Blog Archives - Page 7 of 12 - Wellons Communications

Lean on simple messaging and graphics to tell your reopening story

Posted on May 19, 2020 by Wellons team

What’s the best way to re-establish commerce as we knew it before the onset of COVID-19?

Truth be told, no one has all the answers. And, there is no “one size fits all”. Whatever approach you adopt for reopening must be tailored to your audience and what you can communicate about your business.

And, whatever you convey about your business needs to immediately connect with your current and potential clients and possess relevancy to their needs, as well as your ability to deliver services.

So, what are some ways you can affordably and instantly cut through the clutter of COVID-19-related messaging to get your message across?

Use graphics to fast-track your message.

Lean on high-impact PR graphics to tell your story…graphics that present memorable, easy-to-understand information about you, and your service, at a single glance.

Something as simple as a postcard can re-establish that you are open and operating. A message like “We’re up and running”, accompanied by your name and how to reach you will immediately establish a key element of reopening marketing communications.

The same message can easily be reconfigured to a visual-centric email that can be viewed and understood in a single moment. It can also be adapted to a text message or posts on social media.

Make your graphics as powerful as possible

Make it easy for your target to understand you are up and operating.

Aim for high impact and a minimum of clutter and distraction. A simple message surrounded by white space, for example, can have the same power and impact as a costly billboard or a paid full-page ad in a newspaper (either the printed kind or their online editions).

A single, memorable graphic or combined headline-graphic, along with your company’s name and logo, can get your point across and immediately convey that your business is moving forward.

Your message has to be more than “We are open.”

As businesses reopen, one’s first instinct is likely to blurt out “We’re open” or “We’ve reopened.”

That’s all well and good, but it doesn’t exactly jump off the page. That’s because millions of other businesses are saying the very same thing. So many businesses are saying “We’ve re-opened” that it is difficult to remember who is who, what they are selling, and why it is relevant to you.

Your message has to be short. Simple. And different.

Creating short, simple messages that are different can be amazingly powerful. But it’s not as simple as it sounds.

It is a process that requires some hard thinking on the part of your communications team and discipline on your part.

In these communications-overloaded times, we have found that keeping it simple is a strategic approach that consistently works to cut through the clutter and enable our clients to stand apart from the pack.

It’s an approach we are ready to put to work for you.

We thrive on the challenge of creating simple but powerful messages and blending them with memorable graphics to convey your key marketing messages.

Creating short, simple messages and making your message different is where Wellons Communications can assist you.

If that’s the kind of fast-track approach you need to help get your marketing communications re-established, then talk with us.

We’ll listen carefully to what you want to accomplish with your messaging and work quickly, but thoughtfully, to provide solutions that can accelerate getting your business operating as much “back to normal” as possible in as short a time as possible.

Call me, Will Wellons, at 407-462-2718, or email me at will@wellonscommunications.com and let me put our team of messaging pros behind you

Reopening communication tips for businesses after coronavirus

Posted on May 6, 2020 by Wellons team

As the COVID-19 pandemic was making headlines earlier this year and businesses began to close, there were many questions as to how businesses should communicate to customers. Now, as states across the country slowly begin to open up again, there will be many more.

Truly, what you do as a business and how you treat people during a crisis will be remembered. If you do it right, you can win and grow market share. If you do it wrong, the reverse is also true. It is imperative that businesses—regardless of industry—have a reopening plan for communications as well as operations.

The first step to reopening should always be following official guidance and doing your absolute best to ensure your staff and your customers or guests are safe. When you have that plan in place, consider the steps below to optimize your reopening communications.

Update your info. If your guests don’t know what your hours are or even if you are open, they definitely can’t visit, whether for takeout or in-person. Check Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Yelp, TripAdvisor, Google and your own website. Search your business, and check the results. Does everything have your current hours and operations correctly listed? If not, fix it.

