How to choose a PR agency in 2026: the questions nobody asks (but should)
Updated: Aug 30
Every PR agency sounds promising in that first meeting. They'll mention their media connections. They'll say they can get you coverage. They'll often show you a couple of recognisable brand logos or a standout one-off placement. None of that tells you what your first 90 days will actually feel like.
Selecting a PR partner in 2026 requires looking beyond the polished pitch. The following questions are designed to help you see past the presentation and into the operational reality of how an agency will serve you.
Look under the hood, not just at the pitch
Proposals are not a reliable way to choose an agency. They reward whoever writes the most compelling document, not necessarily whoever runs the most effective campaign. Narrow your options to two or three contenders before asking for detailed proposals.
Then ask to see how they actually work. Do not accept a diagram on a slide. Ask them to show you how they log their outreach. Ask them to demonstrate how they track campaign status. Ask them to explain how they account for their time.
An agency that operates with discipline should be able to show you the health of any campaign at a glance. If it takes digging through scattered messages and spreadsheets to get a clear picture, you will pay for that disorganisation in missed opportunities and delayed responses. If they say their workflow is proprietary, that often means it is not something they are proud to show.
Why PR matters now more than ever
PR is no longer just about press releases and media coverage. It has become one of the most important marketing investments you can make for your brand. Here is why.
Editorial coverage builds trust that advertising simply cannot match. A double-blind study of 1,622 consumers found that a company featured editorially in a Tier-1 publication was trusted 3.2 times more than the same company with a paid advertisement in the same publication. Editorial coverage also drives purchase intent: 82% of consumers who saw an editorial feature said they would consider purchasing, compared to just 39% without media coverage.
Earned media is what AI trusts. In an era where AI tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini are increasingly becoming the first stop for information discovery, the data is clear: earned media accounts for 84% of all AI citations, while paid and advertorial content accounts for just 0.3%.
PR is becoming a core revenue driver. A global survey of 858 marketing and PR professionals found that 7 in 10 organisations now consider PR important to their go-to-market efforts, and 73% expect it to become even more strategic over the next two years.
Editorial coverage retains its impact far longer than advertising. At three months, 54% of consumers still recall an editorial feature, compared to just 6% for paid advertising. At one year, 32% still recall the editorial feature, versus just 1% for paid ads.
In short: PR builds the trust and credibility that search engines, AI, and consumers are actively looking for. If you are not investing in PR, you are invisible to the channels that matter most.
Follow the hours, not the hype
Your retainer is not a general donation to good intentions. It buys people's time. Output requires labour, and labour is the resource you are actually purchasing.
Ask how your retainer maps to real hours across the team. Ask how those hours are split between proactive pitching and administrative work. Ask how many clients your account lead is managing at once. Ask how much senior attention you can expect each month.
This line of questioning will reveal more about an agency's viability than any credentials slide. When teams are stretched thin, pitching turns reactive, media follow-up gets delayed, and coverage becomes unpredictable. Success in PR depends on consistent execution, and that only happens when an agency is properly staffed for the work they promise.
Demand to see the full picture
One major placement does not constitute a strategy. It can happen for reasons that have nothing to do with repeatable execution. Do not get distracted by a single impressive headline. What matters is whether the agency delivers meaningful coverage month after month for clients with budgets similar to yours.
Ask to see the last 30, 60, and 90 days of earned media for clients on a retainer comparable to what you would pay. A credible agency will not treat this as sensitive information. If they show only a curated highlight reel, ask for the full list.
Also, ask to see coverage across a full year for one client. PR is a long-term investment. You need to know what an agency produces over time, not just during the honeymoon period.
Confirm who will actually do the work
This is the classic "bait and switch." At many traditional agencies, you are sold by a senior partner and then handed off to a junior coordinator who does the actual execution.
Ask directly: "Who will be doing the day-to-day work on my account?" If the answer involves anyone with limited experience, consider that a warning sign.
