NPC Communicators Lunch and Learn: How to Select a PR Agency

One element of the public relations-communications process that is often not given enough emphasis is how organizations go about finding and hiring an agency to support them, as well as how agencies “sell” their business to potential clients.

During this virtual program hosted by the NPC Communicators Team, Steve Drake and Robert Udowitz, the founders of RFP Associates, will describe how the “request for proposal” process is used to select an agency. This knowledge is based on the veteran communicators’ collective experience from both sides of the negotiating table during their careers at PR agencies, corporations and trade associations.

For organizations, agency selection has become confusing, time consuming and seemingly inefficient. For agencies, it’s always a risk versus reward proposition. But a well-thought, carefully written request for proposal, coupled with a fair and transparent search process, will increase the likelihood of satisfaction for both sides.

This virtual program will provide the best, systematic approach for finding the right prospective agency respondents, developing a pre-qualifying questionnaire and writing a top-notch RFP.

If you work for an agency of any sort you will learn the best ways to determine whether an RFP fits your skill set and how to most effectively respond to an agency search. Both sides should leave the session understanding RFP best practices. The result? The world will be a happier place.