4 Important Questions To Ask When Interviewing A PR Firm
If you’ve made it to the stage of your business where it’s time to outsource your PR strategy, congratulations! Finding the right PR firm for your company is a bit like hiring a new person for your team. It’s important to make sure they’re a good fit for you both personally and for your business goals. To help you during this process, we put together 4 important questions to ask when you’re interviewing a potential PR agency. These questions will help you evaluate their experience and communication styles to make sure they’re a great fit before you ever sign a contract!
Question 1: Do you have PR experience working with brands like mine?
While many PR and marketing strategies apply no matter what type of business you have, it’s important to make sure that your potential PR firm has experience in your industry. For example, if you’re a wedding professional, you’ll want to make sure they’re familiar with the wedding industry and have relationships with the publications and editors you want your work featured with. The same applies if you’re a potential wellness PR client - You need to know that they’re in the know in the wellness industry, and can get you published in the outlets you’re looking for!
For more information on why you should hire an industry-specific PR firm, here’s a recent blog post on why experience matters!
Question 2: Can you share examples of recent press features you’ve landed?
Asking for recent press examples will test their answer to question #1. A strong PR firm for your business will have a press portfolio that you want to be a part of! Where have their clients been featured recently? What types of features were they? Evaluate these features as if they were about you. If you’d like to be included in something similar, chances are they could be a good fit!
Question 3: Do you have accolades or client referrals you can share?
It’s important to know if the PR firm you’re interviewing has a list of current and past clients that would recommend their services. Ask for referrals or accolades in your industry! If you’re a wedding planner, ask for other wedding planner PR clients that would recommend them. If you’re a nutritionist, ask for past nutritionist PR clients that would share their experience with you.
A good relationship between a PR firm and their clients is a great sign that the firm delivers good work and has strong customer service skills. To read more of Be Inspired PR’s client experiences, check out our client accolades page!
Question 4: How often will I hear from my account manager?
Asking what their communication and style frequency looks like is a great way to determine how hands-on their team is with their clients! At Be Inspired PR, we communicate with our clients regularly via email and are always available for check-in phone calls. Our full-time PR and social media management clients also receive monthly status reports that have updates on recent press, upcoming confirmed features, and all of our current projects.
If communication is important to you, you’ll want to know that your styles are a match in advance of signing a PR contract!
We offer a variety of PR packages and options to fit our wellness, lifestyle, and wedding PR clients’ needs. From month-to-month subscription options to long-term agreements, get in touch with our services team today for information on what will be the best fit for your business goals! Don’t forget to ask them these 4 important questions, too!