Reflections on 7 Years in the Communication Industry
It feels like yesterday when I walked into Pioneer Strategies’ office for the first time. Since then, I’ve had countless new experiences, developed a wide range of new skills, learned a lot about myself, and met many great people and clients who are passionate about what they do.
Things are definitely different now. We’ve moved to virtual offices, our tools have evolved, and AI has become a fact of life, with both benefits and drawbacks.
Despite those changes, some things have remained consistent. Here are four of my biggest takeaways after seven years at a PR and strategic communication firm:
- Communication is THE make or break factor in EVERY client relationship. As strategists, wordsmiths and designers, our job largely boils down to figuring out how to say what our clients want to say and who the message needs to reach. To do that, we need open and frequent communication to ensure that we understand what they’re trying to accomplish. When a client becomes disengaged or too busy or distracted to participate, the communication program begins to decline. Even clients with the best intentions can underestimate the need for engagement and collaboration to get things done. Hiring a PR firm isn’t plug-and-play. Successful work requires consistent communication and participation from both sides.
- It always takes time. I’ve seen clients who, often without saying it or even realizing it, expect overnight results. PR and communication should be viewed as long-term investments. It takes time to build credibility and brand awareness and even longer to motivate people to act. Running an ad campaign for three months and stopping because it hasn’t immediately brought more people through the door is often a waste of time, energy and money. Communication strategies succeed when they’re given time to take root.
- There is no silver bullet. I couldn’t count the number of times we’ve been approached by people convinced their success was hiding behind one particular tactic. I hear this most often about social media and SEO. But what if your audience isn’t likely to engage on social media? The people driving significant business through their social channels often started with strong relationships that supported their growth, and some simply got lucky. Most organizations are better served by reaching people through a few strategically selected channels that are relevant to their audience and staying consistent over time.
- Clearly defined goals. One of the first questions we ask in every discovery meeting is, “What are your goals?” We’ll ask it several more times throughout the process. That underscores how important it is to have a clear target. We’ve worked with clients whose goals seemed to change every week. No amount of money or effort can hit a constantly moving target. We’ve also seen goals change slowly over time without anyone telling us. That brings us back to the importance of communication: if you aren’t sure what your goals are, we can help define them, but to succeed, your goals need to be clearly articulated and relevant enough to stand the test of time.
Every successful communication project I’ve worked on had these things in common: a client that has clearly defined goals, is engaged in the process while giving us room to do our job, has realistic expectations, is patient with results and stays consistent, s the one that will get the best results.
