Working in public relations for the automotive industry for almost five years, I routinely field questions as to what exactly I do for a living. You would think after doing this for so long, I’d have a canned response that would clearly separate my occupation from those moving metal on dealership lots. Unfortunately, it’s not always that easy.
Person: “So, what do you do for a living?”
Me: “I work in public relations for a major domestic automaker.”
Person: “What exactly does that mean? Is that a nice way of saying you’re a car salesman?”
Me: “Not exactly, I focus on product publicity, media relations, event planning, internal communications, community involvement and a few other things that help keep my client and its products in a favorable light in the mind of the consumer.”
Person: “Oh. OK. Can you translate that?”
Me: “I sell cars.”
By that, I mean that everything I do on a daily basis is to generate positive third-party endorsements that help influence the purchasing decisions of a prospective customer – whether it be a product review in the local newspaper, an executive interview at an auto show or even a casual product walk around to a passerby while a vehicle is on display.
With that being said, we can easily convert this idea to suit our jobs as PR professionals on a macro level.
No matter what your field of expertise, or what type of client you work for, your mission should always be the same – help increase the bottom line.
It’s a fairly basic, if not a downright primitive, concept. In my case, my bottom line is to help sell cars, trucks and crossovers, because if my client doesn’t sell vehicles, my client doesn’t have a business.
While some ideas generated might be fun, cool, innovative and garner attention (for whatever reason), it might not exactly be the right fit for your client unless it’s contributing to moving the business forward.
So, the next time you and your team gather for a brainstorm or planning session, always remember that one important (metaphoric) question, “Will this help sell cars?”