Getting into PR

“Everyone knows about PR - and that it seems to consist mainly of going to parties and having your photo taken, like Meg Gallagher - but it's not all parties and glamour, dahling!

PR is a form of communication. This is communication with anyone who comes into contact with that company - that includes the news media, the public, staff and suppliers. The news media is made up of press, radio, TV and more recently, the Internet.

PR is different to advertising. Advertising means that you are buying space to advertise your products. PR on the other hand tries to get your products into the news media by using different techniques to gain media interest. The point is to try and get into the media through means other than by buying space.

Every industry needs from fashion and beauty to agricultural implements and there are two main types of PR - consultancy PR and in-house PR.

Get the message out! - Consultancy PR
If you work for a PR consultancy you'll have a number of different clients, known as accounts. You get to work on accounts that can potentially be used in conjunction with each other thus strengthening your PR efforts. In this situation, multitasking, organisation and an ability to work under pressure is crucial. An example of strengthening your accounts would be to get a model agency you do PR for to use their models in a show and for another client, for instance a footwear manufacturer. This is something that has actually been accomplished in my agency Generationet. In this way both accounts are branded together and PR can be done in conjunction.

The key is to hit the appropriate target media with your stories, events etc For instance, if you are doing PR for a beauty or cosmetics company/product,
target media might include:

• Editors of beauty and cosmetics trade magazines,
• Beauty editors of magazines and newspapers,
• TV shows about fashion and beauty;
• Fashion and beauty websites
  

These news media in turn needs to be researched to check that the people reading, listening, watching and surfing fit into the target profile of the type of person who might be interested in your product or service.

Press releases are the traditional way of sending out information about the product or service to the media. Press releases are essentially ready made "stories" sent out to news media and magazines including essential facts about a product with an interesting angle so that the journalist will use the info and hopefully name the product in an article.

Other techniques include organising launches and events to which the media are invited; samples can be sent to media for reviewing; convincing celebrities to use the products and endorse them; the list goes on - it's up to your imagination to make the product so enticing that media are interested in writing about it amidst all the other PR information they receive.

This isn't the only way to get your product or service in front of the public. You could also get your product involved with events, like the Cosmo Show or Clothes Show where there will be opportunities to do demonstrations, hand out leaflets; information packs and even samples straight to the visitors.

Get the message in! - Inhouse PR
With in-house PR, you'll need to be flexible and an all-rounder. You communicate both internally and externally. The PR speaks on the Company's behalf and thus needs to know everything about that Company, it's staff and it's products/services. Dependant on the size of the organisation, the PR department can be made up of one person or many specialist people.

Informing staff and suppliers (particularly in a big organisation or company) about news, incentives and promotions keeps them happy and they feel like part of the team. Big companies realise that their staff is what makes them, and their suppliers are important; so internal communications is important - and this is the PR's job. Production of newsletters, intranets or extranets and staff events keeps morale high and staff happy.

These are just a few traditional methods of promoting the product or service. The increase in use of the Internet as the marketing and PR tool of the 21st Century (as written about in my previous article) opens up channels of communication never seen before.

From my experience working in-house for a number of years at the TONI&GUY (www.toniandguy.co.uk) Marketing and PR department, I was involved in all aspects of marketing, promotion, advertising and PR. This included internal communications through newsletters and annual conferences; and external communications through PR, promotions and marketing. Production of video's, photo shoots and shows were some of the tools used to do the job.

Qualities needed

• A people person:
• Ability to communicate verbally and in the written word - You'll be writing press releases and talking to people. So you work it out!
• An organised person
• Imagination
• Ability to research and learn: You need to know about events as they happen. Finding out about upcoming features lists from media is important to get your product in. Finding out about opportunities for PR through researching the industry that you are in can also give you the upper hand above your competitors.
• Patience and common sense
• Belief in the product or service
• Confidence
• Ability to work under pressure:

So how to find the job?
First you have to find an industry you are interested in - fashion, beauty, music, financial, health, whatever - it is important to work in an industry that you are keen on, because of the demands placed on a PR person. It's not all glamour. A lot of legwork goes into being a great PR person - updating extensive mailing lists, regularly sending out masses of mail and always keeping positive about the product or service you are trying to promote. There is always a chance to promote your product or service - whether you are out for dinner or at a trade show.

Once you have found the industry you are interested in, trade magazines are important, so subscribe - there are generally classified sections at the back of the magazines, advertising jobs. For instance in fashion and beauty jobs, The Diary and the Fashion Monitor both advertise jobs on a monthly basis. The Diary and the Fashion Monitor are contact books used by all in the Fashion and Beauty Industry. Another good source for finding jobs is the Guardian's Saturday and Monday job supplements - these focuses on PR, marketing and media jobs. Recruitment websites like The Media Place (www.themediaplace.com) and Martin Media (www.martinmedia.co.uk) are also good sources for jobs.

Work experience
The most common way for a young person to get into PR is to apply for work experience to a number of different companies - unfortunately, this is usually free on the part of the employee. Good candidates for paid work placement should have some work experience on their CV. So, while you don't have a mortgage; live at home or have major responsibilities, get out there and apply for work experience. Get as much work experience in as many PR departments or agencies as possible - a potential employer will be impressed by this, because more than anything else, it shows a determination and enthusiasm which is important to any employer.

An advantage would be to get work experience in the news media - this way you see how the other side works and gain contacts at the same time. Work experience also allows you to find out how a press office or marketing department works - it may not be the right job for you.

Sending in your covering letter and CV
And then it's the usual stuff! Keep it short. Tailor it to the job you are applying for. Research the company (be it an agency or an in-house job) and give them some ideas for PR for their clients or company as well. This will show the recruitment person that you have done your homework. Make sure you put in any interests and experiences you have had - they may not be directly related to the industry, but may show your character (which is difficult enough to do on paper). Make sure you do a spelling and grammar check before sending your covering letter and CV - after all, you need to be an expert in writing.

Final word
As I said before, PR is not all glamour, dahling! PR are difficult industry's to get into, but determination and enthusiasm goes a long way. People don't realise the amount of work it takes to organise that event; that launch; that roadshow; that trade show - dedication is important. But, after all of that, it is one of the most exciting fields to get into - everyday is different and it mixes creativity with organisational skills giving the PR person a lot of job satisfaction.

by Leila Fataar