Like People? Stay out of PR

A Business model for 2024": Just the facts, Mam.

Do you like people? Go work in a bank but steer clear of public relations. Boy, that was harsh, but I think if I read one more profile of someone who went into PR because they are good with people, I’ll scream. We want to stop suffering, we become nurses and doctors. We want to shape young minds, we become teachers. We want to protect the public, we go into law enforcement or firefighting. But we like parties and special events, well, why not press and publicity? And that is the problem with our industry’s perception, something of which we need to do some…uh…pr.

Facts no longer matter, but eye-catching, demeaning, racist, misogynistic comments do. It’s about clicks, not whether the message got across.

I met a young man the other day who went from host to working with a local agency. I don’t blame him but rather the person who hired him, for not explaining that PR is more than getting your client in the paper or on location with a morning reporter.

For more than almost 50 years, I was been fortunate to have shaped the image of some of the world’s most recognizable brands; MTV, Nickelodeon, Prodigy, VH1, Federated, and a gubernatorial appointment along the way, and learned from, and taught, some of the best, and have always made it clear: when it comes to public relations, it’s about positioning, not spin; steak, not always sizzle and accessibility and transparency, not invisibility.

Lest I sound like an old man yelling for kids to get off my lawn, I sat with a friend, the other day and we shared our experiences but decried the lack of sophistication and credibility with many PR people today. Long-range thinking has gone out the window in favor of the quick hit and the years it has taken to build a brand and a loyalty for a client, can sometimes be destroyed in a day. PR people need to consider crisis avoidance, rather than crisis management, and that takes not only experience but some training whether it be on the job or with a senior PR expert explaining what makes a good story, how to pitch it, how to understand a reporter’s needs and how to best make your case for your client’s coverage. And to be truthful.

There are certainly places in the world for celebrity press agents but too often, they become the role models for people getting into public relations, and that, while popular, is about the ‘art’, not ‘science.’

We in the PR industry may not be brain surgeons, but we are professionals, and the same care that a client may take to build a business, we need to take that same care in preserving that business, the issue, the cause, if we are to truly serve them well. Of course, we need to strike while the iron is hot and if we see an opportunity for coverage we should grab it, but we should exercise smart, sober thinking, not shoot-from-the-hip responses.

The public has a long memory and while some journalism today has sought its lowest level, the majority of reporters out there demand honesty and understanding from the so-called ‘spin doctors.” I have the distinction (and the loathing of some) for banning Andrew Dice Clay from MTV 35 years ago, not just for using dirty words during a VMA telecast, but for compromising our hard-fought position with cable operators and legislators. He could have adversely impacted our business, and this was more than using a four-letter word.

I encourage those with that sense of doing important work for clients to seek out a career in public relations. But if your only motive, is you ‘like people,’ then I suggest you learn about the craft. Until then, I’d be happy to have you show me to my table.