HOW TO WRITE THE BEST PUBLIC RELATIONS CAMPAIGN BRIEF IN 2024

How to write the best public relations campaign brief in 2024.

The best steps & instructions for writing a PR brief for an agency to get the most effective free media and press releases. Boost your PR results with this exclusive & premium PR campaign brief template.

By Mau, Public Relations Strategist and Digital Marketer at eDigital.

HOW TO WRITE THE BEST PUBLIC RELATIONS BRIEF IN 2024

You are about to learn the top techniques I have been personally using when writing successful public relations briefs for more than 15 years to get the best results from my PR agencies.

What I discovered in this process was that most of the principles for writing a powerful PR brief remain the same regardless of industries, company sizes and changes in the way brands connect with consumers.

However, one fact emerged:

You should always map out your top two goals for investing in public relations and have specific metrics defined for each of your goals. It is in this format that you can find out what exact actions – from your PR agency – are driving the best results for your business.

That’s exactly what I do.

Whether I am selling a brand, repositioning it or getting ready – with a contingency plan – for an eventual communication crisis; I will write a PR brief document.

You know you have done your PR briefing process correctly when your PR agency offers only the best strategies and tactics that best reach, convert and nurture your key audiences.

In this article, I will take you through the step-by-step process of writing the best Public Relations Campaign brief.

I think you will be surprised at how easy it is to craft it once you read the important steps involved and learn about the strategic Public Relations brief design thinking process you have to develop.

What you are about to read will take the complexity out of the process while it will show you how you can write a PR brief even if you have never written one before.

In fact, the most popular comment I get from professionals who get my Premium PR Brief template is:

“Thank you, I now realise how important and easy is to write a good PR brief”

Several business owners and marketers have paid me to show them the below steps you are about to learn for free.

That’s right, being able to write a successful PR brief is a powerful marketing and brand reputation tool that will serve you for the rest of your marketing life.

Before you get ready, grab a comfy chair now, a cup of your favourite drink, lock the door and let me guide you through the below steps you will follow as you quickly learn how to write a successful PR brief.

To start, it is important to fully understand what the activity of public relations is.

MY DEFINITION OF “PUBLIC RELATIONS”

If you have taken one of my private consulting sessions, you have heard me saying:

“Public relations are simply a planned series of actions and activities to influence the public’s perceptions about your brand, a team member or company. Period.”

The Chartered Institute of Public Relations in the UK defines Public Relations as:

Public Relations is about brand reputation – the result of a) what you do, b) what you say and c) what others say about you.
Public Relations is the discipline that looks after reputation, to earn understanding, support and influence opinion and behaviour.
It is the planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an organisation and its public.

As it is a planned effort, you should learn how to write a Public Relations Campaign Brief for a PR agency, PR consultant or PR freelancer to get the specific results you want.

When you write a good PR brief you are making it easier for your PR agency to deliver some of the most common benefits of PR activities:

Increase customer awareness about your brands and your company in general.
Create a general public preference for your products/services or change consumers’ sentiment levels about your brand.
These gains ultimately help you have more brand advocates and more loyal customers, and increase sales and brand equity.

Tip: When briefing a PR agency, you not only want to influence general brand sentiment but also to change purchase behaviour.

MEDIA COVERAGE

When a PR specialist secures media coverage for you, the PR professional is simultaneously trying to make the journalist’s job easier by giving them a story and media assets for them to publish compelling news articles.

Most journalists and media outlets want stories that offer:

Proximity. Is it a local story that connects nicely with the audience of the media outlet?
Timeliness. Has the story just happened? or is it about to happen?
Unusualness. Is it a story that offers something out of the ordinary?
Emotional trigger. Does the story evoke an emotional response? Fear, trust, guilt, belonging, instant pleasure, etc.
Media assets. Your story should be accompanied by the correspondent media asset required for each type of media. Newspapers will need photos, radio and podcasts will need audio files from you and TV will need video footage even if it is raw.

Krispy Kreme free doughnuts PR campaign for World Kindness Day 2024 got great media coverage by receiving hundreds of media mentions.

LONG TERM VIEW

Every PR agent’s goal should be to form good long-term relationships with the client and the media in general. So instead of taking the instant gratification approach that’s all about immediate coverage, PR professionals think about the long-term impact of the PR coverage. Clients can benefit from the already positive media relationships a PR agent has with their media network.

