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PR vs Digital Marketing: What Students Should Know About Future Careers

by Article by Remington Begg Remington Begg | November 15, 2016 at 11:54 AM

As the CEO of a growing company, it's exciting for me to go out and meet the students who will be the next generation's executives. Yesterday I went to an internship fair at our local university to discuss the internship & career opportunities at Impulse Creative. While talking about why students need to consider my agency isn't my usual pitch, it was a quick learning experience for me. I was amazed to hear from many of the students that they were ONLY looking for a PR internship. After asking "why" a few times I found that it was because they wanted to write articles/releases for an agency and they "were really passionate about writing".

 
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After talking with a few more students, I realized that many of them had the same reasonings... Is this taught in school? Or is this an assumption intrinsic to all college majors?

Fast forward about 30 minutes - I changed up my pitch.

I discussed that we have a variety of positions - from Marketing Strategy to Content Marketing to Social Media - and within those segments, there is a fit for anyone interested in PR.

I started talking about how we are all in a world of "PR". The industry has changed drastically and now and we are all adapting to what companies need next. We teach Digital Marketing in schools. Some schools even teach Social Media Marketing... but isn't that all PR, or "Communication?"

Consider these recents stats published by MarketingProfs:

  • The Public Relations Consultants Association found that 72% of PR agencies were offering SEO services in 2013.
  • The most in-demand digital PR services were content creation, outreaching/engaging with influencers, and social networking strategy.
  • More than 60% of agencies have increased their digital marketing budgets, with a particular focus on monitoring, SEO, content creation, and PPC/online advertising.

To the Future Generations of Digital Marketers & PR Professionals:

Your career journey will be full of chances and great opportunities. Understand your options. If a career option arises that may not exactly match the title of your major, it may still be a good match for your skill-set. Marketing Agencies (PR & Digital alike) are adapting to market changes at such a pace that many college courses and majors just can't keep up.

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IMHO you have a 95% chance of doing digital marketing if you're in a PR field.

It's an exciting time! When you throw your hat at graduation and jump into your new career - chances are you'll be doing some form of digital marketing. It may not be called PR, but you'll still be using those PR skills you acquired in school.

Want to get a step out ahead? Go get an inbound marketing certification, and get an internship at a marketing agency that is focused on growth.

Your Growth. Your Client's Growth. Your Industry's Growth.

PS: We're Hiring (and looking for PR Interns :-D)
Inbound Marketing, Content Marketing, Public Relations, Marketing Strategy