What is a PR Agency?

Public relations (PR) is the deliberate, planned, and sustained effort to establish a mutual understanding between an organisation and its publics – as defined by the Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA).

A PR agency (also called a public relations firm or PR company) is a team of communication experts who help businesses manage their image, tell their stories, and connect with journalists and key opinion leaders. Put simply, a PR agency helps you raise your profile, protect your reputation, and grow your credibility in a way that resonates with your target market.

What does a PR Agency Do?

A PR agency’s role is to shape and protect a brand’s public image through strategic communication. Here are the core services a PR agency typically provides:

Media Relations & Press Releases: One of a PR team’s main responsibilities is securing media coverage. This involves developing relationships with journalists, sending press releases, and framing stories in a way that resonates with their editorial agendas and interests their readers. Additionally, media training for your team or spokespeople prepares them to handle tough questions, adding credibility and confidence during media interviews.
Influencer and Publicity Campaigns: Collaborating with social media influencers, journalists, and well-known personalities and experts helps grow your reach and credibility.
Crisis Management: When a crisis strikes, whether it’s a product recall, a controversy, or a customer service incident gone viral, a PR team guides your response, helping you manage your message, ease stakeholder concerns, and protect your reputation.
Social Media PR: Managing your media image today includes navigating social media. A PR team helps you align your messaging across platforms, respond to comments, and foster loyalty, turning your community into a group of passionate advocates for your brand.
Event Management & Brand Activations: Event promotions, whether a product launch, media preview, or influencer dinner, create a powerful opportunity to connect directly with your target audience in a way that resonates. For example, Maven PR frequently assists food and beverage clients in designing and executing intimate media events alongside promotions campaigns, adding depth to their stories and giving press and influencers an exclusive preview of a new in venue promotion or product.
Content Creation: Creating written content, speeches, thought leadership articles, video content, and photography; a PR team brings your stories to life in a clear, purposeful way. This crosses over into content marketing, SEO, and even influencer collaborations.

How Do PR Agencies Work?

Getting the most from your PR team involves a collaborative process. Here’s a step-by-step view of how a PR agency typically works:

Discovery & Strategy

It starts by understanding your business, your goals, your target media, and your key stakeholders. At Maven PR, we send clients a reverse brief form to complete to help a business clearly brief us on what they are looking to achieve from PR. This forms the foundation for a tailored PR strategy whereby we look at your target customer and come up with creative ways to access them via media and social media channels or events and activations.

Execution of PR Plan

Once the strategy is set, the team gets to work — press release writing, media pitching, securing influencer collaborations, organising events, and developing content. For instance, if you’re launching a new beverage, we might arrange for journalists to preview it, collaborate with mixology influencers, or host a media dinner alongside your launch.

Media Relations & Ongoing Management

Managing media relationships and securing ongoing coverage is a dynamic process. Our team monitors media stories to allow us to newsjack trending stories, assesses coverage, and adjusts messages in real time — adding follow-up stories or addressing inaccuracies if they arise.

Measurement & Reporting

Good PR is measurable. We are one of the few agencies in Australia that guarantees results to our clients. We track media coverage and social media engagement, using a unique points based system that we call our Coverage Success System. We tier your target media and influencers in a way that clearly showcases the value of different pieces of coverage. This lets you see a clear return on your investment in PR.

Collaborative Approach

At Maven PR, we collaborate closely with your team and with related promotions and digital marketing initiatives. This kind of integrated approach, alongside a shopper marketing team like Bamboo Marketing (our partner agency), guarantees your campaigns feel unified across media, promotions, and digital channels.

Who’s on a PR Agency Team?

A strong PR team comprises a range of skilled professionals:

PR Account Directors: Develop strategies and manage media relationships.
Account Managers and Account Executives: Provide a main point of contact and oversee day-to-day delivery. Craft stories, pitch journalists, and follow up to maximize coverage.
Crisis Communications Experts: Provide guidance during high-risk or crisis situations.

At Maven PR, our team is led by Sophie Muir, a maven of the PR industry, who has led campaigns for Heineken, Camplify and Malaysia Airlines — supported by a team passionate about delivering big-agency thinking with small-agency agility.

Do I Need a PR Agency?

