MxMIndia

Category: PR

  • The core business advantage of deep pockets that multinational firms have been known to leverage upon, may not be a potent gamechanger any longer, writes Siddhartha Mukherjee

    Siddhartha Mukherjee: Indian standalone PR Firms are fighting back!

    By Siddhartha Mukherjee

     

    There was a time when the advent of multinational PR firms into India was seen as bullish and a fresh breath of air! Clients became happy expecting “international standards”, “western learnings”, “professionalism”, “customisation”, “strategic inputs instead of tactical, table and chair management services” and so on. Which is why, paying a premium service fee did not receive too much of a resistance.

     

    As for the employee base, they expected better work environment, training and development, a respectable employee identity and fatter pay package.

     

    Well, the dust is settling down now. The air is clearing up! The reality on the ground is becoming kind-of visible. Basis the feedback I have received from various corporates and industry captains, who have worked with/for both multinational and Indian PR firms, it seems the desi players are fighting back and setting their own innovative standards.

     

    An eventual conclusion can also be that, if this trend continues, the core business advantage of deep pockets (allowing wait-and-watch patience), that multinational firms have been known to leverage upon, may not be a potent gamechanger any longer.

     

    Let us look at what the Indian PR firms are doing to fight this battle:

    a. “Dil Dhadakne Do” Zeal: In one of my previous articles, I had spoken about “It is time for India Principles”. Well, this is an interesting beginning! The very fact that Indian PR Firms have realised that “Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara” so “Dil Dhadakne Do” means a lot towards creating a mark in the global arena! The fact that Indian PR firms have started setting up international offices, getting invited to juries of international advertising and PR award functions is a wonderful pat on our back! The fact that they want to LIVE is by itself a great change! Indian PR Firms are wanting to relive life and set the Dhadkan!

     

    b. Transition of Management Philosophy: The sole proprietorship or mom-n-pop shop approach is dead! Phew! The core postman job of delivering press release copies from publication door to door is fast becoming a small fraction of PR Agency KRAs. Agency top management is no longer just the founder or owner but an array of thinktanks. They are expected to face, answer, guide and counsel the client top management with strategy and direction. Thinktanks from outside the industry – management consultants, auditors, economists, researchers, statisticians, etc – are being enrolled into the thinktank panels. Indian PR Firms have put on the thinking caps!

     

    c. Professionalism is taking a U-turn, towards Good: Before we take it otherwise, let me clarify that by professionalism, I simply mean basic hygiene factors like punctuality, quality of language (written and spoken), planning skills, creating client briefs, delivering on the expectations, reviews and appraisals and so on. Well, I am happy to see things changing… for the good. To start with, PR firm client servicing teams are reaching for meetings on time! Second, they come much better prepared. Third, they are well-read and have some perspective beyond just “news coverage”, “publication name”, “edition name” and “journalist name”. They have started talking about brand building – and it makes me excited as I write this) – and they are talking about matching their efforts with outputs and outcome. Indian PR firms are professing professionalism!

     

    d. Strategy & Customisation outweighing Template Culture: Clients are being treated with unexpected yet welcome pleasantries in the form of getting much more increased amount of customised strategic inputs which typically, at least perception-wise, has been the bastion of the multinational firms. Indian PR firms are setting high levels of innovative and out-of-the-box expectations within a client’s mind on what an ideal PR firm should do and deliver. It is no longer about tactical media relations skills. Clients have started realising that Indian PR firms have the inherent advantage of local ground knowledge. Second, Indian firms are (still) not bound by templates that many of the multinational firms are forced to follow because of diktats from the western headquarters. The Indian firms have had the advantage of fighting heterogeneous market situations for decades where templates were no remedy. This gives Indian PR firm thinktanks immense advantage setting expectations and delivering to them. India teaches you the art of living through instant improvisation! It seems, Indian PR Firms are faster and nimble footed!

     

    The decision is not final yet. The quarters and semis are being played currently. Who the winner will, probably, get decided in the next few years. Going by the trend, it is for sure that a client’s imagination about an ideal agency is set to undergo a sea change! The tide is taking a turn. Top-of-mind recall levels are drifting back – slowly though – towards Indian PR Firms.

     

    Siddhartha Mukherjee is a senior PR industry professional and currently Senior Vice President, Eikona – Earned Media Planning, Audit and Advisory. The views expressed here are his own.

     

  • A written brief must follow the SMART model and the response should always have the SMRT approach, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: The Client Brief – is that a myth?

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    At a recent conference I was attending there was an interesting discussion between the corporate communications directors sitting on the panel and the consulting people in the audience. The discussion was on how can this relationship get better. How can folks on either side make the twain meet?

     

    In my opinion, the easiest relationships are between clients and consultancies where the client wrote a brief and a clear one at that each time there was an activity. A brief that covered the challenges, objectives, the measurables and key guidelines to achieving the task at hand.  I can bet that not more than five percent clients do that.

