Whether it’s an internship or an entry-level position, your first role in public relations can be a challenging yet rewarding experience. Your first role is the time to learn the nuts and bolts of the industry and start to build your career. An account coordinator (AC) is an entry-level position within most traditional PR agencies. Here at Ellipses, the mission of the position is to wow key players daily with responsive, active, flawless, and professional communication. Here are some tips on how to be successful in your new role.
Learn All You Can
Your first PR role involves a lot of training. As an AC, you are learning how to do PR in practice. Your main focus should be to absorb as much information as you can from your account directors and managers. You should be open and willing to learn any and all PR techniques, from list building to media relations and writing or formatting. To be a successful AC, you must learn all the basics of PR and your agency quickly. You will be successful in your new role if you put in the time, ask the right questions, and are proactive and eager to learn.
Do the Work
The AC is responsible for prioritizing and executing a long list of projects. It is important to approach these projects with a positive attitude and be willing to take on assignments that may seem mundane or repetitive (we’re looking at you, media clipping). These tasks are important because they can teach accuracy, speed, and how to prioritize deadlines. Instead of looking at these repetitive tasks in a negative light, take them as an opportunity to learn the names of media and publications that will be useful for future pitching. It is important to do the work and remember that every task is a building block to a successful career in public relations.
Stay Organized
Account coordinators often work on various teams and/or accounts and have a lot of deadlines and tasks to keep track of. With so much going on it is important to stay organized and create a system that works for you. Whether it is writing everything down, creating a daily to-do list, or using Google Calendar, you will have to find a way to stay organized in order to be successful in this role. Here at Ellipses, we use Google Calendar to keep track of all our calls, meetings, appointment, and deadlines and Asana to keep track of our tasks and to-do lists.
Take Initiative
Once you have mastered your day-to-day tasks, it’s important to take initiative by going beyond the call of duty. A great AC should demonstrate they can complete tasks before deadlines and exceed expectations. This proves you are ready to participate in higher-level tasks like brainstorming sessions or suggesting creative new pitches or projects for clients. Taking these extra steps is a great way to show you are ready for more responsibility.
A career in public relations is a fast-paced and exciting experience. Keep these tips in mind and don’t forget to have fun as you embark on your new career!