PRSSA at SIUC

By Courtney Kennedy

Our teachers are constantly informing us of what PR skills we must acquire before entering the professional business world. Ragan’s PR Daily acknowledges the importance of those skills that include writing and communication, but also acknowledges skills that are commonly overlooked, nine to be exact. The first is management and teamwork. Working in the PR world will require us to participate in teams to finish an assigned task. Instability in a PR team can directly affect the teams balance, so it is important to be cooperative and able to work well with others. The same goes if you are the leader of the team; managing others is a huge part of our job. The second is to become familiar with finance. According to Regan “finances are the key to a healthy agency, if you don’t price properly, you could lose income,” so knowing your budget and determining the appropriate price will make you a step ahead of your competition. The third is multi-tasking. Being able to think on your feet and manage more than one project at a time is key. Extraneous Knowledge is number four. Therefore, knowing more than just the subject of PR will help you stand out. This does not just include a minor. When considering electives to take think about what will separate you from other PR graduates. Taking math and science classes will never hurt! Which leads me to the fifth skill, math competency. Don’t have a fear of numbers. Sure most PR students are not exactly mathematicians but becoming number oriented is important. Todd Fraser, account director at INK Inc. Public Relations. Says you cannot be afraid of ‘no,’ how you respond to rejection will determine your level of success. So tenacity is an important skill to have as a PR professional and is why it is number six on Regan’s list. Discretion and good judgment is number seven. This does not mean that you should be dishonest but the client does not need to know every detail of what a publicist does on their behalf. Number eight is common sense. This doesn’t just apply to PR but in the professional world as a whole. You must have common sense to be successful. But PR is about being strategic about communication. Know what to say and when to say it! Finally number nine is creativity. Finding new ways to promote your client is key and will set you apart from your competition. Don’t be afraid to stretch the normal boundaries.

For the complete article go to http://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/10901.aspx