What does a media relations director do?
A Media Relations Director spearheads and oversees the brand image and overall media relations of an organization. They are responsible for making advertising and marketing decisions, setting goals and guidelines, establishing budgets and timelines, managing and coordinating directors, liaising with internal and external parties, delegating tasks among teams, and developing strategies from planning to execution. A Media Relations Director leads and encourages staff to reach goals while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Media relations director responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real media relations director resumes:
- Hire, train and manage play-by-play broadcasters guaranteeing a professional and informative listening experience.
- Initiate and supervise development of new media technologies including iPhone and iPad apps, Facebook, YouTube and mobile website.
- Create daily posts on Facebook and engage with people there.
- Develop and implement online SEM efforts optimizing conversion rate for e-commerce.
- Direct internal communications tactics including newsletters, Intranet, domestic and international executive meetings, and special events.
- Champion agency competency growth in SEO and digital marketing.
- Focuse on search keywords and SEO writing to create more visible blogs for clients.
- Pioneer media strategies to improve ROI with newspapers and local media.
- Create PowerPoint presentations for weekly meetings for all members.
- Interpret profitability, establish tracking mechanisms and ensure to demonstrate positive ROI.
- Lead a rebranding and revitalization of the intranet by focusing on improving internal communication, search capabilities, and branding elements.
Media relations director skills and personality traits
We calculated that 13% of Media Relations Directors are proficient in Web Content, Spokesperson, and Crisis Communications. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Leadership skills, and Organizational skills.
We break down the percentage of Media Relations Directors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Web Content, 13%
Designed a new athletic website and managed web content for 14 varsity sports on a daily basis.
- Spokesperson, 8%
Served as spokesperson for Texas' oldest Catholic university institution by communicating the University's mission, values and historical relevance.
- Crisis Communications, 4%
Managed crisis communications for MGA, directed internal communications in collaboration with HR, and managed all corporate communication functions company-wide.
- Press Conferences, 4%
Facilitated and managed interview requests and/or press conferences with student-athletes, coaches and administrators as necessary.
- Communications Strategies, 4%
Handled club's day-to-day media relations efforts, including execution of communications strategies.
- Facebook, 4%
Developed and implemented social media strategy incorporating Facebook, Twitter and daily blog.
"web content," "spokesperson," and "crisis communications" are among the most common skills that media relations directors use at work. You can find even more media relations director responsibilities below, including:
Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for a media relations director to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what media relations directors do because "managers deal with the public regularly; therefore, they must be friendly enough to build a rapport with, and receive cooperation from, their media contacts and donors." Additionally, a media relations director resume shows how media relations directors use communication skills: "achieved efficient communication strategies and quick responses to multiple high profile public schools crisis management situations. "
Leadership skills. Many media relations director duties rely on leadership skills. "public relations and fundraising managers often lead large teams of specialists or fundraisers and must be able to guide their activities.," so a media relations director will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways media relations director responsibilities rely on leadership skills: "updated and maintained www.whatiswom.com, club facebook and twitter accounts for boston college's public speaking and leadership organization"
Organizational skills. media relations directors are also known for organizational skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to media relations director responsibilities, because "public relations and fundraising managers are often in charge of running several events at the same time, requiring superior organizational skills." A media relations director resume example shows how organizational skills is used in the workplace: "directed organizational fundraising and public relations efforts. "
Problem-solving skills. media relations director responsibilities often require "problem-solving skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "managers sometimes must explain how the company or client is handling sensitive issues." This resume example shows what media relations directors do with problem-solving skills on a typical day: "founded the online media buying and seo division of logicalsolutions.net. "
Speaking skills. A commonly-found skill in media relations director job descriptions, "speaking skills" is essential to what media relations directors do. Media relations director responsibilities rely on this skill because "public relations and fundraising managers regularly speak on behalf of their organization." You can also see how media relations director duties rely on speaking skills in this resume example: "prepared responses and media trained acs spokespersons for potential crisis communications situations resulting from print and broadcast stories on cancer-related issues. "
