Typically, PR planning uses two teams—a team of PR professionals and a team from within the client company. We work both separately and together and develop a strategic plan and tactics (aimed at business to-business and/or business-to-consumer audiences, as the client’s business dictates) and the appropriate tools to use. Talented writers are essential— defining messages and materials in clear and compelling fashion. PR firms write to communicate with clients, with the client’s customers, partners and investors—and as the client’s surrogate for publication (via news releases, bylined articles, speeches, etc.). Within my firm, media relations specialists—professionals who are on the front lines with journalists and other opinion leaders—complement the writing teams. Together, we all plan out the ongoing relationship between the company and our firm.
Each agency-client relationship is different because each client is different. That said, there are certain approaches that guide everything that PR consultants do. Number one: How will the story—the company’s message, as expressed in journalistic language—play out in the media and in the public at large? Ultimately, most PR firms are hired for their news judgment and their ability to anticipate how powerful the story will be; who it should be aimed at; what the potential pitfalls are; and can the company actually deliver on what it is saying. When there is a crisis, message development is critical, so PR firms devote a tremendous amount of time to hone that message, often creating multiple messages for different audiences. If they define the story and messages correctly, other tactics fall into place.
But PR must never forget to focus on how the message will help the business—how it will meet client needs and affect the marketplace. Just as in advertising, brilliant creative can win awards while ad execs neglect the client (and consumers can’t place the brand for all that creativity), so PR must be focused on the client’s needs to make it in the market. Press coverage is vital, but rarely an end in itself.
