How to structure the first 90 days with a PR agency

Use the first 90 days to learn how the agency thinks and works, develop promising stories, and review whether the approach is making progress. Coverage may arrive during that period, but it cannot be promised on a fixed timetable. Agree on early priorities and review points that fit your assignment.

Start with shared context and a workable plan

Early conversations should help the agency understand your product, customers, goals, available evidence, and upcoming news. Expect questions, interviews with relevant people, and a recommendation about where to focus.

Your part is to supply accurate information, make people available, and explain constraints. The agency should organize that input and develop the communications approach. If something important is missing, it should tell you what is needed and why.

The kickoff brief gives you a practical starting point.

Look for useful work before expecting coverage

Depending on the scope, early work might include sharpening the story, preparing a spokesperson, checking evidence, developing materials, or identifying relevant media opportunities. Ask how each piece supports the goal.

Once outreach starts, useful updates explain what the team tried, which responses it received, and what it plans to do next. A long list of pitches is less informative than a clear explanation of why those reporters were relevant and what the team learned.

For a fictional startup, trade reporters might respond to a customer problem but show little interest in a product-feature announcement. A useful agency recommendation would explain how that changes the next story.

Keep company delays visible

Missing customer permission, a slipping launch, or unavailable executives can change the plan. Tell the agency early. It should explain the practical effect and suggest useful work that can continue.

Agree on one main contact, a backup for urgent decisions, and what the agency may handle within approved messages. If the day-to-day lead changes, meet the replacement and discuss how the handover will work.

Review progress against the work you bought

At an agreed checkpoint, discuss:

• whether the agency delivered the work and attention promised;
• whether the work is relevant, accurate, and improving;
• what coverage, conversations, or other useful responses appeared;
• which inputs or assumptions need to change; and
• what the next period should prioritize.

Match expectations to the assignment. A launch project, an ongoing media program, and crisis preparation have different signs of progress. AMEC's evaluation framework distinguishes work and outputs from audience response and broader results.

If progress is weak, use the stalled-engagement guide to discuss the cause. Decide whether to continue, change the approach, narrow the scope, or end the engagement before another review period passes.