Accountancy may be a profession, but PR is an art

I am feeling nervous about the comment trail on this one. Not because i don’t agree with Graham – I do. But because it never, ever seems to be acceptable to give accolades to the PR industry. Mostly because our work needs to be done behind-the-scenes or, as an old mentor used to say to me: ‘the best PR is invisible.’

Fabfour, the ‘PR is invisible’ line is with your mentor is part of an old regime of PR that is more than outdated. It lives in a world were PR hid behind the scenes and did shameless things in the name of publicity.

That’s not PR, and there is no reason why PR needs to be hidden.

It still amazes me when I go into organisations and I get blown away by the amazing work that they do. Then I get told that most of the senior management are scared about communicating what they do. If an organisation, whether its commercial, research, government, not for profit is not telling people what it does and what it’s there for – then why is it there?

Graham, what a fabulous piece: social, digital, print, electronic whatever – still takes discipline and an understanding of issues and trends that you’ll only get by reading widely and constantly – yes even the newspapers. Oh you can cast some blame to the PR uni run courses, where reading media is not on the list of things for PR students to do!

Graham, while I agree that PR needs to retain creativity at its core, particularly in the consumer environment, I do think that if it’s going to be valued strategically at the most senior levels within client organisations, it has to ensure it’s seen as a professional industry. Certainly at a corporate reputational level – where issues affecting the perception of organisations can have a material effect on the value of companies – professionalism is central to PR being regarded as a trusted partner.

What I do think PR needs to get much better at is adding to its art is science. You mention insights leading to a creative strategy. I agree that these can come through a voracious appetite for media (whether online or offline) and culture. They can also often come through an ability to read and analyse data and research. With the explosion in readily available consumer data this is only going to become a more critical part of the PR pro’s armoury.

To remain too art-based is dangerous. For every Emin there are thousands of talented, hard-working artists deriving no value at all from their work. As Oscar Wilde said: “Art is useless because its aim is simply to create a mood. It is not meant to instruct, or to influence action in any way.”

I think influence is the central role of PR, no?

Mark

Getting rid of the papers is an attempt to sound cool and clever..?

I’m afraid referring to PR as art comes across (to this reader, with his 20 years experience in the media sector) as an attempt to sound cool and clever.

All the great artists step back to admire their work from a distance while they are working on it – to make sure it works. You maybe should have done the same, before falling into the ‘pot-calling-the-kettle-grimey-arsed’ trap.

PR is no more an art than it is a profession.

It wouldn’t hurt anyone if we all stopped being so bloody pretentious, frankly. It’s no wonder people outside the media sector don’t know what we do and think we’re all lying scumbags.

Graham – thanks for discussing this. I’ve just presented on the importance of Creative Marketing at a conference in The Netherlands (NHTV Breda University) on ‘Creativity and Creative Industries’ – what you raise was discussed, including the importance of being aware of current, social issues (ie reading newspapers) to find strategic, creative solutions. This also aligns with a point Russel Howcroft made at a seminar for Prime Minister and Cabinet in 2011. He was asked what changes he would make if he was PM. His response: have all school children start the day reading newspapers, consider and reflect on the news, then discuss, debate what they’ve read considering the impact on them and on what they are doing, producing, creating. Something I also emphasise to my students at Victoria University. We should start a campaign encouraging youth to read newspapers!

I’ve just had a young PR intern still studying at Uni in my office for work experience. I was gobsmacked to learn that she had no knowledge of the various segments in newspapers and had no idea who listened to what radio stations – I couldn’t bring myself to ask about TV, internet or social media? My first task for her was to do exactly that….learn about the mediums (All of the them). Not her fault. She’s been taught to write a press release…but clearly NOT who to send it to!!!!

Tracey i can beat that – welcome to uni students. The one that came for an interview today had not heard about the Austereo/DJ incident.

Tracy, totally support your comments. It is not the students fault. It is up to us – the academics / lecturers teaching them to ensure we have industry experience, industry knowledge are adapting to industry trends and explaining all of this to the students so they get a combination of theory with practice. We must develop job ready graduates – otherwise what are we (academics) doing in our teaching. An understanding of social, cultural, political affairs is critical in our work and also how the media works – both traditional and non-traditional. Sometimes I do feel I am teaching well-beyond my discipline of marketing communications. This means the issue is more widespread with students not getting this understanding from schools, home, peers, etc.

Dave – fair point. However, I don’t think we are living that reality just yet in terms of the tolerance on client side. And the majority of media in Australia are so anti-PR that exposure just leads to misunderstanding and trouble.

What about being held accountable for your PR?

James Hardie for example. They were spinning yarns faster than a Warney Googly and it looks like they pretty much got off with any real charges?!

Was this matter already covered on Mumbrella? If not what is the go and how come these people got off so lightly? (Sorry if this strays a little of the track, however it is semi relevant and boy did they churn out the PR to gloss over their actions.)

http://www.abc.net.au/news/201.....ed/4367320

“off the track”

Graham,

The comparison of PR to art is a good one, but could be extended. Emin is very much an ideas artist, and there is certainly an echo of that work in the method of Frank PR: the use of a great idea to fire the imagination in others.

The art of Emin and some of her contemporaries reflects a movement, IMHO, towards originality and the ability to convey an idea, with technique no longer paramount. However, much of the great art we see lasting over the centuries combines originality, idea transmission and technique.

Of all the arts, I think maybe Jazz is an even better metaphor for PR: it involves a practioner who has the incredible ability to create a new idea in the moment in response to what is happening around them.

You know what they are playing is improvised and original, yet it could have only been created because the work they put in over years, sometimes mundane practise of scales and set pieces, has given them the facility to conjure something new under pressure.

On the obsession about profession, I tip my hat to a wonderful John Cleese lecture on creativity. 36 minutes of YouTube magic from 1991. He had a good deal to say about the importance of fun and humour to creativity, and how to kill creativity with a ‘closed’ environment. The ‘closed’ workplace is good for getting ‘things’ done but useless for original idea creation.

So to the people who insist on professionalism and projecting a certain image at work at all times, yes there is a time and a place, but Graham’s right, think art if you want to inspire staff to come up with the ideas that separate you from the competition. Anyone can wear the suit and talk the talk.