Here are some of my own answers on PR concepts and examples from my own experiences:
PR Strategy
What are the key components of a successful PR strategy?
Brand awareness, knowing your audience, creating a (beneficial) relationship with your audience, a media plan, also covering your bases as to what are current or possible crisis points and how to manage them.
How do you adapt your PR strategies for different clients or industries? PR Strategies will remain the same, no matter the difference in client or industry, it's just the content that will be specific to the brand, that's the only thing that will be different really. However, every client may want something different, too, they may have different or more niche goals than other brands you work for. They may not want the whole package from you - to focus on everything to do with their brand or overall growth. Some brands just want you to solve a specific problem and don't want to hear more advice on anything other than that and you have to respect that. They may already have specific instructions as to what they want you to do without your input and sometimes you just have to say ok and do it. Strategies vary based on what a client's desire or problem is and just how much they care or are willing to do and that's not a problem; it's on you if you accept the job or not. You don't have to accept every single job, but just know your boundaries as well as the brand's and respect it.
PR Campaigns
How do you measure the success of a PR campaign? Engagement ratings, whether followers/likes/reposts/comments/views(or even funds) go up or even down. Whether comments are positive or negative. Are there an increase or decrease in customer/audience loyalty?
What outreach methods do you use to secure media coverage? Creating relationships with people in news outlets. Reach out to your news outlet community outreach people, send them news ideas about your brand. Using influencer marketing to increase brand awareness. The latest and best media coverage method is paying influencers to talk about your product or brand in an authentic way. Have your audience sharing and reposting your content and interacting with them in a positive way, as well.
Can you describe a PR campaign you're especially proud of? I would say working on my university's now bilingual magazine and increasing it's overall brand awareness was one of my favorite accomplishments. It grew so much on social media, evolved, gained so many awards and then even merch. Passing it onto the next person it has grown even more and now more people know about the magazine and I am so proud.
Crisis Management
How do you handle a PR crisis or negative media coverage? You have to be calm and positive because *things happens. Problems are expected you can't avoid them and that's life. What calms me down is reminding myself that (existentially) it had nothing to do with me, it is literally impossible that a problem will never happen or that people will misunderstand a situation, no matter who is to blame. Remaining calm is the biggest win. When you remain calm, it is easier to fix the issue with the least amount of damage. When you start reacting and apologizing right away, it just riles people up more and unnecessarily. Even if you are wrong don't act guilty, be calm, grounded, responsible and accountable. Be prepared. Take classes in crisis communication, study previous case studies on how others have communicated and handled their own crises. Study and observe what the current tone is on social media and use that to your advantage. This is the best time to learn with the whole concept of cancel culture, study what has happened to people who've been canceled and learn from their mistakes (what worked and what didn't). Learn from those who have a positive brand outtake and take some inspiration.
Can you describe a time when you responded to a negative media story? I've had some content that my media person misunderstood directions on and posted it and certain people got offended. I remained calm, I didn't get reactive (as others may have wanted me to). It wasn't that serious of an issue (compared to other real issues) so I remained calm and grounded, and got my priorities straight . The less arguments the better, pick your battles. People will dislike you if you're constantly arguing, so just choose your battles. Since it wasn't that serious it didn't need an apology (post)so we just took down the post, fixed it, and reposted it. That was that. It was then no longer a big deal and people then forgot it happened (because our brand didn't choose to have a crazy reaction). People forget or then care less in the future if you remain calm and realistic.
Client Relationships
How do you develop trust with clients? Trust has to go both ways, you need to trust them and they need to trust you. Starting with ethics and boundaries. If they hold & respect ethics and boundaries and vice versa, then that is the best place to. start. Even just seeing how they communicate. If there is bad communication that is a no for me (and I mean manners and politeness); that's just called professionalism. From there on just remain professional, and create small goals that are deliverable. If you make big promises and they fall through, you lose trust, so start small don't make promises you can't keep. And from there you'll develop trust.
How do you manage client expectations and deliverables? Communication. That's it. That's the only important and necessary thing you need to have and do. You need to communicate what you are able to do, especially when they ask something of you, just be honest and realistic. You can give things a try but let them know where you stand realistically. For deliverables, same thing, understand the effectiveness and process of PR strategies and explain to them upfront just how long things will take as well as how successful they could or especially could NOT be. Don't feed them a possible fairytale, be real but be sure of where you stand and emphasize however small a deliverable is, it is still progress. You need to hear their expectations and then make them realistic. Explain how you can meet them and how long they would take. Be ok with not being able to meet their expectations either, we're not meant to do everything and be everywhere, move on.