     

    Consultancies can never target more dollars or more rupees in the foreseeable future until they insist on a client brief. This will require training for clients to write briefs because many of them have come from non-consultancy and non-marketing backgrounds and are in the job either because of their age or because of their connections (most probabaly they are former journalists). Nothing wrong with that, just that it is doing no good to the profession in the long run if the client does not understand what constitutes public relations and isn’t able to articulate that well.

     

    A written brief must have certain elements in it. Follow the SMART model and the response should always have the SMRT approach. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time Bound. And SMRT in the response stands for Simple, Meaningful and Real Time. These need no explanation.

     

    Most important mention a budget within which you can operate. Even free publicity that good relationships comes at a price. There is a small cost attached to a coffee meeting and there is a huge cost attached to a fam trip. But engaging the journalist is mandatory and will cost money. Similarly, doing a flashmob in the office may have a tiny cost compared to the cost of using professionals to create a flash mob on the street with necessary permissions.

     

    I would really wish we can have a survey done of how many clients share a written brief and insist that the team at consultancy responds with a plan based on that brief. My dipstick with 10 corporate communicators ended up with a negative response. I chose one each from FMCG, auto, retail, tech, telecom, hospitality, commodity, aviation, real estate and banking and not a single gave a written brief for every activity.

     

    It may be the absence of the habit, sheer laziness, inability to write one or an attitude of not wanting to do so that leads to the absence of a brief. I want to conclude by quoting from an article written by fellow professional from Kenya – Paul Barasa, “There’s a skill to writing a PR brief. If you get it right your consultancy will deliver first time – no surprises. If you get it wrong (or worse still don’t provide one at all), it costs time, money and on many occasions strained emotions to put it right.

     

  • There should be two sub-categories within the PR category. One for work created and therefore entered by PR firms and the other for work created and therefore entered by ad agencies, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: When will there be a Cannes Lion Grand Prix for PR, by PR and of PR?

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    This is my customary, annual column focused on the Cannes Lion. I eagerly track and follow the Cannes Lions each year, ever since PR came to be included as a category a few years ago. Ever since, India has been represented on the jury by Prema Sagar in 2009, Veena Gidwani in 2010, Nandita Lakshmanan in 2011, Sunil Gautam in 2012, Dilip Cherian in 2013, Radhika Shapoorjee in 2014 and this year the original name was Ashwani Singla, who was replaced by Paresh Chaudhry. I’m hoping other PR pioneers like Madan Bahal, Bela Rajan, Archana Jain and Ameer Ismail are invited in the years to come. I listed these names for the record as well as for the singular purpose that the organisers know there are many more names to cover. If not, like a global power list that just came out last week, some critical names will get missed out because of limited knowledge about Indian PR that certain international editors possess.

     

    Finally, the grand prix went to a campaign entered a PR firm. This was MSLGroup New York office. I have high respect for this PR firm because the only time I was a client they were the consultancy on record and in my last consulting role before co-founding the PR school I was closely associated with this firm for most of 2014. Well, I was elated that MSL won it though Leo Burnett, the primary architect of this campaign #LikeAGirl for Always spared no effort to take ample credit for the work which no one has refuted. Interestingly, one of MSL’s senior executive who was on the jury also commented that he was aware of Leo Burnett’s contribution to the campaign. Well, the fact of the matter remains that this was a well-deserved win and the winner takes it all. Last year’s Grand Prix went to Creative Arts for the Chipotle campaign because they entered it and Edelman got credit for it. This year the campaign was entered by MSL and they won it. No dispute there.

     

    That brings me to the moot question. If the Cannes Lions is an advertising-led festival why is PR even there? It could possibly be because most PR firms are owned by one of the Big Four holding companies that owns most of the Top 20 advertising agencies. In that case there should be two sub-categories within the PR category. One for work created and therefore entered by PR firms and the other for work created and therefore entered by ad agencies. Then the post award bickering will not exist. I’m hoping there comes a time soon when there is no ad agency involved in the Grand Prix winning entry and the entire campaign and award belongs to the PR consultancy itself. Sharing and team work are great but then stealing the thunder is not done, after an award has been given away which is what the ad agency did very well.

     

    Now comes the real big question as to why not a single campaign from India-based PR firms made it to the shortlist. There were three campaigns that made it to the shortlist of 200 from India and they were from ad agencies which sends a bulk of the entries in this category. I have always being stressing on the high entrance fees of the Cannes Lions. An entry fee and the cost of packaging an entry is close to a monthly retainer that some clients pay. Then, comes the work in question. Do we do cutting edge work that is worthy of international recognition. I think we do but we fail to package it well, as always and miserably fail in sending them because of the cost involved.

     

    As the Cannes jury was being announced in April, India witnessed a fabulous campaign on Net Neutrality. As the jury was sitting to evaluate the entries, India witnessed one of the finest Public Relations campaigns of all time. The International Yoga Day. I have not seen another first time event getting the kind of talkabaility and free publicity that this event got. Unfortunately, they were not put together by an ad agency or a PR firm and they may never go to Cannes. I’m hoping I am wrong and they feature in the shortlist next year. These are surely Gold and Grand Prix material. Because they were simple ideas translated into magnificient campaigns.

