Letter to cousin

Dear Cousin Kanyen,

So you want to know what the field of public relations is? Because I am a pr major, you’re talking to the right guy.

Public relations is the practice of leading and managing that helps achieve the goals of the organization that you work for. In pr you communicate a lot not just with the public but also with government and other organizations. You help organize your company and their objectives, define your company’s philosophy, and help create change for your boss and co-workers. Above all, you need to be creative.

Any organization you work for will want you to bring creative ideas to the table for discussion. In public relations you are the go-to person for ideas that could help the company, especially in a time of crisis.

Crisis management is essential in the public relations field. When the company is in a crisis, whom do you think they go to? Part of one of my projects in college was to find a solution for a local exercise center that was about to face serious competition from an up-and-coming Gold’s Gym. We created plan to stay in touch with local club members, help establish a more publicity for the company, and make membership more family friendly with a local feeling. We didn’t actually use any of it but we did spend time and effort surveying and discussing new options for the company. We had a good time doing it.

Communication is extremely important when entering the pr field. We are lucky because in the past people in pr had to be extremely talented to get their writing noticed to a wide public but today, with the Internet, exposing your companies image is never easier. Keeping in touch with people via email is essential make sure you can write and read emails very quickly. When you do write emails, you should be ready to establish a great image for your company with words like “We greatly appreciate your choosing us...” or “We would like to inform you…”. Having a Facebook, Myspace, or Twitter page has proven to be an effective way to get your pr message noticed. Make sure you have all of those things too.

Pr people write very frequently. In pr you will be required to write things like memorandums, which are notes indicating something that has occurred or will occur. You usually write them within your organization not outside.

Being involved in community service or hosting service projects to help boost your company’s image will be part of your job. Do things like jog at cancer rallies, help at libraries, or get you and your co-workers involved in home building projects. If you enjoy that, it shouldn’t be a problem.

Pr is also a great field to go into when the economy of a country is poor. In a poor economy it is great to stay in touch with what investors the company you work for has. My journalism professor told me public relations is a great field for that.

I hope I made the definition clearly. I can’t say there will be a job for me after college but I do know that pr is great if you want to be a writer for the rest of your life. While in college, I haven’t met someone who spoke of his or her experience with public relations after college and said they were not happy. I hope the same happens for me. If you would like another definition please mail me back.