It depends on your business goals and your current resources. Here are a few scenarios where a PR agency can make a dramatic difference:

Launching a new product or business: If you’re a food or beverage manufacturer launching something new, a PR team can generate media coverage and buzz from day one.
Needing greater brand awareness: If your competitors are outperforming you or your messages aren’t cutting through, a PR team can help raise your profile.
Handling a crisis or bad press: When a crisis occurs, navigating media inquiries can be challenging — a crisis communications team guides you gracefully through difficult situations.
Stalled growth: If you’re looking to grow or you want greater credibility and trust from your stakeholders, a well-planned PR strategy can make a measurable difference. About 60% of companies say they outsource their digital PR — a strong indicator that many see its value.

It’s often wiser to bring a team on before a crisis or a major launch. This allows you to be proactive instead of reactive.

Benefits of Hiring a PR Agency

Expertise and Industry Knowledge: Publicists specialise in navigating media relationships and securing coverage that resonates with your target customer. Maven PR’s team, for instance, brings deep experience in food, beverage, lifestyle, tech, beauty and travel. We therefore offer a deep understanding into what makes the news in these media sectors and can tell your brand’s story in a clever and targeted way.
Media Relationships: Established media contacts enable your stories to reach journalists, editors, producers, and influencers much faster, yielding greater media coverage.
Objectivity and Fresh Perspective: Sometimes you’re too close to your own business to identify what’s most newsworthy or which media you should be targeting. A fresh, external view can bring forward your most compelling stories.
Time Savings: Managing media inquiries, securing coverage, organising events, and developing content is a full-time job. Outsourcing lets you and your team focus on growing your business instead.
Integrated Communication Strategy: When you work with an integrated team, your messages remain consistent across media, promotions, social media, and digital marketing — delivering greater impact for your campaigns.
Additionally, third-party media coverage typically carries greater credibility with consumers than paid ads. According to Nielson, 83% of people say they trust editorial content over conventional advertising — a powerful endorsement for securing media stories.

Choosing the Right PR Agency

Not all PR agencies are the same. You want a team that understands your industry, your goals, and your budget. Here’s what to consider when choosing your PR team:

Industry Experience and Case Studies: Look for an agency with a track record of securing media coverage for brands like yours. For food and beverage companies, Maven PR’s portfolio includes campaigns for Heineken, Camplify, Moccona, Cointreau, Thanks to Nature, and more.
Credibility and Reputation: Consider their credibility i.e. who leads their team, and what do clients say about their work?
Services Offered (and Integration): Make sure their services align with your goals i.e. media outreach, crisis communications, influencer campaigns, or event management , and that they can collaborate with your internal team and other agency partners when needed.
Size and Approach: Boutique firms typically provide more personalised service, you’re not just a number on their client list. At Maven PR, we’re small and passionate, delivering big-agency thinking without the big-agency price tag.
Client Fit and Communication: Your team should feel like a true extension of your own — someone who understands your goals and your way of thinking. As Sophie Muir puts it: “We become an extension of our clients’ team, immersing ourselves in their business to enable us to tell their stories in a way that resonates with their target customer.”
Results and ROI: Lastly, make sure they’re able to show you how they measure their results i.e. media coverage, coverage reach, and social media engagement. A credible team is always willing to be transparent with their data.

Small Agency, Big Results: Maven PR’s Difference

One example of how a smaller team can outperform a large firm is Maven PR’s work with a bootstrapped travel startup. This growing business engaged Maven PR to raise its profile and drive bookings, securing extensive media coverage across travel, lifestyle, and business media. This momentum contributed directly to a successful IPO.

Led by Sophie Muir, a PR maven who previously managed campaigns for Coca-Cola and Cadbury at big agencies, Maven PR offers big-agency expertise with small-agency passion, agility, and a deep understanding of your industry. And through its collaboration with Bamboo Marketing, Maven PR can amplify its campaigns across promotions, events, and social media, delivering maximum return on investment.

“I started Maven PR to prove that a small, dedicated team can outperform big agencies delivering campaigns that make a measurable, powerful impact for our clients.”
— Sophie Muir, Founder/Director

Putting It All Together: PR Agencies as Your Growth Partner

Public relations agencies help businesses tell their stories, manage their reputations, and connect with their stakeholders in a way that drives loyalty and growth. From securing media coverage for your new product launch, to navigating a crisis, or strengthening your credibility, a strong PR team can be your greatest asset.

For Australian businesses, PR can be the secret sauce that makes your brand stand out.

If you’re still wondering whether a PR agency might be a strong match for your business, feel free to reach out to us at Maven PR for a friendly chat. We’re happy to discuss strategies tailored to your needs, whether you’re launching a new product or looking to boost your profile and credibility. Contact Maven PR today to learn how we can help your business shine.