The Future of PR is Here
Recently, I was involved in examining resumes and interviewing for two internship positions here at MSL Digital and I’m struck by how accomplished the applicants are in professional social media work. Our embarrassment of applicant riches is in part explained by the nature of the economy and job market here in southeast Michigan; I think a lot more people are looking for work, even internships, than might be otherwise. But I think it also indicates that the PR professional of the future, one with well rounded experiences in content creation, community management and other skills, has arrived. Honestly, I wanted to hire them all.
I’ve been involved in the hiring and management of interns and AE-level positions before and I see a definite trend occurring. Here’s what I think the well rounded PR professional should have these days when it comes to social media, recognizing that not all candidates for entry level positions will have had a chance to try their hand in all areas, and here’s where I’m seeing the most experience on the applicants I’m reviewing. If you can use this as a checklist for your own skills or the skills of those you should be hiring, I’ll have contributed something valuable indeed – after all, I think the nature of our work on the digital side of PR and communications is evolving so rapidly that no one has had a chance to nail down what comprises the “compleat” professional.
1) Personal social media use. This one’s a given. Used to be that when we’d ask applicants about their experience in social media they’d always disregard their personal use of it as irrelevant. Not so these days. It’s more common to hear that applicants are personal consumers of blogs and blogging, Facebook, Twitter and others.
2) Content creation. Often, this is where applicants shine. They’ve been taught to write and sometimes produce video and graphics in school and have had a chance to produce materials either as students or young professionals. News and feature writing at college papers (print and online), email newsletters, blogging (professionally or as a hobby) are in evidence on the resumes I’m seeing.
3) Community management. Another area where entry-level applicants seem to have the most experience. I’ve noticed that often, daily management of Facebook and Twitter pages are seen by some companies as a junior function. I sometimes feel companies go, “I don’t get our Facebook page or see much value in it – give it to the intern.” A lot of the entry-level applicants I’m seeing have babysat and sometimes driven the strategy for these platforms.
4) Client training and policy development. A good opportunity for professionals at this level to grow is in the development of documentation for clients on what social media is and how it can be used. To be sure, at firms like ours the POV paper or official social media policy is a document involving the highest level of skill, authority and collaboration. But I’m seeing a lot of applicants that had to determine what some aspect of social media was and write up a memo for their supervisor or client and provide training in its use.
5) Outreach. This is a skill usually missing in the applicants I see. Maybe it’s that few firms seem to do influencer outreach aka social media relations the way we here at MSL Digital do, but very few people I interview have “pitched bloggers” and other influencers to any great degree. Now, I’m a big believer in training, coaching and mentoring and believe anyone can be taught, but when I’m looking for someone to contribute to our pitch teams I’m usually more drawn to someone from a traditional media relations background, someone that loves to pitch (and many PR people, ahem, do not love to pitch). We’ve had a lot of success adapting traditional practitioners of this craft to social media.
6) Monitoring and analysis. Another area that’s seldom in evidence on the resumes I see. Again, it may be that other firms do not execute social media monitoring aka “listening” and analysis as robustly as we do, or it may be that people with those skills are applying for different positions elsewhere with other kinds of firms. Even if you haven’t engaged in monitoring or you’re not an analytics fiend, showing some ability or interest in this area is important. All social media programs start with this.
7) Organizations and volunteering. I remember a couple years ago giving young people this advice: if you cannot get a job that will develop your social media PR skills, volunteer someplace that will. The applicants I’m seeing these days have done so. A lot of organizations, whether at the student level, in the arts, politics, religion, sports, social groups, would love to have a PR student or professional come and blog for them, build their Facebook presence, develop video content of their organization and pitch it to bloggers and local press, et cetera. Plugging into these opportunities is nothing but good. I’ve even seen people that have run their own small business and freelanced, creating these opportunities as small business owners or contractors. Remarkable.
A few more words of advice for anyone that may be reading this hoping to earn a spot with firms like mine. Polish your interviewing skills. Learn to speak well. Get a buddy and practice answering such questions as “What did you do at Such and Such company?” “Where do you see yourself in five years?” and “What kind of work environment do you favor?” Sound silly? It’s become a running joke among HR people my age that Gen Y is great at Facebooking and not at actually, you know, talking. I don’t want to believe it, so prove us wrong.
Just as important, don’t get discouraged. It’s tough out there and I do not envy the young people of today the job market they have inherited. Understand that sometimes the reason you didn’t get the gig has more to do with chemistry or a specific skill or hunch on the part of the employer than on anything you did, and that multiple stakeholders play a role in recommending for hire. Keep trying.
What do you think of my list? Would love our thoughts over at our Facebook page or on Twitter.
- Date: 08.02.2010
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