The New York Times story below referenced a study by University of Southern California Annenberg Strategic Communication and Public Relations Center on the impact of the recession on PR budgets.
Clearing my inbox I realized that I had meant to blog about this study back in February… ahem!
There are some interesting findings on how PR is doing in the current economic environment….
Budgets
- 40% of the 200 organizations surveyed have had their current year budget reduced – with 27% reporting an increase in budget.
- 41% attribute this to the economic downturn (6% believe it has nothing to do with the downturn – they probably don’t read the papers);
- The average decrease was –18.8% the average increase was 16.2%
- 51% report year-on-year budget reductions (average –19.3%) – 18% report increases (average 14.2%)
- Overall PR budgets among the 200 companies have fallen 10.8%
Agency Spend
- 69% are planning to reduce agency fees and 28% have already done so
PR Staff
- 63% do not expect to reduce full-time headcount – 15% will increase headcount
Staff Compensation
- 93% do not expect to reduce compensation while 39% expect pay freezes
You can get a copy of the results at:
Murphy's Law 