I can’t tell you how many times people have asked me when they should hire a communications firm, so I thought I’d put together a blog post on the topic. Based on our experience with successful campaigns, there are several benchmarks a company needs to hit to achieve success with PR and marketing.
As a quick reminder, PR drives different results than marketing. PR campaigns are designed to help you build awareness and credibility for your brand. While generating sales can be a natural byproduct of these efforts, if that’s what you’re really going for, you’ll want to look more toward digital marketing, where you can really measure web traffic to leads to customer conversions.
So, when to go with a pro? I’ll share the top two here on the blog. To get the other three, sign up for our Mission-Driven Marketing Bootcamp email today.
Hire a PR and marketing firm when your organization is facing close competitors
Think MySpace vs. Facebook. Similar platforms, ideas and offerings. In the end, the company that won out was the one that had the most brand recognition and market share. In the case of a close competitor, even if you have a better product, lack of a strong marketing presence means your brand could get lost in the shuffle. One of the best ways to get ahead of close competition is by using high-visibility tactics like PR, social media and regular blogging. A communications firm will help you build a strong strategy, closely aligned with your company’s goals. This “all hands on deck” approach ensures a steady stream of activities that will build awareness and credibility for your company, product or service.
Hire a PR and marketing firm when you’re growing quickly
Fast-paced growth opens your company up to a host of communications opportunities and challenges. If you’re nearing the close of a funding round, expanding into new markets, hiring additional staff, acquiring other companies or approaching an IPO, hopefully you’ve already recognized the need for an experienced firm. If you haven’t, now’s the time to bring one on board. While these high-growth situations are exciting, it’s absolutely essential to lay the foundation for successful communications today and in the future and to shape the narrative around your company or product in the most effective way possible. Equally as important during this time is ensuring your internal team has a clear picture of where the organization is headed and why. A marketing and PR firm that regularly works with high-growth organizations has the depth and breadth of experience to help you leverage successes while also mitigating some of the communications challenges that come along with growth.
Want more? Of course you do! Sign up for Prosper Strategies’ Mission-Drive Marketing Bootcamp email to receive the other three.
