Arguably, there’s never been a more challenging time to be a professional services firm.

The sector faces challenges such as increasing public and regulatory scrutiny, technology (in particular Artificial Intelligence) that is rapidly changing the face of its workforce and a skills shortage causing a war for talent.

Whether you are in accounting and audit, law, architecture, town planning, engineering or broader consulting, the pressures apply, given the Federal Government’s inquiry into Ethics and Professional Accountability: Structural Challenges in the Audit, Assurance and Consultancy Industry.

This is a time when a positive public and broader market perception is crucial.

While jostling for market share, firms must highlight the initiatives that make them an employer of choice to attract and retain the best, while also telling the world what they are doing to meet now-expected benchmarks on ESG, gender pay gap, diversity, modern slavery and supply chain management.

A good reputation will drive market sustainability and business growth, which is so crucial given that globally the professional services market is expected to rise considerably between now and 2032 (from $US6 billion to more than $US10 billion according to The Business Research Company).

Public relations helps shape key stakeholders’ perception of your professional services business and builds up goodwill capital to help you manage reputation.

How to work with a PR firm

Working with a full suite public relations (PR) agency allows your professional services firm to draw on a wide range of expertise to support your partners and marketing team.

Our modus operandi at BBS when we take on a new professional services client includes:

• One-on-one interviews and engagement with the leadership team and the firm’s sector- and service-based experts, to discuss the most pressing issues for the business and their clients
• Media research into the key journalists and media outlets most relevant to these business challenges and opportunities
• Desktop research to develop thought leadership narratives and ensure all parties are across state and federal government policy reforms and legislation, and key metrics such as Australian Bureau of Statistics data, that might impact or provide opportunities for thought leadership
• A key competitors review to identify gaps and opportunities for business insight and advocacy.

From this basis, a high-level strategic communications plan is created.

For professional services clients we are handling tasks from crisis management to media relations, from award nominations to content creation, from media training to speech writing.

It’s all about developing good relationships and understanding the client-focused needs of the time-poor professional services partners we deal with.

An experienced PR agency is able to draw thought leadership commentary out of busy partners with minimal impost on their time, by understanding what issues are of interest to key media, keeping on top of government, regulatory and industry research and being able to work respectfully with case studies while maintaining the client confidentiality that is key to the professional services sector.

Successfully implementing a thoughtful public relations strategy is yet another crucial tool for professional services firms to help them survive and thrive in a challenging environment.

Case study: global accounting and audit firm

BBS has worked for the past three years with the Australian practice of a global accounting and audit firm. This firm had engaged other PR agencies previously and been advised that the media market was changing and it was no longer possibly to get continuous and solid media coverage for partners’ thought leadership.

Using the strategies outlined above, BBS has worked with this client’s marketing, leadership and partner team to prioritise media relations that were of highest value to this firm’s strategic growth, and best positioned their experts as business advocates in five key priority sectors.

BBS focused on creating nationally visible media coverage by proactively and repeatedly delivering newsworthy insights to journalists, well researched and building this firm’s thought leadership reputation. We helped the firm to “humanise” complex content and speak simply and clearly to the matters of most importance to their clients and potential clients.

Year on year, we secured a more than 186% increase in positive national or industry sector media coverage and, more broadly, in this time the firm saw digital leads increase by 51%, subscribers by 17% and website profiles for the five sector leaders rise by between 28% and 193%.

Experienced at partnering professional services firms

BBS is a trusted public relations company which has assisted a large number and broad range of professional services clients across Australia for more than 35 years. Our team’s blended skills in media and public relations, corporate communication,  crisis and issues management and financial communications mean we can look critically at challenges and offer a fresh perspective. Contact us today for a confidential discussion about your professional services firm’s communication needs.