Towards public relations that contributes to sales through digital communication—The dynamism of young employees who connect people with information

Hiromi Haruna belongs to the Public Relations Department. In addition to being responsible for overall external public relations such as media relations, release distribution, and SNS operation, I am also involved in a wide range of tasks such as licensing and responding to inquiries. Haruna, who has a strong presence in an organization that is trying to transform itself into a PR that contributes to sales activities, talks about what she values in her work and how rewarding it is.

Daily communication is important. Aiming for PR that contributes to sales activities

Haruna joined the company in 2019. As of March 2023, I am involved in overall external public relations.

Haruna: I am in charge of basic public relations activities, such as building relationships with the media, media relations to exchange information with other companies' public relations, announcements of the opening of facilities we have worked on, and distribution of releases introducing social good initiatives.

Among them, I am working as a leader on SNS related. We operate a Twitter account (here), and we are also reviewing policies."

At NOMURA Co.,Ltd., the Public Relations Department was previously positioned as an administrative department, but with the organizational restructuring in 2020, it was placed under the umbrella of the business division. Along with this, the direction the organization aims to take also changed.

Haruna: In the past, the Public Relations Department was more of a defensive department, managing risks and other matters. We aim to conduct activities that contribute to sales activities, such as actively disseminating what is required from.”

Currently, there are four members of the external public relations team. Led by a veteran manager, I work with two experienced senior employees. Haruna says that in her daily work, she often collaborates with internal public relations.

Haruna: We want to share what we want to communicate to the outside world. So, for example, when reporting on a branch office, the external and internal PR members will work together, decide on a division of roles, and report and communicate. We also share information closely, such as sharing the information we obtain with each other.”

Haruna is the youngest member of the Public Relations Department. Since there are few young members, expectations are high.

Haruna: I am in charge of SNS, etc., because the digital native generation is suitable for public relations activities that utilize so-called digital tools, such as web media and SNS management. I hope we can.”

Haruna says that the scope of his work has gradually expanded over the three years since he was assigned. As a public relations officer, there are things that I cherish.

Haruna: I believe that public relations should be something that people can feel free to talk to. We value communication very much.

For example, I told an in-house person in charge who had previously worked with me on a project, ``There was a great response on Twitter about the project that was opened recently! I'll share the information with you." I'll report it to the customer as well." This can lead to communication not only within the company, but also with the customer.

Also, when I contacted him and said, ``Speaking of which, there's a project like this in the works right now...'', I received a PR consultation. I believe that small things like this will lead to the realization of our mission of contributing to sales activities.”

Seeking an environment where I could be involved in impactful work in the field of displays, I joined NOMURA Co.,Ltd.

Haruna had always been interested in interior design. She was looking for work related to architecture, especially large-scale projects, when she came across NOMURA Co.,Ltd.

Haruna “At first, I thought that furniture and miscellaneous goods were also good, but I gradually became interested in larger things. I came to think that I want to work.

"When it comes to the largest company in the display industry, NOMURA Co.,Ltd. I applied for the position because I believed that this industry and this company were the only places where I could be involved in creating large-scale spaces."

Haruna was attracted to the variety and breadth of businesses that NOMURA Co.,Ltd. handles, but what ultimately convinced her to join the company was the "people."

Haruna: At the time, the person in charge of recruitment was very frank and kind and listened to what I had to say. I had the impression that they were working freely and freely.

During the selection process, I was also encouraged to be hired as a staff member. A staff position that gives me the opportunity to connect with a wide range of people both horizontally and vertically, both inside and outside the company, was a transitional job for me because I wanted to have a job where I could talk to people. I felt apt and decided to join the company.”

NOMURA Co.,Ltd. Ltd. offers a program called product training for new employees. Each person is assigned to a production site and gains experience working with partner companies. Over the course of a year, they learn the fundamental processes of manufacturing.

On the other hand, in the case of Haruna, who was hired as a staff member, unlike general training, she acquired business knowledge from a bird's-eye view of the workplace.

Haruna: I supported the employees who manage production on site and people from cooperating companies, and helped recruit temporary staff who worked on site. .

