Has anyone hired a Public Relations firm to represent their fitness company?
Thanks for your question Philip.
I guess my company would qualify as a micro business.
I have not hired a PR firm to represent my company, however, I thought I would share with you something interesting.
Through this site, I gained a client who holds a senior position in an international PR firm. This firm has earned the highest accolades in the advertising industry. They are a global organization.
This is what she said to me. “Joanne, your profile is thorough. You’ve covered all your bases. There is nothing that you haven’t covered.”
For me personally this speaks volumes. It is a high compliment to the creators of IDEA Fitness Connect, Jason and Kelli Davis. The client who I earned through Fitness Connect says that this portal is an effective means to market oneself and/or their business. I am of the opinion that we as fitness professionals must take this generous provision much more seriously.
Sixteen million people who visit the site is nothing to sneeze at. I don’t know if you were at the recent IDEA World convention. If you were, Mike Bannan presented a lecture on IDEA Fitness Connect. When one entered the auditorium on the screen was the map of the United States. On the map, there were indications of the number of hits IDEA Fitness Connect as receiving by state in real time. I was left extremely impressed at the amount of activity that was happening across the US but in particular on the east cost.
I encourage you Philip, if you have not yet, to fill our your profile completely and follow up on the prompts IDEA Fitness Connect gives you in order to have a profile that is completed 100%.
Hope this response is of help to you.
In my experience I’ve found that most PR firms and marketing companies are geared towards a larger client. Their pricing reflects same. So, in my opinion, in terms of cost-benefit, I’m not sure that the expense is worth what I might potentially gain. I’d take my marketing dollars and expend them in a more targeted way.
I hope this helps.
LaRue, CSCS
www.lecfitness.com
[email protected]
Hi Phillip,
I have never hired a PR company. I am fortunate enough that my wife and business partner is a great networking person and very good when dealing with clients and other businesses. I know other trainers who did hire PR companies and even though it was costly for them, they had some great return on their investment. So, I guess they can be like everything else, sometimes it works and other times it doesn’t.
Best,
Harris