A day in the office with emails, meetings and karaoke

A day in the office with emails, meetings and karaoke…

A typical day in the Channel 9 offices is never like the day before, they all start out the same with emails to check and reply to, meetings to attend and KPI’s to discuss, but no two days ever take the same course or structure and it is this unknown excitement I enjoy the most.

This week we were preparing for a community awareness activation that we will be running in the city at the end of the week. The activation, which is the first of four, is to create more awareness and in turn a greater viewership for The Voice, a Channel 9 reality show. For the activation we will be setting up a Voice branded marquee with a television and Ps4 set up inside with Sing Star; the idea is to encourage people to come have a sing, battle their friends and potentially have the chance to win the Ps4 at the end of the day!

In order for this kind of event to run smoothly there is a lot of coordinating that has to go into place, weeks in advance, such as booking the space in the CBD to put up a marquee, organising related signage and also talent as some of the Perth Voice contestants will be in attendance. In order to ensure all of our equipment is working perfectly it was absolutely vital that we also set the Ps4 up in the office and have various battles throughout the day, drawing the attention of different departments around the station, with everyone having a go. This was not only fun and entertaining but also demonstrated to me how important it is to be a part of a company that appreciates the friendliness of staff and values the cohesion socialising in the office creates, as long as work is still getting completed of course.

This particular office day also showed me what it was like when a planned event goes wrong, due to things beyond your control. On this occasion a competition was run through Channel 9 but supplied by a third party who is holding the event. The particular company has altered the dates of the event twice with little notice to Channel 9 and therefore competition winners. This became a bit of a headache due to having to rearrange all attendees, ensuring they were informed and that they could attend on the revised date. Unfortunately these changes were beyond Channel 9’s control, yet to the competition winners it is understandable it does not reflect well on the brand with constant changes, seemingly disorganised.

The best way to handle this, although quite time consuming is to ensure that all competition winners were contacted by phone, rather than just a mass email, adding care and a more human touch, softening the disappointment of another date setback. There was also the preparedness of an alternative, so if the winners then could not attend the revised date the department made sure to have tickets on hand to another show or event as a way of compensation and apology. I think this really helped turn a bad situation around without creating a negative image in the minds of those involved. Hopefully the event doesn’t get moved for the third time and all winners can enjoy the day!

Essentially every day seems to be different, buzzing with the possibility of what will happen next! With so many things on the go 24/7 Channel 9 never stops, allowing for the marketing and PR department to be a place of new ideas, communication and now the new karaoke bar (minus the alcohol) in town!

Stay tuned!

- Maddi

Started From the Bottom Now We're Here!

Heading into my internship I had high hopes I would be deeply involved in real, riveting public relations work. To an extent I have been, but for the most part the work has been fairly surface level. Generally this is to be expected and honestly, I don’t suppose I would trust an unqualified intern with work that could jeopardies my client-consultancy relationships either.

On my first day I walked into the office thinking, ‘please don’t give me a spreadsheet, please don’t give me a spreadsheet.’ Five minutes later I was given a spreadsheet. I sat at my desk editing it for hours and, for a moment, I honestly believed time was going backwards.

The spreadsheet I was working on was a media contact database. It’s an essential tool for PR practitioners because it enables them to reach editors or writers instantly to pitch a story and generate interest in a client. Without an updated media database, pitching becomes a lengthy and clumsy process. So, although the task I was doing wasn't intensely fascinating it was still real, necessary PR work.

Over the next few days, in between the meatier PR work, I was given other menial tasks to do such as fetch stationary, draft travel plans for client trips, take client work to be packaged and, on one particular day, I was given three hours to find one hundred small green luggage locks that needed to be delivered that day. No small task for those who know anything about retail stock management and the chance of someone stocking one hundred locks specifically in green. But moving swiftly on...

Even though the tasks weren’t particularly stimulating they still provided opportunity; an opportunity to show work ethic, efficiency and attention to detail. So, each time I was given a small task I did it to the best of my ability. I did it quickly, thoroughly and with pride.