Communicate to your customers. You might be scared about blowback, or nervous that with new operations, you’ll be totally overwhelmed by customer demand when you reopen. But your customers still need to know what’s going on. Tell them! Update your website to reflect your new procedures, post on social with regular updates, or send an eblast. Again, if your guests don’t know how you’re operating, they can’t visit.

Be extra responsive. People are going to have questions, and they are going to have opinions. Now is the time to spend more time on call to answer those queries. Monitor your social media inboxes, your email inboxes and your phone line. It might help to brainstorm a few frequently asked questions and create a set response so everyone who is replying stays on message.

Monitor the situation. This is a crisis, and there will be a harsher spotlight on your business now than ever. People might not agree with your operating procedures, or they might not feel they are getting the same experience because of them. Now is the time to deploy your best social media listening tools. Monitor conversations you are tagged in or that mention your business and be prepared to respond in a way that diffuses the situation.

Stay top of mind. It’s not business as usual, but find ways you can continue to communicate with your guests. Post on social media. Send an email. There are a lot of messages flying around out there, and you need to ensure you are staying top of mind.

Learn from this. Did you do anything during the crisis that worked well? Perhaps you started a weekly virtual series, or deployed an awesome family meal deal. What can you continue to do even in reopening that would help move the needle?

We know you’ve heard this many times over, but these are unprecedented times. It can be tough to walk the line of communication during reopening. We hope these tips help, but if you have questions or are feeling overwhelmed, don’t hesitate to reach out.

We, too, are a small business navigating this crisis. We can be your Orlando public relations partner, whether you are a restaurant, attraction or B2B company. Email Will at will@wellonscommunications.com or call 407-462-2718 and let’s start the conversation.

Cut through the clutter and make your voice heard

Posted on April 24, 2020 by Wellons team

As we head toward the rest of 2020, the challenge of effectively projecting your message — and unique characteristics — to your target audiences is going to be increasingly difficult.

Media will remain neck-deep in coverage of the presidential race, as well as state and local races. The coronavirus will remain at the top of the news for the remainder of 2020. And who knows what other news is around the corner waiting to pull attention away from your message?

The competition for consumer attention has never been more challenging

Forbes contributor Paul Jankowski neatly sums it up with his observation that “…brands have a better chance of keeping the attention of a goldfish than their targeted consumer.”

Need convincing? Try these observations on for size:

The average American is exposed to around 4,000 to 10,000 messages per day. Less than 100 of those messages will be remembered.
Human attention spans have dropped from 12 seconds to eight seconds.
According to a Deloitte study, the average American looks at their phone 52 times a day.

That means you cannot spend a lot of time trying to explain who you are and what you offer. It means that your message must possess simplicity and visibility to have a reasonable expectation of breaking through.

Wellons Communications solution: short messages and great visuals.

Our Orlando PR agency has consistently preached “keep it simple.” It’s a philosophy we embrace and one that underlines a strategic approach we consistently adopt to ensure our client’s message is both heard and recognized.

Arriving at that messaging, however, requires discipline and hard work.

To formulate the message (and the approach that backs it up), we work with clients to address the following questions and identify the message that will get attention and connect with their target audience:

What is it you are selling?
Why should your product or service matter to your target audience?
What problem does your product or service solve?
What is the benefit of what you are selling?
What is the solution you bring to your target audience?
What are you trying to say?
What do you want your target audience to do in response to your message?

Once we agree on the answers to these questions, we are in position to determine what you should say and how you should say it.

And when we say it, we want to keep it short and memorable.

Communications have to go beyond words

Words are only a part of the communications process.

At Wellons Communications, we also promote the notion of relying on easy-to-understand visuals to project your message.

The old adage “A picture paints a thousand words” has never been truer than today.

Today’s consumers simply will not always make time to sit down and pore through an article or browse through a post — or even read your headline.

However, graphics and imagery can connect with consumers much faster than text. Witness the popularity of graphics-oriented apps like Instagram, TikTok and the many other photo-related apps that have become so popular.

That places a premium on a well-designed graphic that tells your story in an impactful, memorable way.

