This is an archived blog from when I ran Conscious Public Relations Inc. from 2008-2018. Excuse the potential outdated-ness!
Get to know your competitors. You never know when they might give you a leg up!
Last year, I wrote a post about collaborating with some of my competitors. I was recently reminded about this when drafting our 2015 Annual Report (to be posted soon as I get our financials) and one of our mission targets was to collaborate or forward referrals to competitors. I realized I had worked with or was referred by three PR companies.
To work with or be given business by other local PR pros is a testament to the importance of getting to know your competitors. I like that in Vancouver, most PR folks I know are open about what they do and aren’t afraid to pass on referrals. Since it’s not hard to stalk each other and see what we’re all working on, I know I can trust some of these pros if someone comes our way and we aren’t a fit for them.
I met with Talia Davis of Pink Pearl PR yesterday, who launched Canadian Women in PR last year. I was really excited when I learned about it because I didn’t feel like there were great resources about PR in our city… and also because the field is constantly changing, and it’s hard to keep up aside from learning on your own. And learning on your own is time-consuming. How great would it be if we were all learning from the same resources and evolving together? I know that I’ve struck a cord with our No-Release policy, and it’s already sparked some discussion within the industry.
Canadian Women in PR has some lofty goals for the next couple of years and I’m glad to have met Talia – her energy is inspiring! She is actively looking for people who want to join her team and work on expanding the organization and reach its goals. If you’re in PR, I’d highly advise you to get in touch with this fellow ‘competitor’ and see what you can learn from her – because she is a wealth of knowledge, and wasn’t hesitant to share some of it with me.
Have you collaborated with your competitors lately, and if so, what were the results for your business?
