Take My Junior Staffer…Please

Recently, I was in DC for an interview with a major association. I was having a one-on-one with the VP of Communications and as I normally do in such situations I inquired if the organization handled its PR totally in-house or if they also contracted an outside agency. Having worked in an agency as an account lead, the question allowed me to segue into talking about my experience in that capacity. The VP told me that the association “used to” contract the services of a very big and well known PR agency (name omitted on purpose).

He went on to let me know that the selection of this particular agency was a board/executive team decision. They wanted big results and so they went after a big name with the experience to get big results. I next asked the VP what happened to the relationship and whether or not this “Big Name” agency was able to deliver results. The VP informed me that the results were pedestrian at best and not at all what the association was expecting for the $240K they were shelling out annually (for the math impaired that’s a $20K/mon. retainer). He further indicated that they were unresponsive, inattentive and failed to take advantage of key opportunities to position the organization.

There was one particular incident when he needed to speak to a principal about a crisis communications situation that had arose. The VP thought that paying the $20K per month retainer would at least get you access to an agency leader. But he found that out to be a very false assumption. When he called the agency to seek the counsel of a principal (the same principal that was very active during the pitch meeting) he was blocked by that person’s gatekeeper. The gatekeeper informed the VP that the person he sought was unavailable because he was busy with another client (a major credit card company with lots of commercials on TV).

Because that major credit card company paid millions annually for the agency’s services, it not only got more attention, but the attention of the higher ups. Unfortunately, the associations meager $240K per year did not warrant getting that kinda luv. I asked him, Well what kind of attention did it get you? His reply, “They gave our account to some junior staffer practically fresh out of college with limited experience.” As a result of that treatment and the apparent lack of results, the association decided to discontinue the relationship with the agency and bring all of the PR in-house, hence the reason I was being interviewed for the Director of Media Relations position.

Now, I don’t know how it works at everybody else’s agency, but at the smaller agency I worked at, this association would’ve been a premium client and at the larger agency I worked at, they still would’ve been able to get some top exec handholding for $240K annually. I was astonished by what I had heard. At either agency I worked for, I don’t think the practice of putting a junior staffer on a significant account would’ve been implemented. Or would it?

When I say junior staffer I’m talking account assistant or account executive. I believe anybody from senior account executive on up should be able to lead an account and/or an account team. I myself was leading small to mid-sized accounts from the time I came in the door as an account executive. But should I have been doing so? I knew the frustrations of the association as it pertained to the “bait and switch” because I had been involved in a few. The bait and switch refers to an agency principal being heavily involved in the new business courting and the pitch meeting, but once the account is secured it gets turned over to another staffer to lead and conduct the work.

On the surface this might seem disingenuous or even shady. But so long as no promises were made, that a principal would be “leading” the account or actually doing the work, it was all above board. Many times, I walked into those new biz pitch meetings knowing that I’d be leading the account. So I would try to kill any potential future concerns before they were born.

This might sound crazy but I somewhat agree with the practice of people other than the principal, handling the work and managing the client relations. Depending upon the scope of work and the amount of the project fee or retainer, it may not be the best use of agency time or resources to dedicate a partner to doing the work. There actually is such a thing as you get what you pay for, but that something you pay for should still net you some kind of return. So long as the person leading the account is knowledgeable, qualified, results oriented and attentive to the client, it shouldn’t matter to the organization spending the dough.

Quick antidote: I once led the account for a mid-sized Detroit-based law firm (20 employees). This law firm paid a very modest retainer, but still wanted the attention as if they were paying $240K. For that modest retainer I did a lot of hand holding with the law firm’s president and I generated some pretty decent results. But he wanted a lot more results for the money he was paying. I informed him, that it wasn’t a lack of understanding or ability on my part, but rather that the work necessary to get more results required an increase in account hours, hence a bigger retainer. He didn’t agree with my reasoning. To this client it appeared to him that if he had a partner, as opposed to some account supervisor handling his account, the results would be different. So he proceeded to end around me until he finally got an agency partner on the phone. In the end, the partner calmed his nerves, got the retainer increased and then sent him back to me. Go figure.

