A public relations education is notorious for drilling an outline for plan writing into young aspiring practitioners. A problem and opportunity statement always umbrellas the situation analysis, a goal statement, target audiences, strategies and tactics, and so on and so forth. Though understanding the significance of each of these elements is important, ultimately we should know the rules well enough to break them.
Internal, not external, relationship building is the backbone of public relations. The relationship between a public relations practitioner and a client is crucial because public relations is first and foremost a service. We, self-proclaimed public relations nerds can be bogged down by the structure so engrained in our very being. Few share in the public relations thought process and if more did, there would be no need for our services.
The value of flexibility in the practice of public relations is becoming increasingly apparent to me. The most well-written plan by public relations standards could be useless to its client. I too am a detail-oriented, linear thinking, Twitter junkie who has recently experienced separation anxiety from my beloved structure; however, I’m realizing that this outline I cling to is a crutch. In public relations, a client’s target audiences are not ours. In actuality, our target audience is our client. There is no formula for writing public relations plans, instead they must be tailored to specific client needs. What I am growing to love about public relations is how unpredictable it can truly be.
–Lindsay Reichardt, Account Executive
