Archive for February, 2011

March Luncheon: Communicating During a Crisis  

Presentation by Dan Hartlage, Principal with Guthrie/Mayes Public Relations  

Do you know what to do in case of a crisis? Have you wondered what your first steps as a key communicator should be?

Dan Hartlage will walk through Communicating During a Crisis, providing expert counsel to prepare you for a challenging occasion. In his presentation, Dan will cover:

• Initial steps when a crisis occurs
• Messaging during a crisis – what to say…and what not to say
• How to handle the critical ‘fork in the road’
• The final exam – how others will view your handling of the situation
• Preparing for and dealing with the media

March 8, 2011

11:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Carrabba’s–Hamburg, Lexington

$20 PRSA Members

$27 Potential Members

$15 Students

Click here to register for the luncheon.

Media Contacts:

Clair Nichols                                                   Jennifer McGuire
Guthrie/Mayes Public Relations                 Guthrie/Mayes Public Relations
(502) 649-8956                                              (859) 940-3845

GUTHRIE/MAYES PUBLIC RELATIONS EXPANDS INTO LEXINGTON

Expansion to enhance firm’s Central Kentucky presence 

LEXINGTON, Ky. (February 14, 2011) – Guthrie/Mayes Public Relations, one of the largest independently owned public relations firms in Kentucky and the Southeast, has opened an office in downtown Lexington.  Led by public relations veteran Jennifer McGuire, the Lexington office will provide a Central Kentucky base for the agency’s expansion.

Guthrie/Mayes is a full-service public relations and public affairs counseling firm.  Founded in 1977, the agency’s client-service areas include strategic communications counseling, media relations, social media, corporate communications, public affairs/issues management and crisis communications.  The firm also has a long established media-training practice area – with clients throughout the U.S.

The agency’s clients include Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Toyota Motor Sales, Keeneland, Philip Morris USA, United Healthcare of Kentucky, Red Bull, CSX Transportation, Century Aluminum, Buffalo Trace Distillery, the Louisville Regional Airport Authority, Alzheimer’s Association of Greater Kentucky and Southern Indiana and Lexington-based restaurant franchise company Thomas & King.

Guthrie/Mayes Lexington Leadership

McGuire joins Guthrie/Mayes as a senior counselor, bringing with her 17 years of public relations and integrated brand-marketing experience.  Her diverse background includes working with agencies in New York, Cincinnati and Atlanta and clients ranging from Proctor & Gamble to YUM! Brands, Trump Organization, Dow Chemical, Marriott, United Egg Producers and American Greetings.

“We’re already quite familiar with Central Kentucky through our work in serving Lexington-area clients, as well as helping clients from outside this region who have Lexington interests,” said Clair Nichols, a principal with Guthrie/Mayes.  “So, the Guthrie/Mayes Lexington office is a natural and logical step for us.  The Lexington office gives us a true statewide reach.”

Nichols said the Lexington office also “opens opportunities to expand our Central Kentucky client base.  We see this region as an area of growth for the firm.”

“The Lexington area has a very strong and vibrant business and civic environment,” said McGuire, a Kentucky native who attended the University of Kentucky.  “The Guthrie/Mayes Lexington office will be very much a part of that environment – as it has been for 34 years in Louisville.“

McGuire most recently operated her own business as an independent public relations consultant. An accomplished writer, she ghost-wrote a brand-strategy book in 2010 that will be published early this year.

Prior to that, McGuire was an account director with Laura Davidson Public Relations in New York, where she led agency work related to tourism and travel.  She also spent four years with Cincinnati-based Northlich, an integrated brand-marketing agency, where she oversaw programs for Millstone Coffee, Star-Kist Tuna and Hyatt, as well as the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center.

She has extensive experience in media-relations work, both on a local and national level.  In addition, she has worked closely with clients in the development of social media programs.

After attending UK for three years as a journalism major, McGuire graduated from Baruch College in New York with a degree in Spanish corporate communications. 

McGuire is a member of Lexington’s Thoroughbred Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. 

The Guthrie/Mayes Public Relations Lexington office is located at 249 East Main Street, Suite 400, in the offices of Cornett Integrated Marketing Solutions, and can be reached at (859) 281-7872.

About Guthrie/Mayes

Guthrie/Mayes is one of the largest independent public relations firms in Kentucky and the Southeast.  Established in 1977, the firm’s expertise includes media relations, public affairs, media training, crisis communications and issues management.  Please visit us at www.guthriemayes.com, on Facebook (Guthrie/Mayes Public Relations) and Twitter (@GuthrieMayesPR).

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