3 Hysterical & Helpful Public Relations Tips from The Office

I really enjoy binge-watching on Netflix when I have the chance (maybe a little too

much!) There are so many shows on now, my favorites are constantly changing. At the moment, my binge-show of choice is The Office (US). Yes, I know, I’m super late on watching this show. But better late than never, right? And in the midst of my Netflix marathons, since I still have activities for Three Girls, I decided to combine the two and look out for any public relations tips in my the TV shows I watch. And yes, I found some to share with you all from The Office.

For any other fans out there, check out these three tips I found courtesy of Dwight, Jim, Michael and the rest of the delightful cast for this hilarious show.

Public Relations is all about knowing your audience and being true to yourself.

1. Know your audience. One of the biggest incidents from The Office that stands out are the constant pranks Jim pulls on Dwight. They’re all so perfectly planned and made just to annoy Dwight, and Jim hit the nail on the head every time with his ingenious pranks. Some of my favorites are when he came to work dressed as Dwight, when he described loading his work phone full of nickels and then taking him out so Dwight would hit himself in the face, and when he and Pam took night classes to learn Morse code so they could mess with Dwight during the day. Jim always makes sure his are pranks perfect for the person he’s pulling them on, and that’s exactly what you need to do to when you create campaign strategies. Know your audience, and tailor everything you do to fit their personalities exactly.
2. Be true to your brand. Michael is a delightful dork, and I love seeing the crazy things he gets himself into. No matter what he does, be it his movie, “Threat Level Midnight,” or throwing elaborate parties for his love interests, Michael doesn’t do anything with less than 100 percent of himself. He’s unapologetic about who he is, and he knows exactly how to embrace himself, even if others don’t. Your company should be this way with your brand! Know who you are and what you offer, and put that into every correspondence you have with your audience and every campaign you create.
3. Give it time. My personal favorite part of the show is seeing the honest love between Pam & Jim, and how it evolves throughout the series. It’s obvious how much they love each other and how perfectly suited they are for one another. Those are the kinds of relationships you can’t force; they’re best left to grow on their own. Now, this isn’t to say you should ignore your audience until a relationship forms. That wouldn’t be very helpful to anyone! But you can’t force a relationship to grow. You need to give the relationship time, and help mold it with a gentle hand; constantly prodding your audience and shoving new information about your company or your brand in front of them will be more off-putting than anything else. Be patient and true to your brand, and let it happen naturally.

What a great show with some even better public relations lessons. I love finding different tips and tricks in the things I love that can help me in my career as well! Can any of you think of any other tips from The Office I missed? Let me know in the comments below!

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