The first six months on the job is a learning experience for anyone entering into a PR agency environment. There are billable codes to master, client contacts to learn and impress, Outlook meeting requests coming fast and furious, and, of course, a corporate culture to navigate and a kitchen to find.
To give the next wave of agency professionals a head start, some of the esteemed PR professionals in my network agreed to share some lessons learned during their introductory months and graciously agreed that I could pass them along. These lessons learned are pearls of wisdom for the ingénues of the PR agency world:
- Learn how to write well and don't be afraid of the phone.
- It's all people skills -- figure out skill sets of coworkers, how everyone fits together, how the machine will run.
- Never underestimate building social capital. Get face time with senior management and even co-workers to ensure that you are always top of mind.
- YOU are in charge of your own PR. Forward your supervisor positive emails from clients and co-workers.
- Over-communicate with your supervisor.
- Find a mentor! Finding that key person who will help you grow professionally and offer advice on how best to approach situations is worth its weight in gold.
- Read everything, even the back files. Arrive early. Make time to attend brainstorms. Find a peer buddy. Volunteer.
- Speak up, don't be afraid to disagree w/clients; bring value; know your worth each billable hour = profit for the agency.
- Learn your boss' values - all agencies have processes, and some managers want things done a certain way!
- Always be proactive. Ask questions. Know your clients and the industry.
- Have a distinct interest in one part of PR? Maybe digital? Master it! Then, exploit it.
- Figure out where you can show added value that no one else can. Actively look for ways to incorporate it (current projects/accts).
- Be genuinely interested/passionate in what you want to promote. Authentic marketing equals great results & career longevity.
- Don't spin it. Just chose a compelling angle & arrange the facts in an engaging way that supports that point of view.
- Learn not only media landscape and write clearly to engage the broadest audience.
- Be sure you understand who covers what. Nothing annoys a journalist more than pitches irrelevant to their beats.
- And, last but not least, don't IM the entire office by mistake letting them know you are bored J.
These tips come from successful practitioners and fall under the "I wish that I knew what I know now when I was younger" folder. Please take the time to look this list over, maybe a couple of times. These concepts are things to keep in mind as you enter the profession PR agency world and may come into play at any point during your formative months.
If you asked me for advice I would just say to keep an open mind, don't expect to know everything going in, trust your instincts, and deliver your best possible work product every time.
Thanks to all my PR friends who helped me with this tip sheet!
Alan
