Checklist for choosing your consultant
• Find out which consultancies have a reputation for working with similar organisations/issues to your own. This is often available on websites. The Institute of Public Administration and the Public Relations Consultants Association both have directories of public relations consultancies
• Request a written or verbal presentation of company credentials, to include case studies of work similar to the objectives you have
• Contact referees and ask them about key performance indicators and also about the client/consultancy relationship
• Having selected three or four consultancies that might suit, brief them on your business and communications objectives and ask them to respond in writing how they would approach the task, the team who would work with you and what the costs would be - both fees and third party costs
• Key things to look for include: An understanding of your business and the issues it faces; strategic thinking; clear and realistic implementation plans; key performance indicators and measurement tools; detailed costs breakdown and the expertise and experience of the individual team members
• Once you have a short-list of two to three companies invite them to present or meet with you - the personal chemistry with the team account handlers is going to be important to a successful working relationship.