Survival Tips for a PR Newbie By Maila Madrigallejos I’m a PR newbie. I’ve been working in PR for the past two years. The lessons I’ve learned are priceless. Some are painful. Some I wish I knew when I was just starting. If you want to be a PR professional, you should know what you’re getting into. So here you go, a few PR survival tips from one newbie to another. 1. Be a good writer. PR involves a lot of writing. You will be writing press releases, speeches, reports, scripts, briefing documents, and case studies, just to name a few. The list is endless. You need to have the basics right. Subject-verb agreement, prepositions, metaphors, and homonyms are some of the common mistakes Pinoys make as non-native English speakers. But that is no excuse for a PR professional. The good thing is that writing is a skill. It can be honed and sharpened. Nothing beats practice so write something every day. Maintain a blog. News magazines are good reading. The articles are clear and concise. Select a few and study how the articles were written. 2. Be a good speaker. You will be talking a lot. There will be weeks when you will drag yourself from one presentation to another. You will be meeting various types of people. You have to be able to articulate ideas that people with different backgrounds will understand. Figures motivate CEOs. Ideas motivate marketers. Speak their language. Light up that bulb in their minds. Speaking clearly is only half the job. You need to listen with your ears and with your eyes. Obviously, you need to take note of what your client is saying. But you also need to read their body language. Look for subtle behaviour like crossing their arms, looking at the clock, or adjusting their ties. Are they leaning forward or sitting back? Understand their mentality in general and frame of mind at the moment. Then articulate accordingly what you are saying. 3. Toughen up – It’s no coincidence that “pressure” starts with P and R. The PR industry thrives in pressure. This comes from deadlines, demanding clients, your boss, colleagues, billings and last minute changes. I feel like back in college when I used to play soccer. When the referee blows the whistle to start the first kick, everyone in defence is supposed to harass the ball handler. In PR, you are the ball handler. The field is no place for a softie. Same with PR. Pressure will come from all sides. Psyche yourself up for it. Find a release to relieve the pressure. Start a hobby. Eating doesn’t count. Working in PR is like playing soccer. You have to be passionate about it. Passion will make you finish the game despite the heat, the rain, the bruises, and the pain. You have to love it because when you do, you need no other reason make it to the end.
Posted on: Wed, 11 Sep 2013 08:28:40 +0000
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