Full Frontal PR Report
Jerry Swerling

Selecting the best Public Relations agency partner is one of the toughest, most important decisions a communications professional can be called upon to make. As such, the PR agency review process should be as rigorous, disciplined, objective and efficient as possible. When managing agency reviews, your primary goal is to overcome the two challenges that often make such reviews difficult at best and disastrous at worst:

1. In today’s competitive environment, it is almost impossible for clients to keep up with and (let alone assess) the qualities (and deficiencies) that distinguish one PR agency from another among the many competing for their business. And naturally enough, agencies are rarely modest (or wholly objective) in describing their qualifications.

2. In today’s lean client organizations, it can be difficult for PR people to find the 100 – 200 extra hours required to run a successful agency search while handling their normal responsibilities. As a result, decisions are too often rushed, delayed, or based on less than solid criteria rather than objective, hard analysis of client needs and agency qualifications.

The following nine-step agency review process takes the guesswork and pressure out of the mix, whether your company is large or small. Many companies choose to avail of the services of a consultant to assist in this process

(Ed Note: Swerling and Associates is a premier company in this space; “best in the biz” in assisting companies with such agency searches.)

Define and Approve the Process
Tailor the process to meet the unique needs of your organization. Resolve issues such as political considerations, the composition of the selection team, deadlines, the breadth and scope of the agency search, costs, etc. Develop a written timeline.

Assess Needs and Build Internal Consensus
While no two successful agency reviews are alike, one element they invariably share is an effort to build consensus and “buy-in” among those who will work with the new firm. To achieve this, conduct in-depth interviews with key internal stakeholders. Cover all issues impacting the search, including the culture of your organization and the unique perspectives of each stakeholder. Include in this process the CEO and divisional/unit heads, as well as senior executives from sales and marketing, strategic planning, advertising, human resources, legal and financial.

Develop the Long List of Agencies
Identify a preliminary long list (15 – 20 firms) of companies that meet the criteria identified in the needs assessment.

Develop the Request for Credentials (RFC)
Develop a comprehensive Request for Credentials (RFC) that queries the firms on the specific attributes identified in our internal needs assessment and describes the review process in detail. The questionnaire probes such key issues as account staffing, compensation and program evaluation methodologies, potential conflicts, etc.

Pre-Qualify the Firms
Speak with senior contacts at the agencies to explore potential conflicts, the extent of their interest in the account, the agency review process, etc. This step invariably results in the elimination of 5 – 15 firms from the list, leaving 6 – 10 for further consideration.

Narrow the Field to Semi-Finalists
Distribute the RFC to the remaining firms. Be prepared to answer the numerous questions that invariably arise. Give the agencies 10 -14 days to submit their responses.

Read, evaluate and score the responses using a matrix to ensure responses are ranked on an “apples to apples” basis, and select 4 – 6 semi-finalists.

Agency Visits to Check Chemistry, Choose Finalists
Notify the agencies of your decisions and schedule visits to the semi-finalists’ offices, to be attended by all appropriate members of the agency review team. The agencies are told that this is their opportunity to “bring to life” the credentials and staff experience they described in their responses to the RFC, by means of 90 – 120 minute (including Q&A) presentations focusing entirely on your well-established selection criteria. These meetings give your selection team a “live” opportunity to evaluate the agencies’ staff expertise, chemistry, etc. Following these visits, narrow the field to 2 – 4 finalists.

Strategic Challenge and Final Presentations
The winning firm is chosen based on presentations at your offices in which the finalists propose their solutions to a mission-critical strategic challenge (sometimes real, sometimes not). The finalists are told that the quality of their thinking, rather than any speculative creative “sizzle,” will be the deciding factor. Plan to pick a winner before adjourning for the day, while all of the information is fresh.

Agree to Contractual Terms
Ensure that all aspects of the contract, especially those pertaining to compensation, program evaluation, agency/client communication, etc., are clear and in writing.

In addition to a successful PR consulting firm, Swerling manages the undergraduate and graduate programs in PR and the Annenberg Strategic Public Relations Center at the University of Southern California, where he subtly shapes young minds into superlative PR pros.