Category Archives: Marketing/Communications
Professor Quigley on In-House vs Agency PR
I had the pleasure of sitting down with the School of Communication’s Professor Quigley on Wednesday afternoon to discuss 
what any Public Relations major could expect their first time working in a corporate PR environment. He went on to explain that in order to understand what to expect, one had to be familiar with the two possible environments PR contains:
1. Agency PR: Professor Quigley began the conversation by stating that the trend among PR professionals is to begin in Agency PR and transfer to In-House to continue their careers (this is not always the case, however). He describes working in an agency utilizing the metaphor “an inch deep by a while wide”. That is to say that one must know how to spread themselves over a wide variety of topics in order to deal with multiple clients. With this in mind, the head of an PR agency is going to expect the interviewee to be:
- Well-Rounded: though one might believe that having a strong knowledge in a specific area will work to their advantage, an agency environment requires one to either know a lot about different subjects, or be prepared to learn about them. Research is a skill that goes a long way in the industry.
- Able to Handle Change and Ambiguity: When one asks anyone who’s worked in an agency, they’ll always get the same answer: “There is no typical day.” So one must be prepared to handle a variety of clients on any given day, and be able to juggle.
2. In-House PR: In contrast with agency PR, the metaphor is inverted: “a mile deep, and inch wide”. You are expected to go in-depth, learning, researching, and studying the company’s image and brand. Understanding the brand involves understanding its history and mission. Working within In-House PR suggests that you have prior interest or knowledge about the industry in which you are entering. This is why, in order to work in this portion of the industry, you must be:
- Well versed: Show up to the interview with prior knowledge of the company. “Do your homework,” as Professor Quigley suggests. This is important because you will be working with this company’s image, brand, and goals to formulate their PR approach, and how they come across to the world.
- Invested: Agency provides variety, but In-House provides a structure to your day. This does not imply monotony, however. Know that you are going to be working with this company from the deepest core to the most superficial details in order to better promote and advocate for it. The more passion you feel for the company, the better understanding you’ll have to help it go the distance.
Whether you go into agency or in-house public relations, you will be expected to have a perfect balance of industry and public relations – immerse yourself in your trade, and everything else will fall into place. Odds are, the company will be more than willing to give you an opportunity to learn about them. Study up until you are up to speed, but know Public Relations like the back of your hand, and it will all work out.
Thank you to Professor Quigley for all his advice and help.
Differences between Chinese and U.S. PR
Have you ever thought about Working as a PR practitioner in China? Through the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and the 2010 Expo in 
Shanghai, China has revealed itself as a growing economic power and an increasingly resourceful consumer market.
Nowadays, western business organizations are seizing the opportunities to establish relationships with Chinese corporations. In order to gain their share of the Chinese market, the organizations from the Western world perceive PR as an effective and crucial method to reach the consumers in China. With that being said, an increasing number of PR agencies started to land in major cities in China such as Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong.
While being excited about the huge career opportunities and potentials of working in China, there are some differences between the two kinds of industries that you should expect if you decide to take that path.
1. Expectations on professionalism: According to a research done by China International Public Relations Association (CIPRA), PR is one of the easiest career choices in China. “Everyone can do PR.” that’s what the Chinese professionals said. However, the Chinese culture values education like no one else, your degree in PR will definitely become a competitive advantage in the Chinese industry.
2. Reputation and Public Perception: The public’s perception toward public relations as an industry in the U.S remains more negative than the public’s perception in China. The reputational downward trend of the PR industry in China has been reversed by recently pronounced events such as the Beijing Olympic Games and the Shanghai Expo. Through these events, the Chinese professional society began to realize the crucial role of PR in its’ development. However, there are still negative perceptions that PR practitioners have to bear in China from time to time.
3. Relationship with the Government: When working in a Chinese agency, especially a domestic agency in China, the campaign that practitioners run for clients should accommodate with the Chinese government’s ideology of “Harmonious Society”. It is not as propagandized that the campaigns should include the actual idea or thoughts of the government, but the campaign should, at the least, not be conflicting with the ideology.
4. Ethical Issues: There are practices in China that are ethically-challenging to U.S. practitioners, especially for those who work in media relations. For instance, PR practitioners in China might: pay “transportation expenses” for the reporters in order to get them into a press conference; write press releases for their clients with the featured style of news stories at the reporters “convenience”; While members of the CIPRA are advocating for the inhibition of such practices, the practices remain common in the Chinese industry.
5. Different Approaches in Practices: Two-way symmetrical communication, an idea that is valued by the U.S. Scholars and Practitioners, is not really emphasized in the practices of Chinese PR. While practitioners in China value feedback from the public as well as the U.S. practitioners do, they prefer to send the perfect message to the public one time and one time only, what’s been learned from the feedback will be applied to the next campaign instead of the current one.
These are only some of the salient differences between the Chinese and the U.S PR industry. Are there any comparisons you would like to add?
