media relations

5 Transferable PR Skills You (Probably) Already Have

kcook 1 Comment

In college, I read a quote that remains with me to this day: “You already have everything you need to get everything you want in life.” This mantra is especially relevant to new PR professionals. Whether you’re new to the workforce in general or facing a career switch, you likely have the foundational skills to become successful in a public relations career. Keep in mind that public relations professionals come from a variety of undergraduate majors and career backgrounds. Broad disciplines like English, marketing, communications and business equip prospective public relations pros with a strong repertoire of transferable skills to earn a place in the field.

The five transferable skills you can leverage to land your first public relations job or continue building your career are as follows:

1. Writing

Versatile writing ability is invaluable as a new pro. Whether you need to craft a press release or pitch your client’s latest and greatest product, writing ranks at the top of public relations must-have aptitudes. If you can write well, you can own the world.

2. Relationship-Building

Success in this industry relies on networking and cultivating long-term relationships with an array of constituencies: members of the media, clients, prospects, colleagues, partner agencies, other internal teams and referral sources. You never know who’s listening, and you never know who can help you find your next lead. If you’re hot on the job search trail, attend PRSA Chapter events to meet and greet local pros. Be authentic. More importantly, be a good listener. When networking, don’t try to get as many business cards as possible. Focus on the quality of interactions rather than the quantity. Do your best to take mental notes about people you meet and jot them down in your phone after you leave the event. If you had one or two meaningful conversations, re-introduce yourself on LinkedIn. Personalize the interaction with a reminder about who you are and where you met. You never know where those connections may lead.

3. News Junkie Status

Attention to current events and news media is imperative in public relations. If you already follow relevant trends and stories in your industry, you’re ahead of the curve. Use your “news junkie status” to demonstrate your knowledge as you build relationships. Keep track of stories that pertain to your job, to the job you want or to your clients. Knowing what’s hot in your industry will help people remember you and even earn you recognition as the in-house current events guru.

4. Sales & Negotiation

You may not realize it, but you use negotiation skills on a daily basis. You bargain or compromise with your partner, roommate, friends and family about where to go to dinner, how to delegate household chores or ways to get what you want. Maybe you worked in customer service at some point. These experiences involve sales and negotiating, which are valuable in any field but especially in public relations. In order to build relationships, win clients and pitch the media, you must sell a brand story. At every turn in public relations, you will negotiate to get what you want. Take advantage of easy opportunities to sell your ideas during your daily routine. Even better, get your hands on The Negotiation Phrasebook by Angelique Pinet to really round out those skills.

5. Project Management

Think back to times when you collaborated on a team project. In order to succeed, you demonstrated follow-through, organization and attention to detail. You balanced several tasks simultaneously and took your project over the finish line by a certain date. In the same way, success in public relations hinges on the ability to create and implement strategy and often, to do so on short notice. Experience collaborating on teams and executing tasks independently will serve you well as a new pro.

What other transferable skills should new PR pros highlight during their job search? If you’re already churning it out in a full-time position, which skills did you use to get a foot in the door?

 

 Jamie M. Curtis is a writer and publicist. In 2013, she launched WHITE HORIZON PR, a boutique agency focused on public relations and content strategy for emerging brands. Currently, she is building a portfolio of fashion, beauty, and lifestyle clients across the U.S. WHITE HORIZON PR serves many clients virtually and has locations in Beverly Hills, CA and Columbus, OH.

If You Don’t Tell Your Organization’s Story, Someone Else Will

Heather Sliwinski Leave a comment

Typewriter with Once Upon a TimeIn an age when practically everyone carries the latest model of a mobile device, when breaking news is always a glance away and one company’s misstep can spread like wildfire across the country in a matter of only minutes, it is essential that organizations can effectively communicate their stories, before someone else does for them.

Find Real Stories

The foundation of telling your organization’s story well is to start with finding a story: a real story. Every organization has a story to tell. Even the smallest or seemingly mundane organization has some unique attribute hidden in its history, conception, product, obstacles or successes. As public relations professionals, our job is to unearth these stories and nuances that set organizations apart.

