What skills do you seek in a PR professional?

In my experience PRs may underestimate just how many pitch emails and releases editors receive each day - it’s impossible to thoroughly review or even read many that come through. If what you write in your subject bar line doesn’t stand out and resonate ( and be relevant!) it’s likely your email won’t even be opened. This is where having great relationships between PR and journalist is key too… if I know and trust from experience what you send me is relevant, interesting, topical and exclusive your email will be flagged and read.

PR professionals need to understand how PR is integrated into the marketing function. Must possess a keen appreciation for strategic thinking and program development. Yes, must be a good writer but apply this skill to targeted communication. Be a team player that can cross all disciplines. Enjoy the profession.

For a PR professional, strong writing skills are fundamental to enable effective communication. A PR professional has to craft press releases, write media pitches, write speeches and interviews, act as spokesperson, build internal & external communications for campaigns, social media, etc., and more, all of which must be clear, persuasive, and tailored to various target audiences. Good writing ensures that key messages are communicated accurately and compellingly, which helps the brands build trust and credibility. Additionally, well-crafted content shapes public perception, influences opinions, and creates lasting impressions, making writing an indispensable tool in public relations.

When it comes to hiring a PR professional, I'd be on the lookout for someone who brings a blend of traditional skills and modern savvy. Sure, media relations are crucial—you want someone who can craft a great pitch and has the relationships to get it in front of the right eyes. But they also need to be comfortable navigating the digital landscape, whether that's leveraging social media to amplify a message or using analytics to measure campaign success.

In my experience, I have found PR to be self-defining, with the reality of relations being the primary word. My relationships with other professionals, with all forms of media and a variety of audiences are critical. Content is king though, always, and my relationship to my subject demands knowledge of who or what I am writing about, and especially the audience for whom I write. I want a response to what I write. PR is always relational. I am informing. I am educating, and ultimately, I am managing how others view my brand. Marketing professionals find the audience. PR Professionals write the invitations for response. For me, there are three C's in this process: Clarity, Consistency, and Conviction.

I see PR as an exercise in 'Connecting the dots'. Research plays a super critical role in doing so. Be it in knowing the beat a journalist covers; what has been covered in the past articles; analyzing and predicting industry trends and knowing exactly how your company or client can 'fit like a glove' for a potential story participation. Studying industry reports and using the insights for a crafting a compelling pitch is an indispensable skill for a PR professional to possess.

Successful PR work often combines data and insight. Journalists particularly value organizations that offer them both. To compile data in a reliable and interesting way, a PR professional needs to be precise and analytical. It is also important to keep a close eye on public discussion on relevant channels and the press. This allows you to identify relevant angles, news, hot topics and trends that are crucial in PR.

A strong media presence is essential for building trust with your target audience. A robust media presence lends credibility to your brand, builds positive perceptions, and helps maintain a strong reputation while effectively shaping the narratives surrounding your organization. This makes media relations one of the top skills for any PR pro. Beyond crafting compelling stories, effective media relations involve nurturing genuine relationships with journalists, editors, etc. By understanding the media landscape & tailoring communication strategies, PR pros can ensure their messages resonate with the audience and address potential concerns. Ultimately, skillful navigation of media channels enhances brand visibility and promotes trust.

Forging a strong working relationship with journalists depends on 2 factors: 1) What your company/ client can offer to the story 2) Your capacity to service the request. You may be an excellent PR professional, but if your client doesn't qualify to be in the story, then it is tough to force fit it. Your client may be a coveted brand, but may 'Choose to give the opportunity a pass' for reasons untold. I may be pilloried for saying this, but media relations is more 'merit-based' than 'relationship-based'. The latter comes in handy to douse the fire when a crisis comes knocking at your client's door.

Even as I climb my career, media relations is an important avenue that can deliver benefits unmatched by any other marketing communications activity. Why? Keeping in contact with the editors and journalists actually allows you to understand what kind of story or interview they are looking at; where PR can help and how we can build that trust for all parties, which will eventually align your brand with trusted media outlets who can portray the transparency of your brand to audiences. End results?. Beyond just a beautiful relationship that benefits both parties in the future, there will be less churn when the PR team picks up the phone and pitches future stories, interviews, or partnership opportunities targeted to the right audiences.