The way you approach small tasks may very well define how an employer perceives you. All those small tasks are essential for the completion of larger, more important tasks. If you do them incorrectly you risk laying a weak foundation for your team. So, the next time someone asks you to go and fetch some envelopes, fetch them with enthusiasm. Know the size of the envelope, how many are needed and the specific colour and then proudly update your LinkedIn profile with 'professional stationary buyer, because it may very we'll be the difference between getting a job and going back to retail.

 

From 367 pairs of jeans to a 630am start full of raw treats...never a dull moment!

A BTS photo taken by myself of the raw goodies made for the Channel 9 segment

I have now officially been at my internship with Detail for 6 weeks. Not too sure where the time has gone but I am happy to say that it has been a wonderful experience thus far. I am assigned to one project, the Garage Sale Trail. A fantastic, not-for-profit event that occurs simultaneously across Australia. The aim of Garage Sale Trail is to encourage reuse, recycling while having fun, socialising and meeting the neighbours. This year, the event occurs on Saturday 24th October and the Detail team are assigned as the WA PR Team as well as overseeing all other state PR's and looking after media and PR opportunities on a national scale.

I have been assisting with a variety of public relations strategies and tools for the Garage Sale Trail event, and we recently worked on a pitch to the Community Newspaper Group in relation to a story on factoids about reusing and recycling. The factoid related to the recycling of jeans, being: if people recycled 367 pairs of jeans rather than throwing them out, it would effectively save enough water to fill an Olympic swimming pool. My Account Manager had the idea of creating a story around the factoid, involving a Garage Sale Trail ambassador, the Waste Authority WA Chairman, an Olympic sized swimming pool and 367 pairs of jeans. Community Newspaper loved the idea and we were set to run the story. We had locked in Beatty Park for the use of their swimming pool, as well as the Waste Authority Chairman and our ambassador, however the challenge was in sourcing 367 pairs of jeans for the photo opportunity. We approached a variety of op-shops in Fremantle, all who were willing to help but did not have a large enough capacity of jeans to assist us. 5pm the day before the shoot, we managed to get Good Sammy's head office on board. It was then my task to go to Good Sammy's the following morning, bag up 367 pairs of jeans, fit said jeans into my Yaris and transport them to the shoot at Beatty Park. Safe to say that was my exercise for the day! We had a beautiful day and the shot ended up looking great, definitely proving it is worth the extra effort and persistence to make for a great story and piece of publicity for the client. To view the final article, click the link below:

http://www.communitynews.com.au/news/Garage-Sale-Trail-open-for-business/7673885

Two days later, we had a media opportunity for a client with the Today Show for Perth Channel 9. This involved being at the location at 6:30am for a 7am live filming start. The client was re-branding and also launching a new product - a Vitamix. Our story involved a lady by the name of Chriswho runs her own raw, health food company 'RawbyChris'. Chris uses the vitamix to make delicious raw treats, so she was the perfect ambassador for the launch of the new Vitamix. While it was an early start, I managed to snap a great pic for Instagram and had way too many raw treats for breakfast (albeit healthy so it makes it okay)! Getting a first hand encounter of behind the scenes of a live TV cross was a fantastic experience and certainly gave me an insight into the many different hats a PR practitioner is required to wear!

Improving The World Through CSR

Corporate Social Responsibility

I have discovered that Corporate Social Responsibility interests and fascinates me. Through incorporating activities and elements benefiting society, I feel I’m giving back to the community and the environment.

More and more companies are incorporating CSR into their business, as well as creating social responsibility webpages to showcase their morality. Large organisations involving themselves in activities and programs purely for the benefit of the environment and the wider community are the organisations that will develop long-term reputational and financial success.

On week three of my internship experience, I was invited to attend an important interview between an influential client and the owner of a Malaysian youth magazine. Our client was the managing director of Brickfield’s Asia College, a critically successful establishment involved in many projects and developments that benefit the disadvantaged, as well as the wider community.

