughtful expression. Brad needs excessive self-tanner and a nice smile. Brad should answer all of Lipton’s questions obnoxiously while trying to appear humble. Don’t like Bradley Cooper? The good thing is James Lipton can interview pretty much anybody.

Julia and Jaques – Foodies, represent! You’ll need two aprons, a stick of butter, a rubber chicken, one passable French accent, one pair of sensible shoes, and a whole lot of joie de vivre!

ZZ Top – It’s pretty simple to pull off and a crowd favorite. All you and a friend need are some crazy beards, sunglasses, hats and a couple toy guitars.

Got A Bump? We’ve Got A Costume For You:

Beyonce & Jay-Z – Wear a bathing suit that resembles Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” get-up and shows off your bump. Jay-Z is easy to dress – just give him a Yankees cap and an Occupy Wall Street sign.

Jessica Simpson with father Joe Simpson – The bigger the belly, the funnier it gets. No shame in padding your stomach on this one. Show it off. Whoever plays the part of Joe should have a cheesy blonde wig, a short-sleeve collared shirt, and 35mm camera with giant zoom around his neck. His task? Don’t let anyone ask Jessica if she’s pregnant without paying first!

Guy at the gym with the world’s worst hernia – Get in your workout gear. Keel over in pain every couple minutes and pretend that your whole stomach is a massive hernia. Be careful for people who think you are going in to labor and want to rush you to the hospital. Dress your hubby up as your spotter.

Groups

Zombie Presidential Candidates – Dress up as Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, Ron Paul and others, but change it up with some “zombiefication”. Stage ridiculous debates with your friends. Bonus points for whoever does the best impression. Donald Trump is fair game here too. Or bring back the classic “Saturday Night Live” rendition of Ross Perot!

The Spice Girls­ – This is not gender-specific. Every group of friends has figured out who in the group is which Spice Girl. Great way to bring out your sassy side and an even better excuse to have obnoxious sing-alongs with your friends. Don’t forget to tote along your Spice babies and Becks!

Mariah Carey, Nick Cannon and their twins, Roc and Roe – You’ll need two babies (get creative – can be Cabbage Patch dolls, real children or very tall men) dressed in diapers you’ve spray-painted gold. Mimi and Nick are easy – Mimi’s, take your pick of skin tight gold lame dresses or just wriggle into a pair of butterfly wings. Nick, you should be in a 3 piece suit, violently pink tie, and follow Mariah around with absolute devotion all night long. Don’t forget to let people catch you looking in her purse for cash!

The Breakfast Club – Allows you to transform into the person you never were in high school. Now you can be the jock, the nerd, the bully, the princess or the eccentric introvert.

Booze Brigade – Get your pals to play the part of your favorite adult beverage namesakes. Captain Morgan, Jack Daniels, Johnnie Walker, Admiral Nelson, Jim Beam, Old Grand Dad, John Jameson… We could go on, but you get the point. You could even spice things up and go as a Wild Turkey.

Jersey Shore Cast – No amount of bronzer and hair gel could ever be enough to go over the top with this one. Allows ladies to be a little sleazy, allows guys to start fights at all times. No matter what, this will make for an interesting night – just leave the pickles and laundry at home.

by PascaleCom

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Déjà vu?

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Tuesday October 11, 2011 | No Comments

Ever worry that you’re behind the times, especially with regard to Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Google + and other social media apps?  Fear not, we’re here to sort out a few recent top stories for you!

Facebook Finally Releases iPad App

Wait, you say. Didn’t I already have this? No. No you didn’t, despite the fact that a version of the app leaked in July.  This app is photo-centric, plays video and allows you to connect with your ongoing games, if you’re into that whole Farmville thing. (And if you are, don’t expect to be on anyone’s close friend list with all those farm-related updates!)

Twitter Secures “Tweet” Trademark

Who knew that the “tweet” trademark was previously owned by Des Moines-based advertising company, Twittad?  After years of legal battles, Twitter has finally acquired the trademark. Tweet™ on! Next up? We’re going to take a wild guess and say they’ll take a look at trademarking or protecting these phrases: Tweeps, Twitterverse and Twitterview.

Picasa to Become Google+ Photos?

According to TheNextWeb, “It would appear that Google’s impending move to phase out Picasa and fold it further into the Google+ suite of tools is around the corner.”  We say, wait! Didn’t this already happen?  This move (if it happens) makes sense because at PC, we’ve used Picasa exactly zero times since we realized it was so easy to post and share photos on Facebook (especially since our parents, cousins, godmothers and other relatives have joined).

Companies Share Status Updates on LinkedIn

“Ha! You can’t trick me,” you say. “Companies could always post status updates on LinkedIn!” Actually … no.  Last week the site announced on its blog that company pages can now be updated with regular status updates, in order to better engage with communities online.  Previously, if you wanted to let people know about an exciting new announcement coming soon for Company X, for example, you had to utilize the company’s page members to tease that news out to peer groups via their individual status updates.  We think this update has been a long time coming, and is a great way for corporate entities to share news, respond quickly to urgent matters, recruit and comment on trends or research.   We still think the winners will be the companies who hire in social media strategists to make sure posts stay on message and are consistent with brand image, but overall this is a win.