It has changed a lot over the 20+ years I have been in the field and it definitely needs to be integrated into a wider digital marketing/strategic plan so everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet. I think its important to be honest and to pitch with integrity to earn trust. Research and listening is absolutely key. The old days of verbose press releases and a spray and pray strategy are long gone. We are all time poor and juggling multiple channels.

It's important for PR professionals to be able to work with Marketing professionals when it comes to social media. Marketing should be focused on identifying key audiences for marketing products and services. PR should be the storytellers to bring in attention and interest to the channels. These lines can intertwine but I believe when both parts work together, it produces great results.

A PR professional likely to succeed is someone who can: write, think out of the box, work with a team, listen before talking, and think long term.

Simple social media ideas are dime a dozen, but we must make sure that it is targeted to the right audiences. A plan of action must be built in advance, with room to evolve and maybe, leveraged against festivities or key moments mapped against behavioral change and conversion KPIs. But more often than not, a campaign that sells a (thematic) story that is laced with the product/brand truth and emotional ties built in, will be bankable for a brand while building its reputation too. But if we cram tactical in a dry manner, with no "storytelling" built-in, we will see less uptake for a campaign as it becomes hard to sell. Again, social media connects with your audiences and garners feedback and insights. So we must evolve with the storytelling.

PR relies heavily on soft skills. It is important to be patient and persistent at the same time. It's a dynamic role. Often negative news, a negative story or even a negative comment in social media can put you in trouble. You need to learn to navigate through complex situations and respond back with absolute clarity.

Soft skills can also be thought of as people skills that include good communication and interpersonal skills, leadership, problem-solving, work ethic, time management, and teamwork. Most, if not all PR practitioners are born storytellers and communicators. More than any other skill, communication is the one we will use every day when working in this field. One must be able to communicate our ideas and thoughts clearly while being an excellent listener; and to be socially aware while communicating our line of thoughts.

Creativity in PR/Comms entails discovering solutions, even with limited resources. While PR/Comms may (sometimes) have fewer resources than other departments, this limitation doesn't hinder our ability to excel in our roles. In many instances, our work often operates behind the scenes, offering strategic solutions to cross-functional stakeholders and safeguarding our company's reputation. My motto is simple: "Do the best with the resources we currently have." When building a team, not only that we should look for persistence and hard skills, but also creative problem-solving in challenging situations.

While research, writing skills, creativity and solid media relationships are key, I would also highlight patience, resilience and adaptability. Most of the times, things will not go as planned, hence having the ability to keep your cool and pivot with plan B (or even plan C) to deliver the desired outcome will definitely help you in the long run.

No matter the project, a good PR/ communications professional answers the big questions first: Why are we doing this? Who are we trying to reach (and how do we reach them)? What do they need to know? Often, other depts/business units want to jump right to the tactics - it’s the Comms team’s job to get consensus on the strategy first.

Storytelling is one skill which every PR professional must have. PR, at its core, is about crafting and conveying stories which connect with people. Effective storytelling humanises a brand, makes it relatable, builds trust, and makes it memorable. Great storytelling can turn the most mundane facts into compelling narratives that resonate with both the media as well as your target readers alike.

In my experience, confidence is crucial. A PR professional needs the confidence to ask, “Why should someone care about this story?”. Because the press and public will ask, “So what?” if a story isn’t good enough. Being able to sit with the c-suite and challenge the relevance of comms activity is bold, but necessary. Taking a marketing objective and crafting it into newsworthy content often involves questioning and repositioning. A constant “yes” person isn’t a successful PR person.

As an agency leader, I think about skills and attributes. Skills are what you acquired via your experience and/or training. Attributes are characters and behaviors. Effective public relations could be a powerful vehicle for improving business competitiveness. This means from a skill perspective, you need people that can problem solve, think critically, and are astute in advising or guiding clients. You also need to master the “craft”(PR/comms), possess business acumen, and have a good command of the industry you are specializing in. Attribute-wise, I’m looking for people that are empathetic(so they can relate to clients), have integrity, and are committed to continuously learning and growing.