marketing

Cross-Trained: The Intersection of Marketing and PR

Zaneta Chuniq Inpower Leave a comment

Public relations practitioners new and old have been challenged to adapt to the new PR landscape that includes the understanding of the concept of integrated marketing communications or IMC, as we continue in the digital age.

Imagine a job in a manufacturing factory where every person only knows their individual function. Each one of those factory workers are limited in their understanding of how the products are made. With today’s PR landscape, every factory worker (PR practitioner) must be cross-trained in marketing to truly understand how the PR machine must function.

As a new PR pro, learning how public relations is not an independent study, but encapsulates all of the sciences under the marketing umbrella, including advertising and communications is critical. In this day, the traditional PR department or agency employs various marketing techniques that contribute to a greater PR influence.

The biggest challenge that new professionals face is within the changing PR landscape is learning more about marketing and how marketing directly relates to public relations. Below are four things every new PR pro can do to be cross-trained and propel their PR understanding to new heights:

  1. Read PR and Marketing News – New sites like Forbes, Fortune, Mashable and PR Daily are great resources on up-to-the-minute PR news and trends. Subscribe to their RSS feeds on your personal blog site, or follow their respective Twitter pages to receive news as it breaks. What are some of your favorite industry news outlets?
  2. Seek an experienced mentor – Last week we posted about the importance of PR mentoring for new and experienced professionals as January was National Mentoring Month. Exchanging best practices and experiences with a mentor is a great way to learn and grow.
  3. Practice, practice, practice – Knowledge is useless without application. Anything that you are learning, take time to study it further and put it into action right away. Remember all of those concepts that you learned in college that you never used? Implement all of the knowledge that you find and make yourself sharp.
  4. Engage with your PRSA section – This may seem like a dead giveaway, however PRSA New Professionals host a plethora of events and resources from a quarterly newsletter, blog, Twitter page, teleconferences and more. Get involved and make the most out of your membership!

What are some other things new professionals can do to sharpen their PR skills?

Zaneta Chuniq InpowerZaneta Chuniq Inpower is owner and president of Chuniq PR, an independent media and marketing management firm. Additionally, she is the digital communications coordinator for Douglas J Aveda Institutes and Salons, editor  for Supreme Design Publishing and social media manager for COIN Handlers Management. Her personal interests include reading, international travel and culture and community revitalization. Inpower received her B.A. in advertising from Michigan State University.

Intro to Government PR by Doug Matthews

Heather Sliwinski 1 Comment

I’ll be honest. I never made a formal decision to get into government communications. Would you believe that I was actually a forensic science major for my first two years of school? Yep. I wanted to be CSI before David Caruso inexplicably made it seem cool. Now, how David Caruso and “cool” found their way into the same sentence is a subject for another time. Suffice it to say, I’m a bit of a nerd at heart.

It was a combination of life experience, timely opportunities and great mentors that guided me to where I am today, and I couldn’t be happier with the result. So here’s my first bit of advice: create your own opportunities, but don’t get so focused that you fail to see the new, unexpected ones that present themselves along the way.

I joke that I was “infected” with the public service mindset. I blame my parents. My father was a career law enforcement officer and police chief, and my mother was an emergency room nurse. The first “marketing” I ever did professionally was working at the city pool, getting families to show up for “Dive-In Movies”…in between fits of whistle-blowing and telling kids to “walk, not run” on the pool deck.

So, after an epiphany while sitting in Applied Calculus II (another interesting, albeit off-topic story), I left class and changed my major to advertising and public relations. I secured my first internship as a sophomore doing marketing and events for the county recreation department. (Another aside here: get as much job experience as you can before you graduate–it’s the single best thing you can do to differentiate yourself from the thousands of other job-hunting graduates entering the work force.)

I continued that work until graduation, with a short stint in between studying in London and interning with Fleishman-Hillard. It was during this venture into corporate public relations that I had my second epiphany. The assignments were interesting enough, and the people were great, but I had trouble finding satisfaction with the work I was doing. For me, there was a satisfaction and fulfillment that I got from serving the public that I didn’t get when serving a client or a private industry.

That’s something I love most about this career: the absence of a traditional “target market.” Sure, you’ll always have specific audiences for specific programs, but government service is a great equalizer. After all, everyone needs their garbage picked up, right? And every one of you expects the lights and sirens to arrive when you call 911.