Good PR public relations funny meme

OTHER KEY PR OBJECTIVES

Apart from getting exponential media coverage, your PR campaigns should get your customers, community and industry to:

Change sentiment about your company or brands: increase trust or preference.
Change buying behaviour. A well-executed PR campaign can help you get customers to:
- buy more frequently
- buy more volume
- buy more premium products or
- buy new products

A well-briefed PR campaign should also help and aid your other multi-channel marketing activities.

customers types marketing eDigital graph

Customer’s types – marketing graph – eDigital

TO SUCCESSFULLY BRIEF PR PROFESSIONALS, YOU SHOULD UNDERSTAND THEIR ROLES

PR professionals are reputation and “earned attention” specialists.

Public relations agencies and PR professionals have the skills to carefully craft the stories that earn the attention of media outlets and know how to orchestrate and deliver communication campaigns that increase brand reputation and sentiment.

PR specialists understand the concept of “influence” and how to apply it to business objectives.

They also have the experience and capacity to know how to work with some of the best Influencer marketing platforms and what exact brand messages to craft and get media amplification more genuinely.

Public relations consultants and PR freelancers should give you direct access to key media editors, writers and journalists in your industry.

These days, some PR professionals and consultants can also connect you with top influencers in your niche, industry or category.

Now that you have understood what Public Relations is and what a PR agency does, I am going to share with you my top tips when briefing a PR agency.

You can save time and get this exclusive and premium Public Relations Campaign Brief Template in Google Docs which can also be saved in Microsoft Word.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A must-have template

This PR brief template has become an essential tool for our team. It covers everything we need to consider when briefing our PR agency while allowing for customisation. It’s an absolute must-have for any marketing team.

Chris P. ✅ Verified Buyer

THE BENEFITS OF A WELL-CRAFTED PUBLIC RELATIONS CAMPAIGN BRIEF

Having a professional PR brief read, reviewed and understood by your PR agency is even more important when you are briefing them with specific goals you want to achieve and ways to measure them.

In addition, writing a professional PR Campaign Brief will ensure your PR agency minimises errors in the setup, execution, measurement and reporting of your PR Campaign. It is recommended you also offer room for their ideas which can be written back to you in a formal proposal.

The top 3 goals when writing the best PR campaign brief:

Understand with total clarity your specific PR objectives.
Let your PR Agency know exactly how you want your PR campaign to be measured.
Help your PR Agency deliver extraordinary work for you with no hassle at the right time and on budget.

The top 7 benefits of a professionally written brief for a PR Agency:

Deliver the right PR mentions in the right channels at the right time.
Reduce any misinterpretations.
Ensure expectations from both parties (client and PR Agency) are clear.
Agree on the exact expected results
Agree on the methodology to track results
Agree on timings.
Agree on specific PR campaign tactics.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Great template

I did not know enough to write a PR Brief. This is a very good and thorough template and I feel now far more confident presenting my needs to my PR agency. The template’s instructions are easy to follow. Filling out the template also made me realise I need to think about my overall PR objectives and strategy. Highly recommended.

Tina L. ✅ Verified Buyer

BEFORE WRITING A PROFESSIONAL PUBLIC RELATIONS CAMPAIGN BRIEF

Before you embark on the process of spending time writing a professional Public Relations campaign brief to be shared with a public relations agency, we suggest you check the below:

Proven experience in your industry. Ensure the PR Agency you are contacting has demonstrable experience delivering PR campaigns in your industry and ideally your chosen PR agency has proven contacts on the target media you want your brand to be mentioned or featured.
Niche. Some PR agencies might be extraordinary in a specific industry but not in all types of industries. Every industry requires different PR skills and contacts and brings different challenges. Some PR agencies’ experience might be focused on fashion marketing, B2B, art, fitness, food, music, manufacturing, travel, etc.
Influencers’ reach. Some PR agencies might work with global influencers. Hiring a PR Agency with direct contact with your top industry leaders and influencers will not only offer you access to great media reach but also a great social media boost.
Size. When you hire a PR firm, decide what size PR firm is right for you. PR firms come in all different shapes and sizes, and the firm that’s right for you might not be the firm you’d predict. There are many reasons to go with large PR firms (global reach, massive relationship networks, long experience) and just as many reasons to choose a boutique PR firm (smaller, more closely-knit teams, local expertise, niche industries, etc). One thing to keep in mind is how much your budget dollars will mean to the firm you hire. For instance, often a $10k/month retainer could be one of the largest accounts if you hire a small PR firm, but a very small account if you are hiring a large PR firm. Keep in mind that the bigger clients usually get the A-team. If your budget is modest, you may want to consider a smaller boutique firm.

