By David Jenkin

Make it relevant

Thabiso Makhubela, founder of The Drawing Board and chairperson of JumpStart, emphasises the need to stay focused on the end goal.

He says, “The benefit of whatever work you do must tie back to the business. We all get so lost in the bells and whistles of events and beautiful pictures and videos that we do, with launches and celebrities and media attending, that sometimes we miss the bigger picture. Whatever communication work we do has got to connect back to business or brand imperatives.

“Sometimes it seems like it is, when you’re in the moment doing a nice launch, because everyone is talking about your event. But what does it really do for the business? Are you changing perceptions, are you influencing thinking, what are you doing? If you can’t come back and say ‘actually, attitudes have changed, and it’s because of that big PR thing we did’ – then your PR is sh*t.”   

Speak for the brand

Sam Pugh, founder of Pugh PR and Corporate Communications, highlights the need to remember what the brand represents and who it’s geared towards.

She says, “There are so may various disciplines within PR, from events and activations, media relations, crisis communications and social media, that it's quite difficult to isolate a single golden rule.

“All these elements considered, however, for me the most important rule is to ensure that a client's brand integrity remains intact. And that means taking the time to get to know a brand or organisation, and similarly to take the time to know and understand their target consumer, customer or audience.

“Once these are understood, it sets a base for public relations to step in and create opportunities for meaningful, relevant engagements between brands and consumers - whether it be through editorial pieces, digital activations, media releases, high impact product launches and events, and compelling social media content. And then, always, respect the intelligence of the consumer or media audience by delivering honest, factual communications to their chosen information platforms. Never underestimate the value of keeping messages honest.”

Six steps towards effective PR

Roxanne Marais, account director at Tribeca PR, offers six rules to bear in mind in order to achieve success.  

She says, “Always starts and end with business objectives – great PR strategies are informed by knowing and understanding your client’s business objectives well. We use them to advise direction and measure results, it’s a simply must have.

“Read. Subscribe. Repeat. I subscribe to several newsletters and alerts for client industries, as well as PR in general. To become a great PR consultant, you must know your client’s business landscape, their industry, and the South African communications industry. Keeping abreast of movements often inform strategic changes in plan, and showcases your knowledge of the bigger picture.

“Remove approval ‘TBC’ (to-be-confirmed) from your status documents. To clients, a TBC is as good as a ‘I don’t know what’s plotting’ comment. If you really can’t put a date to it, which you should, make an educated guess. This keeps us honest and accountable.

“Admin is king – I’ve seen great plans or content go to waste because we (as an industry) don’t move without approval, and, as we all know, this can be a painstakingly long process. Workflow and process is one of the most important parts of PR you need to get your clients

“Keep it simple. Complexity can indicate a lack of clarity, and one of the most important functions of a PR professional is to communicate with crystal clarity. As the middleman to many service providers, clients, and brands, simplicity allows you to keep business objectives and priorities top of mind.

“Prioritise. From the ultra-creative writers to the uber-chic media masters, all PR pro’s will tell you that a well prioritised list has saved their lives and sanity. When nothing is number one, everything becomes number one, all at once.”

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