     

    Well as we get on with another season of awards here’s opening three things change. A) There are more entries from India in the shortlist. That has only happened once. B) The Grand Prix winner is an idea completely planned and executed by a PR firm and the ad agency does not take credit. And C) India gets couple more good and credible awards. Sabre is great but there are no other of good standing where work can get recognized and rewarded.

     

    On that note I end with three cheers to MSLGROUP. For making history, no matter what their detractors say.

     

  • CXOs are now getting this tool under their respective scanners of ‘ROI and Accountability’, writes Siddhartha Mukherjee

    Siddhartha Mukherjee: Get PR scientifically measured… Show our customers PR works!

    By Siddhartha Mukherjee

     

    During the last decade especially, Public Relations, previously perceived to be all about the Art of Jugaad, has been complemented with a crying need for Science – both in planning and implementation. CXOs are now getting this tool under their respective scanners of ‘ROI and Accountability’.

     

    So far so good! Our industry has definitely come a long way. However, there are some questions which still remain unanswered:

    a. What is the definition of PR Industry growth? Is it just a year-on-year quantitative growth. Even if that be, is there scope for improvement of that growth rate?

     

    b. Can there be qualitative growth as well? Growth that reflects rise of stature of PR outside its industry, addition of glamour quotient, a permanent place in board room, and so on…

     

    I am sure many will agree that in the case of second one above, it is difficult to give an emphatic affirmation. The core reason for this is that the Industry has not been able think and do things which are out-of-the-box.  One of the key reasons for this, in turn, is the lack of funds. Our PR Industry needs Funds. Lots and lots of it. Funds are needed to:

    • Attract and sustain a different quality of talent. Quantity of talent is not an issue. In fact poor quantity has been a key cause of our bleeding bottomlines.
    • Produce richer products and services:

    o    Deliver much beyond just media relations

    o    Think and conduct like a client’s band custodian

    o    Add richness in ideas and deliveries through data and insights

    • Market itself to brand custodians within India Inc. (PR for PR):

    o    Add glamour quotient, market itself by conducting well planned and regular industry events and initiatives.

     

    To my surprise, almost every single Indian and international Conference on PR/Corporate Communications, for more than a decade now, has been repetitively discussing and grieving about why this tool, this Industry and this function is not growing or getting acknowledged at a pace we would like it to be.

     

    The core answer to all this is to give a serious thought on how we can Measure PR and showcase its effectiveness to the outside world. Measurement is the only way that will help PR Firms showcase PR/Earned Media’s effectiveness to corporate communications. Corporate Communications can use it to demonstrate PR prowess to its internal customers of CXOs. Show brand custodians within corporate/client organisations that PR works, it brings recall, creates engagement and aids towards conversion. The moment this starts happening, they will start loosening their purse strings! It is this money that will allow the PR industry stakeholders – comprising clients (corporate communications departments) and PR firms – to think and do things differently.

     

    Yes, in this chicken-and-egg situation, measurement and ROI route is the only tangential thought process to get the industry out of the quagmire. Only with this, will our PR industry’s internal constituents be able to command higher fees for every unit of service!

     

    One of the core roadblocks, I feel, that the industry – clients and PR firms – have not been able to come out of is the lack of clarity between PR Tracking and PR Measurement & Audit. Generic PR (news) tracking and analysis will never be able to deliver or showcase what PR can deliver to a brand. It can only satisfy and give a sense of security to the PR firms and corporate communications desk. Our focus has to be on the customers of PR and Corporate Communications. With this, wealth will automatically follow! Clients/Investors look for effective ideas and their scientific measurability.

     

    The internal customers of PR desk want proof that PR works, that it can be measured.  Brand custodians want to see that PR is partnering the process of exposure, engagement and conversion. While we are talking of futuristic principles of measurement, the ground reality remains that even after more than two decades, in large parts of the industry, we are still yet to weed out the elementary and cancerous evaluation/ measurement systems like that of EAVs. The industry needs organic growth which is possible only if: a) We do our PR b) For this, use self devised scientific metrics…not those that have been copy-pasted from advertising!

     

    Let us no longer boast of high annual industry growth rates on small denominators. Industry needs to think and do things differently. Funds are essential for this. Scientific PR Measurement, if implemented well, will give us better growth rate, higher influx of funds and qualitative push to our stature. No doubt, at the initial stages, certain corridors will raise lots of questions, objections, contradictions, bust a lot of years old myths and disrupt a lot of comfort zones. It will force the two stakeholders – Clients and PR Consultancies – to question, disagree, counter and introspect. However, that will be a good sign as they are common and basic catalysts for any “Change”! The question, however, is – do we dare to question, do we dare to disagree…do we dare to dare!

     

  • Holding group by a PR professional, cancelled media conferences, a client's blog welcoming a new PR firm… Amith Prabhu puts together six observations from the first six months of 2015

    Amith Prabhu: Pot Pourri from the world of Public Relations

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    This column is unlike any other of the past two years. It is a collection of observations from the past few weeks that are relevant to the Public Relations profession. As we have completed six months of 2015 I have jotted down six thoughts:

     

    Holding group by a PR professional – The only holding group centred on Public Relations is the Daniel J Edelman Inc, the parent of companies such as Edelman and Zeno. However, last month former CEO of BM, Mark Penn announced the creation of Stagwell Group, which is likely to become the first holding company that is focused on Public Relations and built around smart, new age reputation management companies.

