Meet the Team: Heading from University to PR
Public Relations is an exciting industry to join, whether it’s at entry-level or with years of experience. Ella Haris is Neo PR’s newest member of the team, who has joined as a Junior Account Executive fresh out of university. Ella explains why she chose to start her career in PR:
I recently graduated from Oxford Brookes University after studying Business and Marketing. In my final year, I completed a Public Relations module where I was a part of an agency, and we had to design and pitch a campaign to the media. I also learnt different aspects of the industry, and realised there was a lot more to it that I didn’t know about. This is where I found a real interest in the world of PR – which ultimately led me to join Neo.
Finishing university and deciding what to do next can be a daunting experience. For me, the thought of going into a full-time job after three years of being a student (and partying all the time) was scary. With such a wide variety of careers to choose from, which is the right one? Unless you have studied a particular field such as medicine or law, it’s hard to know which is the right path to choose.
Why PR?
Being highly motivated and keen to learn more, I decided to choose PR and started my career at Neo PR.
In PR, you get to use and develop the skills learnt at university, such as working to tight deadlines, researching new areas and learning about different industries. The work is varied and challenging, but also rewarding as you can make a difference with your own creativity. No two days are the same which makes it an exciting industry to be a part of.
There remain a lot of misconceptions about PR and what it is. It isn’t advertising or marketing. It is broadly developing strategic communication processes to build and retain relationships between businesses and their publics. Building strong connections with journalists and the media is a key part of the job.
Get your PR Hands Dirty
You have to interact with a number of different people on a daily basis in order to achieve your goals, and that is one of the reasons PR is so rewarding. The chance to shine and create your own ideas for your clients across multiple media channels is great. There is such variety within PR which attracted me to it the most. However, the most important part is multi-tasking – I am still trying to get a handle on it!
To thrive and survive in this industry, you have to dive in and get involved. It also helps to have a great and supportive team. I would be nowhere without my NeoPR team to guide me! You have to have real determination, passion and a real flair which is hard work, but seeing your clients happy and knowing that you have been a part of achieving tier A coverage is a great feeling. After all, what good things in life are easy?
To find out more about Ella, you can reach her on LinkedIn here or on Twitter.
