How to tell if your PR person is ‘doin da dance’
I had coffee with a fairly new client today. We had a great talk that included his experiences with a previous PR firm. Although he spent thousands of dollars he didn’t get his expectations met. And so at the end of the contract he was discouraged and the PR firm had a dent in their reputation. Now it’s up to me to redeem his belief in our industry. You know what? I may not do that much differently from the old firm except that I refuse to ‘do the dance.’ Here’s what I mean.
PR is a squishy, unpredictable business. You can make a quick phone call one day and land a huge fish or you can spend three months sending elegant pitches, following up on time, and get nothing. Most business owners know that but you can’t help worrying when those placements aren’t coming in…after all it’s your money. Here’s where the problem starts. Many PR firms decide what they need to do at this point is make you feel good. They come in with some great charts, reports on the flurry of activity that’s going on, hints at big things that may happen….you know…it’s THE DANCE. You feel really good after the meeting but then a week later nothing’s changed and you worry again. And worse, you start to feel like a nag for asking all the time.
I’m telling you, trust your gut. This isn’t rocket science and it’s really easy to see if things aren’t going well. If your PR person is good, they’ll be knocking at your door looking for new angles or trying to expand the media list, or even trying new channels. If things aren’t working, they’ll tell you and ask for your help to find more interesting hooks.
If they’re not so good, or a traditional firm that’s just interested in adding up retainers each month they’ll do the dance. So when your meetings start to look something like this…
it’s probably time to look elsewhere.
Tags: bad pr firms, pitching, PR 2.0, Public Relations, public relations agencies, Small Business, small business promotion
March 12th, 2010 at 1:02 pm
i dont like these kind of business in which you spend money without think what you are going to earn.
anyhow this can be a good experience.
hotelomania
March 15th, 2010 at 5:31 am
You have some honest ideas here. It looks like you have done a research on the issue and discovered.Anyway thanks a lot.I think most peoples will agree with your blog.Keep it up.
March 15th, 2010 at 11:13 am
Helpful post, even if .. i can’t agree to anything here..
But that’s ok.
March 18th, 2010 at 1:02 am
Interesting post now i got some ideas what to expect from my PR guy. And the video was great btw
March 18th, 2010 at 2:17 am
Most industry owners be on familiar terms with that but you can’t help distressing when those placements aren’t coming in…after all it’s your money. Here’s where the quandary starts. Many PR firms decide what they need to do at this point is make you feel good.
March 25th, 2010 at 11:34 am
Interesting article, thank-you, adding the video is a great idea.
April 28th, 2010 at 9:34 pm
I think pretty often clients have expectations that are just way too high. If I have a company that makes widgets, it doesn’t mean that a PR firm can get me on front pages of all newspapers.
May 4th, 2010 at 10:03 pm
Glass,
I agree, that’s why I prefer to pay for results and not on monthly basis.
May 26th, 2010 at 10:16 am
I think past history of a good indicator of how good the firm is.
June 3rd, 2010 at 10:23 am
An absolute minefield, there’s plenty of people out there just happy to take your money
July 6th, 2010 at 11:35 pm
Business owners have to understand that some industries aren’t that hot to PR.
July 15th, 2010 at 1:30 am
There’s so many bad PR firms out there, this is a good help thank-you