Our newest Intern is ex-businesswoman Rebecca (Becky) Murch, currently studying PR at Westminster University. We asked her why she made the move from sandwich shop owner to PR guru (in the making).What did you want to be when you grew up?
I wanted to be an actress; I had the best dressing up box of all my friends. I use to put on little skits and plays for my family and then in my last year at primary school I put together a musical version of Cinderella with my best friend. All the songs were nursery rhymes but we changed the words. My parents still have a VHS recording of it, which they occasionally like to embarrass me with, at the time I thought it was worthy of an Oscar!
Why did you decide to get into PR?
I love communication and business and therefore it seemed to be a great direction to go in. I find it fascinating, particularly the challenge of liaising between an organisation and its different audiences.
Describe your course in ten words or less (if that’s possible!):
The first few words that pop to my mind are: Eye opening, stimulating, challenging, sometimes frustrating, but most definitely interesting.
If I wasn’t talking to you now, what would you be doing?
Trying to absorb as much information as possible, there is so much going on in the office and I am trying to get to grips with all the different clients and who is working on what. This is a different sector to any that I have worked in before so there is a lot to take in.
What is the most interesting thing about your course?
I would have to say the people that we get to meet. Westminster University have great contacts within the media industry who host seminars and lectures on campus. Their insight and experience is invaluable and really enhances the learning experience and if you are cheeky and take advantage they are great for getting top tips and creating contacts.
Do you think there is a common misconception about PR?
Yes, I do not think it is taken seriously enough. In my personal opinion Public Relations is an invaluable tool to businesses and a key component to the marketing mix but often it does not receive the recognition that it deserves.
How has the industry changed over the last couple of years?
I can only go on what I have learnt so far in my degree, I think the main change has been the development within the digital world and the 24/7 media environment that we now live in. I think that this brings with it new challenges as well as many new exciting opportunities and I think this will continue in the coming years.
What developments do you expect to see in the next twelve months?
I think there will be more and more developments within digital PRas media consumption habits are changing. This is a hot topic at the moment on my degree and every visiting practitioner spends time talking about the importance of including digital elements to campaigns and the importance of having an online presence. It has been fascinating to look at how the media landscape has changed in recent years and I think it will become more important in order to reach key audiences.
Follow us on Twitter @BexMurch @AbchurchComms
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