Spin doctors offer digital remedy

Increasingly online-savvy customers have fuelled business and government demand for digital communications advice, which in turn has spurred public relations firms to increase their offering in this specialist area.

Perth’s top-ranked agency, Professional Public Relations, had grown its digital staff to generate more communications through apps and social media to enable clients to tap into a bigger, more mobile audience.

“Once upon a time the online or digital component of a PR plan was almost optional, now it’s actually a requirement,” the company’s managing director, Peter Harris, told Business News.

Mr Harris also noted increased competition between firms due to organisations, in particular government departments, tendering out for work.

“Between the top 10 to maybe 12 PR companies in Perth, the competition is incredibly fierce, more so I think now than probably three to five years ago,” he said.

Cannings Purple managing director and former 40under40 winner Warrick Hazeldine said the entrance of large global brands into Perth had increased demand for one-stop-shop strategic communication advice.

More activity in mergers and acquisitions has also provided work, with Cannings Purple advising Aquila Resources on its $1.4 billion offer from Baosteel and Aurizon.

This transaction highlights the trend towards government relations work, with well-known lobbyist GRA Everingham acting for Aurizon.

Clarity Communications, ranked second in the Book of Lists, has also increased its government relations work, allowing it to set up a separate agency focused on that space.

Perth’s fifth biggest agency, FTI Consulting, hired former WA attorney general Cheryl Edwardes and former WA parliamentarian Katie Hodson-Thomas.

Third-ranked Cannings Purple has also been an active recruiter in the past year, appointing former WA mines and petroleum minister Norman Moore as its chairman and former senior federal Labor government staffer Karen Brown as national director.

Ms Brown effectively fills the void left by Deidre Willmott when she left to become the Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA chief executive.  

See the newly-updated list of Public & Investor Relations firms here.