Working on your PR without a proper plan or the right tools can get a bit rough. What a good PR CRM might offer is more time (and relevant data). With the right tool’s help and the right features, you can skip the repetitive tasks and automate many others.
And to help you choose the right tool, we’ve compared them side-by-side, one-by=one, along with the answers to these questions:
- What are PR CRM tools?
- Why is it worth using a CRM for PR
- Why don’t PR pros use CRMs? How CRM systems support PR
- 5 best PR CRM tools
- FAQ
Take care of your PR activities and try Prowly’s CRM for 7 days for free.
What are PR CRM tools?
PR CRM tools are designed to help PR professionals manage their media relations and outreach. Such tools go beyond traditional CRM platforms by offering features tailored especially to the needs of PR specialists.
With CRM software, you can manage contacts and plan your outreach.
For example, with Prowly’s CRM, you can take care of your contacts with the help of the contact card. Here users can preview their full contact history, tag journalists, and add them to specific lists.
Prowly’s CRM consists of two parts: the Media Lists and My Contacts.
👉🏼 My Contacts merges the Media Database and owned contacts:
- It gathers them in one place.
- You can create “Saved filters” within these contacts that act as dynamic media lists.
- Contacts will be automatically added/removed from Saved filters when they meet/stop meeting the saved criteria.
- In My Contacts, there is also a Contact Card.
👉🏼 Media Lists allow you to organize these contacts into lists.
Which may become handy while pitching.
What can you do with PR CRM?
Now, let’s cover some action. How exactly can you use these platforms? And why should CRM for media companies be at the top of the to-buy-tools list?
Here are some examples of the features of PR CRM, like can be found in Prowly. You can:
- Analyze media list performance
- Filter your media contacts based on their email engagement
- Automatically updated contact details (for MD contacts) and activity
- Tag contacts and re-use the same tags for clippings
Why is it worth using a CRM for PR?
CRM platforms are public relations tools that improve the performance of daily activities.
A well-managed and organized CRM may bring universal value for both agencies and in-house teams.
Moreover, public relations software tools give you a space for effective relationship management and to maintain efficient communication. How so?
1️⃣ Forming new relationships and nurturing current ones.
Via these platforms, you can set up reminders for follow-ups and add contact owners. You can also turn on alerts about any changes in contact details and avoid spamming your favorite journalists.
2️⃣ Standing out with creative and personal follow-ups.
You can add a personal touch to your messages based on the last contact you had with a journalist or based on their recent activity and publications.
3️⃣ Sharing knowledge inside the team.
Is there a new person on the team? Get them in the loop. On the other hand, if somebody leaves the team, it shouldn't mean their knowledge about journalists and other contacts is lost.
Manual updates in Excel vs. automatic PR CRM
You know what takes up a great deal of time throughout the work day of PR pros? Excel.
🔻 PR Pros Problem:
Every time there is an interaction with a journalist, an Excel file needs to be updated.
Solution:
When interaction happens, Prowly automatically updates the contact card. For a response, open, click, or bounce.
🔻 PR Pros Problem:
Every time a journalist changes a role, an Excel file needs an update.
Solution:
Prowly automatically detects such changes and updates the data in the CRM.
Data-based decisions and improvements
When it comes to decision-making, if you want to go the best possible way, you should consider all accessible data.
🔻 PR Pros Problem:
No idea whether the created list makes sense or is efficient.
Solution:
Prowly gives you access to “Media List statistics.” You can check on list performance, see top recipients, and adjust your contacts in your lists.
No jumping between your inbox and Excel
Clicks between tabs and files may be confusing and take up your precious time. Finding the right file among dozens of open tabs can be frustrating.
🔻 PR Pros Problem:
Identifying responsive contacts may be hard. There is a necessity to jump between your inbox and Excel files.
Solution:
Prowly allows you to filter contacts by opens, clicks, bounces and responses.
Why don’t PR pros use CRMs? How CRM systems support PR
#1 Legacy systems
The whole industry relies on traditional options like spreadsheets and emails. Transitioning all these files and data may be perceived as both a hassle and problem.
#2 Lack of awareness
Many companies do not want to rely on CRM media platforms. They are not aware of these platforms' benefits and have no idea of the savings these programs may provide.
