[ Column] Judith Middleton: Selecting a PR partner for your tech company: A strategic guide

Disruption and increased efficiency, at an almost exponential scale, are changing the very foundations of economies. Technology businesses face as much opportunity as they do competition.

As a consequence, technology companies need a strong public relations (PR) strategy that boosts awareness, differentiates and amplifies their credibility.

 However, choosing the right PR agency is crucial, and in an industry as dynamic as tech, businesses would do well to engage specialists in the sector. It’s not easy to choose an agency, so here are some key considerations to successfully choose the right PR partner:

 Define your objectives

 Start by asking why you are looking at PR in the first place. Technology businesses leverage PR for brand awareness, credibility in the market, to establish relationships with their audiences, to cultivate a thought leadership profile, to launch products, and more. 

 Your first step will be to define your own goals. It doesn’t help to say broadly: “I want to do PR”. Why? Here, it is important not to confuse PR with lead generation. While a good PR strategy can lay the foundation for, and enhance, lead gen, they’re not the same thing nor do they have the same price tag. Once you have your PR goals defined, interrogate agencies about how they intend achieving them.

 Research potential PR agencies

 Be sure to seek out local expertise. In other words, look for agencies that have industry experience and a strong presence in the African markets you are targeting. This needs to be done alongside ensuring your target agencies have proven experience in the technology sector, which has a unique set of dynamics and challenges.

Consider working with a niche technology agency, in other words, an agency that has built a team and skill set around a comprehensive understanding of technology businesses, how they operate, and the world they operate in. Lastly, interrogate their understanding of PR. In other words, beyond just column space, how does what they do move the needle for you?

Take the time to evaluate agency portfolios

Case studies paint a useful picture of an agency’s past work and efficacy. Look for technology brand case studies. Browse through the agency’s client roster: Are they technology businesses? Do they represent direct competitors to your brand? Interrogate the agency’s non-compete, AI and data protection policies.

Assess agencies’ capabilities

PR is a broad discipline with many moving parts. Make sure the agency offers a full range of PR services that will help you achieve your objectives. Look for content creation, media relations and social media. Zoom in on their digital PR offering. Technology brands need to have a strong digital PR presence.

Then, ask about their writers. Seek out an agency that has credible, senior writers with a proven track record. You need writers with the confidence and business acumen to interrogate a business in a way that extracts quality insights that leads to top-tier, thought leadership content.

Can the agency provide client testimonials? Look for reviews from past clients and current clients. Then, research the agency’s reputation within the industry. There’s a subtle difference between an agency’s reputation among its peers, which is a good indicator of how good it is, and an agency’s reputation in the industries it serves. What do technology companies think?

Don’t presuppose strategy

 Seek out partners that don’t presuppose your objectives and challenges, or who make assumptions about the right strategy until they have deeply immersed themselves in your business. Look for agencies that prioritise in-depth strategy workshops with key business executives as one of their first actions after being engaged. This subtle orientation goes a long way towards removing disappointment a few months down the road.

Are you a cultural fit?

This may seem like a “soft” recommendation, but it is fundamental to the success of your partnership. First, ensure they are able to demonstrate a deep understanding of the culture, language, business practice and social landscape of your target market. Then, seek out an agency that is transparent about their processes and communicates regularly, and clearly. Does this communication style match your company’s preference?

Successful business relationships are built on trust and dependability. Make sure you like who you will be working with: Ask who will work on your account, and make sure that you’re not being wooed by the suits and then served by the interns.

Don’t seek a supplier for a supplier’s sake. In other words, you don’t want implementers, you want a genuine partner in the business who is prepared to immerse themselves in your organisation and be prepared to say no, that’s not the right approach, as opposed to being the proverbial “yes men”.

It’s time to engage the agencies you have chosen

Set up meetings with your shortlisted agencies to discuss your objectives. Ask to meet the team that would be working on your account to ensure they have the right skills and experience.

Once you have done this, take the time to send a detailed Request for Proposal (RFP). Detail your requirements and objectives, as well as your budget. Don’t cut corners here because it will waste your time a little further down the road. Set a reasonable deadline and wait for the magic.

Engage with the team when they present their proposal. When you evaluate proposals, consider what you will get for your budget, and importantly – how well the agency understands your brand, your value proposition and your industry. Crucially, look at the agency’s proposed plan of action, consider how they’ll put together a strategic programme that’s relevant to your business and context, and pay attention to how they propose working, measuring, iterating, reporting and counselling on an ongoing basis.

Let’s get down to business

You need to agree to the rules of the game. Be sure to understand exactly what the PR agency needs from you to get the most out of the strategy and partnership. By this stage you will have ascertained whether the agency’s fees are within your budget, so the next step is to define how you will measure return on investment (ROI). Assess the potential ROI based on the agency’s proposed strategies and past performance.

Make your final decision and agree on reporting metrics

This final stage is a magical blend of precision and gut feeling. Review the contract terms carefully, and if there are any concerns, raise them now. Once you are happy with the contract, ask yourself the most important question: How comfortable am I to enter into a partnership with this agency and do I have an exit clause should things not go according to plan?

Metrics for reporting are critical to agree on upfront. AVE is not used to measure impact these days - from a broader perspective, we can look at the number of published articles, placement in identified Tier 1 publications, share of voice and sentiment, and at a more granular level reporting can highlight reads on advertorials, as well as analytics from your own website.

Combined marketing efforts should lead to increases in traffic from direct and organic search sources, while the metrics to focus on include new and total users, engaged sessions and average engagement time per session

Ultimately the goal is trust and credibility first and foremost. Sales will come if there is product market fit and the trust is earned and proven.

Judith Middleton is the CEO of DUO Marketing+Communications