The Bottom Line
I recently heard about a company in Israel that works with a US-based public relations firm for media relations services. That’s not a big deal. Israeli companies work with US-based firms all the time.
Except for one thing … This particular PR firm (not one of the big ones) has somehow managed to secure this client without having "news release follow-up" as part of their mandate. Yes, that’s right. This firm does make sure the releases are distributed to the media, but then … nothing.
One of the primary lessons I’ve learned during my time in Israel, not just about the communications industry, but about life, is something called "Tachlis." I think a fair definition of the word is somewhere between "brass tacks" and "bottom line." (I asked the Ruder Finn Israel team how to translate "tachlis" and one guy responded with "Can mean anything from show me the money to bottom line, actual, real, practical, the real thing, cut to the chase and getting down to business.")
You see, Israelis are all about "tachlis." And that carries over to the PR industry as well. What that means is that if an agency such as Ruder Finn Israel is being paid a monthly retainer by a corporation, the question we all have to ask ourselves is, "Tachlis, how are we helping this company?"
And if we can’t answer that question, we don’t get paid.
And that’s a terrific lesson for all of us.
You know, I tell my team sometimes that we have to operate in such a way that we will not be concerned about any of our clients calling on any single day and asking, "What did Ruder Finn do for my company today?"
That’s Tachlis.
And that’s why I’m just a bit surprised this US-based firm that receives a monthly retainer for NOT following up on news releases hasn’t said to itself, "You know what? Let’s follow up anyway. It will make our client happier with our work if we get strong results for them."
Instead – and now I’m thinking about how I used to feel when I was a client myself – this agency has a situation where its client sits at his/her desk staring at that agency’s invoice, month-after-month, reluctantly approving it again and again.
But this is Israel. So one day, that client will say "Enough!" And then it will be "tachlis-time" for that particular agency.
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