So, how can we make your messaging cut through the clutter?

We are bulldogs for adhering to simple solutions.

Keep it short. Keep it simple. Keep it understandable. And make it relevant to your audience.

If that’s the kind of approach you want to employ to improve your marketing, you need to be talking with us. You do the talking. We’ll do the listening. And together, we’ll generate the kinds of marketing results you are seeking.

Share your message with Will Wellons at 407-462-2718 or will@wellonscommunications.com.

Find out more about how our public relations and social media firm can make your messaging work harder, smarter, and more effectively.

How to prepare for media interest now

Posted on April 9, 2020 by Wellons team

A great TV story about your business’s latest charity effort runs on the 10 p.m. news. The local business journal publishes a feature on your growth strategy. The trade publication your partners read runs an item on your latest product.

Who doesn’t want that?

As an Orlando PR firm, we are no stranger to gaining media attention for our clients. In fact, earned media placements are one of the most common requests we get—and we’ve seen what they can do for a client’s reputation and reach.

Even so, there’s a big misconception with how these kinds of hits happen. Clients tend to expect that they will put out a press release and the media will come knocking. Sure, that happens sometimes (when it’s a good story, or we use our connections and skills to pitch media the right way). But often, media attention comes from being flexible. It comes from working a current event angle or building a relationships and reputations. And more often than not, it comes fast.

If clients aren’t prepared to make things happen, they might miss out on an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And nobody wants that.

Businesses who want to truly take advantage of media opportunities need to be ready. Below are a few steps you and your business can take to prepare now.

Nail your talking points

You know your elevator speech…right? CEOs and business leaders know what their company does, but you’d be surprised by how often they realize they can’t quite verbalize it. Before you take an interview with any media outlet, you need to be sure you can share your mission in a clear, concise way. Take some time to boil what you do down to just a few talking points, and be sure to share them with anyone who might handle media requests so your message is aligned.

Flag potential problems

Just like you want to know all the good things about your company, you’ll also want to do some introspection and identify any potential problems. Once in the public eye, anything and everything is fair game. If you can identify any tricky spots, you can be proactive in developing responses to any questions you might be asked about these things. This will help you avoid being caught off guard so you can mitigate any negative attention you might receive and position your company in the best light.

Identify a spokesperson

When time is of the essence, you need to know who’s stepping up. Identifying a spokesperson in advance allows that person to have time to complete the above steps. Be sure to choose a company leader who is comfortable in the role and who can confidently speak to the company’s mission. Your reputation rests in their hands.

Know your visual opportunities

It is important to not only tell a great story, but to show it. Words are a powerful and often essential aspect to telling your story, but there are many times a story will die without visuals. This is particularly important for TV media. Be prepared to offer visual opportunities to journalists. You should also start to build your media kit with high-resolution, professional photos of your company, including headshots for all executives, shots of important services or activities, and videos. You don’t want to be scrambling at the last minute to get these, and often, if you can offer these assets, you can land a story that might otherwise be passed over.

Complete media training

Completing the above steps will take you far, but when you find yourself in front of a camera with a microphone in your face for the first time, it’s natural to freeze up. Completing media training can help you know the tips and tricks of the trade so you can feel comfortable and properly prepare for each individual interview.

How we can help

At Wellons Communications, our Florida PR agency is made up of former journalists and PR pros. We’ve been on both sides of the camera and notepad, so we know how to help you prepare and put your story in the best light.

We also understand how media works and can craft the right pitch to gain media interest in the first place.

Need some help? Call 407-339-0879 or email will@wellonscommunications.com and see what we can do to help you prepare for any media interest and news coverage that may come your way.

The power of storytelling in businesses

Posted on April 3, 2020 by Wellons team

One of the most powerful tools in your marketing arsenal is also one of the simplest to develop and put to work for you.

It’s storytelling—the art of sharing your story and explaining how your business or service helps customers.

