Last Updated: November 4, 2020
When customers need to complain, compliment, or just comment on a product or service, companies help put them in touch with public relations directors. Public relations directors provide companies with a positive image, helping to increase customer satisfaction and retention.
Public relations directors help manage corporate image through contact with media representatives, publications, and public events. They’re the first response to any concerns or issues consumers have with the company, and seek to placate any nervousness or anxieties that arise in the minds of corporate investors.
What do they do?
Location and Opportunity
According to Indeed.com, several locations are most in need of public relations directors. These locations include:
Public relations directors lead teams of PR experts in media and public outreach. They often draft press releases, respond to media inquiries, and ensure the operating staff is meeting the needs of consumers. Working with their teams, public relations directors respond not only swiftly to customer questions, but also answer those questions in a satisfactory way.
Companies turn to public relations directors to build budgets and organizational goals for consumer interaction. They adjust these budgets throughout the year as they encounter new challenges in the public relations department.
Public relations directors head up their departments, but typically work with a variety of professionals to ensure they maintain a favorable image for a company. Some of these professionals include:
Qualifications
Our Recommended Schools
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Grand Canyon University (GCU)
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Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU)
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Public relations directors are, above all, excellent communicators and extremely quick-witted. These individuals must frequently answer sensitive questions in a fast-paced environment, and have the ability to reflect corporate message in public responses.
Most public relations directors have earned bachelor’s degrees in public relations or marketing, with the addition of several years working in lower-level PR positions.
Become a Public Relations Director
Because their jobs are so important to the overall success of the company, public relations directors are typically paid well. The average salary for a public relations director in August 2012 was $125,000, with some making even more.
If you’re interested in learning more about a career in public relations, contact schools offering degrees in marketing.