New Report shows PR is suffering

The Holmes Report has come out with Global Rankings of PR agencies worldwide and estimates that revenues in 2010 shrank eight per cent.

It's no surprise really, what hasn't shrunk in the past year?

What I found interesting was that in every part of the world economic conditions topped the list of concerns for PR folks. Except in Europe, where talent was the top concern most PR agencies had.

I suspect a big part of the drop is simply due to turmoil within many organizations. After two full years of budget cuts and staff reductions, those employees left standing are focused primarily on keeping the boat afloat (and a lot of them are tired and slightly burned out). Pushing for increased spend is not going to be top of their priority list.

It's too bad really, because as I've said many times, I think PR is more important during a recession than during boom cycles - not just to organizations themselves, but to the economy as a whole. The tougher the B2B and B2C environments become, the more important it is for stakeholders to understand the value you bring to their lives.

Not to mention that as many organizations slip in to stealth mode as a result of the recession, it's a great time to steal mind share and drive brand equity.

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