Author
Looking for a San Diego-based Public Relations firm, but you don’t know what to seek for your business? Ask yourself these questions first:
- What are your needs?
- What services are you looking for?
- What is your timeline?
- Does the team you’re considering act as an extension of your business?
- How much are you willing to budget for the services you are seeking?
- How do you measure success, and what is your overarching goal?
Understand your needs – Services and Goals
When choosing a PR firm, YOU have the authority to be selective for YOUR business. The firm you choose should both align with your mission, build your brand, and represent your business's goals and values, while also being a trustworthy partner with whom you can foster a strong working relationship.
To effectively engage a PR firm that can drive your business growth, it's essential to lay the groundwork. Start by analyzing the story you wish to convey, identifying your target audiences, establishing clear objectives, and defining specific goals you aim to address through their services. By keeping these crucial considerations in mind, you'll be better equipped to make an informed decision when selecting a partner capable of facilitating your business's desired expansion.
PR firms can specialize in areas beyond PR, including marketing, advertising, social media and more. Keep in mind PR builds your reputation so other channels of marketing hold a great potential for supplementing any PR efforts as well. To select a firm best suited to your goals, you must decide what services you’re looking for and how you want them executed.
Some services offered by PR specialists include:
- Reputation management
- Social media
- Speech writing
- Press releases
- Event planning
- Media relations
- Crisis management
- Outreach
- Consulting
Full-service PR firms will offer an array of additional services beyond PR including:
- Branding
- Analyst relations
- E-commerce business strategies
- Investor relations
- Labor relations
- Public affairs
- Site traffic
- Product placement
- Market research
- Internal copywriting
- Marketing strategy
- Media training
- … and more.
When considering the services you require, it's crucial to establish a realistic timeline. Think long term about the duration of your service needs and the desired length of your partnership. It's essential to bear in mind that maintaining a professional and positive relationship with your PR firm can pave the way for mutually beneficial future opportunities for both parties.
Experience, Expertise and Knowledge of the PR Team
The team you partner with should act as an extension of your business and goals. This should be one of the most determining factors when it comes to choosing a PR agency that you want to represent you. You want a firm that can adequately, genuinely and effectively represent your brand. This relationship will be contractual and one of the most frequent connections you’ll interact with on a weekly to daily basis. The firm you choose, you are essentially trusting with your business and brand voice.
Depending on the services you need to be completed, you want to choose a firm that is 1) experienced in your niche and 2) experts in media strategy for your target market. Because you are searching for San Diego firms, you want to choose a firm with local expertise, but a global reach.
By choosing a company with San Diego expertise, they can leverage their local relations with media outlets and influencers, all while understanding the intricate facets of the San Diego market. On top of it, if you are a San Diego company it is always nice to have a team that you can meet face-to-face. Just because the firm is local does not mean they can only reach a local audience. Most PR firms are equipped on a national level and can reach a national audience as well.
Another factor worth considering during your research is the company size of potential firms. Larger companies often handle a greater volume of clients, employ more systematic approaches, and may have less flexibility to tailor strategies to your specific niche. On the other hand, boutique agencies can provide more room to concentrate exclusively on your business, offer one-on-one meetings for inquiries and status updates, deliver more frequent content, provide on-site representation, and build stronger relationships.
When deliberating a PR firm team consider these questions:
- Are they a good fit?
- Are they subject matter experts?
- Do they understand your business vision?
- Would you actually ENJOY working with them?
Pricing and Contracts
Your budget to services ratio needs to be realistic and deliverable. Prices of services vary depending on the associated costs and factors of the PR projects requested. Some of the factors that can influence the price of services are scope of work, expertise, agency size, geographic location, industry complexity and performance metrics.
These are the different ways PR firms may charge:
Retainer fees: A client pays a fixed fee for a set number of hours of PR services on a monthly or quarterly basis. This model provides clients with a predictable cost and dedicates a specific number of individuals who will work on their account.
Hourly rates: Charging by the hour is based on how much actual time was spent by the agency working a client’s account. This pricing is generally used when necessary or for short-term projects.
Fixed rates: A set rate is designated to a certain service and generally used for project-based pricing.
Performance-based pricing: PR firms are compensated based on the results delivered, and agencies who price this way commonly align project goals with compensation.
Your Goals and Measuring Success
What is your overarching goal and how will a PR agency help you achieve those goals?
When your business does not have the capacity or resources in-house to craft the right messages to the right audience to build a stronger reputation – that’s where PR comes in. When done correctly, PR has the ability to transform the future and profitability of a business.
Medium and large companies usually always need PR to enhance their reputation, build credibility for their company and/or need executive guidance to change the way people think about their business.
Smaller companies usually only need PR if they have news to share. Why? Because PR can be a costly expense and, unless you have news to share, the expense may not outweigh the benefit in investing in PR at the moment. Generally, smaller businesses also need more help to build a more prominent online presence when starting up.
Always remember, PR takes time. It does not happen overnight.
Think of the results you are seeking. As mentioned above, different firms specialize in various industries, meaning they can deliver a series of results. Here are some results that you may be seeking:
- Videography and photography
- Content creation
- Marketing – influencer, email, digital and more
- Site traffic
- Search engine optimization
- Positive PR buzzes
- Boosting your social media
- Increase in sales
- Building your online presence
- Web design
- Brand identity
Everyone wants the best return on their investment, it ultimately comes down to who is the best fit for YOU. By researching and comparing services, expertise and price points offered by different companies, you can make a more informed decision on which San Diego PR firm will best tailor to your needs and goals.