There’s also unbelievable variety in what our team does. I mentioned garbage collection and public safety, but we also do engineering. We do public health. We manage parks. We build roads. The work we do truly touches the lives of everyone who lives here in Austin and I get to be a part of that. We help people understand, appreciate and connect with the products and services they have invested in as taxpayers. We help make good government.

In my role, I get to be both the PR pro and the media pro. We run an in-house agency, with teams spanning media relations, Web development, employee communications, project management, community engagement, marketing, events and interactive media. We have our own television station and graphic design shop. The opportunities for learning and development are limited only by your desire and willingness to expand your horizons. The work environment is what you make of it: there is more space to try new things and take risks than you might think!

We do, though, have to talk about the other side of that coin. When you sign up as a public servant, you do so with the understanding that virtually everything you do is public. The work you do belongs to the taxpayers, and they can be a fickle and demanding audience. Likewise, there’s always an undercurrent of politics. Ultimately, my boss (the city manager) works for seven elected officials, so you can’t escape it. You can, though, maintain a distinct line between political and professional communication.

If it sounds interesting, you can start by looking for internships in your local jurisdiction. I learned as much interning with Orange County Parks & Recreation as I did in four years of coursework. Get involved with the International City/County Managers Association or the City/County Communications and Marketing Association. Look into public administration and public affairs courses as a supplement to your normal coursework.

The work might not be for everyone, but for someone with the passion to serve, a love for the art of governing, and the willingness to wear virtually every hat in the haberdashery (or millinery), there’s not a better job on the planet. 

 

Doug Matthews is an 18-year veteran of local government communications, currently serving as the chief communications director for the City of Austin, Texas. He served similar roles for the Florida cities of Largo and Clearwater before becoming an adopted Texan in 2009. He holds a master’s degree in public administration from the University of South Florida.

Intro to Agency PR by Heather R. Huhman

Heather Sliwinski Leave a comment

Think you’re interested in working in agency PR? Here are a few questions you might want to ask yourself first:

Why would I want to work for a public relations agency?

Unlike in-house public relations professionals, those who work for PR agencies get to work with a variety of clients on a daily basis. You can easily become an expert in a variety of niches by working with different organizations. Some agencies even specialize in a specific niche, focusing their efforts on a certain type of client in a particular field or industry.

What’s a typical day like in agency PR?

No two days are alike when it comes to public relations, particularly if you’re juggling several accounts. Depending on the agency and type of clients, a typical day might consist of any combination of the following:

  • Participating in client meetings
  • Creating content such as press releases, blog posts and media pitches
  • Recording press mentions
  • Speaking with members of the media
  • Arranging interviews between journalists and clients
  • Researching to develop content, media lists or other documents
  • Sharing content via social media channels
  • Monitoring local and national media
  • Brainstorming new strategies and tactics
  • Organizing events and press conferences

What types of skills or attributes should I have if I want to work in agency PR?

In order to work with different types of clients in a fast-paced environment, you should be a quick learner. You also need to have superior communication skills – both written and verbal – in order to successfully get your client’s message across. Deadlines are often tight in public relations, so you should be able to work well under pressure. Obviously, based on the variety of tasks, you should also be good at multitasking as well.

What challenges should I expect?

Working with different clients can be challenging. Some clients trust your ideas, while others are more reluctant to let go of control of their organization’s messages. Similarly, some clients micromanage their PR efforts, while others let you run with your ideas. It can also be stressful and challenging to meet tight deadlines.

What skills should I learn that might not be taught in the classroom?

  • Social media: PR pros are now expected to be proficient in the different social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, among others. You should know how to use each platform and have a solid online presence on the platforms you participate in.
  • Content marketing: Blogging, e-newsletters, webinars, podcasts, whitepapers—these are all strategies that you might need to leverage on behalf of a client. You should understand what each is and have a basic understanding of the benefits of different content options.  
  • Writing for the Web: Blog posts, social releases and social media releases all have a different writing style than “traditional” content. Writing for the Web is much more to the point, and includes hyperlinks, images, video and other content along with it. Oh, and don’t forget about search engine optimization!

How can I break into a specific agency?

Intern at the organization. Internships are one of the top ways to land an entry-level job at a particular company. According to a recent survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), employers reported 39.1 percent of their entry-level hires came from their own internship programs. Not only does landing an intern position help you get a foot in the door, but it also helps you gain experience, skills and networking connections for the future.

Follow key employees on social media. Connect with folks who work at the company online. Engage in conversations and inquire about the organization. Express your interest in learning more about their role at the company. Once you’ve built a mutually beneficial relationship, you can set up an in-person meeting, informational interview or job shadow.

