Five Questions to Ask Your PR Firm Before Hiring Them
With social media changing the way companies communicate with their customers, the PR industry has had to evolve as well.
Today, PR firms aren’t just trying to get media coverage for a company, instead, they develop content, connect audiences and educate and inspire customers. Their influence is different than even five years ago where newspapers were still relevant and Twitter wasn’t even a known word.
Today, when hiring a PR firm, look for one that has evolved with our changing world. They should be offering fresh promotional tactics that merge traditional and social mediums. They should be beyond press releases and press conferences and instead focused on engaging a new realm of communication possibilities.
Here are some questions to ask your PR firm before hiring them:
How do you integrate traditional PR with social media? In their response, look for them to discuss online marketing, social media strategies and that they show a core knowledge of how the functions work together in an integrated, cohesive fashion.
How do you practice what you preach? Ask your PR firm how they promote themselves. Do they do PR, do they have a blog, do they have a social media presence of their own that is well managed and well done? If they tell you they’re too busy helping clients to worry about their PR and marketing, RUN!
Is your company’s blog educational and thoughtful? Review the last 10 blog posts and see if the topics and writing style appeals to you. Perhaps you will learn from their blog posts and that will make you feel stronger about their skill set and how they can help you.
What are your core offerings? PR firms shouldn’t just be focused on getting your company newspapers clips these days. Do they offer online marketing strategies – including blogger outreach, content development and writing services, as well as social media marketing skills?
How does your firm measure success? In PR, measuring success is a tricky question. However, success shouldn’t be a numbers game (i.e., number of press clips, number of followers, etc.) Rather, success should be measured by transparent measures, such as an increased through greater site traffic, greater influence and more inbound links, etc.
How long has your firm been in business? Look for companies that have some experience under their belts – it’s likely those have evolved their services and truly understand how to help you have been around for five or more years.
How long do clients typically stick around? Ask them, on average, how long their clients stay. Look to work with firms who have committed long-term clients that keep coming back month after month, year after year. Verify those commitments by asking for references.
Remember, hiring a PR and social media marketing firm is a decision that should be made after you’ve done your due diligence on a firm. Trust your gut and go with the one that meets your criteria – don’t settle for anything less!