As a Cognito PR Account Manager, I work to translate a client’s business and communications strategy into proactive, tactical media outreach: pitching and managing interviews, arranging press lunches, drafting and distributing press releases, coordinating full-fledged media campaigns. Every day is different – one day I might be managing interviews at a conference half way around the world. Another day I might be drafting or distributing a press release announcing an exciting new product launch. Every day is different and incredibly rewarding.
My Working Day
8:30am – Arrive in office, drink first of many cups of coffee, begin sifting through e-mails.
9:00am – Conference call with a client to review media activity and plan strategy for the month ahead. I make suggestions around what we can do to create buzz for their next product announcement. We bat about ideas for an event or a web-based roundtable.
10:00am – Work with Account Executive to plan our tasks for the day, including which journalists need calling.
10:15am – Scour daily news round-up for hot news items and see if there is anything a client could possibly comment on. I also check to see if a client has been quoted anywhere.
10:45am – Make a call to the editor of a fund management magazine in London. She’s writing a story on emerging trends in alternative investments. I offer up one of our consulting clients as a possible expert source and she agrees to an interview.
11:00am – E-mail clients about latest press interviews, aim to schedule telephone meetings over the next few days.
11:30am – Urgent call comes through from the Wall Street Journal, who are looking to write up a story based on breaking news about a major bank suffering write-downs. The reporter wants to speak to the CEO of one of my clients as soon as possible. I ring up the CEO to brief him on the journalist, what he’s looking to ask, and what we need to prepare for. We get the journalist on the phone and conduct the interview.
12:30pm – Lunch – I munch on a salad and flip through the Journal, FT, and the Economist. There’s a great article on the sub-prime crisis which I send to the office.
1:00pm – The coverage from the Wall Street Journal is up online! I read the article, make sure the facts are accurate and the client is positioned properly. I ask the Account Executive to clip the coverage and send it to client, who is quite pleased.
1:30pm – I go through the notes from a messaging session we conducted with a new client. Messaging workshops are designed to examine what a company’s desired perception and target market is, and we identify the key value propositions and proof points to support. From my notes, I begin drafting a set of five key messages which will be used in all external outreach to the press.
3:00pm – I grab coffee with a client to discuss an event they’re holding in two weeks. I suggest conducting a survey of the attendees, as a way of tapping into industry intelligence – often great fodder for a press release and positions the client as not just a company, but a thought leader.
4:00pm – Respond to e-mails. I begin planning our face-to-face press meetings for a client at an upcoming conference in Miami.
5:00pm – Team meeting with the Senior Account Manager and the Account Executive. We discuss all the accounts to ensure we’re 110% on top of everything.
6:00pm – Call to a client on the West Coast to chat about press release going out the next day. We discuss his availability in expectation of calls coming through after the news goes out.
6:30pm – Finish sending e-mails, create to-do list for the next day, and head out for the evening. I can’t believe how quickly the day has flown by. Another busy day at Cognito!
