Out of all the days that we have spent here, I have been looking forward to today’s topic the most! Public Relations!
Alison Lowe from Felicities PR came in to talk to us this morning and in the afternoon we visited Bacchus PR, where Anna and David told us about their day-to-day work and shared a few case studies with us including their promotion for Hakkasan Mayfair which opened in 2010.
Alison’s lecture left a long-lasting impression on me because she left so many tips and pointers that I think are important for young PR students to keep in mind as they continue to mold themselves for the professional world. As any other professional has explained, it’s not always about what you know, but who you know. A good database with several contacts can be the difference between failure and success. If you know someone who knows someone who can help you get closer to achieving your goal, why wouldn’t you ask them to help you? Similarly, continue to network at events to build up your contacts. Even if you’re like me and don’t have too many contacts or anyone to introduce you to someone, try striking up a conversation with someone while waiting in line for the loo.
Alison was quick to point out that public relations is a lot of work and there are no guaranteed results because we have no control over what a news editor will write about the companies that you endorse.
“Sometimes PR is about luck and timing.”
But just because you do not have total control over how situations will work out for you does not mean that you can’t try to sway things in your favor by building up a good relationship with journalists. Here are some of Alison’s tips on how to build a relationship with editors and journalists:
- Research the publications and named editors & journalists who will be interested in your news. Think like an editor and make sure that your information is relevant and newsworthy.
- Maintain social media relationships, especially Twitter. Use it for small talk. Keep watching whoever you want to follow you and if you want someone to respond to you remember: it’s all about timing.
- Look other things that journalists are interested in besides their work topic to try make friends with them.
- Time your calls and be aware of their deadlines and editor meetings. They typically follow-up by 11 a.m, but your best window of time would be a Friday afternoon before their work day ends.
- Be brief! Don’t bombard them with information. Be concise and to the point.
TJ Digital Creative 