When marketing budgets are tight, teams may question whether to retain an external PR agency versus handling PR in-house. However, in a 24/7 media environment, fast-growing organizations often need the backing of an external agency to effectively meet the demands of supporting communications with important stakeholders – customers, prospects, employees, investors and more across various platforms.
A full-scale agency brings a level of breadth, depth and expertise in a wide variety of support areas, e.g., media relations, analyst relations, crisis management, social media, employee communications. With this level of knowledge and multiple PR executives to gain insight from, an agency partner can be nimble and provide targeted support as needed.
Also, PR agency executives bring a valuable outside perspective. Making strategic PR decisions can sometimes be difficult for internal executives who are very close to product development and messaging or just stretched thin altogether. For example, gauging whether a new product is newsworthy can be tough. An agency can offer a third-party view and help the internal PR/marketing team make validated decisions as well as help set expectations for the C-suite.
That being said, successful PR agency / client relationships require a supportive PR liaison within the company to drive day-to-day activities, share organizational changes, gain quick access to company executives and more. This collaborative partnership approach offers organizations an ideal combination for generating PR success.