     

    Cancelled Media Conferences – I was chatting with a senior journalist who shared with me a peculiar problem. He mentioned a specific company that has made cancelling media conferences a habit. But the interesting part is that the mode of communication to invite journalists is not the same mode used to inform the invitees of the cancellation. This journalist was invited on email followed by a phone call but the cancellation message came from a mobile number which was previously blocked because of spam messages from that number.This led to the journalist travelling from one end of town to another to realise the media conference was cancelled.

     

    Unethical Poaching – We are a free economy but certain decorum would go a long way. In the recent past, several veterans at leading firms have moved on to other companies and broken the rule of non-poaching for a certain period of time leading to a lot of bad blood.

     

    A client blog welcoming the new PR firm – Coca-Cola India recently ended a long relationship with a PR firm and signed up another firm. But the interesting gesture was the substantial blog written by the Director of Corporate Communications on the company website about why they chose a new firm and how they will miss the firm that worked on the business for a long period of time.

     

    Global Power Lists – There are now two global lists of the movers and shakers. The Holmes Report has been publishing an annual list of the Top 100 in house communicators which has always had atleast three India based communicators of large conglomerates featured there. Now, PR Week has created a laundry list focusing on the three global regions which has over a dozen Indians featured in it including those based in the APAC region.

     

    The highest ranking Indian – In a recent management rejig, BM promoted Prema Sagar as vice Chairperson of the APAC region. This is the first time the Founder and Principal of GBM has had a designation enhancement and reports directly to the global CEO. This is arguably the first time  an Indian professional based in India is reporting directly to the global CEO of a Top 10 PR firm.

     

  • When you think of Public Relations and are seeking ideas, think of what these twelve brands have done uniquely to stay in the news or make news, notes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: New age brands that have built themselves using smart Public Relations

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    In the past couple of years we have heard more about start-ups than any time in the previous years. And among all the stories of these new age companies, a few stand out. They are built by solid teams and have mostly made news for the right reasons. In this column, I have compiled a list of a dozen companies that have made news, stayed the course and survived to lead the categories they operate in. This is not a comprehensive list but nevertheless is a made up of companies that have built brand with smart use of Public Relations.

     

    First up, are the two poster boys of e-commerce. Flipkart and Snapdeal. They are talked of in the same breath and have grown from strength to strength through smart inward investments and some smart acquisitions. They are in the news each single day.

     

    Next, in my list is Ola. This company has made city commuting a breeze alongside its international rival. But more than anything, the positive word of mouth it gets from its drivers is worth mentioning. Zomato is the brain child of a young consultant which has gone onto buying several companies across various countries. Today, this app dictates where one should go for a date, or to just grab a bite or for a nice brunch. Completely built through word of mouth.

     

    PayTM is a boon for those who do not own a credit card. This mobile wallet company is a gateway for those who use Uber. It is going places and has some very smart investors. Next up is Micromax. This handset-maker is giving a tough fight to established players like Samsung in the mobile device market. Largely built on high quality at low pricing.

     

    Indigo Airline is the only profitable airline and is less than 9 years old. Though not a start-up in the true sense it has the heart of a start up in everything it does. One of the coolest brands around and has done very well for itself. Make My Trip is the online booking portal which has become the default website to plan holidays, book air tickets and reserve hotel rooms. Again, a good example of how brands are built through word of mouth.

     

    Urban Ladder and Blue Stone are two of the nearly dozen brands which have drawn the attention of Mr Ratan Tata. That in itself is good public relations. Few other brands in this list have managed to do that. But when unknown brands manage that they indeed get noticed.

     

    Lastly, Housing would have featured in this list of smart Indian brands but then I chose to keep it out for obvious reasons. The two brands I want to highlight are media brands that are making waves. Scroll and Scoop Whoop have made their presence felt with uniquely different yet refreshing brand of journalism.

     

    When you think of Public Relations and are seeking ideas, think of what these twelve brands have done uniquely to stay in the news or make news. Lots of stories are hidden that can ignite and inspire. Please share your list in the comments section.

     

  • Unless it is dire…instead, strengthen your relationship with it, notes Siddhartha Mukherjee

    Siddhartha Mukherjee: Avoid divorcing your PR Agency!

    By  Siddhartha Mukherjee

     

    The entire dynamics of hiring and firing of one’s PR Agency remains to be a mystery for me.

     

    In today’s day, when Brand Storytelling requires domain and client knowledge along with customised skillsets which evolve over a period of time, I wonder if there is really a genuine need for corporates/clients to change their PR agency so frequently.

     

    There was a time when the average numbers of years, a client-agency relationship would stay for, would be five years or more. Today, not only are the separation rates high, but, I am quite sure, that this industry average is nowhere above three years. Personally, I feel it is not a good sign at all. In fact, it smacks of contradiction.

