Getting your foot in or breaking down the door of PR?

I got wind of this when it was tweeted by award-winning agency Brandon Hill Communications; courtesy of PR Daily, this gem of an article giving tips to newbies might as well have my name written all over it. It got me thinking. As someone with at least part of a limb in the PR world through freelance work with Spear PR, and someone who is still trying to break in and get himself employed full-time, what is the best way to get ahead of the game?

I ask this because I recently got rejected from the Lexis PR grad scheme — a disappointing outcome given the effort I had made/am making — and would be particularly interested to know what the successful candidates did that I didn't. Obviously I lacked something and it would make the world of difference to me to know what that something is. I don't begrudge Lexis or the candidates who got through, after all they were asked to stand out and that is what they did, I'd just love to know how for future reference. But, the whole idea of standing out is changing at a rapid rate. No longer do you just need a degree and some decent social skills, for example. Now it seems you need to CV to end all CVs, your own website perhaps, maybe even someone on the inside. The point I'm getting at is, in the grander scheme of things, are you more likely to get employed by getting your foot in the door with internships and placements, or is breaking down the door with presents and personal websites?

I should stress, I'm not suggesting that it is so black and white that either of these is a direct route, nor that you require either of them, but there is a sense in which you have to be special to stand out in a saturated graduate market.

It was this very thought back in September that lead to the incorporation of Spear PR. Stand out from the crowd, show initiative and entrepreneurial spirit, throw yourself in the deep end. It seemed such a brilliant plan. But there are times I question it; not the (ad)venture, which I've relished, but whether it is enough. Since incorporating Spear with Isobel I have got myself some swanky business cards, I have been slogging at boosting my Twitter, I fixed up myLinkedIn profile and joined various relevant groups which I participate in, I blog on here and on The Conversation, I even got myself a flash website with a downloadable CV, case study and every possible route of contact information. In summary, I'm not sure how much more I'd be able to do to boost my online presence and show the world that I have what it takes and I'm working to the ends of showing that off.

Would an infographic CV help?

I'd love to get myself one because they look great — which would certainly be better than this hilarious, but a little wide-of-the-mark effort! However, I also have a sneaking suspicion that for PR it might not be quite as effective as it is for other creative industries. Perhaps I should write a press release of myself? (This is actually something I'm going to do).

The PR Daily article I started this post with was helpful because it gave me a measuring stick to hold up against what I do, what and who I am, what I can achieve, and what I still need to do. Conclusion? Well, that has yet to reached. But I can certainly say I'm on the right track. Sadly, on the right track is the careers-guidance equivalent of not wanting to dishearten a decent candidate, which is why this question still plagues me: get my foot in the door or just break it down?

I'm thinking of doing a cost/benefit analysis of this: sending cupcakes to Brandon Hill Comms, Flowers to McCann Erickson, Barbershop Quartet to Palamedes PR, shouting my name from the rooftops followed by 'employ him'. Alternatively, I've got some work experience with Haslimann Taylor and, among other things, they will hopefully show me a way to get my foot in the market door. How to keep it there is up to me, as is how to get the rest of my leg in, but the opportunity is a great one and I'm really looking forward to showing them what I can do. Show them my toolbox, as the PR Daily article advises.

Until you've crossed the river it is impossible to give the best advice as to how to get to the other side, and I'm still walking up and down the bank waiting for the flow to subside enough, or some perfectly positions rocks/tree trunk/beaver dam to present itself as a crossing place. Until I'm on the other side looking back I, sadly, won't be able to offer an answer to this. Maybe someone who reads this can? How many careers are planned and how many are happy accidents? Or, I hope, many are happy accidents you plan on happening. Either way, I'll keep on working away and hope that the hard work pays off without the need to send a hundred red roses to the HR department of a comms company; and if I get there deliberately or through some happy accident, I'll be sure to write a letter to send back across the river to the thousands of others still waiting to cross. Hell, maybe I'll make them a youtube video and hope one of them sends me a cupcake or two — strawberry, if you please.

Will a meerkat's ambassador have Diplomatic Immunity?