Network with your peers, colleagues and professors. Build your network before you start out your job search. You never know who your connections know—and how those connections could help you land a job in the future.

Heather HuhmanHeather R. Huhman is a career expert, experienced hiring manager and founder & president of Come Recommended, a content marketing and digital PR consultancy for organizations with products that target job seekers and/or employers. She is also the author of Lies, Damned Lies & Internships: The Truth About Getting from Classroom to Cubicle (2011), #ENTRYLEVELtweet: Taking Your Career from Classroom to Cubicle (2010), and writes career and recruiting advice for numerous outlets.

Summer Book Club–June: UnMarketing Discussion

Heather Sliwinski 4 Comments

“If you believe business is built on relationships, make building them your business.”  That, in a nutshell, is what defines “UnMarketing”. 

Why do marketers, in a world where consumers strive to fast forward through commercials and place their phone numbers on “do not call” lists, continue to use old ways of marketing that they themselves detest?  “Why do we market to people the way we hate to be marketed to?” asks author Scott Stratten.

Enter UnMarketing: a new way of marketing based on creating connections, building relationships and continually providing value to your contacts using traditional media and social media outlets.  Stratten urges us to “Stop marketing. Start engaging.”

One of the biggest ways Stratten suggests to build relationships with consumers is by positioning yourself, or your company, as an expert in your field.  “When you position yourself as an expert with useful information for people, your marketplace will always have a need for that information,” says Stratten.  Therefore, if a consumer does not currently have use for your product, they will still be interested in communicating with you based on the knowledge you have to share.

So, you have knowledge to share and a few contacts to share with.  Stratten recommends building a social media platform.  With social media tools expanding at what seem like an exponential rate, one cannot possibly use every service.  Stratten suggests starting small.  Pick one place, be it Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn, and invest your time in it until you build a strong following.  Stratten outlines three steps to successfully build your platform:

1. Build traction: be consistent with your updates and spread them out over the week.  Share information and respond to others’ updates.  Create a presence.

2. Build momentum: focus on strengthening the connections you have instead of only increasing followers.  Take your conversation to another level, like meeting face-to-face at conferences or Tweetups.

3. Expand: in order to take your relationships to the next level, grow your platform to other social media sites to better engage with your connections. 

Once you have followers, it becomes important to keep your followers.  Every communication should focus on creating valuable content and keeping your followers’ trust.  Stratten emphasizes that one mediocre experience can lead a customer to shop around elsewhere:  “One of the things companies need to realize is that they are only as good as the weakest experience of their customer.  Many businesses are guilty of creating a great experience to get a first sale from you, but are really bad at keeping that level of service going.” 

Stratten describes this “Experience Gap” as the space between the best services and the worst experience a customer receives.  Every business should strive for the smallest Experience Gap because other companies can sneak in through the cracks.

Because no company can afford gaps in trust or experience, the most important rule to follow is to be authentic and transparent.  Being authentic means being yourself.  When you stop trying to be your competitor and start showing what makes you different, you play to your strengths and position yourself for success.  Being transparent means being honest.  Honesty is just a good business rule to follow anyway, and it helps keep the trust of your customers.

These concepts merely scratch the surface of UnMarketing, but they demonstrate that Stratten believes engagement and sincere relationships are the foundation for any business that can no longer be ignored.

Share your thoughts on UnMarketing below!

  1. What did you agree with and why? What did you disagree with?
  2. Stratten provided the advantages and disadvantages for each social media outlet like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.  Have you found a favorite site to engage with your customers?  Are there any pros or cons you would add to any of the site?
  3. UnMarketing featured an entire section on viral marketing.  Have you found success with a viral video? How did you handle the loss of control? How did you connect beyond number of views?
  4. Stratten provides helpful tips to connect with consumers using more traditional means of marketing like tradeshows, newsletters and seminars.  What other ways are you creating conversation beyond social media?  Do you think our society still finds value in traditional media?
  5. Networking is either your biggest fear or your greatest ally as a new professional.  We’ve all seen the “Card Collector” and all strive to be the “Great One”.  Stratten suggests listening to others, being yourself and enjoying the conversation, not just seeing the event as a glorified business card exchange.  What suggestions do you have for other new pros learning how to network? 
  6. What is the most valuable lesson you will take away from this book? Any specific ideas you will adopt?

Stay tuned for the announcement of our July Summer Book Club read!