At The Blended Agency, we operate differently. When you work with us, your direct contacts are Jasmin and Faye — the founders. There is no account manager to filter your briefs, no junior to write your pitches, and no hand-off to someone you have never met. We do the work ourselves, using the media relationships we have built over years of working in Hong Kong's communications and journalism industries. When we pitch your story, it comes from us — not from a stranger your agency assigned to your account.
Ask what support structure exists to help that person succeed. Ask how many placements they have secured in the last four months. You want to confirm that the agency is staffed realistically and that the person running your work is actively delivering results, not just theoretically capable of doing so.
Look for real results, not just promises
The best way to test an agency's claims is to ask what they have delivered for clients in the recent past—and ask for the receipts.
Beyond process, what you are really buying is access. Not the kind you can find in a media database, but genuine relationships with journalists who actually want to hear from you. In our years working in the PR and media industry, we have built connections with editors and writers across Hong Kong who actively look for cool brands to feature. They trust our judgement, and they trust us not to waste their time with irrelevant pitches.
For example, when we started working with Hong Kong-based fashion label Qipology, our first step was to create a press package that made it easy for media to understand the brand and access high-quality photos quickly. We then developed tailored email pitches for each journalist, ensuring every outreach felt personal and relevant rather than generic.
Within two months of working together, we secured 10 pieces of coverage for Qipology across local and regional media including Lifestyle Asia, Prestige and The Loop. That kind of measurable output is what you should expect from a PR partner — not just promises of future placements, but a clear track record of actual results.
When evaluating an agency, ask to see similar examples of work they have done for comparable clients. Look for numbers that demonstrate consistent execution, not just isolated wins.
Treat referrals as a starting point, not a conclusion
A referral tells you that someone had a positive experience with an agency. It does not tell you whether that agency is suited for your stage of growth, your decision-making pace, your approvals process, or your internal readiness.
Instead of asking who to hire, ask who has produced consistent wins for companies that resemble yours, at the budget level you are willing to commit. That reframing will give you more useful information than any general recommendation.
Be realistic about what PR costs
There is a common scenario where a client wants full-service PR coverage but has a budget that only supports basic media monitoring. If you want PR that moves the business, you need enough budget to fund consistent execution.
In today's market, meaningful PR support typically starts at approximately $12,000 to $15,000 per month. At $10,000, many agencies are operating at the absolute minimum required to sustain a real team without cutting corners. When the retainer is too low, the agency has to remove elements of the engine. That shows up as fewer pitches, weaker follow-up, slower turnaround times, and thinner strategic guidance.
Choose an agency that will push back
If your positioning is unclear, if your messaging is vague, or if your delivery undermines your message, a good partner will tell you that directly. PR is positioning plus execution under pressure. If the agency only agrees with you, they are not doing their job.
A great partner will start by asking about your business goals and will be genuinely invested in understanding what you need to achieve. Their success metrics will be tied to those goals. They will talk about how media coverage can support retail conversations, how thought leadership can attract investor interest, and how targeted features can drive measurable business outcomes.
Ask about GEO and AI readiness
By 2026, any PR agency worth considering should have a clear Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) and LLM optimisation strategy. AI tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity are increasingly how investors, customers, and partners discover and evaluate companies. If your PR agency does not understand how earned media contributes to AI discoverability, they are already behind the curve.
Look for agencies that use AI for research and journalist beat tracking. Avoid agencies that solely use AI to write pitches and has no relationships with media. Human-to-human relationships remain the only currency journalists value, and no algorithm can replace genuine media relationships.
Now you know
PR is not a mysterious art. It is disciplined output guided by a reliable operating system. Choose based on proof and consistent delivery that aligns with your team's rhythm, and you will build a reputation that makes everything else easier. The right partner will welcome these questions. The wrong one will deflect them.
Ready to build media coverage that actually moves your brand forward? Book a 20-minute discovery call and let's see if we are the right fit for your brand.
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