Team involvement. Involve all stakeholders who are part of your Public Relations efforts. If a set of meetings with key stakeholders are required to define your PR campaign brief; ensure a structured agenda is in place with expected outcomes so your PR campaign brief is agreed /approved.
One great idea. Make sure your potential PR Agency offers at least one idea you’re excited about! In the pitch meetings, if the invited PR firms have done their homework and prepared properly, they will present a few different PR campaign ideas based on your “Request for Proposal” (RFP) requirements. At least one of the ideas should be out-of-the-box and cool enough to get you excited!
Understand the PR contract. Make sure you review it carefully, with a lawyer if possible, and understand all key terms (cost/budget, duration, team, hours you receive based on budget, how they will report out results, etc.). I have yet to see a PR firm contract that I have not redlined substantially. If something seems off, red-line it and negotiate. Most of the time PR firms are agreeable assuming your requests are reasonable.
Exclusivity. Clarify whether your PR story is “exclusive” to a specific media outlet. Keeping in mind that “media exclusive” means: No other media outlet gets the story besides the one offered the exclusive. Make sure your “media exclusive” definition is clear to all parties. The last thing you want is multiple media outlets having an “exclusive” story as happened in Kim Kardashian’s PR exclusive fiasco in Australia.

Sunrise and The Sunday Project both touting kim kardashian interview as an exclusive

GET IMMEDIATE ACCESS TO THIS PREMIUM PR CAMPAIGN BRIEF TEMPLATE

The top 10 reasons professional marketers and business owners love this premium template:

Instant access. Do not wait for anything. Once you pay, you will be redirected to a confirmation page with the link to the template.
Secure. Once you access this premium template, you can save securely your copy in seconds on your PC or laptop or keep it on your Google Docs account. No one else will have access to it unless you permit them.
100% guaranteed delivery. You can always contact us if there is an issue.
Fast support. Same-day response to any questions.
Access your template anywhere/anytime. Just need an internet connection.
Real-time interactive collaboration. You can grant permission to edit your document to other team members and see changes and/or updates in real time.
A universe of add-ons/plugins is available. Bring and manipulate data from your marketing department into your brief document using powerful plugins and add-ons available only on Google Docs.
Turn data into powerful charts. Use the Google Docs editor to create and customise charts, if needed.
Voice typing. Lazy to type? Use Google Docs voice recognition to fill in your template.
Perpetual access. Save the link to the template to always access the latest version of this template anytime.

Note: The latest version of this template has just been released. Don’t miss this introductory price offer only valid this week.

Get your PR campaign brief template now!

ABOUT THE PR BRIEF TEMPLATE SECTIONS

✔ Your company, brand vision, mission and the exact target market you want your PR to influence.
✔ Current major marketing and promotional campaigns and key visual examples.
✔ General PR campaign goals and timings.
✔ Specific PR campaign goals and objectives. We suggest choosing a maximum of two objectives. The more objectives you choose the harder will be to achieve each one.
✔ Past PR activity, visual examples of earned media and key learnings.
✔ Things you believe you would like your next PR campaign to do better.
✔ Top two PR campaigns (same or different industry) you think you can learn and apply something from.
✔ Proof references available: Customer references (testimonials) – Strong Data – Industry Awards
✔ Expected competitive activity during the PR campaign period
✔ Payment instructions

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Fantastic template!

With this template, you can develop a highly customised brief, which was great as we received story ideas and media angles helping us build our brand profile with the right audiences. Great timing to use this template as we did not have much time. Thanks to the eDigital team!

