Where to find the best PR campaigns

Developing a fresh idea for your next PR campaign can sometimes feel like an arduous task.

Most marketing professionals understand that the best campaigns can work wonders for brand awareness, SEO and sales. But knowing that PR can be the most effective form of marketing can sometimes bring a pressure for PR teams to deliver a killer idea. 

Coming up with something innovative and infectious with the potential to go viral isn’t as easy as some marketing managers might hope. So naturally PR pros seek inspiration from other campaigns which have done just that. But where is the best place to look to find inspiring PR campaigns which have already done the business?

If you are tuned in to PR content then you’ll find yourself spotting PR stories all across the news agenda. At the time of writing a recent example is the ‘No Bounty’ story for Mars Celebrations. A brilliant little, low cost, idea which made headlines everywhere and really got people talking. 

However if you have been tasked by your manager to come up with new ideas it might not be possible to quickly mine inspiration from the immediate news agenda. Instead you will want to find a resource which collates them for you. 

There are plenty of websites which offer examples of famous PR campaigns and these can certainly be useful. Often though they can be marketing platforms for one particular agency and many of the examples found on their pages may link back to that agency. That doesn't mean they should be dismissed - they can still be a fantastic source of inspiration. But they shouldn’t be viewed as definitive and it makes sense to remember they are marketing platforms and should be viewed as such. You might also find the content on these sites can be a little dated and may therefore not be reflective of recent developments. 

One way to find up to date recent examples of great work is to take a look at the PR award websites and see which agencies and in-house teams are picking up nominations and gongs for their campaigns. Plenty of inspiration can be found from both but it’s the agencies who will be the richest source of ideas as they will be developing lots of different campaigns for a wide array of clients. Once you’ve identified which PR agencies are winning plaudits you can then Google them to find out more about their team and to research other examples of work they have created. 

Most award winning agencies will have PR case studies on their websites. But make sure the case studies are recent and have actually been done by the agency that’s claiming them. We have seen examples where agencies claim work that one of their team did at a previous agency five years earlier - which is a bit naughty and not great practice. 

The best agencies will be able to stand behind great examples of their past work and will also have a well stocked trophy cabinet to prove exactly how good they are. These award winning campaigns are usually a great source of PR inspiration and can be an excellent starting point in your own ideation. 

Some award winning agencies are so proud of their work that they make a downloadable PDF available as a free download - such as Motive’s Greatest Hits. We wanted to share this because it’s a fantastic resource for anyone who is trying to come up with their own ideas. The document offers examples of some of our most successful campaigns and reveals exactly the level of results each campaign delivered for our clients. You’re welcome. 

If you decide you’d like some extra help with coming up with some new ideas do contact us to arrange a free idea planning session. 

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