     

    Some random questions pop up in my mind:

    a) Why do we hire/marry a PR agency? How do we position the PR agency within our organisation’s internal ecosystem?: The mix of reasons why a Client hires a PR agency ranges anywhere from weird to those that can be justified:

    :: Competition has one, so we must too!

    :: We need people for “Media Relations”! Postman job being one of them!

    :: We need someone who can avoid/ manage negative media coverage crisis!

    :: We need an event management and postman service!

    :: We need a Brand Building Partner!

    :: Inhouse team doesn’t have the bandwidth. Client’s in-house team will plan, PR agency  will execute

     

    As for how we position the incumbent agency within our client organisation, well, the more meaningful the answer to the above question is, the more the CXOs and organization’s internal ecosystem will believe in corporate communications and its PR agency.

     

    b) How do we hire?: An entrance exam sets the tone of the organization or a corporate you are planning to be a part of. What kind of filtration process a corporate/brand deploys to hire a PR agency speaks volumes about what its intentions are. The people involved, the type of quantitative and qualitative processes involved, the evaluation parameters etc. can go a long way in deciding how soon or late you may have to ask it to go.

     

    c) Is our PR Agency a life partner or mere vendor:  How we treat and position our PR agency internally is very critical – especially, when it comes to our procurement department. They have a task of treating every service provider one as a “Vendor”! Their job is to look at the most sasta, not tikau (cheapest, not durable) available vendor option… does not matter what type of constructive role the service provider plays for our organisation. It is a rarity where procurement teams demonstrate immense domain knowledge and weigh the service providers not just in terms of pricing but more importantly in terms of merit and what they can deliver for the organisation. Given the role that PR plays for CEOs, CMOs and other CXOs, I hope that soon, there will be a day when the procurement teams will have clear internal mandate of differentiating  their procurement processes between likes of raw material/stationery/furniture vendors and those who are knowledge partners and build brands.

     

    d) What are the possible reasons why we think of changing our PR agency?: Well, it is not that only PR agencies that let things slip away. Yes, instances of what they promise versus what gets delivered still has huge gap across industry corridors. While there are many quantitative and qualitative parameters to show to evaluate them, to our surprise, however, there have been cases where PR agencies have actually done a great job in some specific quantitative and qualitative parameters.

     

    Clients too, have to reciprocate, supplement and compliment the relationship. They need to very clearly state:

    :: Client’s objectives and expectations from the PR agency. Both monthly and annual.

    o Objectives which can be very scientifically quantified and qualified

    :: Both its business as well as the communication plans. Very rarely are these shared.

    :: The information sets that will and will not be shared with the PR agency

    :: Who are the spokespersons that the PR agency will be given access to:

    o Regularly and in special cases

    o Also, the guarantee that they will ensure spokespersons availability when needed

    :: Historic as well as futuristic details of all critical/sensitive details that the company has encountered or may experience in the future

    :: Lastly, and very importantly:

    o Who will evaluate the PR agency’s performance? Will it only be corporate communication’s sole decision or a mix from CEO, CMO and other CXOs.

    o How frequently will the evaluations be done?

    o What are the clear quantity and quality parameters that will be used to appraise the agency?

     

    It can well be that the PR agency is not clear in one or more of these above areas.

     

    e) How do we strengthen our relationship with the PR agency?:

    :: Mindset: This is first and foremost. There has to be a complete clarity amongst corporate communications staff and all CXOs on why a PR agency needs to be hired. Is it tactical? For media relations and postman’s job or are they going to be our life partners for brand building? Looking at long-term associations will ensure savings of costs that goes towards hiring a fresh agency, its orientation, et al.

     

    :: Make your hiring process robust: Make the PR agency hiring process a comprehensive and exhaustive exercise that involves the CXOs and all the relevant departmental corridors of your organisation. Please remember, starting with this, you are telling others whether the PR agency is a vendor or a partner.

     

    :: Enable the usage of quick and intelligent data: Between the client’s corporate communications desk and its PR agency, there should be regular and intelligent use of data – both for Research and Measurability/ Accountability purposes.  Giving your PR agency access to research data, competition moves, benchmarking techniques, planning techniques, audit methodologies etc. will go a long way towards fortifying the client-agency marriage. On-going/regular discussions between client and agency will be based on a common language, scientific expectations, measurable deliveries and mutually respecting parameters. Encourage your PR agency to place their argument with numbers.

     

    On the whole, I see some great advantages if we sustain our marriage with our PR agencies:

    a. Clients will need to give serious thoughts on creating a scientific, exhaustive and inclusive process of hiring a PR agency

    b. This will force clients to think whether they want a vendor a partner

    c. This will ensure that clients and PR agencies are mutually accountable to each other. Accountability with the spirit of partnership

    d. This will further ensure that PR agencies deliver, the best stay and the weak or the incompetent ones ship out

    e. This will result is more transparent, closer, regular and scientific dialogue between PR agency and clients

    f. With industry consolidation, the ARPU per PR Agency will only rise.

     

    Don’t let them go! Cherish and groom your relationship with your PR agency!

