PR AGENCY DIARIES: HOW TO WORK WITH AN AGENCY
Whether it was through a quick Google, LinkedIn stalk, personal recommendation, or networking meet - you’ve found your dream PR agency. But what the shiny proposal may not have told you is that no agency can make magic without a little effort on your part.
Once you’re in the flow of things it might feel like your PR team is reading your mind, but every great relationship started with the awkward ‘getting to know you’ stage.
We’ve put together some simple tips to help get those sparks flying.
Tell them how you work
Your contract will cover the basics like regular WIP meetings, reporting, level of activity and monthly KPIs but it won’t get into the nitty-gritty of how the sausage is made. Your agency needs to be inducted just like you would with a new staff member.
Do you hate unexpected calls and prefer a quick text? Like to keep things close to your chest or want your entire team cc’d to make sure nothing is missed? Have a lockdown induced panic response to the Zoom dial tone? Tell your agency!
Lay it all out
When you’re bringing in reinforcements briefing them in might seem like an insurmountable task – it’s not.
Any agency worth their salt will have a simple briefing template or list of questions to help you cut to the chase and get things moving. Just like no one accidentally climbs Everest, it’s a tough ask to deliver a win if you haven’t been told what winning looks like.
Start from day dot
One of the most common PR mistakes is adding it as an afterthought. Spoiler alert, unless you’ve revolutionised marketing (or committed a massive faux pas) journalists aren’t keen to cover your advertising for free.
If earned media is something you crave, bring the PR experts in at the planning stage. You never know - they might (and likely will) give your creative team a run for their money.
Spill your secrets
Forget your hairdresser, your favourite bartender or your best mate – your PR team should be top of the list for getting all the facts.
We’ll happily sign an NDA, meet you on-site or pinky swear but PLEASE don’t ask a PR professional to plan a campaign without sharing the details and assets. Trust us, if your big announcement leaks it won’t be the fault of the people who will end up cleaning up the mess.
On the more serious side, it’s impossible to avoid an issue if you don’t know there is one. If something goes wrong you need to let your PR team know. Better still, anything that gives you cause for concern in advance – we need to know.
There’s no such thing as a stupid question
You’ve hired an agency for a reason, make the most of their expertise – we don’t expect clients to know everything, just like you wouldn’t expect us to know every facet of your business (but we’ll come close 😉).
Let it go
Maybe you are brand new to PR or maybe you’re an expert and just need more hands on deck. Either way, you’ve hired a team you trust so let them get to work. They’ll update you as agreed in advance, call you with any snags and keep you in the loop with wins and milestones so you can crack on without having to hand hold.
Ready to talk? We’d love to chat. Get in touch.
