So, you’re considering a career in public relations. Great! You will work to build stronger relationships between your client and audience and consolidate your media presence across multiple outlets. However, if you are looking for PR careers online, you will likely come across many misconceptions about what we do. Including “public relations is a glamorous job” or “public relations is unethical”.
Neither is true, as you can imagine, and the fact that ideas like this are still circulating shows how little the world understands how public relations works. Here we dispel some myths about working in public relations so you know what you’re getting into.
MARKETING IS THE KEY TO PUBLIC RELATIONS
If you know marketing, you know public relations: A lot of people think that Marketing and Public Relations is the same department and it is true that there is quite a bit of overlap, particularly when it comes to social media promotion and content creation for
. Marketing, however, focuses on promoting the company’s products and services, while public relations focuses on managing the company’s brand image and reputation. While marketing uses paid media for the most part, PR relies heavily on unpaid or earned media to share its story.
WRITING GOOD HELPS, YOU IN PUBLIC RELATIONS
If you write, you can do public relations. Do you think that having a writing background automatically makes you excel in public relations? Not correct. Writing is undoubtedly part of it, but you also need to be an excellent coordinator to handle all the media events and internal meetings that will be a part of your day. You need a keen eye for detail to identify the best media outlet for each story, and you need the stamina to talk to journalists and reach out to clients for your
stories. Not to mention having the guts to work late nights and weekends, finding backup plans in case last-minute bailouts happen, and being vigilant enough to write exceptional copy for that morning’s press release create.
THE TWIST
PR is basically a twist no matter what the movies might have you think, PR can’t invent a viral story out of thin air, nor can it make a company look good even after a scandal. Public Relations serves as a bridge between the media and the client, which means a PR agency can present the client’s brand in a positive light, find appropriate responses to different situations, and provide as much exposure as possible. And that comes from strategic thinking and multiple iterations of each idea, not
magic.
MEDIA PLACMENTS
PR can ensure the best media placements many people think that PR agencies have editors, entrepreneurs and Forbes bosses in their pockets to have. We wish that, but with every new story we have to compete with journalists and the media against other PR agencies with their own stories.
Sometimes our publications end up in the top magazines, sometimes we choose the mid-tier magazines. However, we ensure that each client is exposed to the most appropriate audience for their content, even if it is niche.
PR THE FLUFF
PR is nonsense it shouldn’t even be on the list, but too often people think PR people just dress up and go to parties. We do, but we also work behind the scenes at these parties, coordinating with everyone who appears in the media, interviewing the attendees and then going straight home to write a press release about it. Work always comes first for us, even outside of business hours. However, we also know how to have fun.
I hope this enlightens you and convinces you to get involved. the tough but rewarding world of public relations. If you are curious, love details, enjoy networking and are success-oriented, Public Relations is the right career for you. And if you want the best possible start to your career, write to us at MJSPR with your expression of interest. We would like to see if you are fit.