A week in the life of a PR manager
I’m Reka, account manager at Eleven Hundred Agency. Let me take you on a journey that is my typical week in the B2B tech PR land.
My week starts off at home, with a big cup of coffee. I catch up on the big news stories of the weekend and do a coverage scan for my clients, sharing any interesting pieces with my relevant teams. EHA is an eleven-strong operation and I get to work with most of my colleagues – executives, directors and even the founders themselves – on a variety of accounts spanning fintech, cybersecurity, customer experience management and data integration. A varied portfolio requires all of us to wear multiple hats, and it also means no two workdays are the same – though one thing is for sure, they are never dull!
On this particular Monday, I’m taking stock of who is working on what, upcoming journalist deadlines, tasks we need to prioritise and any gaps we may need to fill in servicing clients. Mondays are also usually my writing and editing days, and today I’m finishing up my review of a ghost-written article, drafted by a fellow team member. I then have a drafting item on my own, so I check my inbox is clear, stick the kettle on, set a timer (timeboxing for the win!) and jump into writing.
Tuesday morning is all about pitching. Today I follow up on a few stories that are in the works, and draft a fresh pitch email to an ecommerce publication. After lunch, we spot a journalist enquiry from The Times in our inboxes, asking for commentary on a cybersecurity topic – and one of our clients fits the bill perfectly! The team and I swap a few emails and draft some responses up for the subject matter expert’s review. Time is of the essence with these opportunities, so we waste none. A day like this is over before you know it!
We have a briefing call on Wednesday morning for a customer win release. Customer stories are gold dust to the media but they can be tricky to push through the finish line, so our aim is always to make things as quick and easy as possible. Today, all we need is 30 minutes from the project lead to run through some questions my team and I put together in advance. It’s a great opportunity to put a ‘journalist hat’ on and hear first-hand how our client’s tech makes a difference.
This Thursday is more special than others, since I’m making my way into the office, located in the Business Design Centre. It’s an architectural gem and busy events space, with our new office overlooking all the action at the central exhibition hall. Five others have also decided to come in today – it was a coordinated effort so we can get some face-to-face time. It’s nice to be in the midst of the hustle and bustle, hear what others are working on and just interact with each other sitting around the same table. How normal, yet how special!
It’s the end of the week, and nearly the end of the month, so Friday starts with a big media scan. Our fintech client likes to receive a roundup email of the week’s big stories, earned media and competitor activity; others prefer monthly Share of Voice reports so they can see how they rank against their rivals. I love all things data, so reviewing these materials is a fun activity on my schedule, and seeing the results of our PR efforts visualised is super rewarding. The rest of the day is spent catching up on tasks and – since Friday is ‘early finish’ – catching more than just the last rays of sunshine!
Thank you for accompanying me this week. If you’re looking to make your next move in PR and can see yourself working in a fast-paced, fair and fun environment where people are invested in your growth, do consider applying to one of our open positions here.