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Top Skills All Public Relations Professionals Should Have

September 11, 2020

Are you looking at breaking into the world of public relations? Great!

Now more than ever, businesses are looking for creative and organized individuals to help with their public relations strategy. Whether its Crisis Communication amidst a global pandemic, Brand Marketing through planned events (virtual and in-person) or Media Relations – there are many channels you can use to share messaging.

If you’re a student looking to start your future career or a seasoned professional wanting a change of pace, here are some of the top skills we think any public relations professional should have.

Public Relations Requires Top-Notch Writing Skills

A job in public relations requires a lot of writing. Familiarize yourself with the AP Style of writing and communication. Along with knowledge of your client, you will also need to convey your writing quickly and concisely. Tight deadlines, changing audiences and decreased attention spans requires accuracy and speed. You’ll also be required to write for a variety of mediums. From press releases, editorials, blogs, promotional flyers and more, a savvy PR professional should write compelling copy to engage their audience.

Public Relations and Project Management

The world of public relations and marketing can be incredibly fast-paced. Whether you work for an agency, nonprofit or corporate entity, one of the greatest skills you can have is the ability to project manage. In some instances, you may be the only individual responsible for a project, but in most cases, you’ll have an entire team, including graphic designers and photographers, working towards the same goal.

Public Relations Pros Need to Problem Solve

Unfortunately, in life, seldom does everything go according to plan. While there may not be a catch-all way to boost your problem-solving skills, you can find ways to give you a new perspective. Some of the best solutions arise when we start asking ourselves “why?” Why do we do things this way? Why did this go wrong? From there you can then begin to think of things like “How can we improve it?”

Flexibility and Public Relations

Along with the changing needs of clients and your organization, the world of public relations is also constantly shifting. As new technology becomes available with circulating trends, professionals need to be willing to learn new skills to adapt. Failure to do so can negatively impact your performance. Another aspect of this involves flexibility with your clients, organization and teammates. It's important to make quick decisions, and if things go wrong, own up to the consequences.

PR Pros Know How to Communicate

Effective communication extends to any field. Communicating with your clients and teammates needs to be done clearly and effectively. This avoids any confusion and ensures everyone is on the same page when it comes to different projects. In this field, it’s also very likely you’ll be communicating with individuals from different cultures, backgrounds and geographic locations in many situations.

As an award-winning creative agency, Cork Tree Creative relies on our crew of dedicated designers, writers and developers. Along with these core skills, our staff bring with them different backgrounds and expertise that helps us to be able to best serve our clients and fulfill their marketing and public relations needs.

Looking for someone to help you kick off your next marketing venture? Get in touch with our team to learn more! 618-656-7333.

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