Offering your customers exceptional products and services is incredibly important for running a successful business. However, unless you have a great public relations (PR) strategy in place, you’ll find it difficult to reach your target audience and stand out from the competition. The way you present yourself to the world is a key factor in your success, and that’s where PR agencies come in. So, how do you go about finding the right PR agency for your business? Well, there are a few key things you need to look for.
1. Trust And Experience
Since the entire point of a PR agency is to carefully craft your image and message to the public, it only makes sense that their image is solid as well. A company that’s been in the business of public relations in Australia for decades notes that it’s important for a PR agency to take pride in the fact it has a lot of returning customers. It’s a sure sign that the company is trustworthy and experienced. Do your research and ask around to see if anyone has had a good or bad experience with the agency you’re considering. Also, take a look at their website and social media to get an idea of their style and tone – do they seem like a good fit for your company? You don’t want to partner with an agency that doesn’t share your same values and goals.
2. Personalized Strategies
A good PR agency will take the time to get to know your business inside and out, so they can develop a personalized strategy that will reach your target audience. Of course, there are some key things that you can’t skip no matter what your business is – like a comprehensive SEO strategy, but an experienced and reputable PR agency will know all of the ins and outs of your specific industry and be able to help you create a campaign that’s tailored just for you. They should ask a lot of questions about your company, products, and target market in order to suitably tailor your PR campaign. If an agency isn’t interested in learning about your business, it’s probably not the right fit since they’ll probably just offer the very basic services you don’t really need an agency for.
3. Media Relations And Monitoring
A good PR agency will have a strong media relations department with plenty of connections in the industry. They should also be keeping track of all online and offline conversations about your company so they can jump on any opportunities that arise. Having someone who’s always monitoring the conversation about your brand and acting quickly when there’s news to share or a crisis to handle can be the difference between a successful PR campaign and one that falls flat. Make sure to ask an agent about their media relations and monitoring capabilities before signing on with them. While it’s always better to already have a PR team on your side before anything of note happens, you also want to ensure they have the skills and experience needed when it comes to crisis PR management. That involves knowing how to act fast and efficiently to diffuse any negative situations.
4. How They Work With Influencers
In the current PR landscape, partnering with influencers is more important than ever. A good PR agency will have a solid strategy for working with influencers and know how to contact the right ones for your brand. They should also be able to develop creative content ideas that will appeal to the influencer’s audience. If an agency isn’t familiar with influencer marketing, it probably means that they are more focused on traditional media outlets. Depending on your target audience and your niche that might still work. However, it’s always better to seek professionals that offer a broader scope of services so you’re not limited in your options. Ask them how they work with influencers and what kind of results they’ve seen in order to get a better idea if it’s the right approach for your brand.
5. Results-Driven
Any good PR agency should be able to show you tangible results from their work. This could be an increase in website traffic, social media followers, or even leads and sales. Ask them to share some case studies with you so you can see how they’ve helped other businesses in a similar situation as yours. If they seem to be promising amazing results in a short time span, you might want to take that with a grain of salt. PR is about people, and people aren’t a program that will instantly respond to whatever input you put into it. It takes time and effort to build a successful PR campaign, so make sure to ask an agency how long they think it will take to see results and be realistic about what you can expect. A week sounds better than 6 months, but 6 months might be more accurate.
6. Content Marketing Services
Content is king, and any good PR agency should be able to help you create content that’s both engaging and on-brand. They should have a team of writers and editors that can help with everything from blog posts to social media updates to even longer-form content like eBooks and whitepapers. Some agencies don’t have a team of writers, and that’s fair – but they should be able to guide you in your content-making efforts in order to see the best results. Providing you with information about which topics are trending for your industry right now, what kind of tone is best used for your target audience, as well as giving you tips on how to make your content stand out from the rest is essential for a successful PR campaign. If this is something an agency isn’t willing to do, it might be time to look for someone else.
7. Technology Tools/Infrastructure
In order to be effective, a PR agency needs the right tools and infrastructure in place. This includes things like a strong media list, social media management tools, and a good distribution network for your content. Without these essential pieces in place, an agency will struggle to do its best work. Ask potential agencies about the technology tools they use and how up-to-date they are. Of course, taking the time to have a staff member personally go through every step of a campaign is always best. That said if the PR agency you’re considering is constantly trying to get you to focus on their hands-on approach while being dodgy about the tech tools they use, that should set off some alarm bells. That could very well mean that they aren’t keeping up with current trends at all, which is definitely not a good sign.