Writing skills. While "writing skills" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to media relations director responsibilities. Much of what a media relations director does relies on this skill, seeing as "managers must be able to write well-organized and clear press releases and speeches." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of media relations directors: "produced media guides for primary sports, including organizing all photo shoots and writing and editing content. "
The three companies that hire the most media relations directors are:
- Bristol-Myers Squibb2 media relations directors jobs
- Cargill2 media relations directors jobs
- NBCUniversal2 media relations directors jobs
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Compare different media relations directors
Media relations director vs. Manager of corporate communications
A manager of corporate communications is primarily responsible for overseeing the external and internal communications in a company, ensuring everything is running smoothly. They are also responsible for managing marketing communications and public relations, and even developing various marketing content. There are also instances where they must handle a company's social media platforms, review communication materials, and provide progress reports of different projects and programs. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage team members, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a media relations director are more likely to require skills like "web content," "spokesperson," "communications strategies," and "crisis management." On the other hand, a job as a manager of corporate communications requires skills like "press releases," "project management," "strategic communications," and "employee engagement." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Managers of corporate communications tend to make the most money working in the manufacturing industry, where they earn an average salary of $104,720. In contrast, media relations directors make the biggest average salary, $124,380, in the professional industry.On average, managers of corporate communications reach similar levels of education than media relations directors. Managers of corporate communications are 3.6% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Media relations director vs. Director of public affairs
Directors of Public Affairs are executives who manage the public relations and communications initiatives of the company. They oversee all external communications that are intended for broadcast. They create guidelines on the proper crafting of communication materials that will be published or broadcasted. They also lead the public affairs department in networking activities and industry events. Directors of Public Affairs must be level-headed, calm, and creative. They should know how to communicate with the public, handle crises, and create successful brands.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real media relations director resumes. While media relations director responsibilities can utilize skills like "web content," "communications strategies," "fact sheets," and "social media management," directors of public affairs use skills like "government affairs," "public policy," "external stakeholders," and "policy issues."
Directors of public affairs earn a lower average salary than media relations directors. But directors of public affairs earn the highest pay in the pharmaceutical industry, with an average salary of $137,872. Additionally, media relations directors earn the highest salaries in the professional with average pay of $124,380 annually.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Directors of public affairs tend to reach higher levels of education than media relations directors. In fact, they're 6.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for media relations directors in the next 3-5 years?
Clarke Caywood
Professor (founder group of IMC and PR in Medill) Joint Doctorate in Business and Journalism - Univ. Wis. Madison, Northwestern University
Media relations director vs. Communications/senior communications manager
A communications/senior communications manager specializes in handling and overseeing internal and external communications within a workplace, ensuring accuracy and timeliness. Their responsibilities typically revolve around developing strategies for better workforce and public communications, crafting marketing materials such as press kits and newsletters, and coordinating with other departments to create new materials and opportunities for marketing. A communications/senior communications manager may also participate in managing social media operations and launching strategies for product launches and events. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage the team, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, media relations directors are more likely to have skills like "spokesperson," "press conferences," "communications strategies," and "crisis management." But a communications/senior communications manager is more likely to have skills like "strategic communications," "powerpoint," "project management," and "patients."
Communications/senior communications managers earn the best pay in the health care industry, where they command an average salary of $107,621. Media relations directors earn the highest pay from the professional industry, with an average salary of $124,380.communications/senior communications managers typically earn similar educational levels compared to media relations directors. Specifically, they're 2.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Media relations director vs. Communications manager
A communications manager is responsible for overseeing a company or organization's public relations by devising various strategies and finding new opportunities. They must craft and produce marketing materials such as campaigns, advertisements, newsletters, social media engagements, and press releases to shape and improve a brand or company. Furthermore, a communications manager must accomplish administrative tasks such as preparing reports and necessary documentation, reaching out to advertisers, leading communication letters, and coordinating with marketing personnel from other departments.
Types of media relations director
Updated January 8, 2025
