How to get a job at a PR firm

These 11 tips from a seasoned PR industry insider could get you inside, too.

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Use every connection you have. Neighbor’s son-in-law’s girlfriend work at a PR agency? Ask for an introduction. Share a hometown, hobby, or favorite sports team with an employer? Let her know. Be polite, but be persistent, and don’t be shy. This is not a career for the faint of heart.

Ask for advice, not a job. Of course your goal is to be hired, but you may get further if you ask a senior executive for 10 minutes of his or her time to get the best advice about breaking in to the industry. It’s a bit harder to turn that down, and your strategy should be to get on the radar.

Perfect your writing. In a competitive job market, a grammar error, tortured phrase, or typo will eliminate you, plain and simple. (This post about résumé gaffes is just the tip of the iceberg!) Learn to write for brevity, rather than for term-paper-like word counts. Be punchy. Be bold. But be brief.

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