To the chagrin of PR pros everywhere, there is no way to quantify the worth of solid PR representation. How do you place a value on a horrific story that didn’t run or was neutralized before hitting the wires? How do you measure the effectiveness of a PR crisis response? How many dollar signs does one put on being able to say “Well, this could have been much worse”? Or on a well-placed story that changes the entire trajectory of your business?
Depending on how you look at it, PR could be one of the most cost-effective ways to build and protect a reputation. A few thousand dollars for a well-placed story raises your profile? It’s a bargain! But because there is just no direct link between PR and sales, it may be difficult to justify an ongoing cost. That however depends on your goals.
In some fields, like, for example, politics, PR representation is an absolute must. It’s an integral part of any political campaign because campaigns live in the media and require both proactive and reactive public relations. In our three decades as one of the top political PR firms in New York, no political client ever questioned what they were paying us for. They know.
No matter how big an advocate for a cause a candidate might be, it won’t do any good if nobody knows about it. And ads don’t carry the same kind of credibility as news stories do because, unlike in ads, in news stories you don’t need to toot your own horn. With the right PR in the news stories, someone else does it for you.
And on the flip side, when an opponent tries to smear you, response must be instantaneous, hard-hitting and effective. News moves fast and having the right script at the ready and the right reporters on speed dial can make all the difference.
Outside of politics, PR crisis clients often come to us one news cycle too late. If they come to us as soon as the first media inquiry comes in, instead of after the story first appears, they are already a step ahead of most. And what we have to make up for lack of time, is contacts and expertise. And, of course, speed.
Our top executives are themselves former reporters. They know how reporters think, what questions they are likely to ask, how to best shape the response. They know which stories have legs, as they like to say. And just as importantly, they personally know a great many reporters.
Our PR crisis work begins before we even hang up the phone. We collect background, we draft statements, we prepare a response. We build a protective layer between our clients and the media, a space that gives our clients time to consider their response. The media is not expecting that a PR firm would know the answer. We can tell them we don’t know and we will get back to them. Clients cannot obtain this benefit of time if they are the ones directly on the phone to answer the press. The clients would be expected to know the answer on the spot.
Depending on scale, scope and stage of the crisis, the entire ordeal could be over in a matter of hours or a couple of days. With a lot of skill and a little luck, the most successful outcomes may leave our clients feeling a little silly for having panicked at all. But it was over so quickly. How much should that really cost?
Jerry Seinfeld had a skit about the check coming after the meal. When you are hungry, you order to your heart’s content, not worrying about prices. You are excited about the meal. Then you have eaten and you sit there, pants unbuttoned, cigarette in the mashed potatoes (it’s an old skit) and you are confused by the amount on the check. Seems like too much.
It seems common in the field of public relations, where the product, unlike the meal in Seinfeld’s skit, isn’t even tangible. It sounds great, but people have a hard time putting their finger on why it’s worth the price. It’s no wonder why. Reputation is, in fact, something quite priceless.
