PR Roles, Salaries & Trends Range of PR work Corporations Nonprofit organizations Entertainment, sports & travel Government & the military Education International PR Activities Writing & editing Research Special events Public speaking Publications Audio & video production Management, planning Counseling, problem-solving Specialties Crisis/Issues Management Investor relations Government relations & lobbying Media relations Internal relations Community relations Donor relations Promotions/Publicity Requirements Skills: writing, research, planning, problem-solving, publishing, public speaking; Knowledge: media, management process, business, economics, finance, business of organization; Abilities: decision-making, social skills, handling people, assuming responsibility, instilling confidence, listening; Qualities: stability, common sense, drive, enthusiasm, wide range of interests, intellectual curiosity, tolerance for frustration; style. Four Models of Public Relations Press agentry/publicity model&endash;15% propaganda; one-way communication Sports, theatre, product promotion. P.T. Barnum. Public information model&endash;50% Journalistic model: dissemination of accurate information for unknown (general) public; one-way communication Government, nonprofit associations, business. Ivy Lee. Two-way asymmetric model&endash;20% Persuasion&endash;communicating only acceptable characteristics of organization; using social science theory and research about attitudes and behaviors to persuade publics. Conducting evaluative research&endash;measure communication effectiveness, objectives. Competitive business; agencies. Edward L. Bernays. Two-way symmetric model&endash;15% Mediates between organization and publics with goal of mutual understanding. Uses social science theory and methods, theories of communication, rather than persuasion, for planning and evaluation. Research for understanding, rather than just changing attitudes. Adaptive. Conducts formative research for counseling management on public reaction to policies; how policies can serve public interest. Helps create specific communication objectives. Regulated business; agencies. Professional leaders James Grunig, Scott Cutlip, Arthur Paige.  Four basic roles in PR 1. Communication manager: Plan & manage PR program, Counsel management; Make communication policy decisions. Use research, evaluation, Follow systematic planning process. 2. Communication Liaison Represents organization to publics; Maintains two-way communication. Communication facilitators Boundary spanners, link with publics. Focus on communication, rather than issues, management, policies, or actions of organization.  3. Media Relations Specialist Seek to place messages in mass media Keep others in organization informed of what is being said in the media Keep others in organization informed of important issues in the media  4. Communication technician. Starting role. Writing and editing. Communication & journalism skills Implements decisions made by others  Growth of field Employment of PR practitioners increasing faster than average for other occupations Through 2005 Puts PR in top 10 growth industries Growth strongest in health care, high technology, crisis communications  PR Average Salaries Source: PRWeek 2000 Salary Survey Average salary increase in 1999 of 7.9% Compare to national average of 1.5% Rose 6.9% (corp), 10.2% (agency) Rose 6% to 7 % in 1998; 5% to 8% in 1997. Highest paid industry is financial services; Second is utilities. Highest paid specialty is crisis communication; Second is investor relations. Salary ranges (averages) $205,905&endash;Executive VP, large agency $38,000&endash;Account exec in PR agency. Starting salaries for assistant account execs about $22K Average Corporate PR Salaries   Agency v. Corporate Salaries   Average salary by specialty Salary Trends Higher pay in New York, D.C. & LA Gender gap back (women earn 38% less) 2001 changes everything Downsizing Hi-Tech washouts PR Influence Depends on access to top management Large, complex corporations more likely to include PR in policy-making process Especially in highly competitive fields More sensitive to policy issues & public opinion More sensitive to solid corporate identity More formal media relations Issues management Input on what messages should be Strategic Communication Strategic communication managers need knowledge-base in Research Environmental scanning Problem-solving Managing total communication strategies PR Trends Diversity growing in importance Especially as international PR grows. Vital to employee relations. Agencies (PR firms) increasingly emphasizing counseling aspect of service. Growing pressure for greater accountability Evidence demanded of accomplishment of goals set by management (MBO). Media relations growing in importance, especially to international PR: Media ownership and control differ across cultures, affecting what can be published Culturally based misunderstandings likely. Access to media differ across cultures (illiteracy, electrification). Media outreach differ across cultures (electrification, transportation). Increased encroachment on PR function Legal, Human Resources, Marketing, Advertising. Increased use of Internet Promotion, Monitoring publics and issues, Research, Responses to crises, Improving relationships with publics. Increased diversity of PR publics Family units Population aging Two-income families Cultural diversity Spanish and other languages International work now 40%-70% income of top PR firms Growing government use globally of PR Democratization of countries Expectations of citizens Realistic ability of government to meet demand Response to government actions: feedback. Increased environmental concerns Must listen to public, ahead of law Ethically control own destiny, ahead of law PR profession's focus will be on credibility, accountability and responsibility: Credibility focused on realities & perceptions of behavior; Accountability demands quantitative evidence of the effectiveness, contributions of PR Responsibility requires professional standards, a code of ethics, knowledge of management, increased professionalism PR Problems Need more research Impacts of messages unknown Publics and impacts of policies not well known Employee relations Investor relations Media relations Effective use of specialized media Communicating social responsibility Back to top Back to Lectures Index