Posts Tagged ‘Gary McCormick’


The Future Of Public Relations Is Bright – The View From Above

Friday, March 19th, 2010

Gary McCormickAs you may know from my last BurrellesLuce Fresh Ideas post, I had the pleasure of attending and serving on a panel at the PRSA/PRSSA Pro-Am Day in St. Louis.The some 120 attendees (about half being college communications majors), myself included, were fortunate to meet new PRSA president/CEO Gary McCormick and listen to him speak. His luncheon presentation, “A Tale of Two Sides: It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” addressed why the future of PR is bright – while acknowledging the downturned economy and shuttering of many print media outlets.

McCormick began with the “Three E’s Bringing Change.”

  • Economy – budgets are down and value propositions are up, making it more difficult to succeed in the marketplace.
  • Environment – trust is down, number of messages is down, and audiences now expect to provide input.
  • Effects Strengthened Through PR/Partnerships – public relations understands how to build and sustain beneficial relationships; transference of credibility moves the messages faster and feedback is more immediate and helps facilitate needed change.

McCormick cited a number of statistics and studies to prove his point that current changes are good for PR. For example, according to CareerCast.com, PR tops other communication disciplines, such as advertising and journalism, in the listing of top 200 jobs. The annual Veronis Suhler Stevenson study predicts a consolidated aggregated growth rate for public relations as nearly 10 percent for the years 2008-2012.  Even in a downturned economy, spending on PR in the U.S. grew by more than 4 percent in 2008 and nearly 3 percent in 2009 – to $3.7 billion.  And, finally, the rise of the Internet and social media has given PR a big boost.

Why else does McCormick think the future of PR is bright? Things like: advances in technology, changing role of traditional media, reduced trust in business, 24/7 immediate/global news cycle, segmentation of messages and authentication of sources, the ongoing turf war on owning social media, and the fact that organizations will no longer own messages/messaging and that actions will define reputation are all benefits influencing the landscape of public relations.

Finally, he made the following suggestions for preparing for the future:

  1. Focus on strategy, not tactics
  2. Include all the tools available
  3. Integrate and innovate
  4. Embrace the new normal
  5. Deliver more listening points than talking points
  6. Maintain your individual brand ethics

What do you think? Are you beginning to see an upturn in business? How are the current media and economic environments affecting the way you do public relations? Share your thoughts with me and the readers of Fresh Ideas.

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Posted in Industry Events, Media Industry, Public Relations | 3 Comments »

Young Professionals: St. Louis PRSA Pro-Am Day

Monday, March 1st, 2010

I had the pleasure of attending and serving on a career panel at the PRSA/PRSSA Pro-Am Day in St. Louis last week. (New PRSA president/CEO Gary McCormick was the luncheon speaker, but that’s for a future post here on BurrellesLuce Fresh Ideas.)  

 In this post I’d like to share some of the advice that was provided in the “Diary of Young STLPRSAproam-youngpro panelProfessionals” session.  Allison Hughes, Lara Golike, Tanya Kath and Phillip Cleveland served as panelists and answered questions from the Missouri and southern Illinois PRSSA members in attendance.

When asked for advice about entering the job market, the panel offered these points:

  • Don’t go in with a sense of entitlement. You’ll be “knocked down a peg” and only set yourself up for disappointment.
  • Not everyone works with clients immediately. While you should have a writing portfolio, you are still the “low man on the totem pole.”
  • With entry-level positions, you may have to jump through the hoops and prove yourself until acknowledged as a professional.  It can be a long road, but you must keep on until accepted.
  • In corporate PR there can be as many as ten approvals and red lines before something is given the go-ahead.
  • Not every office is like “Devil Wears Prada!”

As far as advice about job searching and what skills should be highlighted, the panel offered this guidance:

  1. Digital PR is a must. Agencies want to hire those that already have these skills. 
  2. Be sure Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages are “clean.” With Facebook, you can set privacy filters, but keep in mind that nothing is truly private on the web. 
  3. As far as skills to be highlighted, do NOT say you are a “people person.” 
  4. Include group projects (not just individual) as this demonstrates team work.
  5. Showcase achievements rather than activities. 
  6. Be prepared for an on-the-spot writing test.
  7. When interviewing, ask lots of questions before accepting a position so you know what you’re getting into.
  8. Early in your career (or even when doing internships) – diversify. Even if you know what area you want to go into, don’t pigeon-hole your experience.

Finally, panelists were asked about some the things they wish they’d learned more about in school, to which they responded:

  • AP Style (there’s even an app for that now!)
  • Social Media
  • Reading industry magazines and newsletters as well as thought-leaders blogs.

If your local PRSA, IABC, AMA or other group has a Pro-Am event, I’d encourage you to participate in any way that you are able.  What additional advice would you offer these about-to-be young PR pros?

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Posted in Career Advice, Industry Events, Public Relations | 4 Comments »