Although I wasn't involved in process management, being able to observe the site from a slightly detached perspective allowed me to learn about the entire flow of NOMURA Co.,Ltd. 's business, including how the site is structured, the value of partner companies, and how we interact with customers. I think that has been very helpful in carrying out my current work."

Responsible for SNS operation. Grassroots activities bear fruit and the number of Twitter followers increases by 60%

Haruna was assigned to the Public Relations Department the year after joining the company. I have been involved in various tasks.

Haruna: I experienced a wide range of jobs other than external public relations that required specific skills. After that, I turned it into internal knowledge and updated it as a result of the corporate website.I was also involved in internal public relations, and participated in the production of the internal newsletter and the launch of the internal information hub site “N Style Plus.”

Haruna has been in charge of external public relations since 2022. It is said that the company's policy of nurturing young talent was behind the company's efforts to focus on external public relations.

While involved in a wide range of work as external public relations, including media relations, release distribution, media coverage, and event correspondence, Haruna has put particular effort into SNS operations.

Haruna: “In order to actively disseminate information in order to develop aggressive PR, the former person in charge was transferred, and I, a digital native, was put in charge of Twitter operations. My mission was to increase the number of followers from around 1,700 back then to 2,500 in one year.

The goal was to increase the number of followers from 1,700, which had been managed for about four years, by approximately 50% in just one year. Moreover, the task wasn't simply to increase the number of followers, but to enhance account engagement so that information would reach people who were more interested in NOMURA Co.,Ltd. and turn them into fans."

NOMURA Co.,Ltd. is a B2B company, and for a long time it had a culture of remaining behind the scenes. Therefore, there was a belief that casual tweets should be avoided, and at the time, Twitter was mainly used to post serious information. While continuing that policy, it was necessary to aim for an account that was not too casual and did not give off an unapproachable impression.

Haruna: The first thing we did to achieve our goals was to collaborate with HR. I asked him to cooperate with sending "I'm doing Twitter" for.

We also actively engaged in activities to raise awareness within the company. Disseminate it at meetings, embed it on the top page of N Style Plus and internal portal sites. In addition to introducing it to the company as a medium for disseminating ongoing projects and events, we hope that it will be an opportunity to learn about communication with customers and company initiatives. Even within the same company, many projects are in operation every day, so I would like you to use it as a tool that allows you to easily catch up on the latest information.

Of course, we also reached out to our customers. For example, when sending out a release, if you ask the customer, ``Is it okay to post on Twitter?'', they will say, ``I will retweet on our account.'' and make calls. By delivering information to more users through mutually linked posts at a time when attention is focused, we hope to contribute to the exposure of the project and the creation of fans. As a result, I think that the support from our customers played a big part in the increase in the number of followers. ”

Haruna's steady, grassroots efforts, including tweeting almost daily and liking and commenting on positive tweets about NOMURA Co.,Ltd., paid off, and she successfully achieved her goal. As of February 2023, she has approximately 2,850 followers on Twitter.

What we can do as digital natives to increase awareness of NOMURA Co.,Ltd.

Haruna says that public relations suits her personality. I will talk about the rewarding work.

Haruna: A lot of information comes and goes every day, and there is a lot of pressure to have what I say go out into society as the words of the company. I find my current job very rewarding because I can join a company that I want to work for, and be able to passionately communicate in my own words about the company's appeal and initiatives.

When I interact with people in the media and public relations staff of other companies, they are all professionals in this field, and they all have considerable knowledge and skills, so various stories come out in rapid succession. Perhaps it's because I'm naturally talkative that I can keep up with that sense of speed."

Haruna's goal is to hone her writing skills as a public relations officer.

Haruna: When I write a release, I want to add depth to the content. I hope I can convey it well."

In addition, Haruna wants to further expand the scope of SNS utilization in the future. Continue as follows:

Haruna: "Recently, we've been getting a lot of requests from other departments, such as concept design department, saying they want to try out social media. We want to continue thinking about what we can do to increase awareness of NOMURA Co.,Ltd. while strengthening our collaboration with other departments in this way."