In April 2003, PR NEWS and YoungPRPros partnered to conduct a survey on perceptions of professional organizations, specifically those held among junior public relations
professionals. Members of YoungPRPros.com and several other online forums, including PRSA's official listserv, were invited to participate via e-mail. The results sample is
comprised of 50 response sets selected at random from those of more than 100 public relations professionals who completed the survey.
Respondents in the results sample reported an average of approximately eight years of public relations experience, and indicated they spend an average of seven hours a week on
professional development; 63% reported membership to a dues-paying professional organization, with 77% of that group belonging to either PRSA or IABC.
Asked to select the most important factors in their choices on whether to join professional organizations, "opportunities to improve skill sets" and "general reputation" were
respondents' top choices. "Accessibility/affordability" and "opportunities to network with senior professionals" were most often selected when respondents were each prompted for
his or her second most important consideration. The poll found 54% of respondents identified themselves as current PRSA members, while 65% reported being members at one time or
another in the past.
The biggest reason for not being a PRSA member was that membership was "too expensive", followed closely by "doesn't meet my needs." The poll also found that 23% of respondents
reported current IABC membership, while 35% reported previous membership. Here, by far, the oft-stated reason for lack of IABC membership was not knowing enough about the
organization.
Overall, responses indicated a general dissatisfaction with professional PR organizations, with 54% reporting that these groups do not meet their needs and no individual group
receiving an average rating higher than "fair." Free-text responses also characterized the groups as "too expensive," "too exclusive," or "cliquish."
Wrote one respondent: "At times they seem to be run more often like popularity clubs than organizations designed to meet my career development needs." - Ian Lipner