Are you having difficulty locating the ideal publicist to hire? With 54,581 PR firms in the US as of 2022, finding a quality publicist isn’t always simple. A good publicist will effectively communicate your brand to its intended audience, freeing up time to focus on other aspects of your business.
To find the ideal publicist for your brand, you should research and assess client reviews. Referrals from other brands can also yield good results; however, every personality and brand differs, so make sure that any team you work with has the appropriate attitude, expertise, and industry experience.
This post will give you a basic understanding of publicity and help you select the ideal specialist for your brand’s needs.
What can a publicist do for you?
A publicist for hire is essential in communicating your brand to its target audience. Publicity encompasses public relations, which often gets mixed up with marketing and advertising.
PR and advertising differ in that advertising is paid for and seeks to sell goods and services. On the other hand, public relations is earned and involves cultivating and maintaining healthy relationships with your target audience.
Publicity firms play an essential role in helping a brand build its visibility across various media, news outlets, and other platforms. By working together with publicists, companies or personalities can maintain a positive public image. These connections are crucial for businesses when it comes to selling their goods and services.
A bad public image can be caused by intentional or unintentional actions by those associated with the brand or business. Negative messages spread through different media can do immense damage to a brand’s public perception. Public relations professionals can help counter negative publicity through damage control strategies in order to restore its public perception.
Roles of publicists for hire include:
- Communication of a brand’s messages to targeted audiences to impact and influence their opinions
- They work with clients in creating these messages, determining the message content, their mode of delivery, and how to drive conversations around their agendas.
- Preparation of press releases, speeches, media alerts, social media content, and bios.
- Scheduling, planning, and organizing events.
- Pitching their clients to influencers and journalists
- Creating media lists and keeping track of coverage
- Arranging press conferences and interviews.
- Managing crises
If you are just beginning to build your brand, developing publicity strategies may seem daunting. With limited funds at your disposal, it may be tempting to do the publicity activities yourself; however, if you want to progress and compete with industry giants, hiring an excellent publicist who also does SEO is necessary. They don’t need to be near me – they could be anywhere in America from Seattle, WA or Bellevue, WA for example.
How do you go about hiring a publicist?
When seeking to hire a publicist to make you famous, you need to consider the return on investment and how much it costs. Hiring an effective publicist is an important decision for brands; their presence has an immense effect on the success of the business. Therefore, when searching for the perfect candidate, there’s no room for error. In this section I will provide you with an easy-to-follow guide on selecting the ideal PR professional.
Planning
Your brand may be growing and you feel overwhelmed with the responsibility of posting on social media, managing events and managing media relations on your own. If this describes you, then the planning phase involves identifying why a publicist is necessary and outlining any requirements you have.
Research
At this point, you need a publicist who can effectively handle your publicity needs. Once identified, research the firm’s experience, services offered, cost and which industries they serve. Remember: public relations is organic – quality doesn’t always match price!
Sources of research you can use include:
- Referrals from your connections – The most reliable way to locate a great publicity firm is through referrals from brands who have worked with them previously.
- Internet Research – You can locate great PR firms through Google search. Reviews left by clients provide insight into the quality of service to be expected, and some online sources include:
PR Agency – When hiring a publicist, PR agencies are your top choice. These businesses boast experienced teams in various disciplines that are essential for your brand. Unlike other options listed below which may offer lower rates, PR agencies guarantee results.
Upwork– Upwork boasts some of the finest freelancers in the world. However, you should always request a guarantee from any publicist you hire as not all will deliver what you expect.
Fiverr – You can hire a freelance publicist from Fiverr, one of the world’s premier freelance sites. But as with any profession, it’s never wise to blindly trust their abilities; therefore, you may want to verify their expertise by checking out their reviews.
Craigslist Public Relations Experts – If you need assistance with publicity, Craigslist public relations experts could be the perfect solution. Since it’s important to trust anyone you meet online, consider scheduling a meeting or paying on delivery if desired; alternatively, sign a formal work agreement for more formality and assurance.
Before selecting a publicity firm, it may be necessary to reach out or visit several agencies. Your publicist should work closely with your company to understand your brand and define any necessary PR requirements. After that is determined, negotiate rates and expectations based on measurable outcomes from the hired publicist.
Factors to consider when choosing a publicist
Experience – Artists may want to collaborate with experienced publicity professionals. When selecting a team for your brand, look for evidence of their work and that of the individuals assigned. Meeting them face-to-face during the pitch process provides you with an invaluable firsthand view of their abilities and capabilities.
Sector and Conflict of Interest– Most PR firms specialize in specific industries. Before hiring any publicity experts, be sure that they understand your business and are up-to-date on industry trends. Otherwise, having other competing clients could create a conflict of interest. Therefore, ensure all your questions and needs are addressed prior to engaging the agency or publicists.
