Six days before leaving for vacation with my family (husband and 5-year-old daughter), I was paralyzed with anxiety — no, not about work or going to another country. I couldn’t make a decision about our lodging. This year, in lieu of the old-fashioned route of buying/borrowing dozens of travel books on Montreal and Quebec City, I decided enough was enough and hit the vast travel sites in search of the perfect hotels. Good luck. As a proponent, user and seller of social media, I am generally a big fan. But in the case of my own vacation, social media and technology became my worst enemies.

Across the board, each travel site offered their own value or rating systems — sometimes with the travel site offering its own assessment, e.g., 4.5 stars, as well as the users’ combined score, e.g., 2 stars (this is a true example). How is it that the likes of Orbitz, Priceline and Hotels.com have such varying ratings? And then the user reviews: “Best hotel I have ever stayed in,” “Worst hotel I have ever stayed in,” “Staff were rude,” “Staff went out of their way to make our trip memorable.” Of course, I also Googled the potential candidates and found plenty of dissenting blog entries. The endless amount of contradicting information was simply crippling. In the end, I took a leap of faith and, in some cases, the hotel was superb and in others not at all what the good reviews described (complete with screaming kids and a scary ‘don’t walk around at night’ neighborhood, yet providing a clean, large room). Upon my return, I posted my own reviews but have to wonder — am I adding to others’ indecision with another differing opinion?

New products—they are constantly flowing to meet today’s “yesterday’s widget is old” mentality. What’s different in the new iPhone? Is the new version of Hootsuite better? Which of the latest CRM solutions is right for my company?

Reporters often wonder what is significantly new about new products, so proper PR positioning can mean the difference between no coverage and powerful, on-message media. Fresh off a few new product launches, here is some insight that consistently helps us garner targeted coverage for clients.

Get Your Messages Straight…Before the Interview – Take time to develop core messaging around the new offering—including a clear target audience, key benefits and reasons for the new product (without knocking the previous version) and ensure the leadership team and company spokespeople are on the same page .

Plug the Business Benefits, Not the Product Features – Of course the product’s features are important, but they shouldn’t be the first messages out of the gate. Customers care most about the reasons for the features – and so do reporters. Explain the business benefits to cut through the clutter for reporters who stare at feature-centric pitches and press releases all day.

Get a Third-Party Onboard – If possible, brief at least one third-party analyst before the launch to kick the tires on the new product. More often than not, they will have valuable insights and questions about how the product fits the needs of the marketplace. And, bonus, one of these folks may be willing to contribute a quote to your launch press release.

Offer a Test Drive – Product reviews can be powerful. If your product stands up and is bug-free, offer key media a test-drive on their own. This type of coverage (if positive) can also be used to close key sales deals.

For this year’s PR grads, how can you find the job of your dreams? Look to social networks – these sites are no longer just a way to communicate with friends.

Facebook. Don’t post anything on Facebook that you wouldn’t want a potential employer to read.  Also, delete photos in question – you know the ones.  Beyond your profiles, use Facebook to connect with interesting organizations by “liking” their corporate or careers page.  You can learn a lot about a company’s personality and philosophy – great for finding out if you want to work for them and also help prep you for interviews.

Twitter. Keep an ongoing Twitter keyword search of “public relations” on HootSuite or TweetDeck so that you can peruse career opportunities.  Many recruiters are using Twitter to attract job seekers.

Help a PR Pro Out. Follow and engage with Help a PR Pro Out (#happo), the group started by Valerie Simon (@valeriesimon) and Arik Hanson (@arikhanson) to help job-seeking PR professionals connect with organizations through social media.

LinkedIn. Build your network of LinkedIn connections and let them know you are looking for a job.  Don’t be afraid to reach out, even if your connection is not involved in the PR industry, they might know someone who knows someone who knows someone.  You get the point.  Also, don’t forget to create a polished and easy-to-read LinkedIn profile.  It is an extension of your resume.

There are so many ways to engage with potential employers through social media. The list could go on and on.  What has worked for you?

In case you haven’t seen it, the latest edition of our newsletter–The Spark–is out!  The issue celebrates new client Shooger and the renewal of PeriscopeIQ, as well as announces the purchase of Young & Associates by long-term employees Jennifer MacLeid Qotb and Meggan Manson. It also offers signs that a start-up is ready for a PR partner, and Meggan Manson pens a My Two Cents column on preparing corporate leaders to deliver sound and confident speaking engagements and interviews without landing in the hot seat like Mark Zuckerberg at All Things D8. There’s also a PR Pulse on how to work around customers’ tight-lipped media policies to showcase their satisfaction with your company’s product or services. Read the full edition here.