During June and July, I did my first internship in a public relations company based in London, called Bell Pottinger. I didn't know exactly what the challenges were in this field, so it was a chance to learn many new things. Chime Communications PLC is the holding company of 35 companies which include the UK's leading public relations group, Bell Pottinger; the UK's leading research and consultation group, Opinion Leader Group; and one of the fastest growing advertising and marketing services groups in the UK, VCCP. The Bell Pottinger Group, managed by Kevin Murray, is a network of 23 companies which collaborate together 'to make their clients better known, better regarded and more successful'. The aims of this internship were, to improve my english, to increase my understanding of the functioning of a public relations firm, and to put into practice the knowledge acquired during the academic year, particularly in marketing. In addition, it would enable me to experience a particular professional project, and find out if this was the field in which I would eventually like to specialize. In order to do this, I arranged to do my internship in London in one of the companies of the Bell Pottinger Group called The Collective. This is the department which has to bring new businesses into the group and then, once acquired, to assign them to the most relevant agencies. Another function of the team is to specialize in crisis management.
[...] In an emerging country such as Saudi Arabia, a PR agency will, obviously, have to employ all those factors, but, in addition it will have to take into account the specifics of the particular culture in which it is working. Intense research will have to be undertaken to ensure that the company has a full knowledge of the attitudes, behaviour and customs of the country involved. Armed with this knowledge, a PR agency, can behave in a flexible and comprehensive manner in the execution of its campaign. This, combined with the same methodical approach which applies to all PR campaigns, will create the necessary environment for success. [...]
[...] And if they don't spend the right amount of time and energy to build and keep these close links, then the chances of success are limited. Moreover, during a pitch presentation, a different approach to the problem in terms of methods has to be made. They want something clear. For example, compared with the United Kingdom, Saudi people often made decisions based on feelings rather than on facts and figures. So they prefer reading much less text, but having more images. And even the pictures chosen have to be different and take into account the specific culture. [...]
[...] To do this research, I had to look in French magazines specialized in public relations and marketing. I found an interesting article on the website ‘Strategies' which spoke about the best performances concerning public relations companies in France. I also looked in detail the award ceremonies in the field of marketing and PR since agencies which had won prizes were likely to be among the best performers. Once I had drawn up the list I had to justify my choices and give an assessment about why these agencies might be the best potential partners. [...]
[...] Roughly, the way of resolving a public relations problem is the same for all European countries. But in the case of the United Kingdom, the situation may slightly be different. Indeed a company which tries to find the best PR agency in the United Kingdom will have a wide choice and many options. According to the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR), the PR sector in the United Kingdom is the most highly developed in Europe and it ranks second in the world just beyond the United-States. [...]
[...] It is why means of communications are so important in public relations. Moreover, they have been developing faster particularly in the United Kingdom. So it is important for a PR agency to be at the leading edge of progress concerning the use of communications technology, to be in touch with the current trends in order to reach audiences and to know how to maintain business networks with the innovations in communications. At the beginning of my internship, I attended a meeting which brought together the new members of the Chime group. [...]
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