Ten Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Financial PR Firm

We get requests for proposals, or RFPs, on a weekly basis these days and one thing I've noticed is that they all seem to ask the same questions. It's almost as if those looking for public relations advise are all playing from the same template. I saw two RFPs over the last two months from large asset management firms that had the exact same wording in the majority of their questions. I had to ask myself how much these firms actually knew about hiring a strategic communications consultant, or if they merely Googled around to find out what to ask. (Full disclosure: I've done the same thing when hiring a service provider.)

Having worked in the industry for almost five years now, I thought I'd put together a list of the tough questions that everyone should ask, especially when looking for a PR firm that is specializes in financial services. Unlike some other industries, financial services really requires a specialist firm who knows the message, understands the current landscape and has a solid understanding of all constituencies. You don't want a firm who needs a "refresher course" on what an exchange traded fund or managed futures strategy is - they should know.

1. Name five journalists you think would find our story compelling enough to sit down with some our spokespeople and listen to what they have to say?
2. How much can we expect the CEO, or senior person on the account, to communicate with us on a weekly basis?
3. What are we doing wrong from a PR standpoint right now?
4. What's a good reason we may want to turn down a high profile media opportunity?
5. How do you think our specific niche within the financial services industry is viewed right now and what can we do to improve?
6. What are the two biggest stories in business right now and should we be weighing in on these?
7. Will you come to us with ideas about trends and other news we should be commenting on or do we have to provide you with all of the content?
8. If I called some reporters up and asked them how they viewed your firm, what would they say?
9. Who specifically is going to be working on my account and how many other accounts does each individual work on?
10. What's your view of how to measure ROI for a PR campaign? Is it possible and how do you do it?