Why Your First Year in PR Will Break You Before It Builds You
A little over a year ago, freshly graduated with a degree in communications, I was unsure what the early stages of my career would look like. Behind the excitement and intrigue, there was an underlying sense of uncertainty about what my day-to-day work would entail.
Fast-forward to today, after having worked for more than 12 months as a media relations associate at Hot Paper Lantern, I can confidently say that while I still have a lot to learn, I’ve gained valuable insights along the way that I’d share with anyone embarking on a career in the public relations industry. The notable takeaways that have become apparent to me are: 1) the importance of using the early days to gain a deeper understanding of the job’s daily operations, and 2) learning to handle less-than-ideal circumstances that will inevitably occur.
I’ve come to realize that the field doesn’t operate with a one-size-fits-all approach. Different journalists seek different stories at different times, making the start of the media outreach process seem overwhelming. As I grew into my role of pitching stories, questions surrounding how I should tailor my pitch, the specific angle I should take and the brevity of my pitches were persistent. Through support from my colleagues and mentors, I found that this questioning is normal, as the process simply requires practice and a natural curiosity about the stories reporters are looking for. What started as questioning myself turned into an acceptance of the overall job experience.
With time, I was able to pick up on little patterns. I took note of details like the specific time of day reporters preferred to be pitched, where they were located, the spokespeople and topics they tended to gravitate toward, and other tendencies that could fuel their story. As a result, using this intel for strategically tailored pitches has led to more coverage — and happier clients along with it. For me, this has always been the most fulfilling aspect of the job. Hearing clients not only acknowledge but genuinely appreciate the hard work behind driving growth for their brands is deeply encouraging. A simple “great work” or “much appreciated” goes a long way in adding even more validation to the hard work I put in day in and day out, which I believe is truly important for a young professional navigating their career.
On the other hand, I’ve also learned to expect the unexpected. At the end of the day, pitching stories is only half the battle. Throughout my time as an associate, I have been involved in several high-stakes instances such as reporters canceling interviews at the last minute, crisis management situations, article errors and even simply an overall lack of interest from the media. The most significant growth I’ve seen in myself throughout my young career is having found an acceptance of the unplanned nature of such events. In these moments, I have learned how important it is to embrace the fact that it comes with the job and always look toward the next step in diffusing a high-stakes situation. If a reporter cancels an interview at the last minute, my job is to update the client and explain the reasoning behind the circumstances.
Having to be involved in unfavorable situations is certainly not the fun part, but managing the expectations of clients and keeping them up to date on all media opportunities is always a priority. In an industry as dynamic as media relations, I have learned not to take instances like this personally as long as I’ve done everything in my control throughout the process. There was one instance when we were ramping up media outreach for a new client, and I coordinated one of their first interviews with an industry-leading publication. Feeling a significant amount of pressure to hit the ground running and show what our agency was capable of, I was nervous from the get-go. As I was on the phone with the client preparing to staff an introduction, the reporter texted me mentioning that he would have to postpone the interview to a later date. Rather than panicking and acting like the sky was falling, I kept my composure and relayed this information to the client, who turned out to be very sympathetic to the situation. This showed me that it is very easy to put more pressure on myself than necessary in a situation. Moving forward, I have embraced situations like these with the understanding that going through them will continue to teach me valuable lessons that I can further put into practice down the road.
Understanding nuances like these would have certainly made my life easier at the start, but going through these experiences has been key to my understanding of the industry overall, and I wouldn’t have the knowledge and confidence I have today without them.
The more details I continue to pick up throughout my media relations career, the more effectively I can apply them to future work and refine my skills as a professional.
