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The differences between publicists and agents can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a publicist has an average salary of $50,679, which is higher than the $37,864 average annual salary of an agent.
The top three skills for a publicist include press releases, press materials and public relations campaigns. The most important skills for an agent are insurance products, customer service, and life insurance.
| Publicist | Agent | |
| Yearly salary | $50,679 | $37,864 |
| Hourly rate | $24.36 | $18.20 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 7,343 | 184,325 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 2 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 83% | Bachelor's Degree, 44% |
| Average age | 42 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 4 | - |
Public Relations Supervisors are responsible for implementing the media and public relations strategy of an organization. Their duties include developing public relations campaigns, organize public relations events, assist in emergency response planning, updating documentation, monitoring media, improve management of press office, and manage media databases. They are responsible for assisting with journalistic content writing, refine internal processes, and track public relations activity performance. They help prepare reports as well as undertake competitor and market research.
Agents are individuals who are employed by their clients to represent them in various dealings. Agents are usually employed by people in the show business industry, such as actors, writers, or directors. They meet people who are interested in dealing with their clients. They listen to the plans and vision for the project and assess if the project fits their clients' interests or public image. In the case of agents whose clients are actors, they send their clients to auditions upon review of the project details. Agents are also responsible for negotiating terms on behalf of their clients, such as salary, royalties, and set benefits, among others. They also inform the project leaders of their clients' demands on set. Agents are expected to be business-savvy and good negotiators.
Publicists and agents have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Publicist | Agent | |
| Average salary | $50,679 | $37,864 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $83,000 | Between $19,000 And $72,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | Washington | New York |
| Best paying company | J. The Jewish News of Northern California | Latham & Watkins |
| Best paying industry | Media | - |
There are a few differences between a publicist and an agent in terms of educational background:
| Publicist | Agent | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 83% | Bachelor's Degree, 44% |
| Most common major | Communication | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between publicists' and agents' demographics:
| Publicist | Agent | |
| Average age | 42 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 27.4% Female, 72.6% | Male, 50.5% Female, 49.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 5.3% White, 66.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.8% Asian, 4.9% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 7% |