What is Public Relations?

Public relations (PR) is about managing and understanding the reputation of a company.

In the old days, managing the awareness of an organisation involved physical newspapers and magazines. Although these can still be impactful, our attention nowadays has shifted online. PR professionals focus on where most consumers can be found – the internet.

For any business, growing your online presence the right way is key.

That’s where PR fits in. It’s often done alongside an SEO strategy to maximise audience reach.

Why hire a PR Specialist?

Most brands acknowledge PR. Yet many choose to avoid it in favour of performance channels.

In reality, it’s the opposite. A good PR strategy boosts your overall results and generally has a strong multiplier effect on other marketing channels.

Here’s how that looks:

• Strong brand recognition
• Client referrals
• Improved lead-gen
• Higher search rankings
• Increased organic traffic

It also helps you forge new relationships with wider audiences and get the support of relevant third parties.

These are only a few benefits of many that PR has to offer.

But one of the biggest of all is that it builds your authority, which makes your voice more influential in the industry.

What does a PR Freelancer do?

They respond to enquiries from various sources including media outlets and the press.

The tasks of a freelance PR consultant revolve around the public image of an organisation. So it’s their duty to help shape people’s thoughts, impressions, and feelings about the company’s mission including the values it stands for.

In case of a scandal or negative event, they’ll minimise it through effective management and crisis communications. 

It’s not only their responsibility to help grow your reputation. It’s also to protect and maintain the brand's reputation. 

PR Specialist responsibilities

A PR Specialist from Passionfruit can help you create momentum and get the ball rolling. That said, here’s what some of their responsibilities look like:

• Understand the perceptions, opportunities, and threats to your public profile
• Collaborate with SEO strategists to determine a plan of action to improve online presence
• Prepare information for the media via press releases, articles, and social media posts
• Pitch management of content and story ideas
• Nurture relationships with external stakeholders
• Support content creation and marketing strategies 
• Measure the impact of PR campaigns

Marketing and Public Relations are two different things

Although there are similarities in some aspects, they’re not the same.

Marketing is focused on promoting a company’s products or services. The end goal is typically to increase sales revenue. In contrast, PR is focused on building and maintaining a company’s reputation.

One’s involved in advertising your business so that your target audience is aware of what you have to offer. Whereas the latter is more involved in influencing the way people think, feel, and view your company overall as opposed to the products themselves.

KPIs to determine the impact of your PR campaigns

Smart technology is used to track data and metrics. With that in mind, here are a few KPIs to look out for when determining the impact of your PR campaigns:

• Media mentions
• Tags
• Impressions
• Organic reach
• Paid reach
• Domain authority
• Backlinks
• Share of voice
• Outreach

Another key aspect to look at is the sentiment of your audience. In other words, how are they speaking about you? In what light do they see your brand? If there are negative connotations, it’s worth addressing them and carefully thinking about your approach. 

How much does a PR freelancer cost?

PR freelancing services could range from as low as £400/day to £550/day or more and they usually work 1-2 days a week. 

Costing depends on multiple factors such as skill level, years of experience, and the full scope of the project. Aside from monthly retainers being an option, they may charge on a daily rate, hourly rate, or on a per-project basis.

There may also be a service charge included.