     

  • Public Relations is about the simple touches that an effort goes into that registers in the mind of people a connection is aimed at, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Public Relations is about the simple touches

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    My cousin’s son who lives in the American Midwest is a 19-year-old freshman in college (equivalent to first year). He is a regular American teenager whose parents are of Indian origin. The interesting part is that he is currently a White House intern. That’s not the story. The story is that he is currently enjoying his summer vacations with his parents and every Saturday evening the President of the United States in whose office he is an intern calls him to check on him and get a sense of how he is doing. This in essence is Public Relations.

     

    I recently heard that the Global VP of Marketing of an upcoming mobile handset brand spends 30 to 40 minutes with journalists on a one-on-one call during the launch of a new device. The outcome is some outstanding coverage in the media outlets on the day of launch. These seem like minor interventions but they go a long way.

     

    I have heard this legend about this famous Indian actor. He is a stickler for punctuality and down to earth. If he has to be at a venue or a film shoot location at 9 am he ensures he reaches there by 8.45 am and either circles the neighborhood or waits patiently in his car so he can show up on time and then on meeting people he will introduce himself by stating his full name which makes people see the human side when he says, “Hello, my name is Amitabh Bachchan”.

     

    When asked what the secret of his popularity was, the Chief Minister of Tripura said, “We do not keep any secrets from the people — that is our secret. We are transparent. We do not make any promise which we cannot fulfill. We make only those promises which we can fulfill. If we try to fulfill people’s expectations, they will obviously then elect us.” He is more famously known as India’s poorest Chief Minister and is the longest serving CM of the state. People love him and there is no greater public relations than honesty and simplicity.

     

    More often people mistake public relations to be something else. And forget the easy methods of outreach which are about simplicity, honesty and punctuality. We see and hear of these stories in daily life. Ultimately, it is the individual who represents the brand or the organisation who makes all the difference. Public Relations is about the simple touches that an effort goes into that registers in the mind of people a connection is aimed at.

     

  • A few pointers that can help the good to become better in the professional environment, from Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: 10 steps to being better PR professionals

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    I am asked this question time and again as to what it takes to be good PR professionals. There is no one answer and it is subjective but broadly there are a few pointers that can help the good to become better in the professional environment.

     

    Request for or draft written briefs: A good PR professional should request for briefs from the client and if working in-house should practise the habit of giving clear-cut written briefs. This is the harbinger of campaign planning.

     

    Organise campaigns: A career in PR is incomplete unless one works from campaign to campaign. I still recall working on over two dozen campaigns in my first job over 42 months. They ranged from a variety of launches to fashion weeks, they included a campaign to manage a crisis and a campaign to organize a golf tour for a leading liquor brand.

     

    Read a lot: This is a no-brainer. PR professionals I have met in the last three month do not buy PR books. Even worse most do not buy any books. And I have met over 300 professionals in the last three months whom I asked for a show of hands if they had purchased books and 290 out of over 300 had not bought a book.

     

    Write for joy: The same set of 300 was asked if they wrote a blog and the answer was no different. 97% had not written a blog or atleast had not written one in the previous 12 months. When will we make writing for joy a habit?

     

    Travel plenty: One of the best life’s lessons are learnt during journeys. PR professionals should travel to explore, to learn and to experience new places, new people, new cultures, new cuisines and get a taste of life that is unique every now and then. At least one holiday for a week annually should be undertaken for the sole purpose of experiencing and exploring.

     

    Attend learning events: Set aside a budget to attend conferences, seminars and training programmes. Several of them are affordable or even free. But making the time to benefit from them needs a plan.

     

    Get involved with new things: More often than not we are stuck within a box we create for ourselves. Sometimes, getting out of the shell and seeking new opportunities within the organisation is a fun way to embrace new ideas. Ask another team leader to involve you on a project just for a different kind of exposure.

     

    Go above and beyond: Help someone in need. Support a cause. Give back. These are not easy but they certainly open new horizons and offer new perspectives.

     

    Ask periodic feedback: Never miss a chance to ask your supervisor for feedback on an ongoing basis. That way there is constant scope for improvement and amends can be made then and there.

     

    Find a mentor: Most importantly, find a mentor early on during the professional journey. This is one aspect that goes a long way. And at some point ensure you pay it forward by being a mentor.

     

    What are the other ways to be outstanding, street smart and restless to do more and be more? Please share your thoughts and add to the list.

     

  • Some PR firms make that claim of being a consultancy for the style quotient… some to momentarily hide their insecurities, but to be fair to some, they have no qualms or inhibitions about who they are, writes Siddhartha Mukherjee

    Siddhartha Mukherjee: PR Agency v/s Consultancy…. Any difference?

    By Siddhartha Mukherjee

     

    I have always believed that the PR service providers will be the catalysts of PR’s growth story in India. Towards this, while the initiative to transform a PR Agency to a Consultancy started many years ago, not sure the conversion has been a 100 percent success story. In fact, the claim of “We are a PR Consultancy and not an Agency” all the more confuses me.

     

    The advertising industry is what it is today – size- and quality-wise – largely because of its agencies. They have shaped themselves and positioned the tool of advertising on a platform that has made it so intrinsic to every brand-building story for every client.