Often best captured by simple anecdotes that reflect organizational values, character and image, your story needs to emulate who you are and what sets you apart. If these stories do not automatically surface, it’s up to you to discover what those differentiations are and effectively communicate them to your audience through authentic communication.

It is important to note, that while a particular instance or fact may seem like an excellent beginning to your brand’s story, even the most interesting tale can stop you in your tracks if it is not consistent with your brand message or values. If you cannot directly link your story to your brand, the message will quickly become diluted and serve as a detriment because of inconsistencies and confusion about who you are and your values. If your story lacks brand consistency or clarity, it’s time to revisit the purpose of finding your story.

The most successful brand stories are not fabricated or over exaggerations of the truth. They are authentic, true and a direct reflection of what the brand values.

Use Real People

Perhaps the simplest way to find a good story that emanates your company’s core character is to find real people who have real stories to tell. Be authentic while creating and refining characters in your story whom your audience will champion. These stories could come from any of your stakeholders, including people from within your organization, one of your clients or even someone in your community. A plethora of compelling content is not necessary in order to communicate your story well. A few unique anecdotes can be more than enough to convey everything about your brand and company culture.

Once you have the story that captures the essence of who you are, what comes next? The mistake many organizations make is convoluting the clarity of their story by hiring an actor or appointing a spokesperson to tell it for them. Consider the purpose of why you originally chose to discover and tell your story; this solution produces the opposite effect.

Did your retired co-founder inherit the shop location of your now nationally recognized bakery chain from a famous pastry artist? Bring her back in for an interview. Make her and what her story means for your organization the focus of your next campaign.

People connect to real stories that evoke authentic emotion. The more willing you are to humanize your stories, the more you can relate to your audience and your audience can relate to you.

Be Authentic

Bottom line: there is trust in transparency.

In this day and age, nothing is hidden. No bad business decision, unethical practice or poor treatment of customers can be concealed. It is only a matter of time before the truth is revealed, and when it is, who would you rather have controlling the conversation: you, the public or even your competition? An honest apology or explanation of the truth can earn the respect of your audience and has the potential to deter ruthless scrutiny, even if that scrutiny is unfounded.

When crafting your story, be as open and honest with your audience as you can be, because openness is equal to trust. Actively disclosing information to your constituents about your company and its products or services is perhaps the most powerful means of establishing and building trust with your audience. Don’t forget to ask yourself the hard questions and answer them before others have the opportunity to answer them for you.

In the end, the key element to telling your organization’s story well is simple: the truth. The most powerful and meaningful brand stories are derived from honesty and openness. When you tell your story by using authenticity and real people to tell those stories, you will establish more than just trust with your stakeholders—you will create passionate brand advocates who believe in your brand and its mission.

 

Kristen SyndramKristen Syndram is a public relations graduate from Illinois State University and a public relations and communications professional in the central Illinois area. She has gained professional communications experience by working with both Fortune 50 companies as well as boutique agencies and specializes in public relations, media relations and social media. Connect with her on LinkedIn or follow her on Twitter. 

September Twitter Chat Highlights: Modern PR Ethics

Heather Sliwinski Leave a comment

Twitter Chat Highlights: Modern PR EthicsWe’d like to thank everyone who participated in the September #NPPRSA Twitter chat as part of PRSA’s Ethics Month.

Specifically, we’d like to thank special guest for the month, PRSA’s Board of Ethics and Professional Standards [BEPS].  Join us again on October 10 at 9 p.m. EST for the next #NPPRSA Twitter chat.

Review highlights of the chat below.

What did you learn from the September chat? How do you make sure your brand is remaining ethical despite the addition of paid placements in social and digital media? How do you confront situations where ethical values may be at risk?

