With the economic uncertainty that has hit American businesses due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s been interesting to watch how brands approach their PR and marketing efforts in response. While some brands are reducing their marketing, advertising and communications budget expenditures, many others are not. So why do some brands keep PR, and even add to their budgets during times of economic uncertainty while some brands have already slashed it?
While there is no one simplified answer, a good guess is that they’re looking at public relations and other media-related efforts as a line-item expense, not as an investment that can positively and measurably impact the brand’s bottom line.
Why Do Brands Cut PR During A Time They Need It The Most?
Public relations is incredibly important, more so now than ever before. When everything is unknown—like when social distancing will end or the effects of COVID-19 after the pandemic has completely slowed—communication is the one thing we have as a society that keeps us grounded and informed. So why would brands cut their PR efforts during this time when proactive communication is critical?
At TrizCom PR, we define PR and its role in a business as the way your brand communicates your messages with the people in your target audience, inspiring them to take the action you want.
By inspiring them to take the action you want, it almost always circles back to revenue—somehow, someway.
This means that budgets are often made up of items or actions that have a return on investment. They should be contributing to the overall goals of the brand, one of which is brand awareness and recognition. Acting as a bridge between awareness/recognition and key audiences, public relations must have a measurable ROI—and it does! When public relations is viewed as an investment and not as an expense, as stated previously, a totally different mindset happens. PR is valued more because it is achieving results, just acting as a box to be checked.
Your Communications Plan
So, how is PR so vital, and how does it provide an ROI? We can review the communications plan structure as an example:
First, you set an overall goal. Then you have a few objectives. Under each objective, you are going to have a lot more strategies, or pathways to achieve your objective, and then you are going to have a bucket load of tactics or means for implementing your strategies to achieve your objectives.
The Problem With PR Tactics
Often, brands hire PR agencies based on tactics alone such as press releases, media placements, social media, byline articles, events, interviews and on and on. Those are tactics. At TrizCom PR, we understand why brands like these. These are fun and often times they are the most requested items from the c-suite. Tactics can easily be put on a to-do sheet and crossed off or box checked.
However, tactics without strategy is kind of like throwing spaghetti onto a wall and hoping a few pieces stick. How do you measure one-offs? Brands who hire their agencies and only get tactics in return often view PR as an expense and most likely have a vendor/client relationship. Vendors are easily cut from budgets.
Expenses that don’t contribute to sales or have a considerable ROI are easily cut from budgets.
So now this question remains—how do you create a solid ROI for PR?
At TrizCom PR, we’re going to let you in on a little secret. It’s not revolutionary, and it’s definitely not rocket science. In fact, it’s a super simple trade secret that has changed the way TrizCom does PR.
When we have a new partner tell us that they want a press release or they want internal communications, we ask one question over and over again.
The one question that we persistently ask and must have an answer to is—
Why?
Yup. That’s all it is! Why?
Why do you need a press release? Why do you need media placements? Why do you need social media? Why do you want to be in Forbes or The New York Times?
Sometimes the answer to the why questions aren’t always that obvious. It can be a bit of a process with a partner to figure it out, but when we have the why questions answered, we identify not only a goal but a measurement metric as well.
Let’s say a potential partner might request the need for a press release. They might be wanting the document because that’s all they think PR does, but when we push back and ask why they need one, it gets interesting. The conversation might start off with “no one knows about us; we are the best kept secret,” but it doesn’t end there. As a public relations firm, we dig deeper and begin asking questions like—
Who needs to know about your brand?
What would you like them to do?
Who needs to know about you?
What do you want them to do?
How will this make you more money?
Your PR Goal
These types of questions continue until we pinpoint a goal because defining the goal means we can be strategic about implementing a plan to reach it. What simply started off as a conversation about needing a press release might just turn into an overarching objective to increase qualified leads, increase attendance to an event or promote a product or service that generates website traffic, and ultimately, sales. Digging deeper to find out how much a brand needs to increase its lead funnel and a timeline means we now have a clear understanding of their business problem that PR can help solve. We can begin to put some measurement metrics behind it and move forward to obtain a brand’s goals.
Press releases are only a tactic used in a public relations plan; it’s just one piece to a much bigger puzzle. By asking the why and digging into what a brand truly needs, a PR firm like TrizCom PR is seen as a partner, not just a vendor.
Ultimately, public relations should be viewed as an investment and not as an expense. Agencies need to be recognized as a partner and not as a vendor. So, if your PR partner is significantly impacting sales in a positive way, why would you cut your PR budget? Especially during an incredibly challenging time when PR could significantly help you.
If you’re curious about the power of public relations, please don’t hesitate to reach out for a free consultation. TrizCom PR believes everyone has a story to tell, so let us help you tell yours.
TrizCom Public Relations
972-247-1369
jo@trizcom.com
www.TrizCom.com
www.PitchPR.co
