Has the time come for marketers to redefine the role of PR agencies?

With PR agencies donning more than conventional hats to fit the needs of clients, we assess if the clients are finally getting the most out of their PR partners. 

The functions of PR have come a long way from when the agencies were all about getting the brands on the front pages of the newspapers, or diluting any unfavourable discussions surrounding the clients. Now, the PR agencies are also actively involved in how the brand intends to position and market itself.

The evolution also warrants a certain level of paradigm shift in the kind of metrics used to measure the vitality and purposefulness of PR agencies. For a lot of the brands, PR agencies are often considered a supplementary addition to their already existing marketing strategies. But what can brands do to get the most out of their PR agencies?

In a panel discussion held at CommuniCon 2023, afaqs! hosted some prominent heads of PR and Corporate Communications industry, who shared their valuable insights on the question. Bhawna Gupta, who is the director client relations, Hill+Knowlton Strategies, highlighted how the client-PR relationship stands at the moment, with the changes required to make the dynamic more productive. She said, “When a client understands that a PR agency is their communications partner, the who’s able to answer or solve a certain challenge for them, the storytelling starts from there. When that is not the case, the collaboration falls apart.”

Gupta also pointed out that typically, we’ve come to expect that brands tend to leave out PR agencies from synergy meetings which involve other bodies such as social media agencies, and influencer agencies, amongst others. But things are gradually changing, she suggests. 

“PR agencies are generally only told what to do. But we are seeing changes. Whenever there is a synergy meeting, PR agencies are called because the messaging has to be the same. The communication effort has to be collaborative.”

Gupta believes that when a client sees a PR agency as an equal partner, it works for everyone. 

Smita Basu Roy, head - corporate communications, Godrej & Boyce, has seen the entire space evolve over the last two decades. She suggests that while we’ve reached a point where PR agencies are now actively involved in decision-making meetings, there is also a need for the agencies themselves to structure their efforts towards the client’s business goals. 

She says, “We often see at a very pitch stage or at an annual review stage where the advisory comes and talks about some business goals that are in place, with some data and stats. But the ones who are working on the ground, the grassroots level members of your team, are unable to map that business needs to your communication goals. So I think there is a bit of, you know, work to be done from both sides.”

Beyond getting the right media coverage, are there any other metrics that PR agencies should focus on to yield better results for their clients? Sulakshna Mukherjee, GM & head of department - corporate communications, McDonald’s India, points out that agencies need to talk about the larger picture for a client, with an integrated approach. 

“It is about the messaging. If there is a communication challenge, how is the messaging going to be? For instance, PR partners (should also be able to determine) between traditional media, influencers, social platforms, or something else. This integrated approach of a trusted partner is what leaders are looking at from a measurement point of view.”

With many youngsters embracing the field of PR, is there a lack of awareness of what is possible for the PR agencies to muster for clients? Lavang Khare, who is the senior vice president of Adfactors PR, believes that the newer employees of the industry who belong to a younger cohort have more to contribute to the industry than what is generally perceived. 

She said, “The people the youngsters that we work with today are the most intelligent and the most progressive with what they bring to the table. I think we all learn from them on a day-to-day basis and the learning never stops. They are so intelligent, knowledgeable, and they want to be actually part of everything that's happening tomorrow and not today. That's what makes the difference. And I know a lot of my friends in the media world who are journalists like you appreciate the kind of input that's coming in. So the world has changed and that's what we were discussing earlier.”

A lot of the top PR heads of the industry have had their fair share of experience on the client’s side of things. The swaps of this nature are often very productive for building a more formidable dynamic between PR and corporate clients. But there is also an element of conflict, often stemming from friction in ideas. Tarunjeet Rattan, managing partner, Nucleus PR, tells the panel that the industry is going through a state of flux, where with the swaps, the definition of PR has somewhat evolved. She suggests that while the exchanges of executives helps generate more ideas, which ideally takes the industry forward, there is a room for battle lines to be drawn as well. 

“I think the entire space is in a state of flux, which is a great place to be in because this is where we will get ideas in terms of where and how we move forward as an industry. But when that happens, battle lines are definitely drawn at some point in time. But I would say that it depends on the individual to be able to be mature enough to be able to understand that yes, I know a part of the job,” she said.

You can watch the entire panel discuss the intricacies of PR industry, and the essentials required for it to move forward below.