Advice from the Pros: How to get ahead in the Digital PR space
Stepping into the working world for the first time is exciting but can also be daunting. It’s important to remember that this is the time to make mistakes, learn new skills and push the boundaries! One way to put yourself in the best possible position to flourish in a new role, is to seek advice from people that have done it all before - as such, we spoke to a range of incredibly talented people from the space in order to get their firsthand views on how people can best prep themselves for success.
Stepping into the working world for the first time is exciting but can also be daunting. It’s important to remember that this is the time to make mistakes, learn new skills and push the boundaries!
One way to put yourself in the best possible position to flourish in a new role, is to seek advice from people that have done it all before.
We spoke to those in the trenches
The first year in any job is a learning curve, and the ever evolving world of Digital PR is no exception. We had a chat with a handful of talented Digital PR executives in order to find out firsthand how they have found their first years – and to also get their expert advice for anybody looking to get into the space.
Here is what they had to say!
Elisabeth McGloughlin – Digital PR and Content Executive at Cedarwood Digital
Elisabeth highly recommends asking every question you can. “Being the least experienced in the room is actually a very good place to be in for learning” and should be used to your advantage”, she told us.
Accompanying this, *Milly Pyne – Reboot – Senior Digital PR executive – provide backlink to https://www.rebootonline.com/** states that building strong relationships with clients, colleagues and journalists is key for success to keep up with the ever changing Digital PR world. ‘The best pitches are ones that a journalist’s can copy and paste straight to the website, or into an article to print’ – Caitlin Murphy – Senior Digital PR exec – AYKO. Elisabeth also recommends getting familiar with your SEO team for collaboration across channels.
Alex Lovesey- Dark Horse – Digital PR Executive explains that it’s important to broaden your experience into different sectors, find out what you like and don’t like as it ‘keeps your ideas fresh and presents new avenues for growth’.
The first couple of years is the time to make mistakes, Samantha Cobden – Senior Digital PR exec – Dark Horse urges you not to overthink things as perfect doesn’t exist. Agonising over media lists and pitches is not productive. Focus on making the campaign clear, aligning it to your client’s industry/brand, all the data is accurate and well-researched and the media list is relevant to the pitch. Trust in the process as ‘great campaigns will always land eventually’.
What’s brought value to Digital PR in the last year or so?
It’s clear that Digital PR is a rapidly growing industry and it can feel like you’re drowning in options for development. It’s sometimes hard to know where to focus your efforts, because there are only so many hours in the week!
Alex has been mastering the basics of data analytics. ‘Nobody is asking you to be a statistician, but being able to source, clean, analyse and interpret data has been a game changer for creating relevant and newsworthy press releases’. Samantha backs this up by focusing on developing ‘Digital PR-friendly skills such as media analysis, data analysis, data visualisation and creative writing’.
Milly tells us that big data driven campaigns backed up by opinion, facts or deeper insights in topics has enhanced her press releases and offers something ‘new’ to journalists.
Elisabeth, Alex and Sarah have been staying up to date in the digital PR world through newsletters, Twitter, LinkedIn, industry events and connecting with other digital PRs. Digesting updates, tips, inspiration and general news in the community has been a really positive practice.
Milly swears by using a commentary to turn her links from OK to WOW. ‘Expert commentary is the key to building a reputable portfolio of links and coverage as it establishes your client as the professional on that topic’.
Elisabeth and Milly agree on embracing a growth mindset and learning from your mistakes. Don’t get disheartened if your campaign doesn’t land the first time, it’s all part of the learning curve. Make sure to revisit it, switch up the angle, look for newsjacking opportunities and ask other team members to take a look at it for other verticals.
How to make the best pitch to a journalist
Not all Journalists are scary! It’s important to utilise them when you can and develop these relationships.
‘The best pitches are ones that a journalist can copy and paste straight to the website, or into an article to print’ – Caitlin Murphy – Senior Digital PR exec – AYKO. Caitlin also outlines how important it is to read where you would like your article to be placed. If you would like the feature in the The Times, make sure you’re reading The Times. This enables you to get a good feel for the types of press releases that Journalistsare writing for each publication and you can mould yours to suit best.
Tips to help you succeed
‘The digital PR landscape is constantly evolving, with new technologies, platforms, and trends emerging every day’ and you need to ‘be willing to adapt’ – Milly. In doing this, you’ll position yourself as a valuable asset to your team and clients.
Sarah Linh Tran – Digital PR Executive at Artefact has found it motivating to keep track of all your successes to combat imposter syndrome and to remember how well you’re doing. It also helps when it comes to promotion time or when you’re applying for new roles.
‘I used to freak out in client meetings’ – Sarah Linh Tran. Client meetings can be scary but these skills are developed over experience and time. It’s important to be well prepared for client questions. Be that book of knowledge that they need.
Elisabeth pushes you to put yourself out there. You might not have the experience but showing your interest/drive in Digital PR will put you ahead when applying for internships/apprenticeships.