Top tips and strategies from e-⁠Residency Marketplace member PRNEWS.IO for getting the most bang for your buck out of your PR budget

This guest post about maximisine your PR budget was written by Natalia Storozhuk of PRNEWS.IO, an international sponsored content online store and trusted member of the e-⁠Residency Marketplace.

Where should you prioritize your PR spend as we enter 2023? The answer is: you decide. The past few years have been challenging for everyone, and the PR industry is no exception.

The good news is that you do not need a huge PR budget to be successful. Just as every e-⁠resident is unique, so too are your businesses. What you have in common is that you all want to achieve coverage to build awareness of your brand, products and services. Differences appear regarding HOW MUCH to spend on PR, WHEN to start spending, or WHAT to spend it on. So, if you're looking for guidance on PR strategies and spend, read on to get our top five tips - from planning to implementation.

Basic PR Budget Strategies and Trends

A recent report by Splash has found that 85% of marketing budgets across all industries are climbing back for 2023. However, businesses report that they still feel a lack of resources, both human and financial. 

When thinking about your budget needs, the first thing to do is to stop thinking about what others are doing. Instead, focus on your goals and needs based on the resources you have.

Start by making a list of your PR needs and goals. This will give you a better overview of what to include in your PR budget. These might include:

• Content creation and SEO strategies
• Press conferences
• Shipping/mailing
• Social media and influencer marketing strategies
• KPIs

Once you have your list, get to know some of the main PR trends right now.

• Influencer marketing is the top. The number of influencers continues to grow, in contrast to journalists.
• If content is fire, then social media is gasoline. Audiences crave stories, so experiment with  a storytelling approach until your audience is happy.
• If relevant for your industry, prioritize an ESG communication strategy to bring brand awareness.
• Get to know your audience and listen to what they are interested in. This form of social listening is a game changer. Pepsi’s new logo design is a perfect example of this.
• Earned media is still one of the most effective and credible ways to gain exposure for brands.

Now, with all of the above considered, it’s time to move on to our top five recommended PR budgeting strategies.

1. Let’s Talk ‘Burn Rate’

Responsible PR teams should not overspend. Sure - spend 100% of your PR budget, but spend it thoughtfully based on good financial strategies and goals in mind. 

It may seem better to be under-budget versus being potentially over-budget, but think again. For example, if you allocate $5,000 per month, your company's burn rate should be $5,000 - no more, no less.

Now, what if your team spends a little less than planned? Of course, you can roll forward any unspent budget into the next period and spend it then. However, that is the wrong way to manage your budget.

The problem is that it's more of a trial-and-error process, and the end of the fiscal year is a brick wall. Sooner or later, you will find yourself up against it. You simply can't roll forward endlessly. Although you might think you're saving a little money for the company, you're not.

When you underspend, you are not delivering potential business benefits of the marketing investment, as 82% of startups do. Unspent funds are swept into the corporate coffers without adding value to the business.

At the end of the day, underspending leads to year-over-year reductions in the PR budget - the last thing you want, right?

2. Marketing by percentages

This is by far the fastest and most straightforward method. There is no exact science to choosing the percentage a company spends on marketing. One rule of thumb is to spend 5% of your revenue on your PR budget. Another suggestion - by the US Small Business Administration - is to allocate 7%-8% of gross revenues to PR, if your sales are lower than $5 million annually. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, so make the decision based on what makes financial sense for your business.

Whether you allocate 1%-2% of revenue or 10%-20% of profit for your marketing and advertising costs, you should be safe. And, if you can push the budget to 5% of revenue, go for it. Your PR budget is an integral part of your company's overall long-term health, so treat it accordingly.

When planning your PR budget, expect a lot of expenses, including marketing employee salaries and freelancer service fees, potential agency fees, social media and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising costs, software license fees, costs of media monitoring tools, and more.

3. Marketing by goals

It’s important to take a look at your entire financial picture and business goals to get a clear understanding of your PR budget and strategy. Once you have the big picture, you can start specifying your marketing objectives. One common objective for PR is to increase brand awareness. But try and be more specific about what results can lead you to this overall goal. Consider what you hope to achieve by the end of the year, such as driving company sales or increasing leads.

Once you know what you want to achieve, start building a strategy outlining the tactics you need to employ to reach your goals. For example, if you want to expand audience reach, try to increase media mentions of your brand. 

4. Marketing based on competition

Market research is vital as it helps you better understand your target market. Start by collecting and analyzing key data such as general demographic information, outside influencing factors, and customers' wants and needs. Also, research your competition by identifying who they are, the types of marketing strategies they use, and how much they spend on advertising.

According to the Gartner CMO Survey, B2B companies spend an average of 9.5% of their revenue on marketing, while B2C service companies spend 10%. However, it is not enough to know how well your competitors perform. You should also monitor the growth of brand search frequency and traffic channels using media tools.

It's important to note that your competitors are not always the market leaders, so be sure to look beyond them as well.

PR drives revenue when set in place

Budgeting for PR is never an easy task. But, there can be no scaling of your business without it. Each strategy is an experiment to be tested. Focus on what works best for your business. Set clear and specific goals and work within a set time period. Measure and analyze everything. You cannot set up a PR campaign and forget about it, assuming it is working.

Ideally, PR campaigns will pay for themselves and yield even more returns. At a minimum, the value of returns should equal the costs. Allocate enough budget to make a real investment in your PR strategies and make sure to burn it up by year-end.  If one tactic fails, learn from it and start again.