It is almost impossible that anyone has escaped the whirlwind of fur that is Aleksandr Orlov. Since first appearing on our screens in January 2009, the Russian meerkat has since been given the kind of back story that makes the well-documented life of Prince William look relatively empty. He has a family tree going back generations — each meerkat in turn also having a back story — a fictional, autobiographical film about the company he is the face of — The Journey of Courageousness, The Battle of Fearlessness, and The Streets of Ambitiousness — and, as if that wasn't enough, a comprehensive website about the town in which he resides, Meerkovo (no prizes for spotting the pun). In light of all of this, and the incredible number of Youtube, Facebook and Twitter followers, I was a little short of gobsmacked to see them offering £40k for a 6 month position as the official Ambassador of Meerkovo.

Why? I found myself asking. A brand image that, to many people, is pure genius must surely be sailing along quite nicely without needing to wave a cool forty grand paycheck under some one's nose to boost the already sky-high profile. To give you a humbling statistic, the fictional Aleksandr Orlov has almost three times as many followers as ex-PM Tony Blair. I'm not saying Tony Blair should have a sizeable following, but he did run the country for a decade!

The job is advertised very simply, and one would assume it will be a very high profile brand ambassador position, being a presence at all manner of sporting and cultural events (I can't help but hope the successful candidate might be invited to the royal wedding). But, other than gallivanting around, tweeting a little bit, and living the high life on such a tidy wage for just 6 months work, what will this person bring to the brand? One suspects it is a drive to convert Compare the Meerkat followers into Compare the Market followers — ironically the meerkat's problem generated the same problem for the brand.

In the world of social media there is a colourful history of corporate blunders, the sort of blunders than can set back a brand's image years in a matter of seconds. The beauty of Mr Orlov is that, as a CGI animal with a suspicious Russian dialect, he is largely immune to social blunders — there isn't much chance of catching him with his trousers down at any time soon, so to speak. So, why would a company bring the fallibility of a human ambassador into such a successful campaign? Could this all back-fire in a moment of blissful stupidity? The speculations are endless.

But, is it possible to 'fault-proof' the lucky candidate in some way? The possibility is no doubt there, but removing the humanity from what is perhaps a ploy at enhancing humanity would be rather short-sighted for any business. Perhaps the best solution to this risk then is to hire someone less fallible than your average joe, but surely this isn't possible? The thought of a successful marketing, PR, brand ambassador leaving their job for a 6 month jaunt into the world of CGI mongooses and dodgy, if infectious, catchphrases seems a little unlikely to me. Maybe I'm too negative. If I were to put my positive hat on I might be inclined to say they will hire a graduate with some flare, some drive, and a great deal of acumen (probably more than your average graduate); after all, the deadline and interviews seem to coincide with most other creative industry graduate schemes and it would be a great opportunity for anyone starting out in that vocation. But here the problem lies: gamble on a graduate, or try to poach a professional? Tricky stuff.

The questions remain open, and maybe someone will be kind enough to answer them, but for now I've decided to find out the answers the best way possible: I've filled out my application. Ultimately, I'd be glad to be a CGI meerkat's right-hand man; he can't be more intimidating than some other bosses and, who knows, maybe that invitation to the royal wedding will come pretty soon after my first pay-check. Here's hoping.

Saturated Social Media and The Conversation

It was with a great deal of scepticism that I found out about the CIPR's new social networking venture 'The Conversation'. It is going to be the social network du choix for PRs everywhere as it compiles all the best blog posts from professionals, students, agencies, freelancers and, quite frankly, anyone who wants to join in. They claim also that it won't require the tedious task of 'friending' everyone all over again either, you simply enter your Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn/obscure social networking site details and 'The Conversation' does all the hard work in linking you up.

Sounds good, doesn't it? Well...

The reason I cited my scepticism earlier is that every time a new social networking site comes out or gains popularity I find myself wondering how helpful this actually is. Part of the brief for this new site is that it will be 'your one-stop shop' for PR practitioners. But, surely no PR is foolish enough to rely only on one site for all they need? If they did, it would be putting the blinkers on to a business that is all about the bigger picture. Granted, trawling blogs for relevant and interesting articles will now only be one click away, but isn't Google doing a rather good job of putting the world at your finger-tips anyway? If anyone can join 'The Conversation' then how do they intend on filtering the good from the bad any more than Google is able to? The mind boggles.

When I log on to the internet I check all the sites I know it is worth my while checking. Sometimes this will take two minutes, sometimes two hours; it depends entirely on what I find on each site. Surely having one more site to check is going to bring businesses to the stage where you need to employ someone to simply sit there and read post after post on 'The Conversation' and decide whether it is of any use to anybody at all.

