Jen BeltzJen Beltz is Founder and Principal of Front Burner PR , a public relations and strategic marketing firm based in Portland. Follow Jen on Twitter: @FrontBurnerBuzz and on Facebook.
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PR Myth #1: The Glamour Illusion
Oct 1, 2009 06:26 PM
Categories: Internet, Management, Marketing, Starting a Business Town: Portland
“PR seems so glamorous!” I’ve heard from time to time.
No. It’s not. Really. It’s not.
Like most lines of work, PR comes with its own set of myths, and the glamour fantasy is a central one. Is PR rewarding? Yes. Challenging and often fun? Absolutely. Glamorous? Nope. I’m betting most other public relations reps in Maine would agree.
Several people who have asked me about PR have seemed to think that it primarily involves hanging out with a glass of champagne at book signings, hotel openings, chi-chi dinners and the like. It’s understandable, given the field’s portrayal in movies and on TV sitcoms. (I’ve been asked more than once by young women interested in a public relations career whether it’s “sort of like ‘Samantha Jones PR’ on Sex and the City.” I get a particular kick out of that one.)
I bet that one thing all PR folks have in common is the stack of stories they have about their less-than-glamorous PR adventures over the years. I can think of a few offhand: During various PR jobs, I have been lost in the woods at 5 a.m. during a press tour (don’t ask). I have fallen forward in mud during a publicized canoe portaging event, and have developed (and had surgery for) carpal tunnel from too much mouse-clicking and typing.
I was once stranded after a press conference because I was (literally) stuck in a phone booth. I’ve been hollered at by irate political reporters when my boss wouldn’t answer questions. Several years back, I once woke up from a late-night desk-nap with copy ink stuck to me – which I didn’t notice until two hours later when someone pointed out that I had part of a press release paragraph on the side of my face. Ah, the sophistication....
It’s important to note, though, that by definition PR means that it’s the client who is meant to be the star – not the PR rep. An inherent quality of public relations is that PR people, by and large, are going to be behind the curtain, not in front of it. A large part of a PR pro’s job is doing the behind-the-scenes legwork that helps deliver attention to clients’ products, services, or positions. And by its very nature, much of that is going to involve a whole lot of messaging, phone work, media training, deskside pitches, speechwriting and copy editing, scrambling for photos, and the like. “Ungilded” work, in other words.
Is all of this a complaint? Not one bit. I’ve found that the creative side of PR more than offsets the more standard parts of the job. The challenge of helping, even in a modest way, a business grow its brand and expand its numbers is fulfilling. And given the schedule and variety of items that PR reps need to address in any given week, it’s hard to ever have a boring day on the job. If anything, the time flies by too quickly due to the work’s fast pace and deadlines – but that’s a great dynamic to have, given the alternative.
It also doesn’t hurt that in the public relations field, PR reps are often able to develop and polish everything from their multitasking, pitching and strategic writing skills to their public speaking and organizational abilities.
So while red-carpet glamour is, in fact, in short supply for the typical PR rep, it’s still a whole lot of fun to stop sometimes and share some of the unglamorous stories about the PR world – preferably over a smart round of cocktails.
Have a PR story to share? Email me atjen@frontburnerpr.com .
No. It’s not. Really. It’s not.
Like most lines of work, PR comes with its own set of myths, and the glamour fantasy is a central one. Is PR rewarding? Yes. Challenging and often fun? Absolutely. Glamorous? Nope. I’m betting most other public relations reps in Maine would agree.
Several people who have asked me about PR have seemed to think that it primarily involves hanging out with a glass of champagne at book signings, hotel openings, chi-chi dinners and the like. It’s understandable, given the field’s portrayal in movies and on TV sitcoms. (I’ve been asked more than once by young women interested in a public relations career whether it’s “sort of like ‘Samantha Jones PR’ on Sex and the City.” I get a particular kick out of that one.)
I bet that one thing all PR folks have in common is the stack of stories they have about their less-than-glamorous PR adventures over the years. I can think of a few offhand: During various PR jobs, I have been lost in the woods at 5 a.m. during a press tour (don’t ask). I have fallen forward in mud during a publicized canoe portaging event, and have developed (and had surgery for) carpal tunnel from too much mouse-clicking and typing.
I was once stranded after a press conference because I was (literally) stuck in a phone booth. I’ve been hollered at by irate political reporters when my boss wouldn’t answer questions. Several years back, I once woke up from a late-night desk-nap with copy ink stuck to me – which I didn’t notice until two hours later when someone pointed out that I had part of a press release paragraph on the side of my face. Ah, the sophistication....
It’s important to note, though, that by definition PR means that it’s the client who is meant to be the star – not the PR rep. An inherent quality of public relations is that PR people, by and large, are going to be behind the curtain, not in front of it. A large part of a PR pro’s job is doing the behind-the-scenes legwork that helps deliver attention to clients’ products, services, or positions. And by its very nature, much of that is going to involve a whole lot of messaging, phone work, media training, deskside pitches, speechwriting and copy editing, scrambling for photos, and the like. “Ungilded” work, in other words.
Is all of this a complaint? Not one bit. I’ve found that the creative side of PR more than offsets the more standard parts of the job. The challenge of helping, even in a modest way, a business grow its brand and expand its numbers is fulfilling. And given the schedule and variety of items that PR reps need to address in any given week, it’s hard to ever have a boring day on the job. If anything, the time flies by too quickly due to the work’s fast pace and deadlines – but that’s a great dynamic to have, given the alternative.
It also doesn’t hurt that in the public relations field, PR reps are often able to develop and polish everything from their multitasking, pitching and strategic writing skills to their public speaking and organizational abilities.
So while red-carpet glamour is, in fact, in short supply for the typical PR rep, it’s still a whole lot of fun to stop sometimes and share some of the unglamorous stories about the PR world – preferably over a smart round of cocktails.
Have a PR story to share? Email me at
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