As we’ve mentioned previously on this blog, analogies often help make complex topics more digestible for a broader audience. While this normally happens more often in business-to-consumer scenarios, the same principle can be useful for learning lessons in any context.

Earlier this week, Ragan’s PR Daily writer Arik Hanson posted an article about the “4 PR Lessons from Saved by the Bell,” the pop culture TV hit from the ‘90’s. While naturally light-hearted, due to the characters and subject matter, Arik makes some great correlations from the show, which are completely applicable to PR and marketing.

Consider these four PR lessons which Arik notes in his article:

1. “Persistence Doesn’t Always Pay Off” –Screech was very persistent in his pursuit of the lovely Lisa Turtle. He tried many angles and approaches, but never achieved the desired results. The same goes for media pitching. When pitching media, it’s tempting to continue to follow-up via phone, email, Twitter, and any other mode possible, but sometimes it’s better to re-evaluate your strategies than continue to force the issue.
2. “When Everyone is Zigging, Try Zagging” – Screech is perhaps one of the most recognizable characters from the show. His quirky personality and clothing positioned him  as unique, making him memorable. Arik points out that when launching new products or services, it’s good to identify and promote the features or aspects that set it apart from competitors. Ultimately, this is the way that consumers are going to remember why they should choose one product over another.
3. “Success Is Never As Easy As It Seems” – One of the most talked about episodes of the entire series was when Jessie Spano decided to take caffeine pills to help keep herself awake for an all-night studying binge. This is a great reminder that it takes a lot of hard work behind the scenes for launches and announcements to run smoothly and, “make it look easy.” It can be tempting to take short cuts or the easy way out, but keep in mind that this may not be the best strategy to keep up momentum in the future.
4. “Regular Communication Is Key To Productive Relationships” – Remember how Zack always seemed to be in Principal Belding’s office? Arik opines that maybe this was Belding’s way of keeping in close contact with Zack in the hopes of helping him realize his full potential. The same strategy applies for the relationship between PR and marketing teams – both in-house and agency. When all members of the communications team are in sync and in the loop, it makes for smoother sailing through the entire process of a launch or media announcement.

These four lessons serve as a great reminder that education comes in many forms, and it’s good to think critically about lessons of all shapes and forms can be applied to our professional endeavors. Have you learned any great lessons or utilized strategies that you gleaned from an unexpected place?