New advisory service for Australian PR managers

Sydney, 12 November, 2009: A new service aimed at helping PR managers better manage their departments as well as their relationship with PR agencies, including the pitch process, is being started by a 30 year PR agency veteran.

Providing the new service will be Grant Common who founded the trans-Tasman PR agency Network PR, and who over the past decade has been Australia’s most prolific writer on public relations at www.prinfluences.com.au.

Common quietly closed the Australian operation of Network PR at the end of August, citing frustrations with the pr agency business and the need to move onto to new things. He has renamed the company PR Acumen.

Common says that for senior people on the client side it’s often been difficult to access senior external advice that doesn’t come bundled with a full agency service.

He sees a niche in the market to play a discreet “helping hand” and supportive advisory role for PR Directors and PR Managers; one that is independent and on call without the need for retainers and the contractual commitments that come with using a pr agency.

“I know from the experience of being on the other side of the fence that many PR Directors and Managers find it a lonely task, often facing a multiplicity of challenges. These range from running their department, managing external PR agencies, having to sell PR to the CEO and marketing people to fighting ‘turf wars’ such as whether social media is a pr or marketing function. But who do they turn to who has the breadth of experience to help?” said Common.

One focus of Common’s service will be on the client-agency relationship, an area where he believes his wide experience will be particularly relevant to PR managers.

“There are a lot of dysfunctional client-agency relationships in the marketplace, but much of it comes back to client’s simply not managing the relationship as well as they might”.

Common predicts that more Australian organisations looking to select a PR agency will need to follow the advertising industry and move to running more structured and transparent PR pitch processes using an independent third-party facilitator to guide them through the pitch process.

Common says he will help clients search for and short-list PR agencies if required. However his major area of concentration will be to bring focus, rigour, process and transparency to the PR pitch process, from the RFP or brief, through to the actual evaluation at pitch stage.

“I’m not in conflict with PR agencies. I’m a neutral facilitator who simply wants to bring my extensive experience and knowledge to the table to help PR Departments run better and get the best agency relationship and performance possible”.

Common said as PR “follows in the advertising slipstream” he noted with interest a recent claim in the marketing media that 30% of Australian, and 80% of US, advertising pitches are now managed by a third party; also commentary that there was likely to be as much as a 20% increase in Australian advertising reviews and pitches in the early part of 2010 as companies refocus after the GFC.
ends

Contact: Grant Common – info@pracumen.com.au
               www.pracumen.com.au  www.prinfluences.com.au