PR 3310Principles of Public Relations
Tuesday, 6/2/09
Class Objectives
Lecture Ch. 4, Pr Departments and Firms
Homework assignment Ex. 2 Read chapter 5 in book, pages 128-139
What’s in the news today?
Pointers on using YouTube for effective marketing campaigns http://mashable.com/2009/06/01/youtube-
brands/ Need to keep videos fresh (rotate content),
short (less than 10 minutes) Don’t really need celebrities Want to make the video an experience…
looking through a looking glass Provide a virtual visit/experienceof some place unique/interesting
Would you consider Lubbock exotic?
People: friendly (Yes Ma’am), talk to you over the fence-type, rugged, laid back, proud of their state, family oriented
Weather: Wind/storms, cloud formations Industry: Cotton plants and mills, Wind energy Animals
Horny toads, fire ants Coyotes, cattle Chicken doves
Other Caliche Red dirt, flatness, “every tree was planted by someone” What is a caprock?
PR Departments and Firms
1st off, where do you “do” PR Inside a company (in-house) versus in a PR
firm/agency
PR Departments in NPO’s
Companies may be Non-profit organization (NPO) is a legally constituted
organization whose objective is to support or engage in activities of public or private interest without any commercial or monetary profit.
Serve the public good Profits are not for shareholders (but do need to be profitable in
order to exist/operate) This sector employs ~ 10.2 million full and part-time employees Often looking for volunteering experience
Ex. educational, religious, scientific, charities, relief foundations, private foundations
Big: TT, Red Cross, American Cancer Society Small: local charity, Buddy Holly Center
PR Departments in Government Orgs.
Non-profit companies may be Government funded organizations
Do you have/want experience with this type of area?
Often called “public affairs” Majority in D.C.
http://hotjobs.yahoo.com/job-JMU7ZIPJT77;_ylt=AnJAMU7YkPiJoglb3kqbkzX6Q6IX?source=SRP
http://www.opajobs.com/
PR Departments in for-Profit Companies For-profit are “normal” companies Big (notice the companies are not just PR)
Ketchum: http://www.ketchum.com/ Ogilvy: http://www.ogilvy.com/ (go to
OgivlyPR, look at career video) Small companies house PR departments in
Marketing departments May be 1-2 people May be lumped in with Sales department!
Advantages to working on the corporate side Salaries are higher Benefits are higher Resources (budgets) are higher
Disadvantages of working on the corporate side Approval process is longer Lack of support (you may be only one “doing”
PR, especially in smaller companies; have to prove job/worth)
Work is routine (esp. in larger companies) Friction with other departments
Legal, Human resources, advertising, marketing
Whose “turf” is it? Whose budget will this come out of? Who gets to claim the success of a campaign?
Working at a PR or Marketing agency; Why use a PR Firm? Fresh outlook Skills and expertise that company personnel do
not have Often, many companies try to do things “in-
house” first because they think it’s cheaper Media contacts are already developed Country-wide coverage Special problem solving abilities Credibility /expertise/ a history of doing PR
activities
Why not to use PR Firms
Superficial grasp of product/industry/person (not in-depth enough)
Costs may appear to be higher than doing it in-house
Lack of full time employees (inability to reach at all times) Potential conflicts of interest (does your PR
firm represent your competition?) Confidential material; don’t want it to leak
Services PR Firms Provide
Marketing communications Executive speech training Research and evaluation and media analysis
(data analysis) Grant writing Event planning Crisis communication
Breadth versus depth
Most any time you work for smaller companies or organizations, you will gain breadth experience You will wear many hats; become exposed to
a variety of clients, different marketing and PR strategies
Learn every aspect of PR, from placing executives at trade shows to writing press releases, to “pitching” and being the person who counsels clients
Positives: not boring
Breadth
When you work for agencies, you also gain breadth experience Positives:
Gives you access to lots of mentors in your field, since you're surrounded by people who have similar career interests and might be a few years ahead of you
Peers, networking ops, etc. Because of breadth, can see what “works” and
doesn’t (in terms of campaigns)
Depth
Most any time you work for larger companies/orgs. and agencies, you will gain depth experience Do the same thing over and over and become more of
an expert At writing news releases, organizing events, etc.
You become immersed in the company's marketing strategy and its day-to-day workings.
Good to know if you want to operate your own small business some day
You have more responsibility because you're focused on publicizing the one business, service, or product.
More crucial as there’s only 1 egg in your basket
Pay scale
Non-profit small is lowest Non-profit staff salaries are 25% lower than
business or government salaries on average Non-profit large Agency small Agency large Corporation small Corporations large BLS for “public relations specialists”
http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos086.htm
Warnings when looking for PR jobs
Be careful about “sales” type responsibilities If you don’t like asking for $$, don’t look at
non-profits Job titles may be misleading
PR job may be all writing/ Journalist job may include PR + design
http://hotjobs.yahoo.com/job-JZZ8IZPX9UB;_ylt=AvB028xLmDddVdPxYEmsUWf6Q6IX?source=SRP
PR titles
Starting with entry and working to experienced Intern (may be paid or may not be paid) Specialist Communicator Manager Director V.P.
Advice for looking for PR jobs 1st things 1st- ignore most job titles
Person creating title may not know what the title means No official meaning to titles PR, Graphic designer, marketing communication
manager/assistant… Instead, look at job responsibilities
Even here, the responsibilities may not make sense Remember that job posting is a “wish list” from employer… Always apply to jobs in which you are at least 75% qualified And apply to jobs in which you are over-qualified
You don’t know who you are competing against!
Advice for looking for PR jobs
Network! (both real and virtual) Search in many different locations
Think about it this way… where would my potential boss/company post a listing?
Search under many terms Marketing, PR, corporate affairs, marketing
communications At the interview, ask questions (interviews are 2-way,
or should be) Unconventional advice: at an interview, bring a
portfolio or something visual (in paper-format)
Video: Toxic Sludge is Good for You
NOTE: This is just one viewpoint (and a rather negative one) of Public Relations
Chapters 7, 8 (genetically modified food) Extras Title 2 (more on vnr)