3 Tips for Working in Non-Profit Public Relations
Working in non-profit public relations provides a much different experience than working within the corporate sector. There are certain elements of non-profit public relations that one may not find as much when working for a corporate agency.
When working in non-proft public relations, be prepared to fundraise and promote, promote, promote. Not-for profit public relations people need to really advocate for their cause in whatever they do. Be prepared to always be creating hashtags, facebook pages, and promote events for your organization.
There are at least 2 million identified non-profit organizations in the United States alone. These organizations are tax-exempt, and often have regulations in where exactly their funds are allocated. For this reason, public relations employees should have different expectations of funding for their campaigns and salaries, depending on the allocation of funds.
Here are some quick tips on what do expect when working for a non-profit:
1. Money may not come immediately, but work hard and promote. You will be rewarded. If you are really passionate about your organization and work hard, you will do well.
2. Be prepared to work unconventional hours. You may have to promote events on weekends and attend events in the evening.
3. Become familiar with social media. I know this seems like a statement all public relations students see all of the time, but here this is especially critical. Most non-profit businesses and organizations rely on these types of free promotion to assist their business.
All in all, advocate for causes you believe in. The more invested you are in the cause, the more likely you will want to promote it. In addition, you will be able to network with individuals who have the same interests as you or the organization, making meaningful connections throughout the process.
8 PR Tips from Google Boston’s Adri Cowan
On Thursday, February 2,
Adri Cowan, the community manager for Google Boston, came to speak to Boston University’s PRSSA.
The job of a community manager came into existence throughout the past 5 years and will become one of the biggest most sought-after positions in 2012. This position incorporates both event planning and social media. Adri works to represent the brand, calling herself a brand evangelist. She also gathers information on the demographics—what the users are looking for and how to make the product better. A community manager can be considered a strategic “party-time” job. Community managers typically plan 2-4 events per week, and go out 5-6 times to network with others. It’s important to support other community managers, as they’ll hopefully return the favor when the time comes.
Adri left us aspiring PR students with a few tips for success:
- Be ready to work for free. Working for free means more experience, seems more gracious, and more people will owe you favors.
- Build up your social network right now. Don’t wait until you need a job to start making contacts.
- Know your place. When working at entry level, know where you stand within the company. Do what is asked of you, don’t question authority.
- Be loyal to your company. Try to stay with a job for at least two years. It gets somewhat difficult to explain job-hopping at interviews.
- You must be able to handle rejection. PR is full of rejection. Keep at it.
- Manage yourself. You’re in control of your time and the different aspects of your life. Community managers (and other PR professions) have very little personal time. Be in charge of yourself.
- Get on Google+. It will be the future of community management.
- Have a plan. Figure out a direction and run with it.
For more information you can follow Adri on Twitter @googleboston, or her personal, @adrileya.
Media Relations from a Journalist’s Perspective — An Interview with Leslie Friday
For a media relations class assignment, I interviewed Leslie Friday, BU Today and Bostonia magazine staff writer. Before she came to BU Today, she served as a journalist for several newspapers such as the Brookline TAB and the Tico Times, in Costa Rica. The interview contributed to several media relations tips that may concern our PR pros-to-be. Here are some of the things that she had to say during our interview.
What makes a good story?
- Unusual and compelling topics
- Timeliness
- Relation to your audience
- Applicable to broader contexts
Which part of working with PR practitioners makes you feel good?
- When PR people pitch great story ideas
- “We sometimes enjoyed working with each other.”
Which part of working with PR practitioners annoys and frustrates you?
- “When a crime/bad news happened, a PR person didn’t return my call/email, or simply provided useless response.”
- PR people sometimes are uncooperative and even antagonistic.
Anything that a PR professional can do to make your life easier?
- “Answer my questions thoroughly and as quickly as possible, in the first time.”
- Be honest.
- “When anything comes up, please let me know. I can write a story about it and help people know. Let’s help each other out.”
- “Follow what you promised.”
What makes a good pitch?
- Subject line should “Have a story idea and don’t get too wordy.”
- Be concise and show the most interesting part of the story in the beginning.
- Interesting/new/unique, which “hooks me, makes me want to know more.”
- Timeliness is important, yet again.
- Pitch to the right person: research about the journalist, know his/her preferences.
- “When pitching to mainstream media like the Boston Globe, it’s usually more difficult to get attention, so you must have a strong story and make it unique and more polished.”
- “Keep pitching. You need persistence.”
Any advice for writing a valuable news release?
- Include the most important information in the first paragraph— the five W’s and one H. Remember to tell the journalist why it is important.
- Be concise.
- “Read several times before you send it. Don’t repeat.”
- Include contact info and different ways to get in touch.
- Include a boilerplate at the bottom — with information about the company.
What qualities should a PR pro have?
- PR is people relations. You should know how to work with people.
- Have good event planning skills.
- Communication skills: have everything well written in advance and strong verbal skills.
