A company's reputation is its most valuable asset, therefore whether you are a big or small organisation, local or international, private or public, you will benefit from good public relations.
What is PR and how will it benefit my organisation?
A companys reputation is its most valuable asset, therefore whether you are a big or small organisation, local or international, private or public, you will benefit from good public relations.
But what is PR: The text books define it as: "The determined, planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain mutual understanding between an organisation and its audience".
Range of services available
The services available from a PR company may vary but will always include one or more of the following:
- Media/press relations
- Marketing (of products, services and issues)
- Copywriting
- Website activity, social media
- Media training
- Event and conference organizing
- Strategic planning
- Sponsorship
- Campaign planning and implementation
A good place to start in PR is with press activity. It can help you get more bangs for your pounds... and get you noticed!
In this article we set out the first steps you need to take to ensure you get the best PR available.
So how do you choose a PR company?
The size of your project, your budget and the length of the project will all play a part in deciding whether you appoint an independent or freelance consultant, a small consultancy or a larger consultancy.
The basic rule of all media work, publicity and marketing is to know what you want to say and who you want to say it to. Unless you know these two things you will end up wasting time and money and possibly confusing people.
A good consultant will help you establish the 5 W and the H: who, what, where, when, why and how.
But remember: better press relations and publicity will only be as successful as your product deserves. If you havent done the right market research, or if the quality is poor, or if you are constantly letting down your employees or customers, then the best media coverage and publicity in the world will not help much.
What do you need to do to get the most out of your PR consultant?
- Be clear about what you want them to do and by when? Be clear on your objectives and deadlines, and communicate them succinctly.
- Establish that they can hit the ground running; are able to understand the sectors and your issues quickly and intelligently; can show you how they performed with other companies etc.
- Do you want them to be based in your office or from their own? With email and Internet access, operating from an outside office is as efficient as having someone in the office.
- Who will they work with and what resources will you give them? Sometimes consultants will need to be part of a team and other times they can operate on their own. Make sure your team knows what the consultants role so there is no confusion.
- Be clear on your expectations and set this out at the outset.
- And remember – the job of a good PR consultant is not just to spread favourable news, but to create understanding in good times and bad.
Things the consultant will need from you at the outset to establish what he or she can do for you:
Every PR practitioner will have his or her own information needs. The objectives, your issues, challenges, the expected solution and the available investment should be enough to enable prospective consultants to identify their capabilities for helping you.
A consultant will also need to see a copy of your business plan – a good PR strategy should support the companys overall strategy and goals.
However, you may also be asked for a whole raft of information so its worthwhile taking a moment to collate information on the following:
1. Your organisation your mission and goals and structure
2. Existing communication – publicity material; old press releases; website; social media etc
3. The market such as future potential markets and your competitors,
4. Audiences who are the opinion formers, commentators etc
5. Resources such as company spokespeople and technical expertise; data; research
Getting the best from your relationship
- Trust your consultant. Dont keep secrets that will hinder the relationship or the quality of their advice. And remember: PR/press work done by committee leads to leaden prose and delay.
- Involve them at an early stage in any activities that will require their support – last minute briefing usually means lost opportunities!
- Ensure your top management is aware of the PR goals and are committed to their achievement. The consultant should have full access to people and information.
- Plan and manage all PR activities carefully, but be prepared to act quickly when the consultant advises you it is necessary. News does not wait!
- Give them a clear understanding of the limits to their brief.
- Conduct regular reviews of progress and achievements.
- Agree what constitutes success and measure the results against the benchmark agreed.
And finally ...Remember, just because you read the papers, listen to the radio and watch TV it does not mean you are a PR/media specialist. Driving a car does not make us all mechanics!
Managing your message is an expert activity – it always pays to get affordable PR/media advice.
For a 90 minute consultation, at our expense, please visit our website: http://www.jagpresspublicity.co.uk/contact-us
And why not watch our video about communication available at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_profilepage&v=vgaO-yJPXIc
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