MEDIA MONITORING, MEDIA TRACKING AND MEDIA CALLS

Hello everyone, My name is Tiny and I am one of the interns and your colleague too. I am attached to the Public Relations company known as PDQ. I Just started my industrial training few days ago but it seems like I have 2 months there. I would like to say PDQ is open when it comes to their interns, communication wise. Upon completion of my industrial training I should be exposed to the following areas with PDQ: Media monitoring, Organizing Press events (if any during training period), Drafting Press Release, Liaising with Press, Reporting, Creative Development Procedures, Client Liaison, Contact Reports, meeting Coordination, Research, Job briefs (if any during training period, work in Progress, Liaising with other internal Departments and proposals/quotations to clients. (the list is endless) that is why I am saying its like I have 2 months. Before I go further, PDQ have many clients and this makes us more active and meet the deadlines.

So to start with, there is what is termed media monitoring in Public Relations, It is the activity of monitoring the output of the print and broadcast media if you all remember from our PR classes. In the morning, before I even sit on my chair, I grab one newspaper or two to my table I am expected to go through the newspaper and find the articles related to the clients that PDQ deals with, cut out the article, scan and save under the particular file of the client. The purpose of media monitoring is to analyse and provide feedback to our clients in the form of press clippings, daily monitoring reports and media analysis. It also helps us to have access to news information created by the media . The other importance is to create a link between the media and their audience, I like this because someone cannot escape the media monitoring which takes an hour or so.

Apart from media monitoring there is media tracking, this is whereby the attendance if I may call it that way, is taken after reading the newspaper, I have to record that Tiny Tshukudu has read this certain newspaper and others as they follow. I had no experience on media tracking it sounds fun because if you do not read a newspaper it will show at the end. Enough about media monitoring and media tracking.

Following the media or calling the media is another stressful task ever, but I have built my confidence on this one. Someone has to be patient because you might not understand the language they are using but you have to go over and over again till the two of you understand each other.

I would like to say there is still more to come this was just to pass by, like I said before the above mentioned are my training schedule. Oh!!! before I forget communication in PDQ is of high standard, I cannot complain on their communication, its ever busy in the office.

Wait for more from me because I am still working on something which will be beneficial to you all when I bring it to the table for discussion.

Have a blessed and productive week ahead.
Tiny Diakanyeng