How to be a Terrible PR Client

By Melissa A Vitale 

​Public relations is not a clear cut industry. It's not like advertising where $50K can lead to one placement. You could pay two months retainers before you see any coverage. 

Public relations agencies range in capabilities. Some PR firms manage sponsored placements, social media accounts and offer celeb gifting. Especially for a startup who has never worked with a PR firm, it's totally understandable to be confused about what your publicist provides. 

But there's misunderstanding PR, and then there's just being a terrible client to work with: 

• Not understanding the strategy & expectations of the account: Publicists know PR is confusing if you're not in the realm. Which is why we not only put thought into our proposals to forecast what 6+ months of media relations will look like, but we also offer to break it down and explain it to clients. That proposal (at least for MAVPR) will detail how many placements to expect per month, and what services are included. When clients don't understand what is or isn't included in their retainer, they tend to ask for things that aren't covered in their retainer.
• Late or No-Show to Requested Update Calls: I typically don't schedule update calls unless the client requests them. Update calls are usually not needed when there's momentum on the account unless the client wants one. Publicists are usually happy to plan some time to update their client. But our days are not just spent talking to our clients. We have to do a lot of work to secure every piece of coverage all of our clients get. When a client requests an update call, I expect them to show up on time, the way I do. Otherwise you can throw off a publicists day trying to have them track you down. That's not just your account's work that you could be cutting into, but other clients. 
• Treat your publicist like your secretary: "Send me that cal invite," "submit us for this," "we want this collaboration that isn't remotely related to PR, can you make it happen?" Oh yeah, your publicist who has earned the respect by editors at publications you would shit yourselves to be in, does not like being treated like a secretary. 
• Redirect the strategy without cause: You want more coverage? You need to pay for it. If you're not happy with the results of your campaign, you can request a re-focus on strategy. However, if your request comes after a typically slow press month (January & Summers can be slow with editors and journalists all taking vacation time), it's fueled by greed and not being patient. You're making your publicist work double hours because you think your brand is immune to slow press months. 
• Being Ungrateful: The journalists who include clients in coverage get nothing in return except maybe a sample. There's tons of brands that would send them samples. When clients send notes of appreciation through their publicist, journalists are usually so appreciative for the gratitude. This can lead to repeat coverage. Now imagine you just gave a little boy a present on Christmas. His response isn't "Thank you" but instead "I want more! I wanted this? Where is this? Why didn't I get this". Do you want to give that little boy another gift? The same is with journalists & publicists! Yes you pay a publicist, but your coverage only comes at the results of our networks and our ideas & strategy. You think we want to keep giving you coverage when you complain about every press piece you get? 
• Distracting your publicist from executing your goals: Your publicist is hoping to get you in places like Vogue, Harper's Bazaar & Glamour. Asking them to submit you for a blog takes away from key hours of getting you in the places you want to be seen it. 
• Holding publicists accountable for things we cannot control: An editor fucked up your name? Do you know how many editors look at the piece and how many names they read every day? Everyone in media is prone to mistakes. You got a placement but didn't get any sales? Publicists are not sales associates too. We cannot fix all the wholes in your sales funnel with a single placement. 

If this sounds like you, best of luck with your PR Strategy! If this sounds appalling, you're probably a great client to work with. 

For brands looking to have regular headlines, be sure to check out MAVPR's suite of services: 
https://www.melissaavitale.com/services.htm