This episode features Bailey, a seasoned communications professional who discusses her experiences and insights gained from working in diverse industries, her commitment to staying results-driven in the dynamic field of public relations, and the importance of building connections and relationships both within and outside the PR realm.

Introduction

0:23 When Bailey began her college journey, she was uncertain about her choice of major. She initially pursued psychology, but as she delved into courses involving the memorization of brain anatomy, she realized it wasn’t her passion. Nevertheless, Bailey remained intrigued by the workings of the human mind, particularly why people think the way they do and the factors influencing their behavior. She soon recognized the relevance of psychology in the field of communications, especially when crafting internal communications within large companies.

Creating messages for thousands of employees required careful consideration of how these messages would be received and how they might impact employees’ perceptions of their employer. Bailey found that her background in psychology informed her approach to public relations in this context.

While contemplating her academic path, Bailey briefly considered marketing but had reservations about joining the business school. Instead, she decided to take an introductory PR class, and it was during this course that she discovered her true passion. Bailey was fortunate to attend the University of Florida, renowned for its top-tier journalism program. Alongside her PR studies, she enrolled in several journalism classes, including reporting courses. These experiences provided valuable insights into the mindset of journalists and their priorities, greatly enhancing her abilities in media relations.

Furthermore, Bailey’s journalism classes served as rigorous writing training. Any error in an article meant failing the class for the week. This demanding environment forced her to hone her writing skills to a high degree of proficiency.

Favourite Campaign

1:43

Bailey, when discussing her favorite campaign, highlighted her role as a communications manager at a fintech prime broker called Clear Street. She shared that Clear Street is a relatively young company, just five years old, and has had to put in considerable effort to establish itself in an industry dominated by well-known big banks.

Bailey mentioned that she joined Clear Street in June of the previous year, which was in 2022, right after the company’s series B funding round. In April 2023, they had a second tranche of that funding round, and she had the opportunity to work on the campaign leading up to it.

The campaign was particularly significant as it allowed for a direct comparison of how the series B funding performed before and after her joining the team. Bailey pointed out the notable success they achieved, doubling their media coverage, securing twice as much top-tier coverage, and even obtaining a significant exclusive related to their funding.

She attributed this success to the hard work put in over the past year, which included efforts to build up their brand through events, original content, maintaining consistent messaging, refining their advertising strategy, and significantly enhancing their media relations.

First Interaction with data

2:48

Bailey’s first interaction with data occurred during her undergraduate studies. She recalled taking a PR analytics course where they examined data related to the public’s response to the 2020 oil spill. Given that she was in Florida at the time, this crisis communications case study was of great relevance and importance.

She continued her education at NYU, where she pursued a master’s in corporate communication. During this time, she worked on a thesis paper that explored the impact of comedy appearances on politicians’ media presence. She investigated whether appearances on shows like SNL made politicians more popular, less popular, or had no significant impact. This research took place around 2016, making it a timely and intriguing study.

In her professional life, Bailey noted how data in PR had evolved over the past decade. She discussed how there was a shift from print to online media during her school years, which had raised concerns among journalists and those in media relations about the future of the industry. This shift also led to a transformation in how PR success was measured.

Initially, they used metrics like earned media value, comparing the value of an article as earned media to the cost of placing an advertisement in the same publication. However, with the move to online media, this comparison became obsolete, prompting the industry to find new ways to demonstrate the value of their work.

Sponsored content also emerged as a significant factor, raising questions about how publications would disclose sponsored content and whether this compromised the integrity of journalism. The industry had to adapt to these changes, and Bailey found it fascinating to observe how it responded.

Furthermore, Bailey highlighted the impact of social media and other emerging communication channels on PR tactics, indicating the constant evolution and challenges in the field.

Important metrics to track

4:31

Over the past decade, there has been a significant transformation in the PR landscape, with an abundance of data available. One can easily access data through tools like Hootsuite or other social media platforms. These tools provide insights into various metrics, including sentiment analysis and mentions, which allow PR professionals to gauge the positivity or negativity of the public’s reactions.

