22 Oct Public Relations Firms Need to Grow out of the 90’s | Stop Retaining Lazy Firms

Do PR Firms still have Commodore 64 Computers that Power Their Campaigns?

One of my internet brands is a popular destination for the urban community. Blackatlanta.com has allowed me years of learning.  Not only has it seeded my education of in design, development, analytics, ecommerce, lead and customer generation, and other major areas of the Interactive Marketing space, but it has allowed me to key in on great business development deals with small to even Fortune 500 companies.

The perplexing thing for me, that I’ve observed OVER and OVER again is the played and frankly #dead PR move of a firm’s employees or interns sending us the following:

• A word or PDF document
• A lazy email request asking us to post to our site.

There are many guilty small and global firms.  I will keep their names confidential. I digress.

I did a quick Google Search with the following keywords “PR Public Relations Retainers Cost” and was amazed to find the following average costs.

Further investigation on my Google Search shows that the firms are locking in their clients with 12 month contracts.

What?   Seriously? For Really “doe”?

It is time for a double-pronged revolution and paradigm shift in the Public Relations arena, both for the firm’s client AND for the media outlet by which the PR firm depends.

The client…

1. Stop signing agreements with firms that simply send out that lazy Word Doc.  Look for special gem PR firms… those that will go over and beyond to get your campaign noticed.  How about those who will create a video to top media outlets to get your story picked up?  Or what about those who will prove unique relations with media instead of 2001’s emailed word doc?
2. Start signing agreements with companies who will challenge YOU to invest back in your media campaign with product give aways and contests.
3. Start doing Public Relations business with those firms who have a rich understanding of Social Media, have established THEIR OWN social personas that enable them to Tweet out to channels that are in your campaign demographic.
4. Do business with those firms that can show you results via METRICS.  Stop doing business with those firms that just give you a link to a website where they got your press release posted.  If you just wanted that, then PRWeb.com has services from $80 to $360 that will get you the SEO value and Associated Press value that you want.
5. Get with a company that will help you figure out when a press release is posted, how many times it was opened and how many times it was LIKED on Facebook and/or Retweeted on Twitter.  Make your PR Firm come up and PROVE their Digital Marketing Skills.
6. Retain a company that will socialize and EVANGELIZE your brand by creating custom landing page experiences and microsites for your initiative, rich with media that will INFLUENCE a media outlet to WANT to do an article or feature on YOU.

The Media Outlet…

The blogosphere is rich.  Google rewards those of you with content-rich, niche specific focuses.

1. Start making the PR firm either invest in YOU or YOUR READER.  That concert that the PR firm is trying to get you to plug…. Ask them where your seats will be!  Challenge them and ask them what part of their retainer is set aside to incentivize and reward your efforts.
2. Be prepared to show the Media Outlet your Media Kit…. Where you have proven with analytics what your reach is!  Show them how you’ve taken campaigns and gotten social value through ReTweets to Twitter followers who have subsequently retweeted you!
3. Look into analytics packages that will show value in your RSS feeds and how and if your content is syndicated on other major sites.
4. Understand that if the firm reaches out to you, that they SEE VALUE in your firm, even if you are one of 300 outlets that they have hit up.
5. Be confident in your niche. The firm is banking $60K a year for retainers.  This normally does NOT include products and other budgets they have to place in the hands of people who will really add value to their campaign.  Confidently ask and selectively choose what you post on your site.

I think that the biggest thing to take away from this RANT is that PR Firms should

• Revamp and include measurable metrics and results for their clients
• Come out of the dark ages of poorly structured word processor docs
• Create client experiences that will add value to you as a PR customer.
• Incentivize and partner with strategic outlets that will bring the most value to a campaign.

It’s time for Public Relations firms to move to the next pasture.  They’ve been grazing too long.