PR Agencies are Branching Out in Their Services
In a recent article published on Econsultancy, they talk about how this research has made PR Agencies look at their strategies and styles, and look a bit closer to home on how to develop themselves within the industry and try to investigate the already existing innovative methods.
There have been a series of case studies based on a selection of UK PR agencies that use innovation to future-proof themselves. The five top tips are:
- Always put the client first.
- Knowing when to specialise.
- Engaging all employees.
- Stand out from the crowd.
- Employees are the greatest asset in PR.
There seems to be a divide amongst the PR industry, about whether they are a generalist or specialist PR company. Many in-house teams are broadening their expertise by taking on a community management system in order to carry out a social media strategy.
Most PR agencies are now considering a varied selection of options in order to meet a client’s criteria. They know that media relations isn’t always the answer in PR and should be prepared for other techniques.
By encompassing different skill sets and branching out into more areas of the PR industry, it can be easy to lose the essence of what makes you stand out from other marketing agencies. Not only do many PR agencies need to consider who to employ but they also need to think about the skills they can offer to the client and why they are relevant for them.
Because of the now varied techniques used in the PR industry, it’s leaving many with questions about whether or not agencies can really add value. Over the last 12 months, there has been a 16% growth in demand for Online Reputation Management services from PR agencies.
All of this extra work that PR employees are taking on, requires new skill sets and training, something that a lot of employers are not supplying. The same research found that 70% of PR staff receiving new digital training said the training was small to moderate.
At a time when increasing an employees skills to match their new tasks should be at the top of any agency’s priority list, it seems that little is being done to ensure an employee’s digital education is adequate enough for the rise in fees and work, not only for the clients but for the employees themselves.
At Igniyte, we guarantee that if we move into a new area of PR, marketing or Online Reputation, we offer the same level of training and service to our staff, as we do with the promises to our clients.