Location – it is best to select a publicity firm within your region. Keep in mind your target audience and how the firm interacts with the public and press. Hiring someone close by allows for convenient meetings to address issues quickly.
Testimonials – Never ignore negative reviews or complaints from clients. When selecting a publicist, take into account both current and past customers’ feedback. If they have achieved successful outcomes for them, you can trust them to do the same for your brand.
Cost – When negotiating prices, always look for value for your money. Create a publicity budget without cutting corners on PR services and pay more attention to the features they provide and the experience of the team assigned to your account.
Personalities – When selecting a publicist, you should take into account their attitude and reliability. A great publicist will dedicate all their resources to help make sure your success is achieved; they shouldn’t be restricted by normal working hours or projects you are engaged in.
Meeting the team assigned to your account can help you determine if you and they are compatible. As a smaller brand, it is essential that your agency doesn’t discriminate against you and prioritizes more prominent clients.
Capacity – Before hiring a publicist, ensure they can handle the workload. If their firm has too many clients, they may limit attention to your projects.
Don’t be afraid to reach out to smaller PR firms. These agencies often have a thirst for clients and will take an interest in your brand and deliver results.
Best indie film publicists
Are you seeking to promote your independent film? If you are on a tight budget, some cheap alternatives or DIY strategies might be viable options. My guess is that you already invested considerable resources into production and now need to see some returns on those investments.
To achieve your objectives, you need to hire the top indie film publicist to release your movie quickly. Working with experienced professionals will guarantee results – which can only be ensured through hiring experienced film publicists.
Film publicists collaborate with cinemas, studios, festival representatives, critics, the press and other players in the industry to generate buzz around your film and increase visibility for it.
Tips for getting the best indie film publicists:
- A publicist for hire should possess a comprehensive understanding of the media and journalists’ needs across various platforms, such as online, print, television and radio. Furthermore, they must possess excellent contacts within both film and television production companies.
- Writing skills are also essential for public relations professionals. They should demonstrate the ability to craft engaging promotional stories for films, press packs, and releases.
- Knowledge of SEO is essential for publicists. Promoting a film that doesn’t appear on search engine results can be quite challenging, so it’s essential to have both strategies integrated when promoting it. Once your trailer video starts gaining organic traffic, you’ve already started selling!
- Film publicists need a deep knowledge and experience in the industry to identify their target audience and how best to engage them. Furthermore, understanding film trends, viewing figures, and box office results are essential when promoting a movie.
- A successful publicist must be able to influence key figures within the industry, such as critics, programmers and journalists, in order to shape public perception of a film.
Hip-hop publicists
Hip Hop publicity and music promotion in general differs from traditional publicity. Your hip-hop publicist should possess expertise in music as well as connections to radio DJs, mixtape producers, etc.
At the start of your music career, you may not need a publicist on board. But as your career and fan base expand, it becomes necessary to hire someone to put you in the spotlight. A publicist can secure coverage in print and online media as well as interviews and features for you.
Additionally, you need a hip-hop publicist to secure video and audio premiers and album reviews, pitch journalists on promotional story ideas and get you featured in trending features. Furthermore, these professionals offer career guidance regarding potential image tarnishing actions as well as compelling narratives.
Music PR requires experienced professionals with knowledge in both the music and media industries to help artists put their best effort forward. You need a publicist who genuinely cares about your career goals, is eager to collaborate and support you as you grow, providing invaluable assistance as you take your career in the right direction.
Before hiring a publicist for your music career, it’s essential that you do some due diligence and find the right individual. Referrals are always your best bet when searching for someone suitable; additionally, those chosen should demonstrate interest and dedication towards seeing your success achieved.
If you need assistance selecting a publicist, the tips provided above can be invaluable.
Digital PR and SEO
PR strategies have evolved from traditional reputation management to incorporate modernized content visibility techniques. With 63% of the world’s population having access to the internet, brands are competing more than ever for limited space on SERPs.
Publicists are now dedicating significant effort to SEO in order to increase their client visibility to their audiences. These professionals use online platforms to communicate branding and promotional messages directly to targeted audiences, foster opinions, create agendas and conversations around personalities and brands, all while increasing client visibility.
With so much content competing for attention on the internet, getting views and clicks can be a challenge. SEO PR works towards building reputations by increasing traffic to your web pages and websites – organic traffic being especially rewarding in this case. Internet experts agree that nothing beats organic traffic when it comes to increasing website activity.
Digital PR and online marketing should not be confused. While both utilize similar tactics, their goals differ; digital marketing strives to sell products and services while PR seeks positive publicity for clients.
Are you having challenges finding the perfect publicist for hire?
Trust publicity experts to help you build and promote your brand online, drive more visitors to your website, and surpass competitors. Don’t underestimate their dedication to helping your business succeed.
No matter where your brand is in its development phase or already established, hiring a publicist for hire should demonstrate enthusiasm. Furthermore, smaller but hungry PR agencies may be ideal options for your brand.