News and Insights
The True Value of PR
June 27, 2022
There has never been a better time to work in communications, with 100,000 PR professionals in the UK according to the latest PRCA figures. Here’s why the role of PR in business has never been so important.
Welcome to Boomtown
The PR industry is booming. Whilst COVID-19 has had detrimental effects on many businesses and sectors, it appears the pandemic has had the opposite result when it comes to the desire of securing great PR post-Covid, with an average 18 per cent in the growth of PR agencies globally last year.
According to PR Week’s Top 150 Business overview, aggregate revenue across the UK’s 150 biggest PR agencies surged by almost a fifth last year, a stark contrast to the downturn of 2020 when we were living in very uncertain times.
The level of growth in 2021, PR Week reports, hasn’t been seen since the 2000s when around 20 per cent growth was the norm until the 2008 financial crisis. Businesses and brands now seem to be understanding more than ever the importance of nurturing their comms and the true value of PR.
The importance of public relations
In one way or another, every single organisation in the world relies on its reputation for success.
The role of PR is to build and manage those reputations through the media and influencers and, as such, it’s always important to businesses. Ensuring key messages are seen in the right place, by the right people, at the right time can help build brand allegiance and understanding with target audiences in a way that simply can’t be achieved by advertising alone.
Consistent, positive media attention has the power to transform companies. By keeping the press informed about brands, services and products, and by generating outstanding exposure opportunities, good PR can help raise a company’s profile and build relationships with key audiences, especially when part of a 360-marketing and advertising approach.
The benefits of a good PR strategy
A solid PR strategy will encapsulate excellent message delivery through well-written, newsworthy press releases, pitched to appropriate outlets and delivering quality media coverage across a base of print, digital and social media.
Creating content is also now a huge part of PR strategies, through blogs, vlogs, case studies and more, and working with influencers aligned to the brand.
Crisis comms should also form the basis of any good PR strategy, so a brand is prepared for any negative issues. And assisting with award-entry writing for businesses to stand out and be recognised as leaders in their field is an additional feature of good PR.
How can PRs work more effectively with journalists?
A changing media landscape and journalists busier than ever means a mutually beneficial relationship between journalists and PRs has never been more important.
Journalists want only relevant, well-written, newsworthy content from PRs and to receive only relevant news and insights, targeted to their audiences. PR outreach must be tailored, and insight well researched and produced, to deliver value to both media and represented brands.
Get into PR
The days of long boozy pub lunches, schmoozing media and drinking champagne as portrayed in hit TV show Absolutely Fabulous are long gone, however for those looking for an exciting role in communications, there has never been a better time to get involved. As a trained journalist, personally, I made the move from journalism to PR over 15 years ago and have never looked back.
POSTED BY: Louise Pepper
