Let’s make PR pitch culture fair
Photo by Polina Kovaleva from Pexels
When I think of the need to make PR pitch culture more fair, a particular story comes to mind. Not long ago, a well-known company—widely known for its sustainable and fair ethos—invited us to pitch to them on extremely short notice. We all LOVED this brand and were more than excited to demonstrate why and how Laika could and would meet their PR needs. However, the potential client denied our request for more time to adequately prepare for the pitch. They also insisted we fly in, instead of taking the train, which would’ve taken longer but been more aligned with their sustainability values. Despite how seemingly amazing it would have been to add this client to our roster, we made the decision to gently pull out of the pitching process. We were left confused and surprised by the lack of respect for our time, work standards and more.
Despite being surprised (we did not expect that from this brand), it wouldn’t have been the first time. An extensive and unpaid competitive presentation within a week? No proper briefing? No transparency about the number of vying competitors and who they are? We receive such pitch requests almost weekly—and regardless of the short notice and zero compensation, we’re always expected to bring our A-game.
This is only one example of why we believe that PR needs a pitch culture that is more fair, and there is no time like the present to bring about this change. I’d like to share with you what pitching entails, the problem with the pitch culture in PR, how we at Laika approach the problem, and some alternatives to pitch requests worth considering.
The RFP (request for proposal)
Simply put, a request for a pitch or proposal (used interchangeably in this case), is a potential client asking a company (or a consultant) to put together a comprehensive presentation and concept to win their business over. Potential clients range from small (start-ups) to big (large corporations), and they want to know what the agencies will bring to the table if they select them to work with.
Acknowledging the problem—The unculture of pitches in PR
Let’s say you’re looking for a lawyer… and in order to best select a lawyer to work with, you ask 10 potential lawyers to put together a comprehensive and brilliant plan on how they are going to plead your case, then have each of these lawyers present those ideas to you—all at their expense. Surely, they’ll promptly decline your request, lest they think it was one big joke.
Why? Because your request takes time. Time—a precious and valuable commodity. Here lies the problem… Most often, PR agencies like ours do not have employees on stand-by to prepare a detailed and brilliant pitch in the quickest of turnarounds. Creativity needs time. Strategy needs time—and space to develop. All this to say, creating a smart, in-depth concept for a potential client, is extra work, and extra works takes more time. Many companies, big or small, do not understand this. Also, it’s not uncommon for start-ups to be working with an agency for the first time, so it is often difficult for them to estimate the effort and time involved.
Here are some important problems that we need to address:
Lack of transparency (potential clients not disclosing how many competitors are being asked to pitch).
Lack of knowledge (potential clients indiscriminately asking for proposals from any agency—sometimes to meet a quota, without first doing their research into those agencies, to better understand if they’d be a good fit in the first place).
Lack of communication (PR professionals are not communicating enough with each other about fair and unfair requests because of all the secrecy surrounding pitches, nor communicating with clients about the immense investment, resources, and effort that actually goes into putting a pitch together).
Lack of connection (people on the client side who are not as qualified to set up a fair brief and enter a meaningful exchange at every step of the process; agencies sending designated pitch experts into the race who hardly look after the account in the end and are completely disconnected with following-through).
Lack of feedback (potential clients not sharing valuable feedback with the pitching agencies, during and after the pitching process).
Lack of respect (potential clients expecting the world from agencies, on short notice, on their terms, and with no compensation).
Developing awareness—How FOMO makes us work for free
There is this song by 10cc, "The Things We Do for Love." That melodic title-chorus sometimes comes to mind as I observe the self-sacrifice agencies put themselves through when they're asked to pitch under inconsiderate conditions. We all have a strong desire to be liked, to still see the client as the king, and therefore we can easily overstep our own reasonably set boundaries to deliver that brilliant pitch, which might land us that next big win. However, we must take a step back and ask ourselves: are we gambling away the basis of an appreciative, partnership-based collaboration?
Accepting change is necessary—No time like the present
Advertising and marketing agencies are slowly but surely moving towards "we don't pitch at all anymore" (congratulations, for example, to the colleagues from below1 and allcodesarebeautiful). Public relations still can't seem to catch-up. I’ve been working in the PR industry for over 15 years, and not much has changed when it comes to pitching. Yet, it’s clear that pitching when in comes to PR needs a makeover. Now’s the time to do things better—to do things fairer.
