One year after earning the #influenceSD “Agency of the Year” honor as the leading new media agency in San Diego, and six months after expanding into Orange County, Bolt PR is pleased to announce the continued expansion of our operations into Raleigh, N.C.! 

As part of our expansion, we are thrilled to announce the appointment of Jo-Anne Chase, a senior public relations executive, as our vice president of the eastern region. Jo-Anne brings a wealth of experience and savvy to our team, while also delivering expanded physical reach and added knowledge and experience to small businesses and non-profits throughout the country.

Jo-Anne most recently served as account supervisor at French/West/Vaughan, a Raleigh-based public relations agency, where she was responsible for the development and execution of national campaigns. Her account management experience includes Wrangler, Riders by Lee, VF Corporation, Minute Maid, the U.S. Polo Association, the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, Kyle Petty, Victory Junction and Wrangler Home furnishings, among others. Jo-Anne’s work on behalf of her clients has resulted in high-profile media placements in outlets such as The New York Times, USA Today, Cosmopolitan, ESPN, CNN and “Entertainment Tonight.”

Jo-Anne’s work has earned national recognition in the PR industry, including two Bronze Anvil Awards from the Public Relations Society of America, two finalist recognitions for The Holmes Report’s SABRE Awards, and numerous honors from North Carolina and Raleigh public relations societies.

Visit us in Orange County at 34052 La Plaza Drive in Dana Point, in Raleigh at 3737 Glenwood Ave, on Twitter at http://twitter.com/boltpr and on Facebook at http://facebook.com/boltpr!

The Bolt team is always chatting about the latest and greatest things we find throughout the week. Last week, as we were sitting down to a team meeting, we decided we should share these favorites with anyone who might be interested.

So here it is, the first ever Bolt’s Favorite Things blog. Our team plans on doing this weekly, so in the spirit of inclusion, if you have a favorite thing, please feel free to send it to us (info@boltpr.com)!

• Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar (Porcini Rubbed Filet Mignon – not pictured here): http://ow.ly/2G2OR   
• The New Twitter roll-out #NewTwitter: http://ow.ly/2G2Ti. Dear Twitter, we’re just waiting for our invite to the new features =)
• Bloomberg Empowered Entrepreneur: Achievers – speaking engagement held in Santa Monica with entrepreneurs that include @DGATweeter @HeadBlade @VeeV and more!: http://ow.ly/2G2WL
• Fruit Punch Gatorade (@gatorade): http://ow.ly/2G32F Dennis’ lifeline, full of electrolytes.
• Reggie Bush (@reggie_bush) giving back his Heisman Trophy with total class: http://ow.ly/2G33q
• Radio Disney (@radiodisney): http://ow.ly/2G34m. Tune in to markets nationwide to hear Club GoBeDo on-air!
• Le Parc Suite Hotel in Los Angeles (@LeParcSuite): http://ow.ly/2G3VJ. Thanks for the great service and spacious suites! The doggie brew was an especially nice touch!
• Yogurtland (@yogurtlandinc): http://ow.ly/2G4gg. Three words: Blood Orange Tart. We said it.
• NFL RedZone (@nflredzone): http://ow.ly/2G4GH. It’s the perfect woman’s program – just shows the highlights!

What do you think of this week’s Bolt’s Favorite Things blog? Let us know in the comment section below.

Labor Day weekend always highlights the blending of our professional and personal lives (hey, it’s a three day weekend that’s thanking you for working; how could it not?) As you know, I’ve written about the blending of professional and personal lives in the past. However, the first weekend in September seems to shine a spotlight on the subject matter. 

This Labor Day weekend was a bit different than those of my past. My best friend separated from her significant other and instead of spending the day at the beach pretending to put on sunscreen and mingling, it was spent creating a new life for her. True to form, this got me thinking about work and reinvention.  Her life is taking a new form, but her core qualities remain the same – core qualities that make her one of the best people I’ve ever known.

Like my best friend, Bolt Public Relations’ expansion is thrilling, a new life if you will. However, in order to maintain the consistent, fantastic work we produce, we have to remember our core qualities that allowed us the ability to expand in the first place.

Here are my top five traits that create a solid foundation, that, if maintained, allow for unlimited reinventions:

• Timeliness: One of the best pieces of advice I was ever given was to treat people’s time as if it were your own. Don’t be late. If you are late, call. Remember that other people’s time is just as valuable as your own.
• Respect: Working and personal relationships take on various forms. It is important to respect all of those various forms.
• Quality: Making sure everything you do is top quality. If it’s always quality work, you never have anything to worry about. Take care of what you do, as you are a direct reflection of what you produce. Take pride in it.
• Attitude: Simply put, have a good one. If you don’t, fake it until you make it.
• Humor: Life is funny. It would be possible to insert thousands of movie quotes here, but that would be very cliché. It’s important to look at life in a way that you can at least experience its wicked sense of humor.

With Labor Day behind us, as we venture into the fall, I challenge you to create a solid foundation for yourself and never be scared of reinvention. After all, all reinvention really means is that you’re growing- and who doesn’t love a little growth?!