Juggling Life and Career In Public Relations

At its basic level, public relations is about planned communication processes, in order to build positive relationships between the public, stakeholders, and your organization. A career in this industry can be rewarding and even exciting and glamorous at times, but not every day will be filled with VIP parties, celebrities, and fun events.

Indeed, depending on your sector, it can be much more grounded and practical than is commonly understood. So what is it really like to work in the field?

What does it take to succeed, and what are the key things to keep in mind when you’re planning to make it your vocation?

Hype vs Reality

How dissimilar is the PR sector from its image? Beyond the hype is a world with different types of job opportunities across industries. You could be working in consulting, education, government, food, retail, health, sport, non-profits, and much more. As a professional, you succeed when you create innovative communication and content to engage target audiences, the general public, and other organizations and stakeholders for your employer or clients.

Building Bridges

According to Stacey Oates, PR Manager at the Geelong Cats Football Club, it isn’t necessarily always exciting but different. As with any role, it comes with its own ups and downs.

If you like variety and you like networking and building relationships, you’ll be pleased to hear no two days are the same.

The fundamental element is building connections, and working in the sector gives you a wide range of options, whether as an in-house practitioner or agency employee, according to Oates. If you’re in-house, you’ll have the opportunity to collaborate with the various departments within your employer.

Practitioners also have the chance to collaborate closely with external parties like the press.

Instead of “spin doctoring,” publicists ensure effective, strategic communications.

Rather than generating a biased perspective of a story, these roles are more about disseminating accurate, factual information, which may be strategic, impactful to help target audiences better understand what’s going on.

Roles aren’t static and people in the field will have plenty of opportunities to grow and learn. This could be in related functions like social media, marketing, or comms.

What it Takes

In terms of qualifications, prospective bosses tend to look favorably upon public relations along with marketing communications. A certificate, diploma, or degree in journalism or business might also help you enter the industry, although they’re less directly relevant.

Oates notes she obtained a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Public Relations before starting her role with the Geelong Cats. She believes it’s important to be an excellent writer in order to be successful.

Other valuable competencies are general comms, including writing, on the phone, and in person. The ability to create and cultivate strong relationships and competencies in social media management are also essential, she believes.

General digital skills are also crucial as these will enable you to monitor clients’ brands and utilize effective tools to implement your campaigns.

Other essential competencies might include tactical thinking, research, presentation, and multitasking.

Sound research skills allow you to gain knowledge of products, services, market trends, customer perspectives, and the competition.

A level of subject matter expertise is indispensable when it comes to assisting clients or your employer with their communications goals. Invaluable personal attributes include persistence, dedication, resourcefulness, and adaptability.

Again, although popular culture might mythologize the industry as one of genius spin doctors, honesty is a highly regarded personal quality. Truthfulness and integrity can allow you to build an excellent reputation and a stronger network.

Are You Up for the Challenge?

A career in PR might be quite different from how it’s presented in movies and shows, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be a highly rewarding one. A typical day could involve securing editorial or unpaid coverage, meeting your networks to develop relationships, and commissioning market research.

You could find yourself writing pitches for press outlets, reviewing content for approval, and anything else necessary to deliver a powerful message to your target audience. By helping businesses and organizations with well-planned communications strategies, you can assist them with building audience trust, strong brands, and achieving their strategic objectives.

Lastly, if you’re planning to pursue PR as your vocation, one of the best ways to get to know how it’s done in practice is to do an internship or other work experience before you commit to it.