From the ‘great resignation’ to ‘business bounce back’, there are lots of great PR roles available at the moment. But what makes a PR person superb at their job? And if you’re looking to move into a PR career as a graduate, school leaver or career pivot – what skills do you need to maximise to thrive?
There are, of course, lots of different types of people working across the industry, but I personally value, and as a PR consultancy business owner I’m looking for, the following:
1. Energy and enthusiasm
PR, in its very basic form, is sales. You’re spending everyday telling the world how great a product, service, business, or person is. To do this well, you need to have a little oomph behind it. How often have you bought something from someone with an Eeyore type of personality? That’s not to say you must be ‘high energy’ all the time – but there are instances when you need to bring it!
2. Curiosity & continuous learning
You don’t have to be a super smart biochemist, but you do need to be willing to learn. Not only from other people – but also by testing out new approaches, tools, and ways of working. More often than not I get asked to do something I have no idea how to do, but nine times out of ten I can work it out. My ability to have faith that I can work it out, and to give things a try, has been the rock bed of my career. PR straddles so many areas you can’t afford to take a ‘that’s not for me’ or ‘I’m too scared’ mentality. Instead, be curious about all things and embrace the endless new opportunities to grow and learn – and in the process you might have fun too.
Curiosity and persistence are also essential to noodling out the great stories, brilliant people and fantastic PR opportunities for a product or service. On the surface, they can often be dry and not particularly interesting, but if you dig a little deeper you can often find the pot of gold.
3. People skills
After being able to write to a good level, great people skills are a key in PR. You need to build a positive and trusted relationship (which works both ways) with stakeholders, spokespeople, journalists and more. So much of PR is about knowing and understanding people, publications, and what they want. I’m not saying you need to like everyone – but getting on with people helps to get the job done and to a good standard. Especially as in many instances you’re asking spokespeople to help with PR activity that often isn’t their main role or in their job description – it’s extra work for them.
4. Collaboration
I personally love collaborating – there are often so many new ideas and opportunities to explore if you’re open to working with and sharing ideas and thoughts with others. The ‘information is power’ concept while outdated is still very much in play – but those are rarely the people I want to or enjoy working with – and in the long term they’re the ones that lose out. Be open to working with all types of people – and watch the brilliant opportunities flow in.
5. Efficiency
So much of PR is organising and arranging. From events to press interviews, and news announcements to coverage collation. You must be organised, effective and efficient – and stay on top of the work you’ve been asked to deliver in a timely fashion. Being vague, tardy, or disorganised are roads to certain PR disaster.
Most of these skills can be learnt and often pulled from other transferable skills – and there are many opportunities to test out whether a PR career is for you. It’s a varied, fun, and often fast-paced industry – but not one for the faint-hearted. If you want to embrace a smorgasbord of learning opportunities, ensure every day at work is different, are prepared to work hard, and be continuously curious – then definitely give PR a go!
I’m always happy to speak to anyone interested in a PR career – so please do get in touch.
Victoria Fairclough is a PR & Communications consultant at Fair Communications. For more information visit: www.faircommunications.co.uk
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