Industry Trends
How do you stay updated on industry trends and news? I am constantly on social media, mostly Tiktok, sometimes Instagram. I follow other influencers who focus on trends and PR. I love pop culture history, so studying up on this is a big win since history definitely repeats itself, so study old trends and concepts to be ready. See what's worked before and if it still works today. Influencers who are doing really well in marketing and trends on social media (such as Coco Mocoe)will talk about other influencers you should watch out for, so that helps. To find said marketing influencers just look up topics like "social media trends" or "public relations" on any social media search bar and you'll find the right people (they'll make good content). Also through the people in my life, they usually bring up something that they'll find that's really popular on social media, so paying attention to what those around me are saying, because they'll most likely bring it up if it doesn't find me.
What are some obstacles you've experienced with the shrinking media landscape? It's harder to reach people through the local news or newspaper (print media) leaving you to just social media. Now if you want an influencer or other person on social media with a decent following to talk about your idea or brand you have to have a lot of money (a great following) and it takes a lot of work to get your foot in or be heard. An overall media struggle right now as that there is no straight method anymore on going viral because these social media platforms keep changing. Certain social media apps aren't pushing content out as much anymore (unless it's paid for), so it's hard getting seen without a known strategy and a lot of money. It's not impossible, just harder than it was before (especially on Instagram).
Social Media
What is the importance of social media in PR? Social media is the most important right now when it comes to media coverage and brand relationships, especially when it comes to the majority of the GLOBAL popularity. The majority of our "young" populations are on social media, so to have an online presence is now vital for brands (especially if they want larger awareness or even deeper relationships).
How do you use social media to engage with your audience and amplify your content? To engage with your audience you do so by using words. What I mean by that is when you post something, say something. Don't just post a picture on your main feed without a caption - also post on stories/notes/threads, whatever, but say something that people can clearly interact with. Or even just be informative. Then you can introduce a path of communication with your audience through comment sections or Direct Messages. This communication is how you then engage with your audience and amplify your content because then passerby's on your content can go to your comments and find out more or if it's through DM's, said people that are messaging you will talk about you to other people, hence amplifying your content. Again, this is just starting small; first, start small, then you go bigger.. but that's for another time (which by then it'll be called a campaign).
Conflict Resolution
What would you do if a client or stakeholder disagreed with your strategy? This is the same thing with my previous question on when it comes to working with brands who want different end goals and are in different industries. You can either just agree to do the work or no. You just don't take the job. Know what the expectations are from the beginning and stay in your place. The whole point of why you're being hired is because at the end of the day, you're doing what they want you to do. If you're good, AND they're open, then they'll take on everything you suggest. But they have to be open to your suggestions and want the same end-goal as you, if not, then understand suggestions are not the best option and that's on them, whatever. I love PR because I consider it the best way for growth and I LOVE growth, but something I had to learn is that not everyone is passionate about growth or being the best possible you you can be (brand-wise), at least not all the time, and you just have to be ok with that. Sometimes people can't afford every part of the strategy/campaign plan. Once you accept that, it's up to you to consider whether you're down to do the work or not, because at the end of the day it's a job where you're just there to get your paycheck/resume experience. It's awesome getting to work somewhere that respects you where you have a great relationship with each other and you can communicate freely, but sometimes it's just a job where you make income and you just have to pull through with your given responsibilities and nothing more. Always know your place. If a stakeholder disagrees with your strategy then oh well, not your problem, you're there to get paid, do it (or don't) and move on. If you're not about just getting paid, then look for people who are like minded. Just don't make a big deal about it, leave or accept it...keep it simple.
How do you resolve conflict within your workplace? With a lot of conflicts, in life and in general, it's not always about being right or others being on the same page as you, it's just about thinking is it worth the fight, is this worth causing all progress to stop, is it worth losing your position? A lot of times you'll just have to concede, say as less as possible (ie, take your reaction out of the office save it for later), take no offense(unless again, it is truly unacceptable) or even find a mediator. That's why we have team members or multiple people in an office (of authority) to provide perspectives or meditate on a decision. The best method possible is make it simple. Can it be ignored/accepted (ie sometimes no matter how hard you try, people will just misunderstand and you just have to accept it)? Or can it be easily and simply communicated with an "Oh sorry, I didn't mean that/that's not what I meant," or a simply "I didn't see/realize that, my bad, thank you for correcting me." And move in, do not make a big deal out of things in the office (unless it truly is which is when you go to HR). Conflicts and problems will naturally happen and you just have to accept it and see if it is worth causing an argument over. Take communication classes in college to to learn how to handle conflicts in relationships, that's how I learned and I am truly thankful for. Also taking therapy teaches you how to manage conflicting situations in your life. At the end of the day it's just mindfulness and self-awareness that can make or break you (in a conflict).
Hope you all find these answers informative and let me know in the comments if there are any other questions you would be interested in me answering :)