It's not to say I don't think the CIPR are doing something worthwhile in bringing everything together into one neat package; but one has to question how useful this will prove to be in a world where everything you read must be taken with a pinch of salt. What I'm getting at is that there needs to be a filter to prevent anyone just posting rubbish which isn't helpful to anyone. The internet is already filled with pseudonyms and invented personas, so how will The Conversation avoid the problem these people can cause?

It is no surprise how many questions I pose in this entry. I find myself treating this great idea like one would treat a yacht with a hundred leaks: great to look at, but not something I would necessarily be investing time or money in.

Getting to grips with Twitter

I’ll admit that since James asked me to write a blog I’ve been continually putting off the task of writing it. I’ve had the usual distractions…dissertation, essay, job, and in the same vein as the neglect my university work faces- Facebook. What did I use as a distraction before Facebook existed? I’m fairly sure that without the web-site my university degree would be verging on a first rather than a middling 2:1. But maybe I’m just trying to make myself feel better. Despite its faults however, there’s no denying the importance of social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, and their importance in changing the way business is conducted. James saw how this could draw attention to Spear PR and urged me to get twitter, but being a slight technophobe it’s taking a while for me to get to grips with it.

In true celebrity style, I found out upon creating a Twitter that I already had a fake account set up by an imposter. Unfortunately, this said ‘imposter’ was just a bored university friend trying to show a different side to my personality which actually doesn’t exist. I don’t know whether I should be slightly insulted that my ‘real’ twitter page has considerably fewer followers than my fake one. Having celebrated its fifth birthday last week, Twitter achieved the landmark with one million tweets being “tweeted” (or is it “twit”?!) and 500,000 new accounts being set up everyday. Although I find Facebook more suited to me, the importance of Twitter in business, particularly PR, is undeniable. Having created the website with the simple tweet “inviting coworkers” the co-founder Jack Dorsey could have had no idea that the website would grow in the way that it has. It certainly highlights how major businesses can stem from the simplest of beginnings. As the end of university looms ever closer it’s time to start thinking about what I’m going to do with my life. As I sat writing this in bed at 1:30pm on a Saturday afternoon it struck me that I’m still very much in student mode. What’s next on the agenda? I’m not quite sure, but whatever it is, I’m sure you’ll be able to find out via twitter…

Oli + Alex

Straight off the bat, this is brilliant: Oli+Alex

I don't know enough about this to be able to say if it's PR or just a bit of fun, but I can only begin to imagine the good it does for the image of Weiden + Kennedy. Here we have a fine blend of humour, professionalism, creativity, technical savvy and, in all honesty, entertainment value. It is so often stressed how important blogs can be for the creative industry — in fact, I would go so far to say it is almost a saturated point of discussion — and this blog should certainly be at the forefront of that argument; it is a creation of brand genius.

I first came across it when an associate of mine tweeted one of Oli + Alex's advertising campaigns believing it to be real. It got me perusing the website and I found myself enraptured in it. They have taken the same line as some monumental campaigns such as Compare the Meerkat and T-Mobile's 'Life is for Sharing' flashmobs, by creating 'the making of' videos of some very notable adverts. But, they have done one up on both of the aforementioned companies in that they talk us through it as people; they are not corporate PRs or press-releases, they are not suspiciously good-looking and well-spoken 'directors', they come across as these creative enigmas whose lives are presented as vastly more interesting than I would wager they actually are.

I don't mean to suggest that either T-Mobile or Compare the Market have done anything wrong, that is not the focus of this blog, my suggestion is simply that, if we're going to think about the effect blogs can have, this should be one of the first names down on the drawing board. I feel, and please tell me if you disagree, that this blog is a glimpse into the life of these two advertising professionals. Whether it is or not will remain a mystery; especially as there is a sense in which advertising agencies presenting themselves so astutely seems suspicious to say the least, after all, presenting things in favourable lights is what they are paid to do. But who am I to question it? In the end, whether this is a genuine blog of interest or not, if it is the former then bravo for honesty and the power of the web, and if it is the latter then I tip my (proverbial) hat for such a stroke of brand image genius, the result is still of appreciation.

