1/17The Skillset Needed to Work in Public Relations What does it take to forge a successful career in Public Relations?

2/17

20 years ago, the answer to this question probably included a degree,

a little black book of media contacts and a large lunch budget.

However, times have changed.

What are the skills needed to succeed in the industry today?

3/17

Desire, not degree

You don’t need a degree to have a successful career in PR. One of the

most talented PR professionals I know left school at 16 and now holds

a senior position at one of the world’s biggest brands.

4/17

While degrees are great, a desire to do

the job to a high standard is a bigger

asset to the industry. That’s often what

separates good PR practitioners from

great ones – the desire to go the extra

mile for employers, clients or staff.

University is a great learning experience

inside and outside the classroom, but just

because someone hasn’t been through

the system doesn’t mean they’re not

suitable for a job in PR.

5/17

Interest in news

One of PR’s primary functions is

to create news and generate conversation.

6/17

An interest in news and an

understanding of how websites, news

wires, papers, magazines, radio shows

and TV programmes gather news

and content is a must-have skill. It’s

also a good idea to build on this by

understanding what will get people

interested in your story or campaign.

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Best way to do this?

Read, watch and listen to everything so

you know what’s hot and what’s not on

the media and consumer agenda and

plan your campaigns accordingly.

8/17

Create or organise

Most people in PR tick one of two boxes – they’re either creative or

very well organised. These are both essential skills.

9/17

Having the imagination to dream up the

next big campaign or being organised

enough to make sure said idea becomes

a reality are vital to succeeding in the

industry. That’s not to say that creatives

aren’t organised and organisers aren’t

creative but having a strength in one of

these areas is key.

10/17

Know a little about a lot

The ability to quickly learn a working knowledge of many different

markets or products is a handy tool, especially for those employed in

consultancies, overseeing multiple clients. You don’t need to know all

the ins and outs of a client’s business, but having enough knowledge

to hold down a conversation about the client and their industry trends

is really important.

11/17

The ability to communicate

Seems like an obvious point, but being able to communicate is absolutely essential in

PR. This can be written and verbal and includes listening as well as speaking.

12/17

On an average day PR practitioners may

interact with staff, suppliers, managers, clients,

the media, the public and other audiences

so having the ability to talk to these groups

consistently and effectively is important. Being

a good writer is part of this as we now live in a

world where a lot of communicating is done via

emails and tweets. However, the personal touch

of conversation holds a lot of weight in certain

circumstances and verbal communications

shouldn’t be overlooked. There’s life away from

the keyboard…

13/17

Tech know-how

An emerging trend in the last few years has been the growing opportunity for PR to

own the production and distribution of content.

14/17

Photos, videos, infographics, websites, apps and

more have become important areas of the PR

business and having any knowledge relating to

these areas would be a big bonus in the eyes

of future employers. An understanding of how

to re-touch images on Photoshop, how to edit

video or how to work with WordPress websites

would make any young PR practitioner a very

attractive proposition to employers. These are

not essential skills but right now they’re very

desirable.

15/17

There are other skills that can help lay the

foundations of a successful PR career, but for

me these form the core. For anyone considering

a career in the industry, advice is simple: dream

big, write well, work hard and consume media

at your desk and on the go and you’ll reap the

benefits as you grow and learn.

16/17

AUTHOR:

Anna Morris, Managing Director of Ireland consumer PR consultancy Clearbox.

The agency works with clients in the UK, Ireland and Europe and

was recently named the UK’s Best New Consultancy by the PRCA.

17/17

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