Is Pro Bono in Your 2006 Budget? Key Items to Consider First

November 1, 2005

Donating pro bono publicity to a worthy cause offers a wealth of advantages for your firm and the greater good of the world. But before you leap into action and decide to grant your services free of charge, there are a number of things to consider. The client will suffer, for example, if you don’t have the time, budget or dedication to do the best job possible. Below is a checklist of the most important items PR firms should take into account before accepting a client pro bono:

1. Clarify expectations and logistics in writing. “The first and most important item is, do you have the time?” says Paul Speirs of Steinbeck Communications. Speirs and the team at Steinbeck have worked with a Las Vegas-based HIV/AIDS charity for two years developing their brand from a PR perspective, including producing brochures, a website, posters, ad campaigns and other PR components. “Every pro bono account asks you for everything from A to Z. You really have to be open with the client and tell them the things you’re going to do and what you’re not going to do—and put it in writing.”

“Time is always of the essence,” confirms Kevin Hughes, an account executive for 5W PR who also donated pro bono PR to The Astoria Performing Arts Center in Queens, NY before they began offering him a small stipend for his work earlier this year. “If I can’t devote the time I need to do an absolutely amazing job, then I regretfully have to turn down the opportunity.”

“You want to make sure you know exactly what’s being asked of you, how much time you’re expected to commit and what sort of public acknowledgement or private commendation you'll receive,” adds Shel Horowitz, author of Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First and a PR and marketing practitioner who founded and serves as publicity chair of a pro bono environmental group called Save the Mountain.

It’s also important to manage client expectations ahead of time. “If a pro bono client’s expectations are unrealistic, it is always easier to address expectations upfront and make sure everyone is one the same page,” explains Anjie Meyer of Denver-based GroundFloor Media, which provides pro bono PR for the Tennyson Center for Children in Denver. “Agencies also should always make sure to have one primary contact person to ensure that communication is consistent.”

2. Include an escape clause tied to standard rates. “You need to set firm limits on what you’re doing for free, and make it clear that if you exceed that, regular rates apply,” Horowitz continues. “For example, if the client wants a third revision of a press release, you have to say, ‘I’ll be glad to do that for you but you need to know that the time I agreed to put into this has been exceeded, and this will be at my regular rates.”

“Make sure the client knows your limitations—and you know their expectations,” confirms Jane Watkins, who does pro bono PR for The Center for Great Apes, a non-profit organization that rescues chimps and orangutans from abusive situations, the entertainment industry and unfit zoos and homes. “Each year I get together with the director and outline what I am willing and able to do. Every now and then we will do an emergency effort if something like a hurricane occurs, and that is not a problem. But constant unexpected projects and requests can be de-motivating. It’s important to have a plan—and that client is on-board with that plan.”

3. Distribute responsibilities across staff resources. “We find it helpful to clarify the roles of our volunteers in advance,” says Julie Phillips-Turner, principal for Phillips Turner Communications and co-chair of the Washington, DC-based network Independent Public Relations Alliance (IPRA), which does pro bono work for a campaign called Stop Child Abuse Now. “For example, someone heads the media relations component, and someone else heads the creative materials development. That way, no one person has the whole project on his back. Also, by providing discrete assignments, people see a beginning and an end to their volunteering. They can bring a whole lot of energy to one task and then they’re done.”

4. Know thy client—avoid disorganized efforts. “I used to work for a center for Abused and Neglected Children,” continues Watkins. “And when I moved to Miami, I looked for a similar program that I could help with. But the programs I called appeared disorganized. To provide PR for a non-profit, it is important to me that the group is organized—otherwise there will be a lot of time spent just figuring out who needs to approve what.

“You also need to know if the organization actually needs or wants PR. The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis, for example, is extremely well organized and has a great team in place, so they don’t need help. Or Habitat for Humanity has so many volunteers they don’t seem to know what to do with them.”

5. Know thyself—commit only to causes you believe in. “If you offer pro bono PR to something you’re concerned about, you’re more likely to be dedicated to it,” Speirs says. “And know that it’s going to take more of your time than you can imagine. Whether you like it or whether you don’t, every client is a reflection of your brand—so pick something that reflects your brand. I’ve had to turn down pro bone work because the organization didn’t reflect me.”

“It always feels good to devote your skills to causes you believe in,” Horowitz confirms.

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