The 5 Resolutions Common to PR and Marketing Professionals

We are a few months into the new year and it’s that time when we begin to reevaluate the resolutions we originally set. Were we being overly optimistic? Are these goals still achievable? Do we restart again?

The New Year has always marked a great starting point for assessing the changes we want to make in our lives both personally and professionally. The personal goals seem to be easier to make while professional goals sometimes get shoved to the side.

With the fast-pace and pervasive changes that occur within public relations and marketing, it’s important that we as PR and marketing professionals set meaningful goals and track our success toward them throughout the year. In speaking with colleagues within this field, what are some of the common resolutions we set for ourselves?

1. Set a content strategy at the beginning of the year. Lofty, yes, I know. But as professionals responsible for content marketing and thought leadership, knowing what topics to focus on according to a set calendar greatly speeds the delivery and production of great thought leadership pieces, white papers, blogs, e-Books and many other content deliverables.

Aligning topics with the content calendars for relevant media publications is also critical to success. If you know a certain trade publication will focus on health for the month of February then aligning your content accordingly will not only make it easier for your teams to deliver. It will also make it more likely that it gets published so you can reap the rewards of utilizing the information in multiple outputs across multiple channels.

2. Use data to drive strategy. While marketing and communications was once a more ambiguous and subjective art form rather than a science, it is now becoming easier to track results of activities due to the introduction of technology. In fact, many companies now demand to see results such as the number of new leads, the click-thru rates, and share of voice.

And as PR and marketing professionals, we too should demand and want to see the results of our labor. Knowing what messaging works and why for which type of customer is key to delivering even better communications and campaigns moving forward. It benefits everyone when we “work smarter and not harder” and being informed about how our past activity has performed is an important step to achieving that.

3. Don’t make perfect the enemy of good.  This quote, often attributed to the French writer, Voltaire, really resonates with many in the PR and marketing profession. As writers and creators of content and design, there is often a pride that comes with a beautifully written piece, a new innovative spin on an overly discussed topic or a flawless pictorial of a convoluted concept.

After all, these are the moments we live for the times we get to deliver into the world a masterpiece that shows our years of schooling and experience. It’s times like these though that we must remember Voltaire’s words of wisdom for it is easy to get caught up in trying to make perfect what is already seen as great by many.

4. Read more but don’t get lost. As great PR, media relations and marketing professionals it’s often in our nature (and part of the job) to learn what’s going on in the world around us. We want and need to know what our competitors said in the New York Times yesterday or what topic is trending with our consumers/buyers.

While the expectations and deliverables can pile on us quickly, it’s nearly impossible to do our jobs (or do them well) without taking time out to understand the market, read what consumers are saying and stay ahead of the next big news story or product development. The caution here is that while reading and being aware of the industries we serve is critical to success, it can also consume hours and hours without realizing the time that’s gone by.

5. Find the best local coffee (or tea). The markets and the news never stop from east coast to west coast or one country to the next so there is always something going on and someone awake to report on it. As marketers and PR professionals we often are early to rise and are rarely without a pile of stories or new strategies to deliver. Finding the best caffeinated beverage, therefore, is key.

If you’ll be consuming it daily (or multiple times a day), then the taste is critical, but the cost must be reasonable as well. We’re marketers, we’re media relations you can’t fool us. We can write great thought leadership for the best coffee in town. We can create amazing brand awareness and even help you generate new leads and customers. Yes, we’ll work in trade for great coffee or tea.