     

    Somehow, I have found very few PR firms who are genuinely taking efforts to create that differentiator both in their thinking and action. Some PR firms make that claim of being a consultancy for the style quotient… some to momentarily hide their insecurities… but to be fair to some, they have no qualms or inhibitions about who they are. They think and act exactly like a PR Agency and not a Consultancy. They are the implementers, the coordinators, event managers… the jugaad guys. Mind you, our market, currently and for the next few years, will have more potential for PR Agency work than Consultancies.

     

    Without generalising, I have seen cases where multinational, large PR firms continue to act and think like agencies. At the same time, there have been very humble and quiet Indian PR Firms who are doing amazing consultancy work.

     

    For the moment, I am intrigued to visualize what possibly could be some of the key differentiators between a PR Agency and PR Consultancy:

    a. Quantity Vs Quality of Clients: I do not believe that a PR service provider’s turnover or its number of clients qualifies it to be called as a Consultancy. I would much rather give weightage to the quality of clients or the kind of work the service provider is rendering for the clients on an ongoing basis. Imagine a scenario where any and every form of media relations services is no longer the mainstay but becomes the default backend output of the service provider and for the client. Noticeably, the focus of work shifts from media coverage to brand building – Recall, Disposition and Conversion!

     

    b. Quality Vs Quantity of Team Members: Many clients, many people to service, many offices! Great story! For me, size does not matter. Quality matters. I see a stark difference between an average team member of a PR Agency vs that of a Consultancy. Well, to summarise it quickly, it is all about their Audio & Visual. I do not want to spend time on the visual part. On the audio part, well, let me go straight to the PR Consultancy person. This person is humble with a constructive energy. He/she is all the good permutations and combinations of a Learner, Manager, Thinker, Researcher, Statistician, Strategist, Sociologist, Anthropologist, Soothsayer, Journalist, Economist, Brand-builder, Writer,…culminating into a wonderful storywriter and narrator.

     

    c. Services being offered: Well, a Consultancy becomes one when it talks and only talks brands… not media coverage! Media relations or media coverage services become the default, as and when needed, backend output for the PR Consultancy. A Consultancy is only working on and for a client’s brand reputation. This means, every single service associated with the client’s corporate and marketing communication requirements, across stakeholders, are taken care of. This also shapes the type of people/desks within client organisations you are interacting with. Let’s do a check – do we interact/discuss/debate with CXOs on Brands? If so, how often? Or is our interaction largely restricted to Corporate Communications and media coverage volumes?

     

    d. Simple Client Servicing Etiquettes: A quality Consultancy or brand-builder will have some of the basic traits:

    :: Client Servicing Executives believe in punctuality – arrive at meetings before time. Not on time…forget about being late! Punctual on calls, sending documents and other logistics.
    :: The kind of the questions they will ask the clients will not only charm them but force them to think.
    :: They know more about client’s competition than the client himself/herself.
    :: They work towards Possible “Business As Usual” or “Business Not As Usual” scenarios for their Clients and the required Fall Back solutions.
    :: They will base their arguments basis research and numbers!
    :: They will be the document creators for clients for every situation.
    :: Their plans/proposals will focus on input, output and outcome

     

    e. Evaluation Parameters: A PR Consultancy will never agree to be evaluated on the count of media coverage or advertising equivalent. The Consultancy will talk on the lines of output and outcome for the client’s business.

     

    f. Presence of a Holistic Research Desk:  Like I said, there are genuine attempts being made by a few to transition into a Consultancy. One such genuine effort is by setting up a dedicated research desk/team. This team is responsible towards answering or creating information for all corporate and marketing communication needs. It is a desk that works not towards the end output of media coverage but towards a practical and effective outcome of brand exposure, engagement and the final conversion for every stakeholder. It is a specialist in generating data, collating and fusing multiple data sets and analytics – all of which go towards new business wins and client sustenance.

     

    Does not matter which side of the bridge the PR service provider is in. To cross over to the Consultancy side, some habits, traits and behaviour have to change. This change is for the PR industry’s growth. Moolah, image and added longevity are some immediate benefits.

     

  • The late APJ Abdul Kalam was a man of integrity and this is something we all must learn from. Integrity is not an attribute found easily in today’s time and age, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: The Public Relations person par excellence

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    If there was man who epitomised Public Relations and lived most of his adult life building great relationships and in the midst of the publics it was our former President who passed away last Monday. I met him for a few seconds in 2003 when he visited the institute where I was a student in Pune. I asked him for his autograph and he quickly gave me a printed card in which he had personally signed his name. Very few of his generation would do something like that. His death proved how much Indians loved him. Cutting across all sections the outpouring of affection was there for everyone to see.

     

    I was reading Shekhar Gupta’s interesting National Interest piece and on the late APJ Abdul Kalam yesterday to once again admire the life of this great man who inspired several generations through his sheer simplicity. His style was exactly that of commoners. He did well as President and after his term ended got back to doing two things he loved most – teaching and writing. Long before there was an International Yoga Day the UN had declared October 15th as World Students’ Day’. This was to commemorate Abdul Kalam’s birthday. Such was the power of this man.

