The man himself, all the way from Trafalgar Square in London, welcomes Stellar* onboard.

Starting immediately, we’ll be handling all communications for the Napoleon Perdis brand including hero range, Napoleon Perdis prestige, as well as masstige offering, NP Set. Our scope of work will include media relations; consumer trial and engagement; sponsorship negotiation, leverage and management; celebrity and ambassador programs; social media and event management.

To say we’re excited would be a massive understatement!

Marguerite Julian (or MJ as we like to call her), Stellar*’s founder and managing director, has featured in this month’s B&T magazine.

As a PR person it’s quite comforting to have someone like MJ around because over the span of her career she has seen it, done it and PR’d it all!

The thing is, she’s very laid back, modest and unassuming so her remarkable achievements are not often highlighted. After some cajoling, she agreed to reflect on her career for this piece and in fact, this is the first time most of us at Stellar* have actually got the full story on what she’s done.

Posted by Renee Creer
Courtesy of B&T Magazine, December 2009

“I’m supposed to be on top of what’s new in tech, but there’s just too much, too fast; it’s like drinking from a fire hose”

I like this quote a lot.  American tech columnist, David Pogue, said this and it’s sometimes how I feel trying to keep up with social media. 

Today’s PR professional needs to be on top of many new things to keep up with the rapid technological and social changes we’re experiencing.  Knowing traditional methods is one thing, but it’s important to keep abreast of new developments that can help client’s achieve their goals.

It’s not enough to be good or great these days, you need to be brilliant, which takes a lot of bloody work (…or, comes quite naturally to some really annoying people!).  It is impossible to know everything, but here are some areas that today’s PR professional should, in some degree, be across or should be working toward knowing:

1. Knowledge of the macro environment, that is, the forces that are shaping media and media consumption and the new influence structures that have developed
2. Knowledge of the main social media tools and their nuances and direct experience with them, that is, actually being part of it not just talking about it
3. Knowledge of different types of releases from traditional media releases, to consumer/customer focussed releases sent via wires services, to social media and search engine optimised releases
4. Knowledge of social media etiquette and how to have and sustain two-way conversations with people and communities
5. An understanding of the importance of search and search engine optimisation and how search and content work together
6. An understanding of the value of content and context, and also what web-friendly content is and how to distribute it across the social web
7. Knowledge and experience with information organisation / management tools - RSS, tagging, bookmarking etc
8. Knowledge of monitoring and insight tools, from free tools and blog search engines to paid monitoring tools
9. Knowledge of how to integrate social media into PR programs based on strategy not random tool selection based on what’s cool right now
10. An understanding of how to measure social media results

I’m still grappling with some of these points and I don’t know a whole lot of stuff but I do know what I don’t know and sometimes that’s half the battle won.

Posted by Renee Creer
Image by the brilliant Carl Sherriff

Is it just me or has PR been slammed more in the last month than in the last few years?  The industry appears to be copping it from all sides.  We’ve had:

• Neil Shoebridge’s AFR piece titled How to lose clients and annoy reporters.  He argues that the PR industry is awash with incompetent people and outlines his top and deady PR sins.
• Jason Whittaker’s guest post on Mumbrella titled Precious PR hacks and why they do their clients no good.  Here, Whittaker has had enough of PRs telling him how to do his job.
• Ed Charles, journalist and blogger, named and shamed a PR in this post after he and other food bloggers were spammed via a contact list of bloggers Charles published online.
• Heated industry debate, in B&T magazine and online over Brisbane agency, Publicity Queen, and their promise of guaranteed publicity.

And that’s not the extent of it. So what does one in PR say or do about all of this?

We consider ourselves an agency of smart, professional people who know the media and have good relationships with journalists.  We have, on occasion, f#*$ed up, gotten it wrong, and done dumb stuff.

There are always two sides to any story or coin and may we state that the stupid and incompetent are not just confined to the PR industry!

Rather than scrap it out school yard style, we’ve decided to outline A NEW MANIFESTO FOR PR because if you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.

We promise to:

1. Not be idiots or self important show ponies

2. Not pitch stupid, irrelevant stuff to media outlets, journalists or bloggers

3. Continue to comply with spam laws

4. Limit blanket distributions where possible

5. Keep a sense humour

6. Get to know the media or blog’s scope and where journalists’ interests lie

7. Build reciprocal, positive relationships

8. Play nice

9. Make PR as relevant and exciting as possible

10. Always strive to be better at what we do

11. Follow up and keep our word

12. Set a positive example

13. Educate younger staff and clients on the right way to do media relations

14. Not make claims that we can’t justify or promises that we can’t keep

15. Do our research

16. Beware of fibbers and phonies

17. Try to fix things when they go wrong

18. Be patient and reasonable in the light of differences

19. Ask and learn more about how journalists work and what they need

Like to contribute?  By all means, add to the list.  Or follow this conversation on Mumbrella.

