Trust is the cornerstone of any successful PR partnership, yet many clients unknowingly hinder their own success by resisting the expertise of their advisors. In this piece, Emily Reynolds Bergh, founder of R Public Relations, explores how open communication, reliability, and adaptability can foster stronger client relationships—leading to more effective campaigns and long-term success.
"Trust is the antidote that overcomes fear—and fear is the greatest inhibitor of all to a relationship that welcomes and nurtures new ideas." – John Pepper, Disney Chairman.
Though this idea can be applied to many facets of life, it especially applies to modern public relations (PR) efforts and relationships. It is the instinct of many business leaders to hold tightly onto the importance of "butts in seats." Hence, they are often uneasy and hesitant to accept recommendations that do not translate directly into this metric.
In other words, clients often unintentionally and unknowingly hinder their success by turning down the expertise of their advising PR team.
It's ironic that, according to Forbes, "The importance of trust is at an all-time high, and the inclination to trust is at an all-time low." This dilemma directly contributes to the need for PR and many people's mistrust and uneasiness.
Building a relationship based on trust, transparency and mutual understanding is the key to overcoming this and breaking out of the cycle.
In early 2024, Flair HR found that 23 percent of PR challenges pertained to clients' wavering investment confidence, underscoring the critical need for client trust and buy-in to facilitate successful PR campaigns.
PR practitioners can only help clients as much as they're allowed, so earning trust and respect and establishing an honest rapport with clients is non-negotiable. Fostering open and sincere communication, demonstrating reliability, delivering quality work, actively listening, and adapting to needs are three ways to authentically increase client trust while reducing hesitancy—producing better relationships and results for all parties.
Photo credit: John Matychuk | Unsplash
1. Open and honest communication
Clear, open, ongoing, and proactive communication is the foundation of every successful PR partnership and campaign—and one of the primary ways to establish and develop trust. When clients feel heard, updated on the most recent developments, and looped into all crucial decision-making efforts, they often begin to see the effort, care and expertise poured into their campaign.
The desire for PR practitioners to actively and effectively communicate with clients and on their behalf is similar to the relationship between a manager and an employee. When employees complete their work effectively without reminders, consistently meet deadlines and regularly provide progress updates to their leaders, they are more likely to gain their managers' trust and develop a positive rapport.
When considering how to implement this into building credibility among clients, Emily Reynolds Bergh, founder of R Public Relations firm, says there are several ways to accomplish this goal, “Our team schedules regular, ongoing meetings to align with clients on goals and expectations. We actively report relevant updates, challenges and results. And, perhaps most importantly, encourage clients to voice thoughts, concerns, questions, and ideas no matter how simple they may seem. We call this white-glove service, and it truly solidifies that client-practitioner relationship.”
Establishing regularly scheduled spaces for these discussions to occur puts words into action, showing clients that candid conversations are encouraged and they can communicate freely.
This openness can significantly improve team alignment and boost confidence in the practitioner's expertise.
2. Reliability and high-quality work
In business, "actions speak louder than words" is everything.
Trust is nearly impossible without a demonstrated history of reliability and quality work, as it shows clients that a professional's expertise can be trusted and is backed by results. Ultimately, if clients can count on a PR team to consistently deliver what they say they will with exceptional quality, they are less likely to stand in their way and slow campaign progress.
Much like the example of the manager and employee, reliability is a foundational building block of trust. PR teams must actively and effectively communicate, but this is ineffective without robust results or key learnings to assign to those efforts. As clients learn more about the ins and outs of PR and observe the good that a successful campaign can do, they are more likely to take pause and allow you to steer the team down a path toward success.
Aligning timelines and expectations before beginning a campaign or sharing results with a client is crucial. Doing so ensures clients have a realistic goal but assures that efforts will exceed expectations whenever possible. Additionally, providing monthly or quarterly reports can provide a visual way to spotlight recent efforts and results. For example, R Public Relations utilizes Releasd, a software tool allowing PR industry professionals to create visual reports showcasing each campaign milestone. These reports highlight notable data and client mentions, showing the campaign's effectiveness and overall ROI.
Suppose the uneasy client recently signed on, and a collaborative body of work does not yet exist. In that instance, case studies are instrumental in showcasing a history of success and strategy.
Photo credit: Brett Jordan | Unsplash
3. Pivoting and active listening
Like the people who own and operate them, businesses and their needs are fluid and often shift depending on the current environment.
To understand a client's goals, maintaining an open mind, practicing agility and actively listening to their spoken and unspoken needs are key. Attentive engagement is a powerful connection-building tool, accented by reliable, top-tier work and transparent, proactive communication.
The better listener a PR practitioner is, the more adept of a professional they are. Emotional intelligence, adaptability, and empathy are key components of a well-informed campaign and a skilled publicist. Still, they can be easily overlooked in the fast-paced, 24-hour media cycle that consumers are accustomed to.
However, it becomes much easier to act in the interest of a client's vision, address pain points, and strategically tailor efforts when ample time is invested in genuinely hearing and understanding. This can look like setting up in-depth discovery sessions and yearly alignment meetings, researching industry challenges, being a collaborative partner through every season of business, and ensuring mutual understanding of concerns, goals, and objectives.
When clients see that their priorities are shared and understood, their PR partner's experience is robust and thoughtfully executed, and the client/practitioner relationship is candid and proactive, it can be easier for them to find comfort and give their trust.
Once this rapport is established and upheld, clients are less likely to stand in their way, and PR practitioners are more likely to have the space to execute strategic campaigns without resistance.