Lauren RosenbaumLauren Rosenbaum is the public relations director at BrickPixel, a web design and marketing consultancy. She is the co-founder of Soversity, a public relations and digital marketing company. Rosenbaum is also one of the volunteer coordinators for PRSA Houston Chapter’s PR Day 2013. You can connect with her on Google+, LinkedIn and Twitter.

Summer Book Club Discussion: Putting the Public Back in Public Relations

Heather Sliwinski Leave a comment

As a part of the PRSA New Pros Blog Summer Book Club, our first book was “Putting the Public Back in Public Relations” by Deirdre Breakenridge and Brian Solis. The book had good insight on the future of public relations, where we are now and how public relations and social media work together for the PR 2.0 era. Both have since released updated books on public relations and business since this 2009 release.

Here are a few highlights of the book and things to note.

Highlights:

  • The book is really about how social media is putting the public back in public relations and has “reinvented” public relations and how the industry has to change and evolve.
  • We have a lot of issues facing the public relations field, and some even say our industry needs a PR makeover. Traditional PR tactics aren’t always as effective anymore.
  • We have to a part of the story and the actual conversation now more than ever. It’s not about us, it’s about the consumer and the consistent messaging and dialogue.
  • There are so many social tools out there, but the tools will change and the people using social media will not.
  • Rather than focusing on the need to get brand information out there, the focus should be on the social factor of social media. Facilitate conversation and relationships; do not just broadcast, and change from spin to influence.
  • Social media is not just public relations, it affects the entire organization/company.
  • The future of public relations is about community and community building (they also throw in a lot of tips and guidelines for community managers here).
  • New titles in the PR industry include: chief social officer, community advocate, community builder, community relations manager, social media evangelist.
  • The past of PR meets the future of PR by embracing changes brought on by social media and incorporating strategy for marketing, analytics, customer service, crowdsourcing and more.

Things to note:

  • A lot of this book is based on opinion and does not necessarily have data, polls, research, case studies, etc. to back up what is proposed.
  • Social media is not new anymore, and the content of this book is beyond basics at this point in 2013; it could be more for late adapters of social media.
  • Public relations changed with social media, but a lot of the basics still remain the same, and social media is just a tool in the entire box.

Did you read the book? What are your thoughts?

Discussion:

  • What do you think is the future of public relations? If social media was PR 2.0, what will PR 3.0 look like?
  • Is social media really a new thing anymore? What brands are using it best?
  • How do you get the community involved more in your brand conversation?
  • Do you think social media has put a focus back on ethics in PR with its need for transparency?
  • How do you win leadership support for your social media tactics, or do you face little push-back?

 

Lauren GrayLauren Gray is a junior associate in digital at Finn Partners in New York City and also serves as the PRSSA immediate past president for the current National Committee. Connect with her on Twitter: @laurenkgray.

June Twitter Chat Highlights: Harnessing Data and Measurement for PR Success

Heather Sliwinski Leave a comment

We’d like to thank everyone who participated in the June #NPPRSA Twitter chat.

Specifically, we’d like to thank our special guest for the month Shonali Burke, ABC. Shonali is CEO of Shonali Burke Consulting and founder of the #measurepr Twitter chat. You can read more of Shonali’s insights on PR measurement and data on her blog Waxing UnLyrical.

Join us again on July 11 at 9 p.m. EST for the next #NPPRSA Twitter chat. The July chat will feature special guest Deirdre Breakenridge, author of “Putting the Public Back in Public Relations” — our June Summer Book Club selection.

Review highlights of the June chat below. What did you learn from the June chat? How do you harness the power of data and measurement to help your business reach its goals? With which departments must PR work closely to integrate and analyze measurement goals that will add value to the entire business?

 

Amy BishopAmy Bishop works in digital marketing and public relations for digitalrelevance, a content marketing and digital PR agency. She is the social media chair for the PRSA New Professionals Section. Bishop is also a contributing member of Dachis Group’s Social Business Council. You can connect with her on Google+, LinkedIn or Twitter.