Conferences not an easy task!!

Hi everyone,

Today I will talk about organising a conference. During my place I have the chances to participate to a press conference and to experience the works linked to the organisation of an event.

The journalists were invited to make a media coverage as it was for the Omnicane Republic Cup 2015 and it was something quite important for the client. My task was to call each journalist a day before the event in order to confirm whether they got their invitations and also ask them if they will attend the conference. This task was time consuming as I must called at least 20 media outlets, talk to each journalist and in the case they did not receive their invitation, send another one and later call them to confirm if they received the latter and see whether they are attending the event or not. 

On the day of the press conference, my tasks was to  make sure that the media kits are up to the standards and to check whether there are no missing document. When the journalists arrived I had to fulfilled the list of attendance, show them where the conference room is and give them the media kits before the beginning of the conference and fulfilled their needs. During the latter, I must take notes of the speech, the persons present and their interest in the new agreement and the features for the Cup.

Journalists waiting for the beginning of the conference

After the conference I must write a debriefing of the event with the notes taken and also monitor a media clipping about the conference in all the media outlet in order to know how the conference is describe, its impact in terms of visibility for both the cup and for the client’s company.

In theory, press conference seems to have a lot of work but in practice, there is a lot of work which must be done precisely so that such event do not fail to deliver its final massage. Precision is very important and each PR practitioner should be able to deal with it wherever there is a lot of stress behind so that there is no negative impact from the journalists or from the client himself.

So much work for only 30 minutes of a conference.

Thank you for reading

Cedric

When practice differs from theory

Hi everyone,

Here is my first post and I am very excited to share with you my placement experience during my last semester.

I am currently doing my placement at Imagine Communication, which is specialised in Public relations consultancy and media relation. During the internship I have a look of how theory and practicality differ. In books, we rather learn how the basic of public relations; how to make a PR plan, media release and so on but books never told students how petty things have significant effects during an event or in daily tasks.

There are so many tasks to do while being in the PR field especially when doing media relations. In media relations we have to consider all press media and to listen to all radio station to know whether the media is writing or talking about one of the company’s client. And I can assure that each day there are new information about one of their clients. Following these new updates we must write press summaries, radio transcripts and collect each and every pieces of information in all media outlets in order to send it to the client so as they can have an update about their visibility in the press and also what is being done in their industry. This task can be difficult as there is a daily deadline which needs to be met according to the client requirement.

Newspapers of the day

While in books they do tell us that PR is a continuous work, they do not tell us that there is much thing to do for one particular client and that it is every day and at times some nights a constant work for the same client. This was a critical issue during the first few days as we were not trained for such hard work but there is a need to adapt and to coop with the requirements of the company.

Thank you for reading, hope you enjoy it!!!

Stepping into the unknown

Working for almost two years for a news group, Public Relations has always been just theory for me…I do recall being thrilled and afraid at the same time when I was informed that I had been accepted for an internship in PR capacity at Logos Publicity. I was finally given an opportunity to put into practice the theory learned throughout these years. Yet, it would mean starting all over again…Being a newbie and having no experience at all in this field. Will the experience meet my expectations? How would it feel like being on the other side?

I reckon being lectured by some colleagues on how Public Relations just amount to spin doctoring. Some even told me that I would be brainwashed. It was as if I was embracing damnation and they were praying for the salvation of my soul…Pretty dramatic but that is how I felt back then. Actually, when I said that I am doing a major in journalism and Public Relations, they found this quite peculiar. They claimed that a journalist just cannot study Public Relations.  It is no secret that journalists distrust Public Relations practitioners. It is all because of that belief that journalists deliver the truth whereas PR practitioners distort it.  

Yet, amidst speculations, excitement and apprehensions, my first day at Logos was quite a mixture of emotions. “Luckily” for me, my soul was not damned. On the very first day, I was told that “communication is all about telling the truth”. Yet, “some people withhold part of the truth but, again that is another story”. Implying that for the company that would make me discover Public Relations practice, PR is not about lying to people. A piece of information that I think would relieve my colleagues.

I was showed around and I made the acquaintance of people who would now share my daily routine. At least during twenty days…Apparently, the Public Relations field would open the doors of an exhilarating universe to me. Crossing fingers! Hope you are all making the most of your internship experience. Stay tune for my second post on the first task undertaken, Cheers.

Anne Marie Deborah Perne
15636649
Charles Telfair Institute, Mauritius.