While most PR and marketing agencies post on social platforms for clients, many agencies do a poor job at promoting themselves on social media.
Like other businesses, PR and marketing agencies can promote themselves and win new business through social media. Social media skills may be even more important to PR and marketing agencies than other types of businesses, especially for an agency that seeks to offer social media services to its clients. Agencies need to demonstrate they are adept at managing their own social media accounts before businesses hire them to run their social media promotions.
“For PR agencies, social media channels have become a digital shop front acting as a gateway to their website, and a part of their own PR,” says social media consultant Cathy Wassell. “A potential customer will no longer consult the Yellow Pages when looking for a PR agency. They will sit at their laptop and Google, or they will go by personal or social media recommendation.”
These social media techniques for all the major platforms – Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram — can help PR agencies gain more business.
Paid social media. Especially because of the superior targeting capabilities of social networks, paid social media offers a superb way to reach decision-makers. Facebook Ads can target users by gender, age, location, interests, and behavior; LinkedIn can target company and job titles. Recognizing the benefits of social media advertising, more marketing leaders are increasing spending on paid social this year, often moving money from traditional advertising, according to research from The CMO Club and SocialCode.
Content creation. PR agencies can increase website traffic and establish themselves as experts by creating informative blog posts, web pages, infographics and other valuable content about PR and marketing topics. Leading examples: Shift Communications, Lou Hoffman of Ismael’s Corner, Deidre Breckenridge and the Glean.info blog. All post substantive insights regularly on social media to educate their audiences, increase their website traffic and boost their brand and influencer reputations.
When blogging and posting on social media, take a stance on an industry issue to stand out from the crowd, advises Sadie Groom, managing director of marketing agency Bubble & Squeak.
“Sticking your head above the parapet and standing up for what you believe in will get you noticed,” Groom says. “Being involved in discussions that people feel passionate about will help you identify prospects that have similar industry beliefs. This can be a great conversation starter when networking and can provoke a discussion that could lead to a new business opportunity.”
Engaging. Effective social media marketing means more than posting on networks. It calls for interacting with others to make connections and build relationships. Engaging others, including business prospects, can humanize your brand and lead to sales leads and other positive business results. Comment on social media posts of others, especially potential clients. Ask for comments and opinions on your own posts to prompt audience participation. If more people comment on a post, the more likely others will view the post.
Social media monitoring. By analyzing a prospective client’s social media mentions, PR agencies can make recommendations to improve their tactics. Social media listening can also keep tabs on competitors such as other agencies. Monitoring can reveal their successful strategies to emulate and unsuccessful ones to avoid. Social media listening can find opportunities to engage with potential clients by revealing questions and comments related to public relations and marketing.
Bottom Line: PR & marketing agencies can promote themselves and gain clients with the right social media strategies. If PR agencies want to offer social media services to prospective clients, it’s essential they expertly promote their PR and marketing services on social media.
William J. Comcowich founded and served as CEO of CyberAlert LLC, the predecessor of Glean.info. He is currently serving as Interim CEO and member of the Board of Directors. Glean.info provides customized media monitoring, media measurement and analytics solutions across all types of traditional and social media.