LinkedIn, for instance, offers opportunities to measure engagement through reposts, the number of articles published, and whether the content made it to the headline. With so much data available, the challenge lies in determining what truly matters to one’s organization and the specific projects at hand.

Connecting this data to the leadership’s priorities becomes crucial. PR professionals must find ways to prove the value of their work to company leaders. For Bailey’s team, their primary focus is on media coverage, dissecting it by month, tier, and topic. They also track the spokesperson involved, differentiate between organic and paid media, and pay close attention to followers’ engagement. Given their B2B focus, they place importance on visits to the careers page and leverage display ads to test messaging.

To further refine their strategies, they utilize Google Analytics and performance reports to monitor clicks and engagement. The overarching goal is twofold: using data to enhance campaigns and effectively communicating how these efforts positively impact the company.

Dream metric/feature

5:49

Bailey expressed her desire for a dream metric or feature in the realm of media relations within PR. She emphasized that media relations is one of the most challenging aspects of PR to quantify in terms of the effort invested and the outcomes achieved. It can often feel like a hit or miss endeavor, where significant time may be dedicated to crafting a pitch, and yet there’s no guarantee of a positive response. Conversely, sending something hastily to a reporter could unexpectedly result in a feature story.

Bailey mentioned that, to her knowledge, there isn’t a comprehensive metric or feature that effectively measures the impact of media relations beyond counting the number of articles that result from it. She expressed a desire to see the development of a metric or tool that could provide a more nuanced and insightful assessment of the effectiveness of media relations efforts. Such a metric or feature would help PR professionals better understand and showcase the value of their media relations work.

Impact of AI 

6:26

Bailey shared her perspective on the impact of AI in the field of PR. She acknowledged that AI is currently a valuable tool that complements the work of PR teams, enhancing their efficiency and processes. She emphasized that AI is not likely to replace communication professionals but will work alongside them in a collaborative manner.

She cited an example where she could discern when someone had written something using AI, highlighting that AI’s role is often behind the scenes, such as when using it to find reporters’ email addresses. In this context, the recipient wouldn’t necessarily know that AI was involved in the process. Bailey stressed that AI can be harnessed to generate ideas, conduct research, identify journalists, and build contact lists, ultimately saving time and streamlining tasks.

Bailey also mentioned a survey indicating that a significant percentage of people involved in media pitching use AI to help generate ideas, illustrating its potential usefulness in PR.

She speculated about the impact of AI on journalism, such as AI-driven content generation potentially leading to a significant increase in the volume of articles published. This could, in turn, affect the PR industry, requiring PR professionals to adapt their strategies to resonate with algorithms as well as human journalists.

Bailey expressed a concern about the potential over-reliance on AI for writing tasks, particularly in maintaining a consistent brand voice and effectively communicating ideas through writing. She emphasized the importance of preserving the impact of human-written communication.

In summary, Bailey sees AI as a valuable tool that can enhance PR processes and efficiency but believes that it will work alongside communication professionals rather than replacing them entirely. However, she cautions against over-dependence on AI for writing tasks, emphasizing the importance of maintaining effective human communication in PR.

My two cents

8:17

For those entering a career in PR, Bailey offered valuable advice:

Firstly, she emphasized the importance of staying open to different industries. Bailey shared her own experience, moving from manufacturing to tech, HR, and then fintech in finance. She encouraged newcomers to be open-minded about the industries they work in, as unexpected areas can prove to be surprisingly fascinating and offer unique opportunities.

Continuous learning is key in the dynamic field of PR. Bailey recommended staying updated by taking courses, attending workshops, and reading industry publications to remain informed about the latest trends and best practices.

Being results-oriented was another essential piece of advice. Bailey stressed the significance of aligning one’s work with specific objectives, whether they are personal goals or the goals of clients. Managing and measuring outcomes were crucial components of this approach.

Networking and relationship-building were highlighted as crucial skills. Bailey recommended not only connecting with fellow PR professionals but also building relationships with individuals outside of the industry, especially those one works with regularly. These connections, whether in finance, engineering, or any other field, can provide valuable support and opportunities throughout one’s career.