There’s More to PR Than Media Relations
Not long after I switched my career from journalism to nonprofit marketing communications, I was asked to participate in a panel for the local Public Relations Society of America chapter. One of the first things I said to the audience of PR pros was: “I’m sorry. I used to think your job was to work for me.”
The line got a laugh, but I meant it. When I was a reporter, I often relied on PR people to provide information for a story or arrange interviews. I never gave any consideration to all the other things that these busy folks must have had to do besides contend with me. If I thought someone was taking too long to get back to me, I struggled to conceal my irritation. Didn’t these folks understand that I was on deadline?
It didn’t take long into my PR career for me to realize that media relations was just one small part of the duties and expectations of a PR person. PR pros are responsible for managing the reputation of a company or organization, which of course can include dealing with the media. However, the job also can include a whole lot of other things, such as:
Creating PR strategies and campaigns
Writing and editing brochures, fliers, press releases, speeches, newsletters, annual reports, fundraising appeals, blog posts, website copy and social media posts
Managing the production of brochures, fliers, newsletters, etc.
Representing your organization at news conferences, fundraisers and other events
Overseeing production of advertising, photography and videos
Public speaking at conferences
Monitoring public opinion of your client or employer
Dealing with inquiries from the media
Creating and maintaining a database of media contacts
Developing good working relationships with the media
Answering questions during radio and TV interviews
Managing communications before, during and after a crisis
Handling internal communications, such as memos to employees, employee newsletters or reports to board members
And much, much more
Whew! And just think of all the meetings PR folks have to attend in between handling the many functions of their jobs. I think I still owe some PR practitioners a mea culpa for thinking the only thing they had to do was talk to me.