The public relations industry is going through some big changes.
PR firms are investing more in data and analytics to defend the value of their services to clients and fend off the threat of consultancies and other potential rivals.
They're also pouring resources into building out new businesses like creative, digital, and ecommerce services.
Some firms cut staff and pay as clients cut back in the pandemic. But they've begun rehiring and restoring pay cuts. And some areas of their business have been booming, like financial communications and diversity, equity, and inclusion, and creating lucrative if high-pressure jobs.
Business Insider has been tracking all these trends at some of the largest PR firms including Edelman, Weber Shandwick, and Sard Verbinnen, and rounded up our coverage, including the hot practice areas that are boosting firms' revenue, how to get hired, and compensation. Here's the latest.
Hiring, compensation
- PR industry salaries revealed: How much top firms like Teneo, BCW, and FTI pay employees, from consultants to managing directors
- Meet 12 top public relations recruiters to know right now
- How to get a job at PR giant Edelman and what to expect if you land an interview, according to the company's recruiters
- What it takes to get high-paying jobs at strategic consulting firms like Finsbury and Kekst CNC, from handling tricky questions to nailing writing tests
- Tricky job interview questions to expect at strategic PR firms like WPP's Finsbury and Publicis' Kekst CNC, according to insiders
- How to get a job at Publicis Groupe's Kekst CNC, the PR firm behind some of the biggest deals in the world, according to hiring execs there
- 22 top public relations pros on the job market right now
Financial outlook
- The PR industry got hammered by the pandemic. CEOs of the largest firms say they feel optimistic for the first time this year.
- Edelman CEO lays out how the world's biggest PR firm has recovered half of its decline after revenue fell as much as 30% in some markets.
- CEOs of PR firms like Edelman and BCW reveal why they're focused on winning business from advertising and consulting companies coming out of the pandemic.
- The CEO of BCW lays out how the PR giant plans to survive a tough year and win share from consulting companies.
Growth areas
- Public relations giant BCW is starting a new business building e-commerce sites, and it shows how the lines between PR and advertising are blurring.
- FleishmanHillard is pushing into advertising services, and it shows how public relations firms are encroaching on ad agencies.
- The Black Lives Matter movement has been an unavoidable subject for the C-suite — and PR giants are reaping the benefits
- Inside Hill + Knowlton's struggle to turn around the fading PR giant and a look at its strategy.
- These are the top 15 financial public relations pros CEOs call when their companies are on fire
- PR firms like Joele Frank and Sard Verbinnen are seeing a windfall from bankruptcy cases but some risk being sued by former clients — here's how agencies can protect themselves
- 18 top public relations experts CEOs scramble to hire in a crisis
- Internal communications business is booming for PR firms like Edelman, Prosek, and Kekst CNC as CEOs scramble to reassure remote workforces and plan for a return to the office
- Meet public relations' 27 most influential fixers at companies like Google, Johnson & Johnson, and Nike
- PR giants like Edelman and Sard Verbinnen are seeing a surge in demand as companies seek to minimize damage from the coronavirus pandemic
- The coronavirus will reshape the PR industry, from squeezing small firms to boosting internal communications
How PR is using technology
- PR agencies are beefing up their data services to keep consulting firms like Deloitte and Accenture from eating their lunch
- PR giant MSL breaks down how it's using tech tools to prove its work drives results for clients like P&G and Cadillac
- Cision and Meltwater, the two largest PR software companies, are planning a merger, and the DoJ has explored whether it would hurt competition
- A year after PR giant Edelman struck a 'first of its kind' partnership with Cision, the deal is no longer exclusive
- A leaked pitch deck from Cision shows the PR software giant is trying to sell a company it bought last year for $225 million
Diversity and inclusion
- A public relations giant lays out a 4-step plan to close the pay gap between white and BIPOC influencers
- A PR trade group representing firms including Weber Shandwick and FleishmanHillard is embroiled in disagreements over whether firms should have to reveal how diverse their workforce is and pledge to hiring people of color
- The world's two largest PR firms, Edelman and Weber Shandwick, pledged to hire more people of color in senior positions
- Insiders at Omnicom agency GMMB say the workplace is rife with 'systemic' racism, where people of color are tokenized and treated like 'the help'
- GMMB HR director Chandra Krohl is leaving the firm as it faces a reckoning over diversity and inclusion practices
- Omnicom Group-owned ad and public relations agency GMMB named its first Black partner and pledged other steps after staffers highlighted 'systemic racism' at the firm
Layoffs
- Edelman insiders describe layoffs at the PR giant after the CEO promised there wouldn't be job cuts
- PR giant Edelman is laying off 390 employees as business falls off because of the pandemic: Read the CEO's memo to staff
- Hospitality-focused PR firms are shedding staff and looking for new revenue streams as the pandemic wallops the industry
News
- 6 big advertisers who are scrambling to hire PR firms, and who could win the business
- Leaked documents show what WPP's PR firm Hill + Knowlton Strategies is charging clients for 2020.
- FBI agents talked to ex-employees at Ruder Finn right after the PR giant pitched a project to China — and it shows how the US is turning up the heat on firms trying to work for foreign governments
- Leaked document shows how Expedia planned to win back customers and repair its reputation after pandemic-related cancellations
- Robinhood's PR chief is leaving the popular trading app and the company is searching for a replacement
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