#3 Belief that PR CRMs are expensive
When it comes to choosing new PR tools, price is a major factor. There is a common belief that new programs mean a big investment. It may, but it does not have to be true. With an offer like Prowly’s subscription model, you can save some coin. You can choose from monthly or annual billing. And with the latter you can save even around $100 per month.
If you want to dive into this topic, here is a piece where you can find a comparison of the biggest players: Muck Rack vs Cision.
5 best PR CRM tools
#1 Prowly
- Price: Basic Annual: $258/month; flexible pricing with monthly or yearly plans
- Free trial: Available - 7 days
Prowly is a PR management software solution, thanks to which you can manage media relations, create press releases, and manage your own PR database.
Key features
👉🏼 Personalize my pitch
Each of your pitches may be personalized based on contact history, the journalist's scope of work, or their latest publications.
👉🏼 Notes
Add any notes you need to master contact management and improve information flow.
Prowly vs. Excel
- Automatic updates of contact records (last email, last interaction, etc.)
- Organization using filters
Prowly Vs. other PR Software
- Most of our competitors do not have media list statistics and options to filter contacts by email engagement
- Some tools don’t include tagging
💡 Here you can find other Cision alternatives and how they stand alongside Prowly as well.
#2 AgilityPR
- Price: On request
- Free trial: Not available
AgilityPR doesn’t have a CRM per se, they store all contact activity within the Media Database. They have the concept of a Target List, which is a media list database. You can add or import your contacts straight to the list.
✅ Pros:
- AgilityPR helps users track and analyze media coverage. It helps identify trends and measure the impact of PR campaigns.
- AgilityPR has a solid Media Database. If you need to organize your contacts, it should be enough.
🔻 Cons:
- Unintuitive UI
- No statistics per list and no data on contact performance
#3 Muck Rack
- Price: On request
- Free trial: Not available
Muck Rack’s Public Relations Management (PRM) platform enables PR pros to work together to find the right journalists, send their stories to the right media outlets, send customized pitches, and build meaningful relationships.
✅ Pros:
- MuckRack allows users to add notes in media lists
- Assigning an owner to a media list and a contact (bigger teams)
- Updates of Media Database contacts to store within the CRM with priority use for pitching
- Sending Job Update digests
- Adding information to the activity log when a contact is added/removed from a list
🔻 Cons:
- No access to Media List statistics
- No tagging
💡 Here you can find other Muck Rack alternatives and how they stand alongside Prowly as well.
#4 Meltwater
- Price: On request
- Free trial: Not available
Meltwater offers features that complement and enhance PR efforts. You can manage media coverage and gain valuable data needed in the decision-making process.
✅ Pros
- Media Database updates and storing contacts within the CRM
🔻 Cons
- No access to Media List statistics
- No tagging
💡 Explore additional Meltwater alternatives and see how they compare to Prowly.
#5 Prezly
- Price: Three plans for teams: $50, $90, $140; One for agencies: $300
- Free trial: Available
Prezly offers robust functionalities specifically designed for public relations that act as a PR CRM. You can manage a contact list, take care of segmentation and tagging, and improve collaboration.
✅ Pros:
- All contact updates stored in the activity log
- Ability to log and assign coverage to a given journalist
🔻 Cons:
- No access to Media List statistics
- No Media Database, no automatic updates of contact info
FAQ: PR CRM
💬 CRM or PRM for small businesses in media - what to use?
PRM (Partner Relationship Management) focuses on building strong relationships with businesses you work with. It helps drive sales and streamline your product or service distribution.
PR CRM (Public Relations Customer Relationship Management) helps you manage your interactions with the media and public. It supports you in building a positive reputation and establishing effective communication.
💬 What is PR and CRM?
PR (Public Relations) is about managing the information flow of a given business, which helps build a positive image of the company.
CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is used to manage interactions with customers and leads.
💬 Is there a tool like Salesforce for public relations?
Yes, all the above options. Like Prowly.
Conclusions
PR companies that are standing before the dilemma of choosing the best PR tools should consider various alternatives.
In this piece, we have covered five of the top options and discussed all the most common questions asked like, why do you need a PR CRM, what are the benefits and even more detailed, like how much does muck rack cost?
It's your turn to evaluate how much time and money you can save by investing in an all-in-one PR tool that includes CRM functionality.