PR, Marketing, Design. All of the above?

It’s been a busy couple of weeks here at AFWA with everyone’s hard work culminating in the RAC Freeway Bike Hike for Asthma last Sunday. After months of hard work it was surreal to arrive at Langley Park first thing Sunday morning and see the finish line and all the marquees awaiting the arrival of the first cyclists. I spent the day filling balloons with helium, tying them onto bikes and handing them out to kids. Once the first riders started to arrive, Langley Park was awash with a sea of blue balloons. It was a record breaking year with the number of participants more than exceeding last years and the fundraising tally exceeding all expectations. Now, with the event done and dusted we have moved into post event evaluation and begun planning an appreciation function for the top fundraisers. Top ten fundraisers (both individual and team) will be invited to the appreciation function. This is the first year the function will be held. The aim of the function is to show how appreciative AFWA is of the amazing efforts of all our fundraisers and build a relationship with them in the hopes that they will participate in the event again next year. This is the first time I have been involved with an event/function from the outset and am really enjoying participating in the planning process, it's also a wonderful learning experience so see all the little things that have to be done to ensure the event will be successful.

Another task I have been heavily involved in over the last couple of weeks is producing certificates, vouchers and posters for the Bike Hike. This has been, in my opinion, the most valuable learning experience so far. Prior to beginning my placement I couldn’t even open a new document using Photoshop, InDesign or Illustrator. Although I still have a lot to learn I’m now able to use many of the basic functions to produce documents that can actually be used in a professional setting. This just provides me with new skills to add to my CV and from what I’ve learnt in class and heard from friends it’s a skill that employers look for. Particularly in not for profit organisations that don’t have the resources to employ or hire a graphic designer.

I can’t help but think though that the necessity for PR professionals to possess knowledge of design programs only blurs the line between PR, Marketing and now Design further! I think this is something that is probably more present in not for profit organisations though. Here, the Marketing and Communications Manager produces all marketing collateral and completes both marketing and PR tasks. However the Business Development Manager also completes some PR tasks such as relationship building and stakeholder management. The structure of the organisation and deciphering exactly what each person her edoes has been a real challenge and difficult to grasp as it is by no means clear cut. In not for profits where resources are usually stretched I guess everyone just does whatever is necessary.

I hope everyone is enjoying their placement and learning as much as I am!

Natalie
Bentley
14280126