Bagging A White Rhino

Ask any PR pro what he or she considers a public relations success and they will begin to rattle off politically correct responses such as: measurable ROI, lasting mutually beneficial partnerships, managed expectations and meeting company objectives, perfectly implemented strategic communications….comprehensive inertia…20 points of light…blah, blah, blah. And with the exception of comprehensive inertia and the 20 points of light, they wouldn’t be wrong. These things are very important ingredients when creating a successful PR campaign.

But if you got these same PR pros together amongst peers and you asked them to answer the same question off the record, many may tell you candidly that a public relations success is getting the “Big Hit,” or at least a part of it. It’s what gets some of us energized and motivated when we’re conducting proactive media relations on behalf of our employer or clients. How can I make the biggest splash and have the greatest impact that will positively influence the bottom line?

In the world of public relations the “Big Hit” could be many different things, but the one thing it definitely is not – is common. It could be getting your client on Oprah’s couch for an in-depth one-on-one; landing your organization on the front page of the New York Times in a glowing editorial; having a famous celeb name drop your product as he is being interviewed following a championship win; or throwing the event to end all events and it attracts coverage from the crème de la crème of national TV outlets. The Big Hit.

I see the Big Hit as the equivalent of being in South Africa and netting a White Rhino in a trophy hunt (apologies to PETA). It’s the thrill of the hunt and the satisfaction that ensues when you’ve finally bagged your quarry. It’s a career highlight that earns you long-time professional props. And don’t get me wrong, clients (if you work for an agency) and organizational leadership (if you’re in-house comm) both like the Big Hit too. For clients it gives them the warm fuzzies about paying the retainer and actually getting something out of the deal that they couldn’t do for themselves. It also buys agencies a lot of good will when the Big Hit is gone and the phones stop ringing as much. For the in-house comm team the Big Hit makes execs and the board happy.

This brings me to CBS’s hit reality TV show, “Undercover Boss.” Without a shadow of doubt “Undercover Boss” is the whitest of rhinos and the biggest of the PR hits. For those unfamiliar with this program, the show follows high-level chief executives as they slip anonymously into the rank and file of their companies. Each week a different executive leaves the comfort of their corner office for an undercover mission to examine the inner workings of their own company. While working alongside their employees, they see first-hand the effects their decisions have on others, where the problems lie within their organization and get an up-close look at both the good and the bad while discovering the unsung heroes who make their company run.

This is the best PR - money didn’t buy! Not only is it a 43 minute advertisement for the company (complete with branding, messaging and product highlights) but also it shows an organization in a more humanizing light and it’s done in a compelling narrative. Participating CEOs move from being anonymous, uncaring decision makers, to compassionate family men that love their companies. I only wish that I could’ve bagged this one for a client I represented.

And if you think the Big Hit doesn’t pay dividends, according to Brandweek, 7-Eleven and White Castle (both appeared on the show) saw bumps in brand awareness following their CEOs going undercover on the show and have settled at levels slightly higher than before their episodes aired. Hooters, whose episode was the closest thing to critical that the otherwise corporate-friendly show has aired, had a surge then dropped back to previous levels.

Back when I was working at an agency, I hunted my own White Rhino. One of the clients whose account I oversaw had launched a unique product in the US. If you Google the product name you’ll see my handy work (circa 2006). The coverage our account team secured during the launch was admirable, but I wanted the Big Hit. After learning that one of the product uses was for crime scene investigations I thought, wouldn’t it be something if we could get this product used/featured on the hit drama CSI?

And the more I thought about it, the more I wanted it to happen. I had an account executive track down a phone number to the production company. From there, we tracked down the show’s technical advisor/producer. I actually reached him and talked up the product. After exchanging several emails worth of product info and pictures, plans were made to ship a sample to the advisor. Our team and the client were ecstatic at the possibility. I informed my account team that when this opportunity was a done deal and finally in the books, I would be quitting the agency. My work would be complete and I was going out on a high note. I meant it too. But unfortunately, while I was working out the details of my soon to be PR coup, the client decided to discontinue the retainer due to budgetary constraints. In the end, I didn’t get to bag my White Rhino…but a guy can dream.

Alright PR pros, what’s your White Rhino?