More and more job listings for both technology PR and marketing are asking for experience with data science, especially Big Data. Big Data PR and digital understanding provides better analysis of the results (or lack of them), and such skills also help to pin down and target those who are likely to be most interested in the client’s products and services. Wired referred to data science as being better paying than medicine as a career path, and the Harvard Business Review said it’s the “sexiest job of the 21st century.” Gartner and McKinsey, industry analysts, each reported they expect a shortfall of experts for the jobs coming up of between 100K and 190K by 2022. The majority of those jobs will be in app creation to look for pattern seeking and crunching knowledge.

It’s sometimes hard to remember, but Big Data has moved to its current position of prominence over just five years. Burtch Works, an employment agency, currently say they have 120 positions in the field to fill and the starting salaries range between $97K-$152K – but managers in these fields got up to $240K and in most cases, they are newly created jobs. This trend for data scientists mimics the trend for digital specialists that happened earlier at the turn of the millennium.

Just taking a look at where we are today when a PR Agency arranges to have his client do an interview for publication. The interesting thing is that how it was, was not really that long ago. We’ve seen massive changes in all areas of media, content, and how PR is done effectively even in the last 5-10 years. So, how it used to be and how it is now…

When an interview was arranged between a client and a journalist, the PR specialist had to wait to learn the result, did they love the client, or did they skewer him to the proverbial wall? It took at least until the next day, maybe even a month, depending on how often the publication was published. Now, often almost immediately after the conclusion of the interview … yep, tweet tweet – the writer will post a preview to cause enough buzz to build the number of readers who make it to the posting. And those tweets offer indications on the slant of the article to come.

There are many ways to prepare for when your business faces a nightmare about company products, services, or maybe somebody in the organization just happened to say the wrong thing when people were listening. Here are some ways to prepare before the crisis hits.

If by any chance you imagine social media is not all that important, then wake up and join the real world. It’s here, billions of people worldwide use it frequently, and if you are not using it effectively, you’re losing business.

The importance of public relations is perhaps best illustrated in one simple fact. Not only do more colleges offer public relations courses than before, but they also use PR firms now more than ever. Maybe in teaching public relationships, schools, and other education bodies learned a thing or two about the value of PR. But whatever the reason, PR continues to grow as both an academic and professional field.

Most PR professionals describe the work as exciting and always changing. One common phrase most say is “no two days are the same.” For people remaining more open to change, this work environment provides a haven. But for workers who prefer consistency and stability, PR more likely frustrates them.

Fortunately, big challenges equal even bigger rewards. Business risks prone to the communications industry may exist, but so do effective solutions. Communications professionals are more equipped than anyone to address, mitigate and maneuver large threats. Like any business atmosphere, there are compliance standards, financial consequences, strategic obstacles and various levels of operations to be thoughtful of. Partnerships, valid, precise information and evolving solutions for overcoming big challenges is what keeps the communications industry alive, interesting and operating successfully.

As any true child of the 80s knows, Gargamel is far from a friendly face. Bent on capturing Smurfs to turn them into gold, eat them for lunch, or just destroy them, Gargamel is enough to terrify any Smurf… and likely the 80’s child that still lives within many of us.

It thus goes without saying that, as a marketer, you don’t want to scare your audience away like Gargamel. Papa Smurf is a preferable role model (if you’re set on an 80s cartoon star as your social media analogy, like we are here).