The interview concerned a funding project called ‘EduNation’ where free online tuition is provided to Malaysian students. BAC is attempting to further develop the project to an international scale, for all age’s groups and children wanting to learn more. It was fascinating listening to the goodwill of BAC’s managing director.

He spoke with a general concern for the disadvantaged and less fortunate. This man explained current business initiatives of his college, such as giving scholarships to those who couldn’t afford education, projects empowering women, communicating with the ministry to allow refugees to sit examinations, and many more volunteer projects for students at the college.

The inspiring interview led the magazine director to actually request future collaborations on similar projects, as the two discovered their similar interests for their community.

The wider benefit for the environment is endless when large organisations begin to immerse themselves in sustainability. CSR allows people to come together to establish meaningful connections, improve the environment and help the less fortunate. As well as individually making the world a better place, large corporations can create a world of change through collaborating on CSR projects to improve the world we live in.

Is Briefing Your Spokesperson Ethical?

Prior to an interview between one of our clients and the media, I was presented with a ‘Spokesperson Briefing book’ to review before the interview. This document ensures the spokesperson is prepared for the media’s questioning, and ensures answers will be diverted back to the well-being of the spokesperson’s establishment.

I have previously engaged in similar media preparation tasks for assignments at university, where we were told to “think like a journalist” – what would they ask the spokesperson?

This document contains four sections: interview details, media profile, anticipated media questions, followed by dos and don’ts.

As I began to scan through the first few pages, I began to question the ethical procedures involved with this spokesperson brief...

Does this interfere with the transparency and authenticity of the spokesperson? Does this mean a person cannot organically present themselves because public relations has twisted and tweaked the spokespersons dialogue and expression?

Alternatively, I considered the opposite side of the coin. The media has an established reputation of twisting statements and conversations made through every day conversation. They can utilize an unintentional statement and revert it against the spokesperson, for the purpose of their story.

This means spokespeople preferably need to be educated on their representation towards the media, in order to protect their reputation in the spotlight. Beneficially, this enhances their chance of positive publicity as media professionals (public relations) have studied how to effectively communicate with the media, to ensure honest and positive publicity.

Section four of the brief: Do’s and Don’ts. This was intriguing – I contemplated my previous impression of the brief as I now realized perhaps the spokesperson brief is ethical and necessary. Public Relations simply educates the spokesperson on being consistent in their messages, answering all questions, being clear and calm. The spokesperson is advised against memorizing answers provided by public relations. This ensures the spokesperson isn't spoon fed answers to the media, and still has the opportunity to naturally communicate with personal dialect. 

Public Relations - Not so "glamorous" after all

For the past few weeks, I was extremely busy with SOPB's Corporate Movie Night and the tasks that come with it are not so "glamorous" after all. Hence, the title. I never really realised how important the tiny details are when it comes to planning events. Every detail, big or small, should never be overlooked. I've learned a lot being here at SOPB and one of it is that there are a lot DIYs involved. 

Sssshhh, it's a secret

I am currently interning at the Public Transport Authority and finding it really interesting to be working in a department whose actions actually affect everyday people. The PTA is responsible for the public transport infrastructure, this includes building train lines, stations, bus stops ext.

Stakeholders

There are so many different stakeholders to consider, from local residents opposing plans for a new train station being built near their home, to the state premier who needs to ensure the PTA deliver on his election promises.

PTA projects can have significant effects on various communities and individuals. When making decisions about projects the PTA must consult with various other government departments, shires, agencies and of course the public. It is important that the public are consulted, because the projects are being funded by tax payers contributions.

Keeping it under wraps

From a communications point of view including so many people can be problematic in preventing information from being leaked to the general public. The more people that know a secret, the harder it is to keep.

Last week the PTA had a case where information about the new underground Perth Busport’s second entry had been leaked to the media. At that point in time the PTA had not yet informed the public of the decision to include a second entry in the busport.

Fly through animation of the new underground Perth Busport.

For more information on the Perth Busport second entry click here.

