A: Because of our philosophy of client service. We’ve
established a reputation of serving our clients that is second to
none, evidenced by the fact that every client we have has come to us
on a referral. We maintain a select client roster that allows us to
make sure we can offer each client maximum attention and effort.
In addition to our focus on client service, there are several more
reasons why a company would choose TechCom. First, our staff is made
up primarily of senior-level professionals. We do not bring
senior-level people in to win the business and then turn it over to
junior-level people to run. The team that you see when you first meet
TechCom Partners is the team that will be involved on your account
every day. In addition, every account gets the personal attention of
either Tina Young or Buddy Price, the agency principals. TechCom
Partners is dedicated to being as responsive to its customers as
possible and we feel that we maintain that commitment with ownership
involvement with each and every client.
Second, we have an exclusive focus on technology. The technology
arena is crowded and noisy, but our experience and contacts allow us
to cut through the noise with concise messages that help position your
company as a leader in your market space. We have strong relationships
with key media and industry analysts and we communicate with those
contacts regularly. Ours is a boutique approach that provides you with
a specialized team with a breadth and depth of technology experience
that is unmatched in more general agencies.
Finally, we are easy to work with. Toward that end, we have
eliminated some of the headaches that pop up often when working with
larger firms. For instance, we don’t mark up out of pocket expenses.
Unless they are out of the ordinary, we don’t charge for basic
office expenses such as long distance, copies and postage. And, all
project-related expenses such as photography, overnight delivery or
courier services are passed through directly to you with no markup or
agency processing fee. (Top)
Q: How does TechCom Partners charge for its
services?
A: We try to be as flexible as possible. While we prefer an
ongoing monthly program, we will accept projects. We are flexible too
in that we do not insist on a monthly retainer. While a retainer is
often helpful to clients to allow them to plan their budgets more
effectively, some clients prefer to be billed on an hourly or project
basis, which is certainly acceptable to us.
In addition, unlike other PR agencies, we do not have a set minimum
fee. We have guidelines based on past experience executing a specific
set of activities, but we are more than willing to design a program
that fits your budget and allows us to grow with you through
successful PR and marketing initiatives. In fact, some of our largest
clients today started out as the smallest in fee income
originally. (Top)
Q: How does TechCom handle
out-of-pocket expenses?
A: Unlike most agencies, we do not mark up bills from
vendors or out-of-pocket expenses for printing, photography, etc. that
we coordinate on your behalf. We feel that charging a "handling
fee" for simply forwarding a bill from another vendor is not good
business practice. We also do not charge for standard office equipment
use such as copiers and faxes.
(Top)
Q: What are the advantages
of a monthly ongoing program versus a project?
A: We encourage a continuing monthly program to take
advantage of momentum gained during an announcement and the
relationship-building nature of a successful PR program. It is not
effective to stop and start a PR program. Continuos efforts are the
most cost-effective, efficient way to gain maximum impact. Every time
you stop a program, you have to re-establish contacts with various
media members, redo much of the materials which have become outdated
and re-launch the project. An ongoing program keeps a client’s name
in front of the media and allows us to look several weeks or months
ahead to ensure regular coverage and visibility for your company. (Top)
Q: Why would I choose TechCom instead
of going with a larger national firm?
A: Attention…Creative Thinking…Lower Fees…Senior-Level
Professionals.
Because we intend to maintain a small core staff and a select
client roster, you can be assured that your company will receive our
attention and that it won’t translate into the types of
"sticker shock" bills you might see from a larger firm.
Working with TechCom means that you are working with senior-level
professionals who have solid industry media and analyst contacts to
leverage on your behalf. We look forward to an opportunity to
demonstrate our creative thinking for your company. (Top)
.