Sanjiv Kataria

At Strategic Communications and PR Counsel, we offer Communications, Image and Reputation Building advice to the Services sector and global brands. We also help companies understand the strategic advantage they can derive using the tools of communication to position and project themselves in the global markets.

• South Asia's largest specialty publishing house.
• A leading technology intelligence and advisory firm.
• India's first multi-lingual portal and email service.
• An engineering software developer.
• A UK based Mobile Advertising software firm with a development centre in Trivandrum.
• Asia's largest talent developer.
• India subsidiary of world's co-leading contact center.
• A Nasscom Top 20 Software and BPO firm.

The firm is headed by a Managing Partner who contributed significantly to building NIIT into the most respected IT Education and Software Services brand.

You are a brand as much as your product
The Hindustan Times, Mumbai
August 04, 2007

by Sanjiv Kataria

Years ago, I joined a cohort of youngsters who were choosing their careers. As ever, it was not an easy task. My choices ranged between advertising, internal communications, market research, direct marketing, public relations (PR) and brand building.

My seniors advised me to pick an area I was passionate about and had a distinctive edge. It had to be in demand and had to be challenging to sustain my interest for the times to come. I decided that it was going to be in PR. Rather than telling you why I chose PR over the other interesting options, let me share me share the details of the job.

The PR function requires a deep understanding of diverse roles that various professionals (read journalists), play in every media. The PR professional needs an ability to find news from huge reams of papers, usually called a brief. Having found the news you need to embellish it with facts, figures, graphics, illustrations — and enough evidence to support your point. Very often you have to think of a photo opportunity that will make a great photograph, one that is likely to be used.

Whether it is a simple product announcement to enhance visibility or a sustained image building campaign, a PR professional can give a strategic input to get the message across.

To be a successful PR professional you need to be well-read. This habit has to be supplemented with a heavy dosage of reading newspapers, magazines and television news.

It is important to have exceptional writing skills. The less the number of words you use to express yourself, the better it is. Good writing is just the first step in forging relationships with journalists. What will strengthen the bonds will depend on how responsive you are in giving the journalist access to your spokespersons, in sharing information and how much trust can be placed on what you say. The industry today understands the value of building reputation for individuals as well as corporations. Your real challenge lies in understanding complex tasks, crafting cogent messages and acting as a credible bridge to reach the various stakeholders.

The author is an independent strategic communications and PR counsel