It works in just about every situation, and despite the fear you may have of writer’s block or your notion that “I can’t write,” it’s actually surprisingly easy.

That said, not everyone has the inclination or ability to write their story. Most often, the challenge for business owners is simply finding the time necessary to sit down in front of a screen and keyboard (or a sheet of paper for old-school writers) and compose their story.

That’s where folks like us—Wellons Communications—enter the scene.

Who cares about your story?

Actually, nobody. That is, until you give them a reason to care about your story.

At Wellons Communications, we craft narratives that connect your story to the needs of those who can use your services.

We start with your customer. What is it they need? Your customer comes first because your story is really all about them.

Once the needs of your customer are identified, your story ends with explaining how your service fulfills that need or solves their problem. Your service provides a means to their end.

So how does Wellons Communications construct stories?

Every story has three basic elements: a beginning, a middle, and an end.

The need of your customer is the beginning. It is essential that you are able to explain the problem your customer is facing and why it even matters in the first place.

We build the story by sharing how you recognize your customer’s need or want and how you went about addressing your customer’s challenge.

And, in the end, we provide a happy ending…confirming that your customer’s need was solved.

But, unlike a fairy tale, we also remind readers that some problems need to be addressed all the time (like competitive pressures, introduction of competitive services, changes in technology). In short, your service can solve customer’s problem or, better yet, can stand by the customer’s side to continue fulfilling their need.

Our storytelling formula borrows from the best

At Wellons Communications, we don’t claim to have invented storytelling. But we do pay attention and learn from those who share their stories in the most effective and compelling fashion.

One of the most powerful storytellers in today’s culture is Pixar, whose cinematic storytelling achievements have earned them considerable earnings, as well as worldwide recognition and respect.

Pixar’s storytelling technique follows a very simple formula. It goes:

Once upon a time there was [blank]. Every day, [blank]. One day [blank]. Because of that, [blank]. Until finally, [blank].

Here’s an example of how our storytelling works

Once upon a time, there was a small group of coffee sellers.

Every day, they sold their coffee to customers who really liked their coffee.

One day, they noticed their customers not only liked their coffee, they wanted more ways to buy their coffee.

Because of that, the coffee sellers decided to make their coffee more available by expanding their store locations and selling coffee by the pound to their customers.

Until finally, their sales grew to the point where the coffee sellers could become a profitable and regional coffee brand.

Let us tell your story—and help your sales and earnings grow

Everyone has a story to tell. Our job is to help our customers clearly identify the story they have to tell, craft that story on their behalf, and figure out the most effective means of sharing that story with current and potential customers.

Our storytelling technique is not quite as easy as the Pixar illustration cited above, but it borrows heavily from successful techniques in totally unrelated industries and puts them to work for our clients.

We can apply same storytelling techniques to your product or service.

Find out more about how we can make your story come to life for your customers. Call or email Will Wellons at 407-462-2718 or will@wellonscommunications.com and find out more about how your story can be told.

Facing coronavirus: How to craft business communications during crisis

Posted on March 16, 2020 by Wellons team

Like many of you, we at Wellons Communications have been closely following the developments related to COVID-19, or coronavirus, over the last week. We have been in constant contact with our clients through this time, helping them craft communications to employees and customers and take the right steps for them to share their messages.

Truly, none of us have faced such a widespread, global challenge before. Even so, as businesses craft essential communications during this time, general crisis communications cornerstones still hold true. If you’re a business that knows it needs to communicate but doesn’t know what, exactly, to say during this time, follow these guidelines that can be used in many crisis situations.

Be honest and direct with your customers and employees. Honesty is definitely the best policy when crisis hits. You have thought long and hard about what to do at your business to keep your customers safe, and you have put procedures into place. Telling your customers and employees about those plans in a clear way is the best thing you can do to reassure them when times get tough.

Show your support. It’s pretty simple—do the right thing. You care about your customers and your employees. Show them that you’re standing with them and doing everything you can to meet their needs and keep them safe.

