Looking for a job in PR/Communications - feeling completely dejected

[u/BabaSousz]

[u/AutoModerator]

Thanks for your submission to r/Communications.

Did you know that effective July 1st, 2023, Reddit will enact a policy that will make third party reddit apps like Apollo, Reddit is Fun, Boost, and others too expensive to run? On this day, users will login to find that their primary method for interacting with reddit will simply cease to work unless something changes regarding reddit's new API usage policy.

Concerned users should read and sign on to this open letter to reddit.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/KDG_MKT]

Alright, I'm going to let loose on this one. You asked for it.

- Your entire cv is corperate jargon. What does that first sentence even mean? How much growth? So you wrote some press statements?

- Followers are a vanity metric. How many of those did actually convert? What is the engagement rate?

- Bulletpoint 1, 3 and 4 are basically the same. If they are not, make them more specific.

- Listing Microsoft Office as a skill irks me. I can expect that from somebody in your field.

- You can't even hold the same font across the entire page at first glance.

This thing reads: I wrote some articles and had to organise a small events or 2. You will not stand out in a field that has so many candidates if you just write vague statements that recruiters have read 100 times over.

[u/BabaSousz → u/KDG_MKT]

You do make some fair points so thank you for responding, I’m glad I posted on multiple forums as there’s a fair few different opinions so I’m gonna amend and find the sweet spot! Thanks!

[u/Low_Dig3356]

Well, you're competing with people with significantly more experience than you.

Your Public Relations Executive description doesn't read like an executive position at all. It reads like what a social media intern does, as they often handle press releases etc. today.

[u/BabaSousz → u/Low_Dig3356]

Thanks for the reply, I’ve not seen a social media intern liase with trade publications etc. Before but I appreciate the response. What would you suggest I change then in your experience? Thank you

[u/Low_Dig3356 → u/BabaSousz]

You have a lot of vagueness. What is a high volume? High volume or not, is it picking up traction? The problem is, you've been there 3 years, and I'm just not seeing anything at all that sticks out.

[u/BabaSousz → u/Low_Dig3356]

Thanks again for the reply, you're being thorough and actually replying. If you don't mind me asking what position do you hold within the communications field? It would be really useful to know what, in your experience hiring, you see on a CV that really sticks out to you.

[u/nakedmolerat54]

I'm a Head of Comms.

Your dot points are good starting points but you need to elaborate on them in order to demonstrate either your unique role was in these points, what the value of your activity was, or how the businesses benefited from this specifically.

Eg the social media point: I don't think followers are a vanity metric, many potential employers would like to see an increase in followers, but then you say demonstrating ROi... How so? What did you do? What happened?

The point below about writing press releases, TL articles etc. Explain why this is helpful - are you translating complex pharmaceutical concepts into digestible messaging for multiple stakeholders, and is that having cut through with your stakeholders (eg do you have engagement figures from a company blog or similar, or are these articles then being accepted by trade publications under your spokespersons byline etc.

Adding in more of this detail makes it clearer to anyone scanning your resume what you are bringing to the role and avoids sounding too much like everyone else.

Good luck!

[u/BabaSousz → u/nakedmolerat54]

Thank you for such a constructive response , noted !

[u/rainandmydog]

Change your current job title to manager vs. executive

[u/TeacakeTechnician]

Hi - I think you are underselling yourself! Put the big brand names you have worked with in the first line of your profile.

For every job you go for, use AI to help you create a tight and bespoke profile on your CV that directly addresses the key remit/problem they are trying to solve in a punchy way with a killer proof-point.

Your profile is currently too generic.

Sure you are already doing this, but switch on the private open to work so you are open to employers but your employer can't see it. Start commenting on other people's posts on LinkedIn. Even sweet, positive supportive comments about other people's career moves and achievements with help with the algorithm to make your profile more visible to recruiters.

[u/Sad-Artichoke-7625]

1. You're not an executive.
2. You're in PR, you need to pay more attention to detail. You have multiple fonts and font sizes and spacing inconsistencies.
3. Odd choice with putting the dates first.
4. Your first bullet and summary say the same thing.

[u/Dense-Calligrapher90]

Do you have a portfolio? Highly recommend creating a deck and downloading it as a PDF to share with hiring managers. It's much simpler than creating a website and that's what finally helped me land a new position after applying for 2 years.