Companies had already been asking themselves in more recent years how they could get real and create communications plans that speak more authentically to consumers.
Current events have put those strategies through the ringer, if any were even created in the first place. And, public relations agencies are trying to not only keep up but stay ahead for clients, even as many offices contract.
OC’s largest public relations firms employed 279 full-time workers locally as of July, shedding 7.3% of their workforces when compared with the year-ago period, according to this week’s Business Journal list.
Eight of the 18 agencies on this year’s ranking reported declines in their full-time payrolls, six saw increases and four remained flat. Six companies fell off the list after reporting figures below the cutoff of 10 employees.
The top 3—The Brand Amp, Global Results Communications and Idea Hall—kept their respective places.
Meanwhile, some noteworthy jumps occurred elsewhere on the ranking, with No. 4 Core Strategic Group of Anaheim continuing on an expansion plan that went into effect pre-COVID.
The company, which acts as a holding firm for other PR firms including C3 Public Strategies and Badfish Media, increased its payroll 33.3% locally and 76.9% companywide to a total of 46 full-time employees.
The Business Journal surveyed a handful of local PR executives on the current landscape, asking how the role or nature of PR has changed in response to the global pandemic and also the social justice movement we’re seeing playing out right now.
What follows are their edited responses.
Influence Heightened
“Based on our client experience over the past several months, we would suggest that PR’s influence has been heightened due to both the global pandemic and social justice movements. Every message emanating from our clients has had to pass through a sensitivity filter that PR is best qualified to provide. We have all seen examples of companies who have tried to make a statement, only to have it backfire. With the cultural landscape literally shifting beneath our feet, a thoughtful approach to all marketing is of paramount importance.
“Another major change is the demand from consumers for companies to move beyond ‘saying the right thing’ to ‘doing the right thing.’ The companies who were already in the fight have been able to combine their credibility and financial resources to make some powerful statements, while others have largely been relegated to the sidelines.
“The presidential election is another piece of the calculus for brands. Statements or actions taken now will be viewed through various lenses based on the results in November.
“Some media outlets have no time for anything unrelated to COVID, social justice or the election, while others are trying to maintain a sense of ‘normalcy’ for their audiences. We have worked hard to navigate those waters with pitches that are timely and relevant.”
—Todd Brooks, co-founder, The Brand Amp
Pressed for Speed
“The core fundamentals of PR have not changed. It’s always been our role to shape and steer our clients’ communications strategies, pivoting as needed based on current events. What’s changed is the volume and urgency of needs hitting all at once. These issues impact everyone. As communications professionals, we’ve never felt a greater responsibility to guide clients through these complex and sensitive times. We’re also even more pressed for speed in our 24/7 always-on news cycle, which includes social media and increasingly influential citizen journalism.
“Finally, since PR is so much more than earned media, we’re responsible for keeping rapidly evolving content current across more channels of communication—social media, blog and website content, email campaigns, newsletters, paid integrations—than ever before.”
—Rebecca Hall, founder/CEO, Idea Hall
Changing Consumer Expectations
“Distilled to its essence, public relations is the action of building relationships. COVID-19 has shaken up the strategies and channels that PR pros typically optimize to build these relationships. The pandemic, along with the multiple social movements happening all over the world, has changed consumers’ expectations about the way brands should communicate with the public. Any good PR strategy draws on data trends and the principles of human psychology that influence the beliefs, attitudes and opinions that shape consumer behavior. More than ever, brands must be sensitive to these concerns and communicate compassionately or risk alienating important audiences.
“We’re also urging our clients to merge internal, external and executive communications. It also allows the company to strengthen stakeholder relationships by keeping all parties informed and creates the opportunity to proactively address any misinformation before it gains traction.
“Lastly, effective social listening and two-way communications is the hallmark of any successful PR campaign or reputation management strategy. It’s vital for brands to ‘read the room’ and truly listen to consumers before blasting out messages. Agencies and brands that can adapt to the wave of changing trends brought on by the pandemic will fare well in the post-COVID court of public opinion.”
—Kristin Daher, founder/chief storyteller, Powerhouse Communications
Matching Words with Actions
“Aside from the obvious change that we are working remotely now, how we are approaching work for our clients has changed substantially. We’ve become more active advisers to the leaders of our clients’ organizations on messaging through the COVID pandemic, as well as on matters of social justice.
“Never before has there been so much emphasis placed on the importance for companies and organizations to have their words and values match their actions. There’s also been a huge focus internally, as companies and organizations step up their communication with their employees around these same topics: safety, culture, diversity, values. Communications has been center stage, and I see it remaining an even more critical component of leadership going forward.”
—Linda Martin, general manager, Westbound Communications
Reinventing Client Programs
“As PR professionals, we’re conditioned to go, go, go and sustain momentum, so a forced hiatus is not our norm. In both the pandemic and social justice movement, some of our clients had to pause their communications because it wasn’t either the right time for them to be in the market or they didn’t offer an authentic voice on the issues. We also have healthcare clients who are in the middle of it—and others that offer solutions to the economic challenges triggered by the pandemic, so being able to counsel clients on the right [communications] strategy keeps us on our toes. We have event-dependent clients that we have had to help reinvent their communications programs to create ways to keep the conversation going sans events.
“Every client required an immediate and different pandemic communications strategy. We have had to pivot constantly to give our clients the best counsel in real-time during this unprecedented time.”
—Brenda Springer, founder/CEO, Reveille
