4 Reasons PR Doesn’t Work and How to Fix Them

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Imagine this scenario: John runs a lifestyle brand and plans to launch a new product line. He wants to build awareness and a good brand reputation with the public. John has reviewed and is excited about public relations (PR) as a tool to build hype around product launches. He engages in deep research to understand how it works and reads success stories before proceeding. In some blogs, brands claim massive sales from publishing a creative press release. Others said it helps get investors to partner with their brand and many more reviews online. Satisfied with what he has seen, John hires a team of public relations professionals, discusses what he wants, and waits for results. But after the campaign, the output was disappointing, and he was left clueless about what went wrong.

Do you find this story relatable? Like John, are you wondering, “Why did our PR campaign fail? Having worked with many brands to revamp their PR strategy and generate the desired results, we have compiled a list of the top four reasons PR fails.

1.    Treating PR as a Separate Function

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Most businesses see PR as a silver bullet, the ultimate hack to driving unlimited sales for their launch. In hindsight, they consider PR activities a solo growth approach without considering how it affects other departments. Public relations is another growth tactic with many implementations and should be treated as such.

For example, your PR team can collaborate with HR to create effective recruitment strategies and messaging to attract top talent. They can also support investor relations and business communication initiatives. Moreover, PR is a major player in the Marketing Department as it helps to build brand awareness and loyalty and drive traffic to your website. Aligning PR strategically with your overall organizational goals, instead of focusing solely on launch objectives, will most likely improve the outcomes. Although separating this function might boost awareness, it will disconnect with the sales team leading to poor handling of the traffic it generates.

Solution: Set Joint Business Goals

Getting your PR team to be part of a larger team starts with establishing a common business goal. For example, if your business goal for the year is to grow revenue by 20%, the PR team should create strategies and campaigns that support that goal. This way, the PR team’s plan will be in sync with the marketing and sales team and other departments, making communication a top priority.

2.    Using PR Strategies that Are Not Data-Driven

The business space is constantly evolving as customers search for something new or call out a brand for poor conduct. You need to be informed about customers’ behavioral patterns, brand mentions, and industry trends at all times to adjust accordingly. However, if your business fails to build your strategy around available data, you are at risk of implementing the wrong tactics.

For example, monitoring website visitors’ behavior with tools like Google Analytics or Hotjar will help you understand what pages convert better and what to update. Also, tracking analytics will help you know which campaign is performing well. Armed with this information, you can create an effective PR strategy that adopts the changes you noticed from your data collection processes. This approach will ensure that your strategy is precise and focused on what matters. However, without a data-driven approach, you are stuck with trial-and-error methods, which will cost you more and possibly fail.

Solution: Invest in Data Monitoring Tools

Using monitoring tools like Google Analytics, BuzzSumo, Screaming Frog, and others will help you track campaign results across all channels and gather historical data. Subsequently, you can deploy effective PR strategies that align with brand goals without running around in circles.

3.    Targeting all Channels Simultaneously

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You may believe that more channels mean more eyes. However, in PR, it’s not always a linear path. Effective public relations strategies depend on your target audiences and where you can find them. Trying to reach so many people, especially if those channels have no profitable prospects, wastes money, time, and resources. For example, creating a customer success story as part of a PR campaign requires you to develop compatible versions for all channels. For instance, let’s say you’re planning a unified marketing campaign tailored for customers on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube. Each platform has a different resolution and time frame, so you will have to dedicate more time to developing quality content for each platform. However, if your target audience is solely active on TikTok, directing efforts toward other channels could result in wasted time. This time could instead be invested in other productive activities rather than creating content for platforms that won’t yield results.

Solution: Take it One Channel at a Time

Conduct comprehensive research to understand your target audience and where to find them. You can then identify the channel that will generate the best results and master that channel before branching to others. This approach will help you maintain control of distribution and deliver better results.

4.    Working with a PR Team that Lacks the Right Experience

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PR success isn’t possible without the right team. Although hiring the cheapest agency might be cost-effective, it’s not always profitable. PR requirements differ in industries, and if your in-house team lacks that specific experience, they won’t create effective campaigns. Also, PR campaigns that don’t communicate your brand value and unique selling proposition may drive publicity but won’t necessarily build relationships. Your PR team must understand your business to communicate its unique value consistently. While most agencies and in-house teams might promise great results, not all have the technical experience to run SEO, email outreach, and campaign analytics strategies. An effective team must have industry experience, company insights, and technical requirements for effective results.

Solution: Hire an Experienced PR Agency

If you are building an in-house PR team, you should hire professionals experienced in the different functions of the discipline. An effective team should have a copywriter, publicist, social media strategist, editor, SEO, and PR specialist. In contrast, if you are hiring a PR agency, you should consider their industry expertise, content marketing offers, and overall results ratings. Hiring the right team is often the first step to success, and you should be strict with your selection process.

Ready to revolutionize PR strategy and generate profitable results? Book your personalized consultation today, and let us help you power business growth with effective PR tactics.