Day: September 2, 2003

When most PR practitioners think of a successful PR case study in crisis communications, we think of Tylenol.  I think that’s fairly universal.

Now when we think of failed PR in a crisis, I think it’s safe to say most of us think of the Exxon Valdez disaster – the worst environmental disaster in the history of the United States.

True?

Except it seems that the Valdez disaster was far from a disaster from Exxon’s point of view. 

In fact they continue to aggressively fight their victims in court, happy that their corporate coffers can easily outlast those of their victims (SCO versus IBM anyone?).

Now while I do know a small number of people who still refuse to purchase anything from Exxon (now Exxon Mobil Corp.), the fact that they are generating $3 million of cash flow per hour, highlights that it hasn’t exactly hurt them and guess what, that makes Wall St. very happy.

Interesting Reuters story.

Regardless of your political affiliations, your beliefs or your nationality, Alastair Campbell, the UK’s most high profile PR practitioner and former advisor to British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, has changed the face of British PR.

I don’t like the term spin and I regularly flinch at how political PRs twist the truth and generally give this profession of ours a bad name.

However, Campbell is a smart operator. Much of his success was down to good strategy, amazing tactical planning and many of the best elements of a successful PR campaign.

Even his departure from government has been well positioned and executed.  I would not be surprised if the spin on his departure, see this story in the UK Guardian, was created by Campbell himself.

Smart, savvy, not without reproach but a consumate showman all the way. And even in adversity, UK journalists were publicly admitting they liked him.

Now that’s an exit strategy.

There is no doubt that choosing a PR firm is one of the single most important decisions a company can make.  Finding and selecting the right firm can make or break a company’s awareness and communication with their target audience and that’s one of the reasons it is so hard to get that decision right.

As a HR Director once put it to me: “How am I supposed to interview a PR guy?” The subtext of course being that if you can’t sell yourself how will you ever “sell” the company.

I’ve worked both sides of the fence.  I’ve put together comprehensive and creative client pitches only to discover after the fact that the client was only going through the motions and they had already made a decision.  I’ve hired, what I considered to be the best agency, only to discover they couldn’t deliver any of what they promised – even though we held up our side of the bargain. Of course I’ve had the corollaries of both of these scenarios as well!

This was prompted by a posting on Capulet’s weblog about a recent webinar on hiring the right PR firm. The seminar was put together by B.L. Ochman of I-PR fame.

From my experience of the process here are some top line thoughts:

 The first step is to make sure your firm is ready to retain an agency in terms of the costs involved and the time you will have to devote.

 Next create a comprehensive brief for all the PR agencies in the process.  The brief should include background on the company and its activities to date, as well as your expectations for the new agency.

 Make it very clear that only the people who will actually be working on the day-to-day account should attend the pitch.  You’d be amazed how often a pitch is loaded with stars you never see again.

 Ensure the agencies you invite have the skills you need for your company.

 The agencies should clearly demonstrate relevant experience in your market (or a closely related one) and working with firms your size.

 Ask for a clear explanation of both consulting and mechanical costs (i.e. courier, telephones etc.)

 Spend time discussing measurement.  How will you measure their success and vice versa.

 Ensure that you are comfortable working with this team.  It may be a clich�ut chemistry between the client and the agency can make or break an account

 Talk with references.  The pitching agency should offer to provide client references.  Ask to talk to previous clients!

 Be realistic.  One of the hardest challenges for agencies is a client with unrealistic expectations. PR takes time, don’t expect everything to happen overnight.

 Ensure you have adequate internal resources to devote to the agency.  There’s a lot of internal work required for a successful PR campaign.  It’s not just about retaining and agency and closing the door.

 If you are nervous about measurement, discuss Service Level Agreements (SLA)

Of course that’s not a definitive list but it’s a start.  Personally I believe creating a successful agency-client relationship is far tougher than any PR discipline.  Great PR partnerships are the result of expertise, hard work, investment and some luck.