Rep Finder
Media buyers, stop wasting time trying to find the right sales rep? Turn to the Rep Finder and get connected to our database of the most up-to-date sales contacts fro Broadcast, OOH, Publishers, Social Networks and more from across Canada.These changes will impact both employers and employees within the public relations industry. To guide you through these changes, we consulted Canadian communications expert Sarah Stewart-Browne, President of North Strategic, who shared her insights to help you prepare for what's ahead.
In this current climate of consolidation and budget scrutiny, what do you believe are the top
2-3 most critical skills or areas of expertise that distinguish a top performer from an average one, and how can you actively develop them?
Sarah - Curiosity: Motivated people have an innate interest in trends, data, insights and tools. Combine it with a desire to understand evolving platforms. At North, we provide opportunities
and time for our people to boost these critical skills by learning new platforms, attending
conferences and participating in agency-wide online learning sessions.
A client-focused mindset: in an agency environment, client relationships are paramount.
Having open, two-way conversations regularly with clients about what works and what can
be improved fosters mutual respect, and it’s critical to a successful client mandate built on
trust.
At North, we spend a lot of time fostering and building these client relationships. We
mentor our junior teams to think like a client, dig into their business priorities and learn how
to anticipate asks.
Big picture thinking: No matter the size of the project, our team always aims to go above and
beyond the ask, delivering a scalable budget that includes creative, plus-up ideas, so our
clients can see what is possible. Budget constraints may impact one area of a business, but
a great idea may find a home somewhere else or spark thinking about what the next year
could hold.
What are some of the less-obvious ways that public relations work can directly contribute to their bottom line? How can people better connect daily tasks to those larger business goals?
Sarah - An ability to harness trends: From inserting a CPG product into a trending TikTok moment or testing and learning a new platform, PR work is continually at the forefront of the audience.
Leveraging these moments and tools quickly will support marketing programming, increase
brand relevancy and ultimately boost sales.
A real opportunity now exists in PR’s ability to influence AI-driven Generative Engine
Optimization (“GEO”) and shape a brand’s online presence. Investing in PR has never been
more important for businesses, given the role earned media, influencers and reviews play in
brands’ visibility, perception and reputation.
How do you effectively use data and analytics to prove the impact of PR efforts beyond
simple media impressions? Can you provide a specific example of a time you used data to
change a client's strategy or secure more budget?
Sarah - Without mentioning clients, we’ve seen the impact of applying data, analytics and real-time sentiment monitoring for issues and crisis response. Most negative conversations start
online. Tapping into our tools keeps our clients updated on conversation sentiment and
gives us a better understanding of how to protect, influence and take opportunities to pivot
as situations evolve. We continually demonstrate the importance of being nimble, agile and
responsive, leading to better outcomes for our clients.
