by Jeff Lavery
As the founder of an agency that focuses almost exclusively on B2B clients, I have strong feelings about choosing a PR firm that understands the AEC and CRE industries. When Pedigree Public Relations competes against other firms, the primary challenge is convincing the prospect in the room that there are very real reasons why they should not choose an agency with a client book that is mostly B2C- or consumer-oriented.
B2C agencies, in most cases, work across a broad spectrum of companies working to sell products to consumers. From small product companies that provide cheap gadgets to larger retail outfits that all of us patronize in some way, a B2C firm can provide ample evidence of being all things to all people, and having the book of business that gives them impressive street cred. But AEC and CRE firms are solidly B2B, and there’s several key reasons why choosing an agency with B2B credentials is essential to your PR program’s success:
The language of B2B is completely different. Put simply, B2B communications require an elevated approach to dialog. Whether you’re generating actual content or depending on an agency to communicate with your clients on your behalf, you don’t want a former mommy blogger handling comms when trying to get approval for an M&A announcement with a tight deadline. Lawyers, engineers, scientists, developers, and so on are surrounded by people with advanced degrees and decades of technical expertise – and you want to put an agency in front of them that previously represented the Big Bang Bubble Blaster?
B2B is a task-limited, high-output environment. Many consumer agencies get into the unfortunate cycle of generating busy work and calling it a result. This is not entirely their fault, as clients often demand work product that doesn’t create much of an impact but can be loosely translated into “progress.” If you work in a B2B environment, we both know your team would rather see 1-2 emails a week with some meaningful results at the end of the month versus a flurry of daily activities that don’t move the needle. Many B2C firms are unfortunately locked into this way of thinking based on what passes as progress with most of their clients, making them the wrong fit for a classic B2B engagement.
B2B experts get in, get out, and get it right. B2B firms work in a world where there is minimal time to educate a consultant on the inner workings of their business. Hiring a B2C agency that then needs to account for several months’ worth of learning curve before they’re able to deliver results will only serve to frustrate your employees, clients, and anyone else you expect an agency to intersect with. Every agency needs some amount of start-up time with a new account, but a true B2B firm will make that intro period as efficient and productive as possible.
If you’ve made the decision to engage an agency partner in 2025, be sure to start with one that truly gets your business.
Jeff Lavery
Jeff Lavery is principal at Pedigree Public Relations.
Pedigree PR is a full-service agency with a special expertise in B2B industries, including construction, real estate and development, high-tech manufacturing, government, and more. Having worked in the newsroom, client-side, and agency settings, Pedigree PR’s team can build a public relations strategy that works in almost any B2B vertical, all while becoming a natural extension of your in-house resources.
