This archive report was first published on 9 November 2021.
November 9, 2021, marked a turning point for many businesses worldwide, including those in the advertising and public relations space. Covid-19 had brought unprecedented challenges, forcing companies to review their strategies to stay afloat.
Joanne Mwangi, the founder and Group Managing Director of Professional Marketing Services (PMS), was no exception. In an interview, she shared how her agency adapted to the pandemic, differentiating services, developing new markets, and adopting new technologies to thrive in the new normal.
‘Most companies decided to put their marketing budgets on ice. Interventions were put on hold as companies adopted the wait and see approach,’ Mwangi said.
However, PMS took a different approach. The agency recognized the need to change its business model and adopted a two-pronged strategy. First, it differentiated its services, and second, it developed new markets, particularly in the region where the agency offered services to its Kenyan clients with a Pan African footprint.
‘We treated clients as business partners by putting on their shoes through the application of design thinking methodology and getting intimate with client products and processes,’ Mwangi explained.
Through this approach, PMS was able to develop new products, adopt new technologies, and implement internal restructuring and review of human capital policy. The agency even employed new staff during the pandemic, a rare move in the industry.
‘While not tangible, trust is the most valuable asset any organisation has. We used our three independent subsidiaries in marketing and communication, design and production, marketing intelligence to assist brands to grow and build trust within key stakeholders besides keeping brands relevant during the crisis,’ Mwangi said.
‘Being a strategic partner is what has made us survive the turbulence. We are no longer advisors but strategic partners with long term and intimate interest in our partners business,’ she added.
The agency's second pillar was to accelerate its pan-African presence, serving Kenyan clients across Africa and offering advisory support to clients coming to Kenya. This move gave PMS both the expanded scope and capacity to onboard a variety of new clients, including global players such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Hivos Group.
Today, PMS has presence in 24 countries in Africa, with a shift to remote satellite and partner offices that has brought down the cost of doing business and allowed clients to pay for real work done, not high overheads.