Posted by Renee Creer

You don’t know this but today is the Birthday of Stellar* Analytics; it’s officially 1 year old!  We’ve been pretty quiet about our new baby but after 12 months of getting to know it, we are ready to unleash it!

Stellar* Analytics is our custom measurement, analysis and reporting tool.  It’s also a sophisticated online media centre which has pretty much saved our sanity here at Stellar* - but more on that later.

Any good PR professional knows that measuring and evaluating campaigns is essential however right now, in light of economic pressures, it has never been more important.  You simply have to be able to justify budgets and demonstrate value.  That’s why we’ve invested significantly in this tool.

For clients, Stellar* Analytics is a valuable reporting tool for senior management which measures and analyses media outputs (both offline and online coverage) and collates the results in customised reports that provide:

• A benchmark for client, competitor or category / sector coverage
• Tracking of editorial share of voice / mindshare for products, categories, brands and more
• Evaluation of key messaging and of campaign reach
• Insight into journalist and media outlet outputs
• A long term measure of marketing / PR ROI
• Detailed market intelligence and both qual. and quant. insights

We do all of our publicity reports via this tool and customise each report to individual client needs.  We also do specialist reports based on specific briefs (competitor analysis for example).  The media outputs we measure not only include press clippings, but cover websites, blogs and broadcast.  And did I mention the charts?  Stellar* Analytics offers over 50 different charts which slice and dice the coverage in more visually pleasing charts than one person should ever see. 

He’re what our clients say about it:

“Stellar* Analytics is a valuable tool.  It helps us create more accurate programs and more targeted campaigns which has enabled a better ROI.  It’s great to see PR measured and evaluated in such a comprehensive manner.”  Hayden Isaacs, Communications Manager,
Brown Brothers Milawa Vineyard

I just LOVE Stellar* Analytics!  Where has this been all our lives?!  The PR report is now so comprehensive yet easy to understand for all levels of the business.  It’s a fantastic measurement tool.” Anna Logan, Marketing Manager, ghd hair

For our agency, Stellar* Analytics is a sophisticated online media centre which looks after all of our day-to-day needs.  It’s a:

• Media contact database and contact management system
• Press release distribution and tracking service which uses HTML email templates
• Online media monitoring tool of both national and international sources
• Account activity tracker and project management system

So essentially, we now offer online media monitoring which is on par with other major service providers but at a fraction of the cost.  We also have the capability to include images and links to external content in our press releases and we can track opening rates and link throughs. 

Ok, I think I’ve said enough, so Happy Birthday Stellar* Analytics and if you want to know more please comment or email me direct renee@stellar.net.au

Posted by Renee Creer

Here’s part two of our post on how to work with a PR agency (part one here if you need it).  These tips can make the difference between having an excellent experience or one you’d rather forget.

Integration

• PR works best when fully integrated with your business and the rest of your marketing mix.
• Ensure that your PR agency is looped in with your other agencies and staff and share details of strategies and campaigns.  Share outcomes and learnings also to drive efficiency and success. 

 Reporting

• It is important to agree at the outset how your agency is going to report to you. This can be done through work in progress meetings (WIPs) on a weekly, fortnightly or monthly basis and monthly/annual reports. All of these can be done either over the phone or in face-to-face meetings.
• If reports need to be forwarded on to senior management or other teams in your company (e.g. sales)  who may not understand what PR is or does, make sure they contain analytics that are relevant to them e.g. facts and figures, press coverage or messages mentioned, so that it really triggers their interest and ultimately their buy in.

Results

• Regularly evaluate the agency’s deliverables to see how they’re tracking and to consider whether they need to be adjusted.
• Conduct regular and honest reviews of progress and achievements to ensure the relationship ticks along smoothly and that any issues are dealt with immediately.
• At Stellar* we have annual ‘health checks’ with accounts and clients with 360 feedback.  After campaigns or events we report on key learnings.
• Recognise that PR takes time. Unlike advertising or other communication methods where you pay for a space in a newspaper and something appears, PR is a long term investment which may mean your story doesn’t appear for several weeks or even months. Also bear in mind that journalists may have their story cut at the last minute by their editor and that nothing is guaranteed.

So, that’s that.  Now you have your new knowledge, go forth, embrace your agency and make them your best friend!

For further reading, check out the Cooler Insights blog

Anything else to add? Please post a comment below.

Posted by Helen Lear

Now you have gone through the selection process and picked your agency, you need to figure out how to work together to ensure the best results for you and your brand.

You need to think of your agency as your best friend to get the best you can out of the relationship.

Here is the first set of tips to get you started:

Setting up the account

·      The first step is to review the proposal that the agency submitted to win the account. This document will need to be adjusted to reflect what you really need for the campaign and have the budget for. The agency will then put this into a PR plan which can run from anything from three months for a project to a year or ongoing with a three month notice period.