Andrew N. ✅ Verified Buer

PUBLIC RELATIONS CAMPAIGN OBJECTIVES – TYPES

Specific “featured content” objectives: specify the target media where you want your brand to be featured prominently.
Industry mentions 0bjectives: specify industry media outlets you would like your brand to be mentioned.
Share of voice (SOV): Share of voice (SOV) is a measure of the number of earned media mentions your organisation gets compared with your top competitors.
Sentiment objectives: Increase the number of positive sentiment mentions or decrease the number of negative sentiment mentions on a specific topic.
Digital impact goals: expected increases in a) web traffic, b) organic rankings (SEO) and c) social amplification (earned UGC mentions).
Lead generation goals: expected increases in leads from this PR campaign.
Conversions goals: expected increases in actual close deals from this PR campaign.
Total generated value goal (TGVG): expected dollar amount generated by your PR campaign. Examples: leads value, sales value, donations value, etc.

Tip: When using any of the above PR campaign objectives, make sure your PR agency understands how each objective is currently being measured and if you have any past reports, share them with your new PR agency.

YOU WILL ALSO GET:

An exclusive PR Contract Checklist – So you do not miss anything. This offer is valid only this week!

HOW TO GET THIS TEMPLATE

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Once you complete payment, PayPal will show you a “return to merchant” link. Please click on that link to be taken to the page where you will find this premium template.

You can always contact us if you have any questions. We respond fast! ⚡️

Do not miss this offer > The latest version of this template has just been released. Don’t miss this introductory price offer only valid this week.

HOW TO GET JOURNALISTS TO PUBLISH YOUR PR STORY/CAMPAIGN

Below are the best 9 tips for your PR agency to win the hearts of journalists and get your PR story published with no need to pay:

Start with high-resolution images/videos. In addition to helping journalists with their stories, publicists at PR agencies should provide high-resolution multimedia that helps express a narrative and visually represent your story the way you want. Without an image, video or other content to go by, media outlets (journalists) may skim and move on.
Caption your content. Include captions and credits with all visuals (so journalists don’t have to chase you down for details) and make sure you’ve secured the rights to share any assets you offer upfront.
Make the story assets (images, videos, infographics, etc.) easily accessible. If a journalist has to register or get special permission to view your assets, you’re giving them more work to do and eating into their already limited time.
Get your PR agency to find out how each specific journalist likes your story’s assets to be delivered. Different journalists will have different guidelines around multimedia submissions. Most media outlets will provide guidelines on their websites (link vs. attachment, file format and size, etc.). Your PR agency should be aware of the pitching profile of the journalist to whom your PR agency is reaching out— online or in a reliable media database—to learn their story submission requirements.
Be ready and able to respond quickly. Your PR agency should provide journalists with data and expert sources when journalists need them (respecting their deadlines). Journalists are often working against tight deadlines and have to move quickly. They have little time—and less patience—for PR agencies that don’t respect their need for speed. Journalists will even block a publicist who fails to respond to them within the same day or a given deadline.
The source should be ready to be contacted by the journalist. A common mistake is for PR agencies/publicists to offer the source for the breaking news and then get back to the journalist and say the source (you – the client) won’t be available for another week/days after all. This can be aggravating for the journalist/writer.
Provide journalists with a list of upcoming stories. While some journalists have to plan their stories on the same day, many are planning weeks or even months. Journalists benefit from having a list of upcoming stories. Not only does it give them the lead time they need to slot a potential story idea into their editorial calendar, but it also provides the opportunity for PR agencies/publicists to learn more about the types of stories their target journalists want to cover, thus saving them time and energy later on.
Make your pitch to the point and easily digestible. An editor or writer can quickly decide if your pitch is right for their outlet and audience.
Let journalist do their job. Journalists get frustrated over feeling micromanaged by PR agencies/publicists. You are not the editor of what the journalist decides to write, you should not demand a full sentence or phrase to be redone (as a correction). That’s not your call and if you do, you will get journalists pissed off as this can be intolerable to most journalists.

Next: Get your PR campaign brief template now!

Conclusion

The way you brief your PR specialist will highly influence the success or failure of your PR campaign.

You can secure this professional PR campaign brief template so you do not need to start from scratch.

You should involve all your team members in the process of briefing your PR agency as there might be some interesting points -your team (as a collective mind) – can bring to the table.

Next: Get your PR campaign brief template now!

Final note: Want to reduce customer acquisition costs and dependency on paid media? Our exclusive digital marketing strategy workshops will unmercifully review your marketing, help you build a marketing engine with channels and assets you own, stir your team’s thinking, bring new ideas for new conversion paths and boost customer lifetime value.