What social media stories have you seen lately that gave you déjà vu?  Tell us in the comments section, tweet us @pascalecom or write in on our Facebook page!

by PascaleCom

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Online Is Still The Real World (A Cautionary Communications Tale)

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Friday October 7, 2011 | No Comments

As PR mavens, one of the ways that we support our clients by pitching their news and products to print, broadcast and online outlets.  In offering story angles, our end goal is to get coverage.  And not just any coverage – at PC, we’re committed to building relationships with editors, producers and bloggers to make their jobs easier, and to get the positive, on-message coverage our clients expect.

All communications professionals walk a number of fine lines, sometimes at the same time.  Maybe we’re asked to pitch a story we know in our guts will not resonate well with media. Or maybe we have to work extra-hard to help journalists connect the dots between the story line and our client.  We’re all used to this in the real world, and anyone who’s been in the game for a while has the war stories (and sometimes the battle scars) to show for that “Today” piece or USA Today blurb.  But here’s the thing.  Just because someone works in an online medium – as a blogger, a prolific Tweeter or as a mega-Google+ circle moderator - the rules of engagement don’t change. You still have to put in the effort to make sure you’re reaching out to people who actually cover what you’re pitching, and treat bloggers with the same respect we show to traditional media.

Seems obvious, right?  Not to BrandLinkCommunications, which made the mistake of telling major, well-loved blogger The Bloggess that she wasn’t relevant.  Oh, and they called her a “****ing b**ch” on an email said blogger was accidentally included on.  For more on the story, click here: http://goo.gl/m8dsK – because The Bloggess posted the entire exchange.  In a nutshell, an irrelevant pitch was sent, and a quirky response was sent back rejecting the story.  The Bloggess herself says that she’s actually had some great exchanges with PR folks who were able to respond with funny or equally quirky responses – and we’ve been having fun thinking of what our own pithy replies might be –but what happened instead is that the agency was defensive and derisive.  That was, as we like to say, unsmart.

The immediate outpouring of support for The Bloggess has been amazing to watch.  The story (generally titled a variation on the “Epic PR Pitch #Fail” theme) was quickly picked up on Twitter and Facebook, and continues to be posted on major blogs, such as Babble.  We can think of at least one VP at that agency who’s probably out of a job this morning.

While it’s human to err, a wise person once told me that it doesn’t matter how you screw up – what people really remember is how you recover. Communications is, by definition, the art of transmitting ideas from one entity to another.  PR is the art of communicating with finesse, strategy and grace – whether you’re online or off.  Tell us, have you ever had a flub (epic or tiny)? How did you recover?

- Rosemary Valenta, Account Director

by PascaleCom

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PC Presents: Michele!

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Tuesday October 4, 2011 | No Comments

PC is proud to introduce Michele Gray, a Project Specialist and another one of our fine new additions to the team.  We were able to ask her a few questions to let everyone get to know her a little better.  Check it out!

You used to live in France.  What was that experience like and what was your favorite part about your time in Europe?

It was amazing!  I was just out of college.  I arrived in Paris with just a few thousand francs in my pocket and a backpack on my back.  I had no job, no place to stay, no friends and no contacts.  Not to mention that I could barely speak French.  Within a few weeks, I had landed a job at the Paris bureau of McGraw-Hill, then publisher of Business Week, had a place to live and had made some friends, many of whom I remain in touch with today.  By the time I left Paris two years later, I was fluent in French.  I think this experience has given me the confidence to know that regardless of the situation or challenge, I can succeed.  My favorite thing??  There are too many to name!  Of course, the food was fabulous.  So much so that it ended my eight-year stint as a vegetarian.  The proximity to other countries and cultures made it so easy to travel and I did my fare share.  The exposure to different cultures and opinions opened my eyes to new ideas, new ways of viewing things.  I’m sensitive to how Americans are perceived by the rest of the world, and know that there are many ways to solve big problems and wish that our country would sometimes look outside of itself to find solutions.

What have been the biggest obstacles you’ve had to overcome while dealing with any culture shock or different customs in your experiences abroad?

My greatest obstacle was communications, believe it or not.  I’m terrible at learning languages!  I did a study abroad program at the Université Michel de Montaigne in Bordeaux my junior year in college and I can honestly say I was the worst French speaker in the program.  It was a struggle.  I left my French lectures in tears. When I returned to the States 10 months later, my French had improved, but only slightly.  When I returned to France two years later, it was my goal to become fluent, and I succeeded.  My boyfriend, now husband, takes most of the credit for this amazing feat!  Now I’d take a guess that my French is better than anyone else who was in my program in Bordeaux, and I’m pretty proud about that!

What motivated you to move back across the pond to the United States?

I had been in Paris for two years and was just ready to come back home and start my career.  It was an amazing experience; it led me to where I am today.

What do you enjoy most about your work?

I love the people.  From my clients, to the doctors and the media, the entire industry is made up of a wonderful group of people.  I also enjoy cooking up a good story idea and seeing the results.

How are you adapting to joining the PC family?

It’s been wonderful.  I love the camaraderie at PC.  It’s a very positive atmosphere.  Everyone is upbeat and they’re all available to help, bounce an idea off of, etc.

by PascaleCom

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