It Begins.. My First Days in the Real World of PR

The Place:

Linc Integrated, an up-and-coming PR firm, whose sights are set on dominating the consultancy market in Perth

The Time:

8.30am Monday 20th February 2012

The Key Players:

Myself, Beth Caniglia, the new intern about to experience her first taste of PR in the real world;

My new supervisors, Rebecca Johnston and Lisa Barratt, two ladies with 16 combined years of experience in Public Relations

The Mood:

Nervous as hell!!

I had already survived the recruitment process (resume, phone interview, face-to-face interview) some weeks earlier but this was the real thing. I was about to walk into that building and do ACTUAL WORK, something that all the theory in the world can't prepare you for (hence the nail biting).

My nerves were thankfully unwarranted. I was fortunate enough to land a placement with two of the best teachers I've ever come across. They showed me around the office, introduced me to everyone and before I knew it I had been put to work - there was no photocopying or coffee-fetching to be seen here!

Some of my earliest tasks were focused around client research. I was a busy little bee investigating potential clients - their current PR activities, their websites, their spokespersons comments, their industries and their competitors. It was a lot of work and required some serious internet trawling and various phone calls. But as Rebecca so rightly put it, it was vitally important for her to know this information in order to successfully do her job. This is something in which I could see a clear link between PR theory and PR practice. Throughout my studies (specifically Consultancy) it has been pointed out repeatedly that knowing the client is absolutely essential. Consultancies must be completely aware of a clients circumstances before progressing with a PR plan, otherwise how can you advise someone about what they should do if you don't know what is going on in their world? This is something that I have seriously taken to heart and I believe I will employ the use of the remainder of my PR career. Not only is formulating a plan for a company enormously easier if you have extensive background knowledge to work with, it is also much more professional and instils confidence in the client because you have structured a plan specifically for their needs. I would recommend it as an absolute must to all PR Consultants if they want to gain and retain clients in the long run and provide quality work. This was proven to me beyond doubt when Linc recently won several (top secret) clients over several other major PR firms in Perth which they did by demonstrating a deep level of understanding about the companies they were pitching to. The best part was that I got to be a part of that process and the research I did assisted then in succeeding!

Anyway, thats all from me for now. Until next time.. keep enjoying your placements kids!

Beth Caniglia

KYC (Know Your Client) - By Ginny Chong, Curtin Singapore

In the investment banking environment, investment advisers are required under regulations to know your client (KYC) in depth. This refers to the detail knowledge that investment advisers should know about their clients such as financial positions, risk appetite, political relationships and investment knowledge in order to protect the firm and the clients. However I believe this should not be just restricted within banking itself.

KYC or know your client is the ultimate advantage that draws you apart from your competitors. Applying it to PR context, it means knowing their risk appetite, financial positions and their PR objectives.

In a recent meeting with a group of clients - healthcare specialists who are keen to review their PR activities to propel their brand further, KYC has imprinted in my mind even more. Prior to the meeting, I was only given the company's acronyms. My objective is to learn the rope and observe how a PR review meeting is about. I tried finding out the name and specialisations through Google, social media avenues and was met with endless permutations which does not seem to work very well.

The day arrived and I arrived the meeting place five minutes earlier than usual and a few of our clients had arrived. Even though I had not met them before, I was fortunate enough to identify them correctly. Breaking the ice was a little tough as they expected me - a representative from my PR firm, to be knowledgeable in my field. Given my limited knowledge about their business, I was tested by them on what I know about their field, area of work, how do I propel their brand forward and why should they use Facebook to reach out to clients?

My mind started racing as I really do not know much about them. But that should never be an excuse to not learn. Slowly I engaged them by sharing my working experience, asking questions about their stakeholders, how long have they been practising their trade and what is their expectation and so on, They also gave me greater insights to their concerns, expectations and financial positions.

Even though I must say it was not an easy task to convince them on the impact of new media, they are starting to understand what social media can do. Similar to investment banking, healthcare practitioners are bound by confidentiality creed and not all social media can be used to promote their company.

All and all, I learned a lot about my very first PR review meeting and am thankful that I had a chance to practice what I had learnt in theory and my working experience from vast industries and apply it. One thing for sure; it is through knowing my clients more in more details, will I be able to render a more effective PR consultancy.