Don’t be afraid to overcommunicate. At times like these, you really can’t overcommunicate. COVID-19, particularly, is a fluid situation. Where we are today with this crisis is worlds away from where we were a week ago, and a week from now might be even more different. Provide updates as things change with your business, and be timely about those communications.

Be consistent. When you have drafted a message that conveys the above points, don’t forget to carry it across all platforms. If you’ve drafted a letter or eblast, create a social media response plan that picks up the main points. If you have a social post, think about a suggested reply for employees answering phone calls or emails, as well. Make sure your messaging is aligned.

Be careful about making light of the situation. When we’ve reached a crisis level, the situation is serious. Look at your communications through a different lens, ensuring all your messaging conveys the gravity of the situation. You should also be wary about any messaging that comes off as trying to sell something. You don’t want to appear to be taking advantage of a serious situation.

Few of us were likely prepared for a situation like what we now face with COVID-19, but all businesses should have a crisis communications plan for situations like this. Whether you and your business are facing a natural disaster like a hurricane, an accident or tragedy or a global health crisis, the steps are generally the same—and you should have a plan.

If you need help getting started, don’t hesitate to reach out. We have extensive experience in crisis communications and messaging, and we’re here to help.

Involve your PR firm at the start of marketing planning

Posted on March 10, 2020 by Wellons team

When businesses put together important marketing initiatives, it’s surprising how many times publicity and public relations are treated as an afterthought.

In an overwhelming number of instances, organizations invest enormous energy and time into involving their advertising agencies at the beginning of a communications program aimed at increasing sales. When the idea has been formulated and approved, all too often someone says, “Why don’t we involve PR, too?”

This results in a structured program being handed off to the PR firm with the demand, “Get results.”

Whether or not the marketing message is actually attractive, from a publicity and PR perspective, is a different story—but it is a consideration that needs to be baked into marketing planning from day one.

The best marketing initiatives get PR involved in ground-floor planning

As the old saying goes “Advertising is what you pay for. Publicity is what you pray for.”

Advertising most often occupies the center ring when it comes to marketing planning.

Why?

First, advertising costs a lot of money. For that reason alone, marketing chiefs focus their attention on what is consuming the majority of their marketing budget.

Second, the company can totally control the advertising message. Where it goes, what is says, and when it is issued all are under their direct control.

For those two reasons, marketing chiefs usually start planning by huddling with their advertising agencies—winding up with expensive media plans, accompanied by equally expensive production costs necessary to make a message come to life.

In the rush to center their marketing efforts around advertising, however, businesses often totally fail to capitalize on the PR potential of what their message can—and should—deliver.

That’s an opportunity missed.

It’s also an expensive whiff that can be avoided by putting a member of the PR team in the room at the start of the planning cycle.

Two ways involving PR at the start of planning can benefit you

PR can augment and reinforce advertising messages
PR can connect with audiences in ways advertising cannot

PR’s ability to reinforce and amplify marketing messages is surprisingly effective. Publicity—be it word-of-mouth, customer testimonials or editorial media coverage—is regarded by consumers as more trustworthy.

According to a 2014 Nielsen study, PR is 90% more effective than advertising in influencing consumers. In short, getting a favorable mention of your product or service, which is earned and not paid, holds much more weight than an ad.

By involving your PR team at the start of your planning process, they can better understand what your advertising message is intended to do and what it cannot do—and they can fill that gap.

Second, by involving your PR folks in planning, they can more clearly visualize how they can present your story to editorial media and expand your message into stories that have a connection and credibility advertising simply cannot deliver.

Remember, PR provides you a different marketing weapon

One of the 21^st century buzzwords that has become popular is “influencer marketing,” which is simply a more contemporary way of saying “believability.”

It’s another way of saying that PR provides your product or service with believability. It’s not a new idea, but simply a new way of asking yourself:

Who are you more likely to believe, a salesman or a person just like you who bought or used a product or service?

Which is more believable, an advertisement on TV, in a newspaper or magazine or on the internet, or something that appears in a story that involves a product or service?

