Should Media Members Switch to PR?
Dan Lee with PR Talent
Dan Lee, from PR Talent, is back to talk about how and why members of the media are transitioning to careers in communications. Dan is a recruiter that works with agencies and companies looking for PR and communications talent. As a former journalist himself, he has great insight into transitioning from being a member of the media to communications.
Dan talks about how most broadcast journalist’s resumes he sees are a grocery list of their segments. This may be effective if they want to land their next tv gig, but it doesn’t do much for hiring managers looking for a PR pro.
He has found that journalists often struggle in PR, at least initially, because at their media organization they have an assignment editor telling them what to report on (remember Dan was a reporter, he’s been there). As communications professionals know, no one hands us assignments. What PR people do and how we do it is pretty hard to explain. All the elements that go into building a PR plan and determining what the goals. How do we do it? How do we measure it? Those are all new skills that media people will have to learn.
Dan then talks about how many organizations are creating internal newsrooms. Companies like Amazon and Starbuck are hiring former broadcast journalists to help tell their stories. To tell the companies culture stories with internal newsroom made up of former reporters and film crew folks to show the brand for positioning and recruiting. These jobs are hard to find as they typically still have traditional communications titles such as internal communications, corporate communication or content creator, but there are opportunities.
To end this episode Dan provides media folks three suggestions for breaking into PR:
- Fix your resume. Sorry, there is no silver bullet. But you can email Dan directly, at [email protected], and he’ll share his insight with you. Dan has a 2-minute resume formatting video
- Use a resume coach or a job coach. Dan is not a coach, but he knows some.
- Have coffee with someone that has already done it (made the transition).
Want to hear more from Dan? You can listen to his first appearance on PR Talk where he talks about what makes a great communications hire or his thoughts on the difference between in-house and agency jobs.
About the guest: Dan Lee
Dan Lee is a Managing Director at PR Talent and leads the firm’s recruiting efforts in the Northwest region. His career experience includes sports broadcasting, sports marketing, and 16 years with Weber Shandwick, where he was a vice president.
Connect and follow Dan on social media:
This episode of PR Talk is brought to you by PRSA Oregon
Throughout Oregon and Southwest Washington, PRSA provides members with networking, mentorship, skill building and professional development opportunities – whether you are a new professional fresh out of college or a skilled expert with 20 years in the industry. Check out PRSAoregon.org for more information on how membership can help you grow and connect.
