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Alison Owen
Head of PR at BDB
International business-to-business PR specialist
www. bdb.co.uk @bdbmarketing @alisonmowen
Summary
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What is PR – a classic definition
Different career opportunities
PR vs advertising
Is it for me?
A typical day
The changing media landscape
Career choice?
What is PR?
 Reputation management
– what you do
– what you say
– what others say about you
 Planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain
goodwill and understanding between an organisation and its
publics
 Presenting a company favourably
– Shaping information
– Targeting
– Engaging relevant audiences
Different career opportunities
Agency vs in-house
 Agency
– Small business or global network
– Broad spread of clients – across different
sectors
– Variety of work / disciplines
 In-house
– Corporate culture
– Clear career path
– Focused – usually core sector / related
sectors
Consumer vs B2B
– Consumer (B2C)
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Brand you may have heard of
Products/services more accessible
Entry level usually junior
Media challenges
Faster pace / project turnover
Can be more UK-focused
– B2B
– Often more technical
– Can offer better opportunity for
progression
– Media challenges
– Longer term / longer lead times
– Can be more international
PR vs advertising
 “News is what somebody somewhere wants to
suppress. Everything else is advertising.” Lord Northcliffe
 Advertising
– Hard-hitting
 Space paid for
 Raising awareness
 Quicker results
 Public relations
– Softer skill
 Editorial space free but earned on merit
 Shaping attitude
 Long term results
 Editorial promotions / advertorials
– Blurring lines
Is it for me?
 Personable
– Build relationships
 Good copywriter
– Variety of material
 Organised
– Good time management / deadlines
 Good memory
– Lots of projects ongoing
– Eye for detail
 Flexible
– Late nights / travel
 Initiative
– Self starter
 Creative
 ‘Passion
for PR’
Don’t rule it out
 Don’t necessarily need a PR / marketing
communications degree
– Scientists
– Linguists
– Humanities
A typical day?
 No such thing!
 Maybe
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Editor ring-round to ‘sell-in’ a story
Client meeting about a forthcoming event
Compile and evaluate a clippings report
Research for a new business pitch
Attend an exhibition to represent a client
Take part in a brainstorming session for
future project
– Put together press lists for new product
launch
– Research / draft press release
– ...
The changing media landscape
Safeguarding reputation
 Transparent environment
– Instant / global
 No reputation is bulletproof
– “When everyone has a blog or Facebook entry,
everyone is a publisher
– “Your reputation is going to get set in stone so
much earlier…a digital fingerprint that never gets
erased”
Thomas Friedman, New York Times
How has PR changed?
 New digital channels
– Accelerated pace of working
– Fragmented media
– New skills / tactics
 New influencers
– Engagement
It’s all in the story
 Discipline of PR remains the same
 Creating a consistent message thread
– Across fragmented media
 Engages audience
– Relevant message
 Create and protect
corporate reputation
The power of social media
 Influence of bloggers
The power of social media
Headline news
Fast growing career choice
 Corporate reputation is critical
– PR is booming
 $10bn business in 2011 1
 Employs 66,000 people worldwide
 Growing at 8% pa 1
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– PR ranked no 5 “Hot Careers to Watch 2013”
1 Holmes Report, 2011
2 prnewsonline, 27 Dec 2012
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Any questions?