Starting Up Your Own PR Agency

Have you ever considered starting up your own PR agency; but have been daunted by the enormous challenge you face? If so, I have listed some key factors that you should consider before embarking on such a massive project.

When starting up your own PR agency it is vital that you carry out due diligence and make your plans accordingly. You will need to identify your niche market, as well as highlighting what it is that sets you apart from other agencies. On the practical side; you will need to devise and implement a company structure and a system of keeping track of your work.

What You Offer

What areas will your PR agency specialise in? Will you focus on B2B? Information and technology? Consumer affairs? Or the rich and famous? You will also have to decide whether you will be an international or domestic agency. If it's the former, which countries will you focus on? Will you concentrate on print, broadcasting media or digital?

You may opt to position yourself across various sectors and territories. This can often be a difficult position to succeed in as the PR industry prefers agencies to specialise in one specific niche. However, if done correctly, this method can be very rewarding.

What services would your agency offer? Your choice is likely to include any number of the following; media relations, event management, social media, website design and development, media training and strategy.

What can your PR agency deliver that other agencies cannot? What makes you unique? Identify your strengths and shout them from the rooftops to potential clients.

Legal & Accountancy

Will your PR agency be a limited company, partnership or act as a sole trader? Once you have decided; speak to your accountant. You will have to discuss payroll, self-assessment and your tax liabilities. Prepare yourself for the demanding administration duties that running a PR agency entails and be aware of the fines that are incurred by missed deadlines.

Contact a lawyer and draw up client engagement agreements and employee contracts. Make sure you have the correct insurance to cover all professional eventualities and open up a business bank account.

Join business institutions so that you can benefit from specialist help, advise and resources. This could save you a lot of money in lawyer fees for services that are usually free for professional business institute members.

Partners and Employees

List the skills that you have available in your PR agency and then list the skills you require to make the agency a valuable proposition. If you decide to bring in partners, make sure you have a strategy in place if it doesn't work out. Before you hire employees, define their role and responsibilities very clearly.

Reduce the confusion and complications of employee turnover by creating staff handbooks, these will also reduce the learning curve of new recruits and instil firm procedures and values that everyone can become familiar with.

Promotion

Self promotion is vital for any fledgling business. Build up a strong and distinctive brand that is instantly recognisable. Create a website to spread your message and employ online social networking sites to communicate and engage potential customers.

Organise yourself for pitches with business cards, credential sales documents, creative templates and a list of contacts that you should follow up regularly. Dedicate time and effort to networking in order to generate potential business. Establish working partnerships with marketing agencies in non-competitive areas that can lead to mutual sources for referral.

Register with business listings and PR directories and let your contacts know that you have launched your agency. Attend meetings and conferences to communicate your businesses unique qualities outlining how they can benefit from your services.

Collaboration Software

To help keep track of time sheets, documents, images and other assets within your PR agency it would be wise to purchase project collaboration software. This will aid the smooth running of projects that are being worked on by more than one person.

CRM programmes will similarly assist in the management of business leads and customers, as well as keeping track of the multitude of emails being fired backwards and forwards each day.

Media request services can also be easily managed with media databases and press cutting services, enabling you to build excellent relationships with journalists, helping to maximise media coverage for your clients.

With thorough research and considered planning, you should now have the basics to start your own PR agency. If you would like any more information, please do not hesitate to contact us here at HROC, we are a public relations agency with years of hands on experience. We would be glad to help you make a success of your business.

How to Grow Your Business With Public Relations

The field of public relations (PR) has been around for years, and during this time the professionals in the world of PR have mastered the art of helping businesses and individuals alike, gain favor in the public eye. While many know PR experts help celebrities and big businesses effectively handle scandals and other issues with ease and grace; these professionals can help your business in other ways as well. In fact many small businesses in the past few years have found that hiring someone to provide PR services is just what they need to get their small business off the ground so they can start seeing the professional growth they are looking for.

When it comes to really growing a small business, one of the most important things you can do is to raise awareness about your company. In fact, one of the biggest things that prevent companies from reaching the level of success they want and the type of revenue they need to be successful is because not enough people know their company even exists. Many times it is simply a lack of awareness, and not a feature or anything the company is doing wrong that leads to failure. This is where PR services come in.

Since most small businesses have smaller budgets than their larger counterparts, a good PR campaign is often a very smart choice, as these companies can get more for their money when they choose to use PR instead of advertising, while still getting similar or comparable results. Oftentimes one of the biggest ways PR experts help build awareness for a small business is through third party endorsements and coverage of a product or service; which is often the media endorsing or mentioning a specific product, company or service because a public relations expert set it up that way.

