PR and marketing can help any business in their relative industry to grow exponentially. It can create a significant impact for companies in the healthcare sector to enhance their brand image and increase awareness.
Healthtech PR enables your business to educate the potential audience, tell about new products, etc. However, public relations are not everyone’s cup of tea since it requires specific skills and expertise. For that reason, it is better to choose the right agency that can help you plan a robust strategy.
Selecting the best healthcare PR firm from the plethora of options available can be challenging. Nevertheless, this article will cover a few things you need to consider when selecting a PR agency for your business.
Table of Contents
Skills and Expertise
Firstly, you need to look at the skills and expertise that the PR agency brings to the table. PR firms generally don’t have the capabilities to fulfill the business’ needs in the healthcare industry. While these agencies might do well for other industries, they might not be the best match for health services.
So, it is better to check the skills and services of the relevant firm before you collaborate with them. The ideal way to know if the PR agency can create a strategy for the healthcare business is by asking them for case studies and client testimonials.
Additionally, the PR agency you choose should help you with the following items.
- · Assist your team in dealing with the press
- · Come up with a complete plan to give you a strategy for social media management
- · Deal with paid, owned and earned marketing for your business
- · Focus on promoting your message by holding public events from time to time
- · Help your healthcare brand by creating a foundation statement
- · Provide you with total updates on the PR and communication strategy progress
- · Should know about crisis management, brand equity, and other marketing tactics
Billing System
Another vital element to keep in mind when choosing a PR firm is to evaluate its billing system. Different healthcare public relations companies have various billing plans for their clients. Below are some common billing systems you will come across when looking for a PR agency.
- Hourly: The PR agency will give you a per hour rate that they will charge from your company. They will multiply the rate with hours the agency has put in to know the final amount.
- Fixed: A fixed service charge would be applicable for the services you take from the PR agency. You will have to pay them on weekly, monthly, or annually basis.
- Retainer: Some companies charge a retainer fee from their clients for their future fees. It does not assure the final results, and the PR agency will refund part of it if the services don’t give the desired results.
These are some billing methods that the healthcare PR agency might charge you for their services. You can choose the PR and communication firm you think has the most suitable method.
Agency Size
You might wonder how the size of a PR agency can impact your decision to take their services or not. The thing is that it allows you to know if you can hire the agency within your budget. You might think that going with a company that has a large workforce and a huge brand name might be a good option.
However, these big PR companies don’t give individual attention to your healthcare business. Usually, the senior management in the big agency does a wonderful job when pitching their services to you. However, the junior employees will ultimately handle your PR and communication strategy.
These employees will surely be talented, but they won’t have the exposure or expertise to manage the public strategy for your business. Therefore, it is not always a wise decision to go with an agency that has a big name but does not offer complete attention to your business.
Smaller and medium-scale PR agencies have the capabilities to deal with your case in no time. They can give the individual attention you need to help the organisations in the healthcare industry deal with crises, improve their image, and handle the critical aspects of public relations for them.
Ratings and Previous Experience
Before you collaborate with a PR firm for your business, it is vital to know about their ratings and what the previous clients have to say about their services. You can go online to different review websites and see the experiences of other companies in the healthcare industry with the public relations agency.
Positive reviews with a good rating will tell us that the PR firm is worth investing your time and money to enjoy a good return. If you find limited reviews about the agency to finalize your decision, you can ask them to give client testimonials and case studies.
Outreach
The final thing you need to check before partnering with the public relations firm outreach they have within a relevant industry. If we talk about the healthcare industry, the PR agency you choose should help you access different events, shows, and expos to increase your exposure.
They need to have the relevant connections to help you access the places. It will enable you to enhance your reputation and increase your brand awareness. So, you should check out the various PR agencies’ outreach, their online presence, and how they can help you get into the public eye.
Takeaway
A healthcare PR firm can help your business with public relations and communications strategies. It will help present a good brand image for your business in the healthcare industry. Therefore, you should keep these things in mind when deciding on the PR agency to choose.
In a nutshell, you need to look at the skills and specialties and their billing system, which should be appropriate for your business. Moreover, they should have a good outreach within the healthcare industry to help you deliver your message through various online and offline channels.
