The document provides a comprehensive guide for aspiring marketing and PR professionals, outlining essential skills such as effective communication, branding knowledge, sales strategies, tech proficiency, and networking. It emphasizes the importance of understanding analytics to measure the impact of marketing efforts and highlights various resources, including recommended books, blogs, and classes, to aid professional development. Experts share their insights on nurturing creativity and forming valuable connections in the industry to enhance career growth.

1. How to Be
a Better
Marketing & PR
Professional
Professional
Development Guides
from

2. We know you want to
BE AWESOME
at your job!

3. So, we picked the brains
of some marketing & PR
experts to find out how
they've gotten so good.
Elliott Bell
Director of Marketing
at The Muse
Ashley Cobert
PR Account Executive
for Primum Marketing
Communications
Naomi Garnice
Creative Services Manager
at TP Orthodontics, Inc.
Paolina Milana
Content Marketing &
Audience Engagement
Strategist for YP

4. And compiled it all into the
ULTIMATE GUIDE TO
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
FOR MARKETING & PR.

5. Are you ready for it?
it'll be a HUGE help to your career.
(And only take a little time to flip through.)
Whether you’re just getting started
or you’re ready to move to the top,

6. First, we’ll talk about the skills you need.
And then we’ll give you the resources
to make it happen.
Let's get started.

7. So what skills does
one need to develop to
be a superstar marketer
or PR mogul?

8. Well, there are
the obvious ones.

9. Having a good set of
COMMUNICATION
SKILLSis necessary.

10. While the latest tools and tech gadgets are
useful, what matters most is the message. To
that end, I've further developed my content
strategies to speak to target audiences in ways
that resonate with them, and I've taken the time
to write professionally and personally for other
social and online platforms.

11. I remember studying self-monitoring in a communications
class in college. I never expected how important that would
be, especially when you're working with clients. You have
to be willing to adjust to your audience. How you speak to
media contacts, client contacts, and your boss are all very
different. The more you're able to adjust and present
yourself most appropriately in any given situation,
the more successful you'll be in PR.

12. Knowing everything
you can about
B RAN D ING
is also key.

13. Branding is a very simple concept, but can be one of the
hardest skills to master. It essentially boils down to how
you make people think and feel about your company. It
goes beyond a name, logo, tagline—even beyond the
products you're promoting. I think about brand in terms of
every touch point with our customers. How do people feel
when they read about us online or talk to our customer
service? It should be consistent, postive, and always
representative of who we are as a company.

14. But there are
other skills that
people tend to
overlook.

15. Knowing some key
SALES
STRATEGIES
can do you wonders.

16. You have to:
Understand what
makes people tick
Be able to sell your
message like you
would sell a product
Be comfortable cold-
calling (or emailing)
potential partners

17. I actually started in sales and believe that was
the best thing I could have done for my career
as a marketer. Marketers "communicate" in an
ideal world where everyone loves what they
have to say. In reality, most people are too
busy or don't care about what you have to say.
Sales gave me the ability to understand what
clients really care about and how to reach them.

18. Having some
TECH SKILLS
is becoming
increasingly
valuable.

19. Knowing the newest
in social media
Understanding SEO
and other online
marketing strategies
Learning how to
market in a mobile
world

20. Staying on top of today's ever-evolving tools
and technologies—while challenging—is a
must. Working with the guys at AppNRG
helped me learn and develop useful skills
related to mobile technologies and market-
ing. Deciding to create my own website from
scratch—rekindled my inner techie.

21. You should also know
the ins and outs of
analytics.

22. Knowing how to measure the
impact of different campaigns
is vital in figuring out what
works—and what doesn’t.

23. It's really important to be comfortable with data
because it should play a role in everything you
do. Every time you spend money or time doing
something in marketing, you should be able to
track it and show a positive ROI. If you can't, then
you probably shouldn't have been doing it.

24. But in the marketing &
PR world, the ability to
MAKE CONNECTIONS
might be the most
important skill of all.

25. The larger (and stronger) your
network is, the easier it will be
to form partnerships and
get people to spread the word.

26. I'm continually expanding my
professional network online by
bulking up on quality contacts
on LinkedIn and sharing my own
approach to content marketing
with weekly posts to my blog,
More than Words.

27. I meet with as many people in my field as I can. I don't
care what company they work for or what industry
they focus on. I love finding out what their challenges
are, how they are solving them, and most
importantly, just what we are both working on. Great
ideas and chances to learn come from some of the
most interesting places if you go and look for them.

28. Now that we're on the
same page about what skills
you need, let's talk about
how to get there.

29. We asked our experts what resources
have been helpful along the way,
and pulled together an
official RESOURCE GUIDE
for your marketing & PR development.

30. BOOKS TO READ

31. Earlier this year, I read a book by
Peter Shankman, Can We Do That?!. It's
not a new book, but it explores some
crazy PR ideas and stunts that are still
very relevant. After a couple years of
working at an agency, it's easy to
revert to execution and forget about
brainstorming. It's very important for
your clients, and for your own sanity, to
constantly be searching for that new
idea. This book served as inspiration for
me and reinvigorated my creativity
after hitting a lull.

32. BLOGS & MAGAZINES TO READ

33. In an effort to continue honing my brand
strategy and content marketing skills, I've
become seriously addicted to a couple
of magazines and blogs. Inc. is basically
The Rolling Stone of marketing strategy
pubs. Articles feature leaders throughout
the marketing and social media industry.
Graphic Design USA helps me sharpen
my creative edge by showing the latest
trending design and production effects.

34. EVENTS TO ATTEND
Any event that allows you to meet and greet with
media is ideal. Meeting media contacts in person in a
casual setting allows you to mingle without the pressure
of getting a story. Establish the relationship over drinks
before pitching them a story.

35. CLASSES TO TAKE
Write Emails That People
Will Actually Read
A Data Driven
Approach to PR
Introduction to SEO
Email Strategy
Development
Web Analytics:
Measuring the Full
Customer Journey to
Understand ROI
Foundations for a Visual
PR Strategy

36. CLASSES TO TAKE
10 Essentials for Getting
Started in Content
Marketing
No News? No Problem!
Maintaining Great Media
Coverage Year-Round
How to Create a Brand
Strategy that Works
LinkedIn for Brands and
Businesses
True Influence
More Followers, More
Engagement, Less Time!

37. EXPERTS TO FOLLOW

38. EXPERTS TO FOLLOW
Follow any media
contacts you are
pitching.

39. Now—it's time to go
out into the world
and get better at
rocking your career!
(We know you can do it.)

40. And, if you want a little more help along the way?
Keep up with for the advice
you need to build the career you've
always dreamed of.
Get Career
Advice
Browse
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Jobs
Sign Up for
Classes
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