How to Find a PR Firm That Is Right for You
By Abe Wischnia
President
Abe Wischnia & Associates
Sometimes, finding the right PR firm can seem as difficult as finding a key employee. There are many aspects to making a good match. Without clear answers in your own mind to the questions below, your chances of making a good selection will be reduced. First are some questions to ask yourself. Those are followed by Questions to ask the prospective firm.
Here are Questions You Should Ask Yourself
What are your objectives?
Probably the most important question you should ask yourself is what do you want a PR firm or consultant to help you accomplish? For example, some people say they want to generate publicity for their organization. But public relations is more than publicity. Publicity is just one tool to help you reach some other objective. What is that objective? What do you want people to think or do as a result of your PR program? Try to state your objectives in terms of measurable results.
Your objectives will help serve as a screening tool. Many PR agencies are stronger in certain practice areas than others. Some may be very good at promoting consumer products but not very strong on crisis issues. Others may be good at high-tech or biotech but weak on special events. Some know how to open doors and provide access to government officials, but won’t be of much help if you want your new gizmo to be the next national toy craze.
Ask the agency representative what the firm is best at. An ethical firm will tell you if what your objectives are a good fit for their capabilities. Clearly defined objectives will help you screen out inappropriate agencies.
What are your PR needs?
What is it exactly that you want your PR agency to do? This is related to, but different from, your objectives. It is your vision of the scope of work. If you already have a PR person on staff, do you want the agency to provide some extra manpower to help on certain projects as needed? Do you already have a plan that you want them to execute? Do you need them to develop a plan for you to execute? Perhaps what you need is a turn-key package from a firm that can do it all – from developing the plan through full execution and evaluation.
What is the program time frame?
When do you need to get the PR program started? When do you need to see results? How realistic is that time frame?
How long do you expect the agency relationship to last? Is it a one-shot project like a special event or will there be ongoing work for them to do? Be honest with yourself and with the agency.
What is your budget?
Have some sense of what you realistically want and are able to spend to accomplish your goals. Be upfront about this early on in your discussions. A good agency will tell you whether that budget is workable. If your budget is too small, you and the agency need to know this before spending time in meetings that won’t lead anywhere. Large agencies tend to have higher minimum budget requirements to take on a client. But there are many good, small agencies that will take on smaller budget clients.
Making first contact
When you’re finally ready to contact agencies, don’t start by mailing an RFP. Unless you have a really big budget, you may not get any replies. Instead, start making phone calls. If they are interested, they’ll set up meetings or phone appointments to get more information. And don’t be surprised if they ask you the questions in this article.
Here are Questions You Should Ask Any Firm Before You Hire Them
Who are the people who will be doing the actual day-to-day work on the account?
Too often, agencies will woo a client with presentations by senior people with impressive credentials but then turn the actual work over to lower-level or relatively inexperienced employees. It is important to know who will actually be doing the work and their qualifications. Are the people who will work on your account the same ones who ran the campaigns in the examples they show you? Ask to meet them also, if possible.
What are the total costs likely to be?
• For long-term work, what is their required retainer? And what does it conver?
• What is not covered? (Many agencies will charge extra for each phone call, fax, copy, news clip, etc. If they do, find out the specific charges)
• What are the hourly billing rates for each person working on the account?
• Will out-of-pocket expenses be billed at cost or marked up?
• What will you be charged for additional requests that are not covered above?
• How will costs be controlled? Will pre-approval from you be required before the target monthly budget is exceeded?