·      Make sure the PR plan contains clear deliverables that you can measure the agency’s work against along the course of the contract. These can be anything from press coverage to increased traffic to a website or attendees at an event. The holy grail is if you can also work out a measurement technique for the impact PR has on business and sales progress. This could be through monitoring sales enquiries, spikes around sales following PR activity such as editorial or events or by building PR related questions in to your brand tracking to measure awareness.  Once you are happy with the plan then approve it and let the work begin!

·      Make sure that you give your agency all the background material that you have so that they are aware of every aspect of your business such as marketing collateral, internal newsletters, staff information etc. It is important to be as transparent as possible therefore your agency should be aware of any skeletons in the closet so that they can be prepared in case someone else digs them out!

Relationship management

·      Once you have appointed your PR agency, you need to ensure that you get the maximum benefit from the relationship. To do this you need to really ensure that you understand each other from the very beginning and are clear about each other’s expectations.

·      Trust your agency and don’t keep unnecessary secrets from them as this will only hinder the quality of their advice.

·      Keep you agency updated on any changes to your brand, the company structure, staff changes etc.

·      Involve the agency at an early stage in any activities that will require their support. Don’t just throw things at them at the last minute and expect quick results!

Anything to add? Please post a comment below.

Watch this space for part 2 of How to work with a PR agency.

Posted by Helen Lear. 

Public Relations is unfortunately still one of those professions that I find myself constantly having to explain to people at dinner parties, in taxis, to my grandma (I have tried many times to no avail!).

So if you are a PR virgin and looking for an agency, what should you really be looking for?

If it is your first time wandering into the wilderness, take a moment to read on to gain more of an insight into what we do and how to start the process of selecting an agency.

Size - does size really matter?

• Budget, size and length of the project will determine the size of agency you need from a small boutique agency to a large international consultancy.
• Unless you already have an agency in mind, it is worth meeting with at least two or three to get a feel for what they do and how they would work alongside you and your team.

Relevant experience

• Both the agency’s background and relevant experience will give you a good indication of whether they will be suitable for you or not. For example, if you are a travel agent it would be advisable to look for an agency that has experience in the travel, leisure or hospitality industries. That said, you may already have great contacts with the travel media and be looking for an agency that can broaden your reach into news or mass media and who can look at your brand with a fresh pair of eyes.
• There are specific agencies that focus on just one sector e.g. travel, or those who work across a broader spectrum of clients and can help you reach a wider market. It is up to you which you think would be most relevant for your needs.

Other clients

• It is important when researching an agency to find out who their other clients are. This is not just to gauge their relevant experience, but also to check that there is no conflict of interest with your brand.
• It is always worth investigating how long the agency has had each client as high retention is a great selling point. Most agencies would be happy for you to speak to their existing clients to gain a reference if required.

Location

• Are you looking for an agency close to home so you can pop around to their office for meetings/coffee/gossip, or would you prefer an agency that has offices in every major city or country? The answer to this really depends again on the size and scope of your campaign.

Accreditation

• Does the agency belong to a professional body such as the Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA)? If they do then it shows that they are a recognised company that has to abide by a code of conduct and ethics. Check out the PRIA website for more info.

The team

• When speaking with a new agency it is a good idea to get them to commit (if they can) to telling you who the team on your account would be. This helps you to get an idea of their relevant experience and whether you fit with these people both on a professional and personal level. At the end of the day, you will need to speak with these people on a regular basis so you need to get along!
• As a rule, most accounts will have a senior person (General Manager or Account Director) to oversee everything with a Senior Account Manager/Account Manager to do the strategic work and a Senior Account Executive/Account Executive to carry out the day to day work.

Budget

• Your budget for the campaign will always determine the type of agency you can approach. For example, if you have a limited budget you would be best off with a smaller agency because as a rule they have lower fees and will be more accommodating to a lesser budget.
• PR campaigns can be charged in two ways – either on a full time retainer which would be a set fee per month, or an hourly fee for a shorter project. The way in which an agency wishes to bill may also help you to make a decision.
• In addition to the PR fees, all agencies also charge disbursements or expenses, which cover things like taxis to meetings, photocopying and telephone calls.

What next?

• Once you have chosen one or more agencies you think you would like to work with, contact them to set up a face-to-face meeting to discuss your requirements and to see how you connect.
• Following the initial meeting and if you are keen, send the agency a detailed brief giving all the information about the campaign including budget, timeframes and deliverables. The agency will then go away and work up a pitch to present back to you. If you are happy with what they have presented then sign on the dotted line!

For further reading, check out the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (UK) website about their tips on how to choose an agency.

Good luck!

If you have anything to add or have any interesting stories about choosing an agency, we’d love to hear them.

Post by Helen Lear

I’ve never been fond of vermin; dirty, shifty little things they are.  Somewhere in Sydney there is a rat spreading a rumour about our client, Justin Hemmes from Merivale.  If you have any information, please call 1800-rat or leave a comment.

Posted by Renee Creer