I got asked a direct question recently: What could I (as a PR agency) do that they (a startup) could not do themselves?
The simple answer is not much. The more complicated answer is that there are several advantages of using an agency as opposed to doing it yourself.
- The media connections: The agency would have been working with the media for some time now – either on a personal basis or as an agency. More often than not, they are familiar with the media as the editor that could potentially be writing the story. It would be a “hi it’s Mita, I have a story that would be a good fit for what you normally cover” rather than start from scratch introducing not only yourself but your company and having to build your media database from scratch.
- Optimising your time: You are the expert in your field and the PR agency is an expert in theirs. By delegating the task to the expert and letting them get on with the job, you would be free to focus on running your business and its growth.
- An outside view: Sometimes, as a start-up, cannot always see the story options. What you might think is a good story angle may not necessarily work with some of the media you are interested in targeting. You may not always see the other story options that an outsider might be able to point out. “Wood for the trees” idiom comes to mind.
It is quite simple. If you can afford it or have budgeted for it, why not use the experts to kick start your communications and building your reputation. For some guidelines on how you can evaluate an agency, check out an earlier blog post.