The reason this is so effective when compared to traditional advertising techniques, is because the customer doesn't necessarily realize they are being sold a product or service directly, and they view the information in a different way. When a customer reads an advertisement, they know the company is there making promises, using jargon and trying to push or sell a service or product. When the customer hears the product or information being endorsed by a third party, they are more likely to openly receive this information because they are hearing it more as a recommendation, and are not overrun with sales or advertising jargon or schemes. This is how many PR professionals have helped small businesses get on the map, and how these professionals can help your small business get the recognition it deserves.

Terry L. Green, President of BizEase Support Solutions, and her team of qualified online support specialists, provide seamless online marketing implementation, technology and administrative support solutions to speakers and business coaches worldwide. Visit http://www.bizeasesupport.com to find out how partnering with BizEase can help you grow your business, have more time, and make more money.blic Relations

The field of public relations (PR) has been around for years, and during this time the professionals in the world of PR have mastered the art of helping businesses and individuals alike, gain favor in the public eye. While many know PR experts help celebrities and big businesses effectively handle scandals and other issues with ease and grace; these professionals can help your business in other ways as well. In fact many small businesses in the past few years have found that hiring someone to provide PR services is just what they need to get their small business off the ground so they can start seeing the professional growth they are looking for.

When it comes to really growing a small business, one of the most important things you can do is to raise awareness about your company. In fact, one of the biggest things that prevent companies from reaching the level of success they want and the type of revenue they need to be successful is because not enough people know their company even exists. Many times it is simply a lack of awareness, and not a feature or anything the company is doing wrong that leads to failure. This is where PR services come in.

Since most small businesses have smaller budgets than their larger counterparts, a good PR campaign is often a very smart choice, as these companies can get more for their money when they choose to use PR instead of advertising, while still getting similar or comparable results. Oftentimes one of the biggest ways PR experts help build awareness for a small business is through third party endorsements and coverage of a product or service; which is often the media endorsing or mentioning a specific product, company or service because a public relations expert set it up that way.

The reason this is so effective when compared to traditional advertising techniques, is because the customer doesn't necessarily realize they are being sold a product or service directly, and they view the information in a different way. When a customer reads an advertisement, they know the company is there making promises, using jargon and trying to push or sell a service or product. When the customer hears the product or information being endorsed by a third party, they are more likely to openly receive this information because they are hearing it more as a recommendation, and are not overrun with sales or advertising jargon or schemes. This is how many PR professionals have helped small businesses get on the map, and how these professionals can help your small business get the recognition it deserves.

Terry L. Green, President of BizEase Support Solutions, and her team of qualified online support specialists, provide seamless online marketing implementation, technology and administrative support solutions to speakers and business coaches worldwide. Visit http://www.bizeasesupport.com to find out how partnering with BizEase can help you grow your business, have more time, and make more money.

Implementing A Successful Public Relations Campaign

It is a common misconception in this day and age that all a company needs to do as a PR campaign is write a press release for its product or services, sell it to the media and then sit back and watch the customers come flooding in, if only it were that easy. This may work for some as a short-term boost, but how long do you think that press release is going to stay in print and at the top of online searches for? The answer is probably a week, maybe two if you're lucky.

It takes time to create a successful Public Relations campaign, and each one involves many different elements that have to suit the particular product or service being promoted, below is a list of some of the most important areas to consider when setting up the press release part of your campaign.

    * Firstly it is important to make your product or service newsworthy so the media will want to promote it and the public will want to find out more about it. Think about ways you can make your services or products stand out, or what makes them unique to others in the market, having a unique selling point is essential to set your product apart from all the others out there.

    * Write a press release that is concise and articulate. Detail the benefits of your products or services and why people need it, but be careful not to make any false claims as this could have a very negative effect on all of your hard work when uncovered. Make it interesting and informative, don't just see it as a glorified ad as this will put the media and your audience off straight away. Supply photos and any reviews of your product or services you may have as this will back up your claims and provide more interest.

    * research the companies you wish to send your press release too and make sure they are suitable for your product or service, there is no point sending a press release about your car part supplier company to a mother and baby magazine. Targeting the correct market is vital to ensure success. When compiling the list of media outlets you wish to submit your release to try to add as much detail as possible, such as the name of the person you will be sending it to and the department that the release will go to, also look into how they like to receive them, some are happy with an email whilst others may prefer to receive a hard copy in the post