Editorial coverage has two great advantages over advertising. Editorial coverage provides third-party validation that advertising lacks. Simply by being recognized in editorial media, coverage implies “this is important.”

PR’s ability to augment one’s believability does not discount paid advertising—it is a totally necessary component of marketing.

The difference between the two serves as a reminder for the need to include PR as an integral part of one’s marketing plan—at the very beginning of the planning process.

When you begin to look ahead to the rest of 2020 or even 2021 and shape your future marketing planning, keep Wellons Communications in mind. We’d love the opportunity to sit down with you, learn more about your vision for your product or service and explore how we can help you improve your overall marketing effectiveness.

Call me at 407-339-0879 or email me (will@wellonscommunications.com) and find out for yourself how we can help you augment your marketing effectiveness.

Beyond the elevator speech: Five questions you need to answer for your business

Posted on January 23, 2020 by Wellons team

We’ve all heard the importance of having an “elevator speech” that tells your audience what you do and how important your product or service is to them.

We at Wellons Communications agree with the idea of a short, punchy message. However, we also believe that you need to work on and perfect a more robust message than a 15-second elevator speech to truly explain the value you bring to your clientele.

With that in mind, at Wellons Communications, we ask our clients five important questions that help define the messages they want to project … and the impressions they want to create.

The Big Five are:

What do you do?
How does your product or service help your client?
What do your competitors say about themselves?
What distinguishes your product or service from your competitors?
Who and where are your potential customers?

Build from the basics

Surprisingly, many business leaders have a difficult time answering these five questions.

They have successfully grown their businesses to the point where they need to expand their marketing program — including public relations — to continue growth. However, when it comes to more precisely defining themselves and what they do for the audiences they serve, they run into challenges.

They know they need to continue reaching out, but struggle to find the ways and means to reach new and different audiences in order to continue expanding sales and growth.

PR is part of your overall marketing package

We view public relations as one of the four primary components of our client’s marketing programs: paid advertising, public relations, sales and research.

Our job centers around publicity management — attracting attention or, in some cases, clarifying and shaping the attention that is defining our clients. That requires us to interact, for the most part, with editorial media, whose independence means their viewpoints and opinions cannot be purchased but can certainly be shaped and influenced with proper messaging.

That means we have to know about you, your business category, your audience, your competitors and what you want to accomplish.

And that means that we need to know the answers to The Big Five questions listed above.

Sometimes, less is better

When we first meet with potential clients, we always ask the Big Five questions.

Often, these potential clients struggle to concisely and clearly answer the Big Five. And, while we listen closely to what we are told, we often learn that the longer a potential client takes to answer these questions, the more difficult it is to concisely and clearly answer the question.

Our first priority is to clearly understand what you do and what you want to do. That means asking tough questions and boiling the answers down to strategic approaches that will result in messaging that your audience can understand and act upon.

The end result may appear to be a very simple solution. But reaching a simple solution requires some complex planning and hard work to achieve.

We think like marketers. We act like PR professionals

If a client were to ask us The Big Five, our answers are:

What do you do?

We provide publicity and related communications services that augment our clients’ overall marketing.

How does your product or service help your client?

We help our clients increase sales by reaching their target audiences with clear, concise messaging that amplifies their reach beyond advertising.

What do your competitors say about themselves?

Our competitors most often claim they are bigger, more experienced, have a larger client base and have greater depth in resources.

What distinguishes your product or service from your competitors?

We are smaller and, because we are smaller, we provide more personalized, hands-on services that are more creative, more nimble and more effective than our larger competitors.

Who and where are your potential customers?

The vast majority of our potential customers are based, or have significant operations, in the Central Florida region. Some of them are in tourism, hospitality and food and beverage and others are in real estate, development, legal and related business categories.

How would you answer The Big Five?

Ask yourself how you would answer the five questions listed above. If you find you have difficulty clearly and concisely answering them, it may be a signal that you have grown to the point that you need some help to augment your marketing program, particularly in the public relations area.

