"...I am delighted to let you know..."

I recently blogged about the trials and tribulations of applying for PR grad schemes. It was a draining process and I’m pretty sure I was working on some of the mammoth application forms for a good three weeks, as attacking them in one sitting seemed impossible.

Up until last week I hadn’t heard a peep from any of them, which to be honest is what I’d expected. So when I saw the name of one of the agencies pop up in my inbox, I did get rather excited...for approximately 0.5 seconds until I opened the email and realised it was a rejection. Apparently there were over 800 applications for this particular scheme, which softened the blow a tad.

A few days later appears an email from another of the agencies I applied for. As the application form said I would be informed by the 12th of Feb I knew this was going to be another thanks but no thanks. The email started with the obligatory “...we received an overwhelming number of applications...” but as I continued to scan realised I’d spotted the word “delighted.” As I hastily re-read I realised the hours of work had actually paid off - I’ve been shortlisted for an assessment day! (Cue big smiles all round) I then realise it’s only a week away in London...gulp. Short notice, but extremely exciting.

I’ve had to fork out on expensive travel , and I’ll be kipping on a friend’s floor, but I know whatever happens it will be worth it. A day working alongside industry leaders is nothing to be sniffed at. Apparently the day is designed to be “lots of fun” and they’ve even invited us for drinks afterwards. I like the sound of this.

I’ll keep you posted.

PRedictions...What's the future of the industry?

The debate about the changing state of the PR industry seems to be rumbling on. The so called weakening press, continuing fall in print circulations, lack of journalist contacts and the social media boom is leading to questions such as “Has the British PR industry grown too big for journalism?”

There seems to be a noticeable split between those who think that the practice of PR is having to shift completely, and those who think that ultimately the role of PR is the same, there are now purely more ways to inform and persuade the public.

A recent BBC Radio 4 debate hosted by Evan Davis saw some of the industry’s top practitioners at loggerheads over the state of the PR industry. Julia Hobsbawm (Sarah Brown’s former business partner) maintained that there has been a movement on from the common definition, “the use of 3rd part endorsement to inform and persuade” to a new culture of engagement, where the public can now “answer back” in a way that was not previously possible. This, she argued, means that PR is having to become more specialised to cater for fragmented audiences. This is why I believe it’s so important for brands to cultivate a trustworthy ‘personality’ and engage in a two way exchange of information with consumers.

Tim Bell of Chime Communications hit back at this idea arguing that there’s a danger that people are rebranding the industry which is ultimately the same. Is there actually any difference between so called engagement and relations? The role of PR, he purported, is the same, there are just ‘more media’ through which to communicate with target audiences.

I would tend to agree with Tim on this one, whilst it may now be more difficult to get publicity in what Hobsbawm described as the big media influencers, social networks are now part of mainstream media, and PR officers need to become savvy in working with all outlets, both traditional and contemporary. As a budding account exec myself, I think it’s important that I am competent at traditional media relations as well working with social networking sites and bloggers. This is where the industry is ultimately headed.

Job hunting for generation Y-ers

After my recent post about the endless possibilities of twitter, and how it has the potential to lead to your dream job, The Guardian has recently published an article about how Twitter is increasingly being used as a recruitment tool.

With employers apparently using Twitter to seek out the crème de la crème of new talent, and more and more twitterers following micro blogged job vacancies, there is now a new application from the clever people at Tweetdeck, appropriately called Jobdeck, which will track recruitment developments.

Now that the UK has supposedly crept its way out of the recession, perhaps Twitter will be the key to snaring a job. And why wouldn’t employers want to advertise to an internet savvy audience of eager job hunters, rather than blow the budget on old fashioned print advertising?

But new applications like Jobdeck aren’t the only way to find work, or your new workforce. Twitter is increasingly being used for good old fashioned networking. By cultivating the right kind of networks and monitoring people in your industry, you can quickly get noticed.

This year’s graduates, also known as ‘Generation Y’, are at an advantage in that technology and social media are near enough second nature, which makes us particularly attractive to potential employers who are having to try and fathom all this out. By actively becoming involved in social networks you can demonstrate these skills even before a CV has exchanged hands.

Just recently I actually received a direct message from the managing director of a PR agency in Yorkshire who wanted to hear more about me. From a simple 140 character message I have now been invited to her offices for an informal chat. At the very least I have got myself a great new contact, but who knows what else this could lead to?

This just shows that there is something to be said for social media, and also stresses the importance of presenting yourself in the right way on all your public profiles.