     

    He was a man of integrity and this is something we all must learn from. Integrity is not an attribute found easily in today’s time and age. Our profession suffers from it. We have seen it in the past and we hear stories of lack of integrity every other day.

     

    Just last week a leading PR firm sacked three of its senior employees for the lack of integrity. Very often firms put matters of integrity and the lack of it under the carpet. We need to adopt a code of ethics for our profession and maybe learn from Abdul Kalam who was a greater PR person than the current Prime Minister.

     

    Another important learning from Dr Kalam was his love for sharing and imparting knowledge. Again, an important element in our profession. We need to actively engage in mentorship programmes.

     

    Lastly, Kalam Sir as he was fondly called breathed his last as he was delivering a lecture on Making the Earth a Livable Planet. We as influencers in our own right have a major role to play in making this world a better place. We are not doing enough though there are opportunities galore.

     

  • The conclave discussed the rising importance of PR and social media in marketing communications and how aspirants should be equipped with the right skills for the changing dynamics of the industry

    SIMC, Pune hosts its annual PR Conclave to discuss the reinvention of PR

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Symbiosis Institute of Media & Communication (PG), Pune, hosted its annual Public Relations Conclave on August 2 with the theme ‘Reinventing PR.’ The conclave discussed the rising importance of PR and social media in marketing communications and how aspirants should be equipped with the right skills for the changing dynamics of the industry.

     

    The speakers comprised eminent industry experts such as Madan Bahal, Founder and Managing Director, Adfactors, Senjam Raj Sekhar, Head of Corporate Communications at Flipkart, Sanjay Tripathy, Senior EVP, HDFC Life, Valerie Pinto, CEO, Weber Shandwick India, Hareesh Tibrewala, Founder and Joint CEO, Social Wavelength, Chetan Mahajan, Joint CEO of MSLGroup, Paresh Chaudhry, CEO, Madison PR, Nitin Mantri, Director, Avian Media, Deepshikha Dharmaraj, Chief Marketing & Growth Officer at Genesis Burson Marsteller and Bhairavi Jhaveri, Communication Manager, Twitter India

     

    The event kick started with a keynote speech by Mr Bahal, who emphasised the need to discuss the theme afresh and spoke about adding dimensions to the worldwide PR discourse. Dwelling upon the current trend in the industry, he said: “The empowerment of the common man has created many citizen journalists.”  He further delved into the theme of the event by talking about the growth of digital, and the crucial role it plays in the reinvention of PR.

     

    He explored key issues in the industry and how they need to be addressed to even out the process of adaptation. “Robust theoretical knowledge is missing in PR professionals. Many of us have become templates. Process is a structure that is against creativity.”

     

    Mr Bahal concluded his speech by talking about the role of academia and students in defining PR in the Indian context. Building further on this he said, “After going through the syllabi of several top media institutes, I must say that the syllabus of SIMC is highly robust.”

     

    The first panel, comprising distinguished personalities such as Sanjay Tripathy, Valerie Pinto and Senjam Raj Sekhar, witnessed an interesting exchange of opinions and insights from agencies and corporate alike. The topic of discussion was ‘PR: Climbing the value chain in marketing communication ladder’. Shedding light on it, Senjam Raj Sekhar said, “Marketing campaigns are becoming a lot like PR campaigns. Public Relations is about engagements, conversations and influences, and marketing is now talking that language. The recent marketing campaigns that you have seen are essentially Public Relations campaigns”.

     

    The panel drew parallels between marketing and PR. They emphasized the importance of PR in bringing credibility to a campaign vis-a-vis marketing. “The marketers know how to spend money and get ROI. What PR essentially does is drive and shape the conversations with a lot of credibility,” opined Valerie Pinto.

     

    Steering the discussion to one of the most important phenomena in the industry today, the second panel brought together experts such as Hareesh Tibrewala, Deepshikha Dharmaraj and Bhairavi Jhaveri to discuss the topic ‘Social Media- The Belle of the PR Ball’. They deliberated upon how social media has triggered the democratization of communication.  “Agencies need to understand the power of digital as a medium, rather than developing ventures around digital,” said Harish Tibrewala. Identifying the problem of traditional PR professionals trying to operate in digital, Deepshikha Dharmaraj expounded on the need for working in specialized units of domain experts, “We have a dedicated team that works on social. We have a live newsroom which actively monitors and listens to conversations online.”

     

    In an age when talent is the key driver to any industry, the third panel discussion deep-dived into the issue, ‘Talent Acquisition- Industry Expectation versus Trained and Untrained Talent’. The panelists included Nitin Mantri, Chetan Mahajan, Joint CEO of MSLGroup and Paresh Chaudhry, CEO, Madison PR. Highlighting the importance of dabbling with multiple skills, Chetan Mahajan said, “You can’t have one specialisation. Each one of us is a journalist here. Any person with a smart device, who is socially connected, is a journalist.”

     

    Building further on this theme, Chetan Mahajan, noted that the industry must invest in people from the perspective of growth. “Once you have achieved that, there are structured training programs for everyone. These resources need to think in terms of India, of regional as well as of global.”