If you’d like to share your answers with us, we’d be eager to hear them. And we would be eager to learn if your business — and ours — would be a good fit.

Want to learn more?

Call or email me (407-339-0879 or will@wellonscommunications.com ) and let’s talk.

Or, better yet, you talk… and I’ll listen.

5 things you need to know before hiring an agency

Posted on January 10, 2020 by Wellons team

At Wellons Communications, we’ve seen how much of a difference hiring an agency can make for a business.

We’ve seen the power of a national PR placement in getting a client noticed by buyers in their industry. We’ve seen how a coordinated social media ad campaign can move the needle on sales. And we’ve seen how a strategic marketing plan can raise serious awareness and have an impact on the bottom line.

In fact, we’re proud to have been part of those results for our clients.

But we also understand that hiring an agency might not always be the right move. When clients have different expectations of what an agency does, or when the agency isn’t the best fit, clients might not see the results they’re looking for.

To ensure you’re getting the most from your client-agency relationship, consider these five things BEFORE you make your decision.

What you need from your agency.

Not all agencies are created equal. In fact, if you just Google top agencies in your area, chances are you’ll get a mix of ad agencies, marketing agencies, PR agencies, social media agencies, even terms like creative agency or digital agency—all of whom specialize in different areas. As with all things in business, you need to know your goals. When you zero in on those, you can find an agency whose strengths best align.

What level of service you expect.

Agencies are structured differently. At a large agency, for instance, you might never speak to upper-level management, while at a smaller firm, he or she might be your main point of contact. Agencies also provide a different level of service based on the contract you draw up. If you choose a lower level of service, for instance, you might not be able to achieve all you want when you hit a certain number of hours. Alternatively, if you just need one service, you don’t want to overpay for things you already have handled. Be sure you and your potential agency partner are on the same page as to who’s doing what and what the level of service looks like.

What constitutes a win.

This goes hand-in-hand with knowing your goals for an agency relationship, as well as knowing what you need in an agreement. What, to you and your agency, is a win? When do you both call it a success? If all you have is a nebulous idea of “more sales,” you might find yourself disappointed, wondering what, exactly, this agency is doing for you. Having concrete benchmarks (a national PR hit) that feed into and support your overall goals (more sales) will make both sides of the client-agency relationship feel fulfilled.

You’re going to have some work to do.

Often, clients sign the contract and sit back, expecting something to happen. Only it doesn’t. That’s because with any agency you choose, you’re going to have to put in a little work up front, as well as a little to maintain the relationship throughout its course. You will need to have a true, unclouded view of your company, and you’ll need to share some of that with your agency. They need to not only get a sense of your goals, but of your strengths and weaknesses, opportunities you may not see, and who you are at your core. If you put in a little time to share these things—or designate a strong employee to manage the relationship—your agency can better serve you. And it doesn’t stop there. You, or that designated point of contact, will need to stay engaged to get the most from your agency, providing things like direction on how to respond to customer concerns, the latest product artwork or event posters, and important news updates. Generally, you’ll get out more than you put in.

Who fits with your team.

The contract, the service level, the fees—all of that is important when selecting an agency. But more important? Who they are. You know what kind of business partners you like to work with in all other facets of your business. Don’t let an agency be an exception. Your agency should feel like a fit, like an extension of your team. Make sure they fit into your culture and values, because you’ll be working with them on the things closest to your business.

If you’ve considered all of these things and found the answers, an agency might be the best choice for you—and you might be ready to truly get the most from that relationship.

We hope you’ll consider us at Wellons Communications. We are one of Orlando’s top PR and social media agencies, and we specialize in PR, social media, content and marketing. We are a smaller team dedicated to making real connections with our clients and delivering great results. And we love new clients!

Want to learn more? Give Will a call at 407-339-0879 or email him at will@wellonscommunications.com. We’d love to share our perspective on the answers to these questions so you can find the right agency for you.