As the conclusion of this thought process continues to float around above me riding on the various up-drafts of my intuitions and thoughts as it threatens to drop on either side of the fence, I know exactly how I can while away the hours until the conclusion finally lands...

If you need me, I'll be with Oli + Alex.

Why Accessibility is both a Blessing and a Curse.

Upon embarking on this endeavour it was apparent very early on that everything is connected in some way, shape, or form, to everything else. Something which, in the world of communication, is great. Right? Perhaps, I found myself saying.

Recently there have been an abundance of people getting into trouble for what they put on their Facebook or Twitter. Jack Wilshere, for example, was fined by the FA for accusations made against a referee which he felt necessary to broadcast via Twitter to his 300,000+ followers and, perhaps, assume no one would be quite as bothered as they were.

Now suppose Jack Wilshere was a businessman and not a celebrity. Suppose he tweeted about a poor business meeting with a client and the conduct of the client in question; his tweet leaves his phone and ascends seamlessly into the maze of the world wide web. As with the actual Jack Wilshere, this is bad news. His defamatory, insulting, or just badly conducted actions are now out there for all his associates, partners, clients, friends, and anyone with a search engine, to find and broadcast on. Suddenly it seems what was an ill-thought act of frustration has become a personal PR crisis for Jack. And, what's more, for the client on the receiving end of said act of frustration. But this is still just on Twitter.

In the social media world, LinkedIn seems to be gathering considerable momentum and is proving to be a vital resource in networking and business dealings. For those of you who are on both LinkenIn and Twitter you will be aware of the ability to link these separate profiles to share information; tweets for example. Are you beginning to see where Jack is in a tight spot? His tweet is now listed on his LinkedIn profile; what was originally aimed at a single website is now on, what in some ways is considered, an online CV. The PR crisis of our fictional character escalates. Now suppose Jack is a popular professional in his field and his Twitter feed is listed on a hundred blogs from other professionals? Once again, the offending Tweet's presence is enhanced across the limitless internet.

The point I'm getting at is that, for better or worse, everything links to everything. What proves to be the blessing of social media and its simplicity of broadcast can equally prove to be its biggest curse. So often in discussions concerning Facebook people will object to the ease with which anyone is able to find out information about them. And that is only Facebook. Once one site links to another and to another then what is a mistake on one can become down-right unprofessional conduct in the greater sphere of online networking.

Admittedly we are all the governors of our own fate, so to speak, and should be very careful about what we Tweet, Link to or display on any social media site, but as governors of our own fate it also becomes painfully apparent of our own social fallibility; we make mistakes, we're human, but those mistakes are now broadcast across a range of sites, some of which we may not even have control over. This is a scary thought.

There is no argument here. I neither condone nor reject the multiplicity of networking sites and their inter-relation, and anyone reading this, no doubt, is already aware of the need for maximum professional conduct. My purpose is just to elaborate on what I have never seen discussed, the snowball effect of social media. What is a blessing to PR and marketing can prove to be a curse for the mistaken individual, I only hope I never fall foul of this magnifying glass of human error.

The Brief

Here's the brief: graduate employment is a little thin on the ground right now and, as my unsettlingly cheerful careers advisor told me, 'everyone wants to work in PR'. So I needed a handle, a foot in the door; but not just any foot, I needed an impressive looking foot, one that would grab people's attention and make them sit up and say, 'hey this guy has really got something'. Enter Spear PR.

Isobel and I incorporated Spear PR as a way to gain the experience we didn't have. If you can't get an internship because, ironically, the degree you require is rather getting in the way, then why not throw yourself into the proverbial deep end and just start working? We couldn't argue with our own question so, with a logo, a website Spear PR , and an idea bursting at the seams, we've set off on the journey.

Currently we are working with thisisuni; a startup company that aims to bring every aspect of student life into one neat package online. We are half way through a competition to get university societies involved and raise awareness of the brand and brand image, we have boosted their online presence through a viral poster campaign, and we are just about to start work on their Twitter presence to really bring them up — or should we say down? — to the student eye-level. Without wanting to salt our own game, it's going rather well.

So there we go. This the first step on, what can only be described as, the indefinitely long and sometimes arduous journey into the real world, out of the bubble the government set us back so much money to feel naively safe in, and upwards into the infinite possiblities I almost forgot were out there.

Wish us luck.

James and Isobel.