Manchester PR agencies have been recruiting and getting fat on impressive account wins for some time.  That’s alright.

It seemed that the MEN media section and other Manchester / North West / trade publications have had little trouble finding positive stories.  But now that we are all going to be Okies and live in Hoovervilles (if recent front page editorials from the nationals are anything to judge by), how will this affect the city’s PR outfits?

The  Drum magazine quoting Plimsoll, an industry analyst, paints a bad picture of the industry as a whole.  Findings for 1,000 UK agencies surveyed include:

• 30% of workforce could have to go
• 75% of agencies need to reduce headcount
• 116 agencies need to consolidate immediately or their survival is in question
• 20% of agencies are running at a loss

I spoke to an  PR supplier the industry on Friday and these figures are being reflected in bahaviour.  So much so that agencies are cutting back on £200 extras that would not have been questioned before.

There is a good side though.  There is hope.

Firstly, until something happens it is not 100% definite that it is going to happen.  It sounds like tautology I know.  The slow down could be brief, shallow; cheaper oil and lower interest rates could work.   I am not sure I believe this, but….

Secondly The Drum carried out a poll that found, after digital, PR was viewed as the marketing discipline most suited to survive in a recession.

Thirdly, as Bron Earnes of Hasilmann Taylor (not Manchester based, but I will accept her viewpoint)  says agencies working to 20% margins that closely revue spending and forecasts should survive.  A conclusion could be that the industry might be better placed after a down turn because good agencies, which are keen, will survive.  It could mean a better service to clients and a better perception of the industry.

Fourthly, as Charles Tattersall of Citypress says established players and smaller agencies with lower cost bases and fees could also do well.    Some agencies will do well and adapt.

It could be an opportunity for some.  Indeed while the PR supplier said that while some agencies were making redundancies, there was some that were just full on with their expansion.

When I was looking for jobs you could hazard a guess many times who the company was if the recruitment company gave you the clues.

A big defence company in Lancashire would not be hard to guess if a recruitment company offered your a PR position: BAE Systems

I came across a PR exec job of Totaljobs that has me guessing.

It opens, “Manchester’s most famous PR agency is looking for an Account Executive to work on some of its prestigious public relations clients.”

Who is it?

If I had to narrow it to 10 I would choose the following (of course we could argue about famous in what circles and what locations etc):

Brazen
Communique
SKV
Citypress
Mason Williams
Connectpoint
Staniforth
Golley Slater (although they are nationwide)
Weber Shandwick (North)
Tangerine

It is a competitive list for that title. So who are they talking about?