The art of being prepared

Information leakages are difficult to manage because so many other departments and agencies have to have access to the information. I was very impressed with how my supervisor, the Communication Project Manager handled the situation. She had all the documentation already written and ready to be sent out. Had she not been prepared she would have had to work all night writing and finalising fact sheets, media releases and speech notes.

It just goes to show how much being organised pays off.

Whitney

In-house vs consultancy

I am 15 days into my second internship at the Public Transport Authority (PTA). The PTA is responsible for the public transport infrastructure; this includes building train lines, stations, bus stops ext.

My experience working at the PTA has been the complete opposite to my time at GO Communications (GO). GO is a public relations consultancy firm in Malaysia, while my role at the PTA is in-house for a Western Australian Government department. As far as public relations goes I think they are as different as you can get.

Media communication

Working in a government communications department is different to consultancy in so many ways. One area that particularly stands out is media communication. 

At GO we tried so hard to get media attention, whereas the PTA never has trouble getting media to a press conference. In fact they are often trying to deter media in an effort to keep information quite to avoid premature release.

I guess this is because the PTA are working on projects that directly affect so many people. As well as this, they are spending tax payers money. The media will report on what people want to know about, and everyone wants to know if their tax dollars are being invested wisely.

Budget

Another thing that is very different is the budget. Working in a consultancy the client determines the budget. I was surprised to see the extravagant things clients expect for such little expenditure.

In a government department the state treasurer determines the department’s budget. It is interesting to see how big the project budgets are for government, and just how much things actually cost.

At the PTA I am currently organising the opening of the new Butler Train Station (click here for more information on Butler Station). It is my job to arrange the stagging, seating, the community activities, signage, the opening plaque and the budget, among various other articles. In sourcing quotes, ordering numerous items and keeping track of the budget, I was very shocked to see how quickly costs add up. 

In a consultancy you have to try and convince the client to spend money on all these extra little things to make the event perfect. This can be a hard task. At GO, my team spent days trying to convince a client to hire a professional photographer to capture their event.

PTA

I have really enjoyed my time at the PTA so far. I have had loads of exposure to all kinds of different communications. I have written stories for the intranet, attended meetings with internal and external stakeholders and been involved in event coordination. I like working for the PTA because I feel like I am contributing to making our state a better place, rather than simply helping big corporations get richer.

I am interested to experience working in-house for private organisation so I can compare it to consultancy and government.

I'd love to hear whether you'd prefer to work in-house or in a consultancy?

Whitney

This is the end... but not goodbye!

Hi everyone!

This is my last post to sum up the three months being an intern in CROWD PR Agency.  The internship had broadened my perception of Public Relations immensely.  I considered the three months as a defining moment to determine if public relations will be the career path for me. Alas, I’ve found my answer.

Nearing the end of my internship, I have accepted the full time position offered by my supervisor.  I believe I am up for the challenge to deal with demanding clients, having ideas turned down for the zillionth time and having quick lunch breaks that could barely fill my stomach. (Hey, just dramatising the life of a PR practioner.) On a positive note, I’ve figure that the challenging moments are also the most gratifying moments of the job. Given the test-run for 3 months, I believe that I fit the bill for this job.

A couple of days ago, I’ve chance upon an article from the PR Week discussing the traits of an ideal PR consultant. (Link) The writer believes that the ideal new generation PR professional should have 1) the right mind, language and behaviour, 2) Take initiative to network and 3) exert assertiveness.

I couldn’t agree more with the writer that apart from technical skills, these soft skills helps to make one a better consultant. It serves as a reminder to me that despite being “promoted”, I should remain grounded and possess the same determination and assertiveness as previously in my intern role.  

I hope that this article will inspire you just like how it did for me, and hopefully through this internship journey, you would find your answers too!

(My colleagues and I hanging out at our recreational area)

Ending my last post by sharing a quote by the famous Oscar Wilde. 

“There Is Only One Thing In The World Worse Than Being Talked About, And That Is Not Being Talked About." – Oscar Wilde

Cheers,

Candice