Intro to Travel and Tourism PR: Part Two by Kelly Ryan

Heather Sliwinski Leave a comment

This week, the PR New Pros blog is excited to delve deeper into the world of travel and tourism with the second part of our “Intro to Travel and Tourism PR” series.  We already discovered the day-to-day life of a seasoned PR professional in the travel industry with Diane Centeno, APR, the director of marketing for SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment in part one. Now we continue with a specific look at the role of the Convention and Visitors Bureau with Kelly Ryan, communications and tourism coordinator at the Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau.

As young PR professionals, I think it is safe to say that a great majority of us enjoy talking, writing and traveling – though not necessarily in that order.  For me, it’s actually the reverse order. 

When I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life (a big question, indeed), my parents advised me to think about the things that made me the most happy, and then build a career around those things.   Interspersed between family and friends, the Green Bay Packers, a well-executed cookout and hammock naps, I came to realize that the time that I was truly happiest was when I was traveling.  I came to find out there are jobs that combine travel with writing (and some talking).  Enter my role at the Albuquerque Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB).

If you aren’t sure what a CVB is, you’re not alone.  The mission at my office is similar to many CVBs throughout the country—to stimulate economic growth by marketing a destination as a convention and visitor destination.  Essentially, my bureau promotes tourism from both the leisure side (you and I) and the convention side (PRSA Travel & Tourism Conference).  Today, many CVBs are becoming referred to as Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), a term that perhaps better describes our function.

While many CVBs/DMOs have a similar mission, all operate in a unique capacity.  Some are contracted by the city, some are supported by lodgers tax, some have members or partners (businesses that pay or trade membership to be promoted), some have gigantic budgets, some have a one-person staff, etc. As you can imagine, a CVB operating in a city like Las Vegas would have many more resources available to it than a smaller destination like Eau Claire, Wisconsin (hometown shout out – go Blugolds!).

From a PR capacity, depending on the type of bureau you are at, you will have a unique role.  In Albuquerque, I work on a seven-person communications and marketing team that essentially acts as an in-house agency supporting over 900 partner businesses.   This team handles everything from social media for the destination to PR, marketing, advertising, group tour relations, communications and design.  We serve as an extension of our partner businesses’ marketing arm, not a substitution for it. To simplify explaining how PR works in my office, I will highlight the three things that take up most of our time: 

General PR Efforts

In my role, I support our communications and tourism manager in day-to-day PR and media relations efforts.  I pitch stories, write press releases, keep current on local and national news, work with partner businesses and local conventions on PR efforts, monitor our clipping service, work with writers, update website content, etc.  One thing I don’t do?  Bill my hours.  Maybe you like doing that.  I appreciate not having to.

One thing I really like about working at a CVB is that most of the news that we deal with is positive.  A new restaurant opening, a baby seal born at the zoo or a convention coming to town.  Other than in disaster circumstances, most of the news that we deal with is not necessarily breaking news.  This is not to say that things are slow at the office.  We have 900 partners to keep in mind. 

Imagine trying to keep track of 900 clients.  Exactly. 

Press Tours

Our bureau contracts with a public relations firm that specializes in media marketing for travel and tourism industry clients.  While we host journalists and media outside of these press tours, a lot of time and effort goes into planning several major press tours each year.  Albuquerque is unique in that it really offers something for many different audiences.  We have great food, many outdoor recreation opportunities, wonderful weather, an infusion of Hispanic and Native American culture and many more offerings that attract travel and lifestyle media to the area.  There is still a lot left to be discovered by the mainstream media about New Mexico as a whole, so we feel lucky to be promoting this area.   

Social Media

Follow us! Fan us! Love us!  We will reciprocate.  Social media ends up taking a good portion of the day. 

Of course there are other responsibilities that we have from a PR standpoint, but just like everyone else, those responsibilities change on a day-to-day basis.  I feel it fitting to end this post with a quote by Caskie Stinnett that nicely ties tourism with public relations: “I travel a lot; I hate having my life disrupted by routine.” 

Isn’t that the truth?

Kelly RyanKelly Ryan, communications and tourism coordinator at the Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau, is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an avid Badger and Packer fan, serving as the president of the Wisconsin Alumni Association for New Mexico.  She is an active member of SouthWest Writers and is involved in her local PRSA chapter.  In her free time, she enjoys traveling, playing sports and spending time with her Little Sister (Big Brothers, Big Sisters Program).  Kelly was recently recognized as one of Destination Marketing Association International’s “30 Under 30.”  Follow her on Twitter.