Long-term relationships common among PR Boutiques International clients

A new survey of boutique public relations agency clients around the world finds that the specialized, focused services of senior practitioners is a common thread driving the hiring of such firms, regardless of today’s economic climate.

Public Relations Boutiques International™ (PRBI), released the survey, completed by clients of PRBI’s 29 member agencies. The agencies, which operate in 11 countries, span the globe from Argentina to South Korea.

“The survey results confirm what our clients and members have long told us anecdotally,” said PRBI president Bill Cowen, CEO of Metrospective Communications, Philadelphia, Pa. “Our firms provide a level of service that’s unmatched by much larger agencies because of the decisions PRBI principals have made about their approach to the business.”

He said boutique agency principals intentionally structure their firms to enable senior practitioners to have regular involvement with clients, bringing more experienced teams to client engagements. “Our firms are boutique firms because the agency principals want them to be,” Cowen added. “And as the survey shows, our clients value this approach.”

Survey respondents ranked flexibility, ability to meet deadlines, level of service, quality of strategic counsel and return on investment as the top five benefits of their boutique PR firm relationships.

While media reports have suggested that boutique firms have become more attractive options because of cost considerations in the current economy, Cowen said the PRBI survey found that clients made conscious decisions to hire boutique firms long before the economy became an issue.

“Among the clients responding to the survey,” he said, “More than 80 percent have been working with a boutique firm for one to three years, and nearly 30 percent have been working with their current boutique firm for longer than five years. This proves the staying power of the boutique agency model.”

“I have worked in a management consultancy,” wrote one PRBI client, “So I know that exceptionally talented people can be found in boutiques.”

“We could not do what we do without our boutique team,” wrote another PRBI client.

About PR Boutiques International:
Public Relations Boutiques International™ (PRBI) is an international network of boutique public relations firms. The principals of member firms are experienced practitioners who have held senior positions in large PR agencies and/or corporations but now put service first and work directly with clients. PRBI member firms excel in meeting a huge range of client needs in a large number of industries, including corporate public relations, consumer PR, health care PR, investor relations, crisis management, business-to-business PR, economic development PR, not-for-profit, academia, government, financial, technology, legal, multicultural and international PR and investor relations. Member practitioners have won the highest levels of professional awards, with qualifications ranging from PhDs to former top journalists. They also represent memberships in the most noteworthy international public relations and business associations. For more information, visit http://www.prboutiques.com.

Contact: