F A Q
What is Public Relations?
Public Relations tells your ideal customers through an authoritative third party – like a news publication – why they should trust you with their time and money.
Newspapers, websites, blogs, radio, TV, podcasts, social media and trade magazines are trusted sources of information.
They stake their reputation on sharing accurate, compelling information with their readers.
Your buyers trust them to represent your industry accurately.
A news source telling their readers how great you are carries much more authority than you telling your buyers directly with a paid advertisement.
Who needs Public Relations?
Manufacturing, healthcare, energy, tech, construction and education companies need Public Relations.
You benefit from the advantages of Public Relations if you have a reputation to uphold.
You never know when your credibility will fall under attack from negative reviews and complaints. Prepare yourself.
Do I need Public Relations?
Public Relations defines you and your product before anyone else can.
You can fall prey to inaccurate information posted about you if you don’t get in front of it.
Public Relations establishes and promotes your reputation.
You want the first result when people find you in an online search to describe the incredible work you do.
You don’t want your customers to see a complaint or negative review.
Why should I hire a Pubic Relations firm?
Your marketing becomes scattershot with no focus on a goal without a plan.
Public Relations firms package a strategy for you that includes news media stories, paid/earned online advertising and your website performance.
Public Relations firms also offer off-the-shelf services such as ghostwriting press releases and opinion pieces.
What can I expect from a Public Relations firm?
Public Relations firms will schedule a 2-hour whiteboard session. It is a deep dive into your value and the customers you need to reach.
They will gather their notes and talk with others in your organization to isolate the words you say most often. These are your “keywords.”
They test the words to determine how well they match the words your ideal customers use.
Your Public Relations firm works with you to ensure you feature your keywords on your website, on LinkedIn and in the news publications your customers read.
You attract customers and employees with your same values. You develop trust.
You enter into a long-term partnership that pays dividends for decades.
How much does Public Relations cost?
Public Relations firms bill by the hour, by retainer and by project.
Firms might charge $385 per hour for work with their president or $75 per hour for an account executive. They provide estimates ranging from $5,000 to $500,000 with all of their services.
Challenges with hourly rates include the disincentive to work efficiently and the transactional nature of the relationship.
Other firms bill by retainer. They charge a monthly rate between $1,500 to $200,000 to perform Public Relations work on your behalf. You determine the work you want done and pay them for a number of hours to do it.
Such billing lends itself to confusion over scope and price between firm and client. Unfinished work often results.
The best Public Relations firms quote you a final price with every detail spelled out in language you understand. No fine print.
The investment into your business ranges from $1,195 to 499,999 per project depending upon the scope of work.
You determine the results you want to achieve.
The firm guides you through your best opportunities to get the buyers you want.
Why can’t I just send a press release to an online newswire when I have news?
Nobody will see it.
Online distribution services are mostly disingenuous. Their press releases vanish from the internet in 30 days. The customers you want never go to their websites. No serious reporter would do anything with them.
Public Relations earns your media exposure by identifying the reporters and publications who write about your industry.
Public Relations gets your news in front of specific reporters and publications because they are the most likely to write about you.