Why Hire a PR and Communications Agency?
Savvy brands and companies understand that, today, customers consume information in a variety of different ways. Simple advertising no longer cuts it. One investment to make in growing awareness--and thus, business and sales, should that be your goal--is to hire a PR and communications agency. But how do you know when the right time to onboard an agency is, how to choose one, and why?
Let’s start with the why. Why invest in PR and communications? Whether in house or outsourced communications pros, these are the folks that, as part of an overall marketing mix, can grow your brand awareness for the long term. When growing a company, establishing a strong foundation and building brand awareness is key. You can only make a first impression once, but you can also manage a reputation (or grow your visibility) over time.
Investing in PR early sets up for success in the long term in a variety of ways:
Consistent, solid content inspires trust, creates credibility, and builds brand awareness
PR and marketing fuels brand awareness and growth
Provides an ‘insurance policy’ for reputation management--and managing unexpected crises
PR outlasts advertising and breaks through the noise
Builds credibility and tells stories in authentic ways that are specific to target audiences
Establishes the ‘why’ behind your product and company over competitors
Another important consideration is in house vs outsourced PR. Here’s the truth--in house PR can ensure that the right hand is talking to the left hand, and you know you have someone who is super involved in the day to day operations of your communications. But if you choose the right PR agency fit for your business, the agency team can (and should!) become true partners to your in house team AND bring a wider breadth of contacts and expertise.
Because agencies build and experience a variety of different strategies, messages, trends, and results on a daily basis while also reaching a broad swath of media + gatekeepers, the work that they’re doing across clients may be (which we usually see as the case in our business) not only complementary but also beneficial for your business. Businesses who hire agencies do, however, need to ensure that they have a point person internally--preferably one who can see a 30,000 foot view of marketing, sales, and product--to partner with the agency.
Want to chat (honestly!) about if hiring an agency is right for your business? Feel free to reach out to us here. And stay tuned for the second installment of this post, where we’ll walk through how and when to hire an agency.