The simple answer is “no”…in the sense that it is unlikely all PR agencies will become extinct. But “yes” in the sense that many of them face extinction. Extinction, not because of a 15-kilometer-wide asteroid hitting the earth, but because of their inability to adapt to the new world they live in. Too many PR agency leaders – on the global, regional and local levels – are intellectually lazy when it comes to thinking through what they need to succeed, not just in the next quarter, but in the next five to 10 years and beyond.
Now before we get too cynical, there is a very simple way to solve the “extinction” problem…but it will take some hard work. The prescription:
Experienced agency leaders will not be shocked by any of the above ideas. They know it, they live it every day. But they need to ask themselves, “Are we really trying to create a great business that impacts our client businesses?”, “Are we putting in the time and effort to determine how we can be great?”, “Are we passionate about excellence?”. I am guessing very few can answer “yes” to all three questions.
About 66 million years ago, the dinosaurs had no idea – if they even were able to think about it – how to deal with an asteroid from space that left a 180 kilometer crater in the earth and led to extinction. The good news is, the challenges faced by PR agencies are significantly less. However, whether or not specific agencies will survive is real and is not going away.
The simple question is, “Do they have the willingness, passion and guts to look in the mirror and strive for excellence?” I don’t know the answer. Do you?
Originally published in Marketing Interactive March 2020
