Back
in January I volunteered at a Manchester-based public relations
company. I gave up 2 weeks to learn about the field of PR- of taking
a company or organisation, looking at their data, looking at positive
aspects, turning select data into a press release and pushing it out
to relevant publications. The experience taught me a lot, one of the
main aspects being that, in the 21st century, PR isn't
just bashing out an article and 'selling in' to a stream of editors:
social media is changing the face of the industry and digital outlets
are now providing a much bigger reach than print. That, plus
expanding radio and TV networks are also offering platforms on which
brands can be noticed by the public.
The
placement ended and I went back to admin. Not only am I totally
unsuited to the role of business support, but I now have both the
'carrot and the stick' in my career- a job that makes me deeply
unhappy, but a different field that I'm focussed on moving into. I
expect this isn't as easy at the best of times, but short term memory
difficulties on top of minimal experience make for somewhat of an
uphill struggle. The PR company were understanding, supportive, and
great fun to work with. Typically, it was the more routine admin
tasks that I struggled with the most- updating the coverage book used
to record where articles were published, for instance- rather than
the more creative elements, like brainstorming sessions or
researching cycle safety campaigns. I left convinced that PR is the
right field to enter.
After
this, I found this house and started the process of buying it. Now
that I'm living here, and the decorating is 90% done, it's time to
get back into the swing of PR.
I
can think of at least one company that were ready to offer me work
experience. I've got a list of the top northwest PR firms,
most of which I've already approached. One of these were ready to at
least meet me. I'll re-contact a few of these, plus I'll look for bar
launches, shop launches and other events and see who is handling
their PR, then approach them. Being a little ballsy and offering to
cover events got me into the Mirror Image Style launch last month.
It got me onto Go:PR's books. Go
understand that bloggers are looking for opportunities to cover ideas
and events, and will write positively on your project if you invite
them. Although bloggers may not have the same reach as a local news
outlet, scattering a message via a cluster of smaller writers,
without spending anything, is going to get your name in people's
mouths, so to speak.
Deadline:
22nd June!
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