Embracing a fairer approach to pitching—The Laika way
In my opinion, pitches are not a bad selection process per se, as long as they are fair to both sides. However, there are healthier ways for the process to be managed. Every client who comes knocking on our agency spaceship door, is presented with our “Mission Rules”, a kind of pitch etiquette, which addresses many of the aforementioned problems.
Transparency. Knowing what other agencies are in the game, can help us decide if we want to enter the pitch process at all. In addition, if we compete against two other agencies, our chance to win is 33%. With four, it's 25%. With ten agencies, it's only 10%. So we need to calculate the risk that way. Knowing the number invited to pitch, also allows us to determine if we’re being seriously considered or not (among a limited amount of agencies pre-selected for their credentials). We don’t think more than three agencies should be invited to pitch.
Knowledge. Agencies and the agency market should be well researched in advance of the pitch request. Obtaining service offers, references and experience reports, will minimize a client’s risk of betting on the wrong horse right from the start. It’s also beneficial to clients to know that the agencies they’re inviting to pitch share their values. We appreciate it when potential clients come to us, already having done their research about Laika, our work, our track record, and our values.
Communication. It’s important for PR agencies and professionals to open the lines of communication with each other about what is fair and unfair when it comes to our pitch culture. There’s strength in numbers. If we all stick to our set boundaries, we can gain momentum in changing PR pitch culture to make it more fair. Initiatives promoting fair working conditions and customer relationships like the Fairgency network—which we’re part of—is a great starting point. In addition, at Laika, we do not pitch without first having a personal/chemistry meeting with a potential client. It’s important to us for both parties to clearly communicate expectations from the very beginning. We also ask for a concrete briefing, and have developed a questionnaire to help clients who find it difficult to come up with an RFP.
Connection. The appropriate person from the client side should connect and follow through. Let it be a founder, a Head of Communications, CMO or other, what’s key is that they are able to set up a fair, structured selection process for their company and will enter into an eye-to-eye exchange with the agencies requested to pitch. Laika appreciates working with potential partners who are responsive, and who are able to give feedback at every step of the process. In turn, those on the team who worked on a successful pitch, go on to work directly with the client.
Feedback. It is important to note, regardless of whether we win or lose after pitching, we expect concrete pitch feedback, for fair cooperation. Besides writing the brief, it is the only investment the potential client actively has to do, and feedback is highly valuable to us.
Respect. We expect fair timeframes. We always prioritize our current client work, so a potential client should not expect an in-depth presentation the week following a pitch request. Furthermore, we appreciate when potential clients limit the number of ideas and tasks that need to be presented to what they actually need to properly assess our agency. If a pitch briefing contains very complex, concrete tasks, we reserve the right to agree on a pitch fee in advance. We also request reimbursement for travel and accommodation expenses.
Exploring more-suitable alternatives
The agency pitch is not a panacea and may not always be the best choice for everyone. Here is just a small selection of alternatives for companies looking to overcome their automatic reflex to request a pitch.
Looking for support with PR strategy?
Then try paid strategy workshops. In this workshop, you work together with the agency at eye level on a very specific strategic challenge. The advantage: You get to know your potential partner directly in a working mode—as opposed to show and tell, you can observe ways of thinking, while testing the chemistry (including at informal team meals)—and all this within a clearly defined period of time. If everything goes right in the process, it's easier to continue working together afterwards.
Need something done yesterday?
Then try agile concept development. Try working with your preferred agency partner in the form of agile concept development, in which both sides contribute their strengths.
Need to develop content that matches your brand voice?
Then try paid content. Why not put some paid content tasks out to tender and let the shortlisted agencies polish them?
We’re all in the same boat
I believe it’s important to continue this discussion about changing PR pitch culture for the better. In these times of the Great Resignation and the war for talent, we’re all in the same boat. Top creative and strategic performance should not come at the expense of people burning out—we all lose out. Now, more than ever, it is essential to protect and value a fair pitch culture based on respect. After all, starting on a respectful note from the beginning, makes a client beloved from day one, yielding the best results. Utilizing the concrete ways of embracing and developing a fairer pitch culture, highlighted in this piece, makes everyone a winner.
- Ela