Spotlight: Eva Harrington, Senior Account Executive
I’m Eva Harrington, a Senior Account Executive at Agent99. I’ve been here just over a year now but have been working in the industry for 3+ years. I studied Journalism and Public Relations at University, which lead me to my first two roles at financial PR agencies. These positions gave me a fantastic understanding of the profession and built up my foundational skills.
At Agent99, I lead on four of our client accounts, driving and owning all day-to-day activities while preparing and strategizing for their next campaign. I’m also our social admin for our Agent99 Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
5 Questions
1. When was the ‘lightbulb’ moment for you in PR? When the dots all connected and you finally realised how much you loved it?
I had my lightbulb moment when I realised the impact PR could have on a client’s business. There is no greater buzz for me in the PR job than seeing a great piece of media coverage run that includes a direct backlink to the client’s website, their photo and commentary. On top of that, seeing increased website traffic and new business leads for them to convert is the icing on the cake.
In saying all of this, it’s okay if you don’t love your job instantly. It took time for me to fall in love with PR even while I was doing my internships and finishing university. However, I found the more I gave 100% to everything I did, the more passionate I became about my client’s success. Then one day, it just clicked for me, and now I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything else. So, my advice for young people looking for a PR job is to allow yourself the time to have your lightbulb moment and give it your all from day one.
2. We hear you did some PR internships whilst studying…what was the best learning experience you had during this time?
I learnt a lot during my PR internships, so I will share a few of the pearls of wisdom I gathered throughout my experiences.
My first Account Manager told me to ‘cut my teeth in agency before heading in-house’. The idea behind this is that agency life is fast-paced, challenging and requires resilience and time management, particularly if you’re working across several clients. It’s also incredibly exciting and gives you the valuable opportunity to work across multiple clients and sectors.
Another important lesson I learnt was that all work in this job is important. It’s easy to believe that just because you’re at the ‘bottom of the ladder’ your contribution is meaningless. I spent a lot of time in my first internship creating media lists, it felt monotonous and futile. However, what I know now, that I didn’t know then, was that creating an up-to-date media list meant that the person pitching would secure great coverage for the client because they were going out to relevant journalists. That great media coverage then drove new business leads for the client, and they were able to see the tangible impact of PR.
Every job and task in PR plays an important role in the overall success of a client campaign. So, no matter your position, always take your job seriously and do it to the best of your ability.
3. If you could be the publicist for any celeb in the world, who would it be?
It would have to be Taylor Swift. She’s incredibly creative and nuanced about the way she launches albums and writes her songs. She’s also very passionate about her fans and will often leave small clues months in advance to tease something new. I’d love to be part of that creative process and act as her publicist.
4. You started working at Agent99 in the middle of COVID lockdowns…how did you find ways to bond with the team whilst WFH?
The first day of a new PR job is always nerve-racking and slightly strange but doing it over Zoom adds a whole new element to it. Something that we often say at Agent99 is ‘just pick up the phone’, it’s the easiest way to solve a problem, connect with someone and chat through your worries. Yet, for some reason, we humans always hesitate to do it! This was the quickest way I bonded with the team, as I could talk to them properly without sending streams of emails.
5. If you could bust any myth about the PR industry, what would it be?
A lot of television shows paint a very glamorous picture of the PR industry. A lifestyle of lavish parties, lots of booze and of course celebrities.
I’ll start by saying I’m yet to meet a celebrity. Of course, there are lots of events in PR which is a fantastic element of the job and we do work with booze clients, but more often you are hosting the event rather than attending and giving out products to try rather than tasting it yourself.
We are always on the hunt for amazing talented people to join our PR team! We love passionate, honest, driven people, who really care about creating an impact for our clients! To apply, please visit our careers page and drop us a line for a confidential chat!
Agent Eva
