Fueled by continued expansion in the healthcare and technology sectors, the 100 largest public relations firms in the U.S. grew by an average of 25% in 1997. The growth also was due to bigger budgets from clients in the investor relations and public ...
Fueled by continued expansion in the healthcare and technology sectors, the 100 largest public relations firms in the U.S. grew by an average of 25% in 1997. The growth also was due to bigger budgets from clients in the investor relations and public affairs arenas, according to Inside PR, an industry newsletter. Burson-Marsteller, the public relations subsidiary of Young & Rubicam, kept the No. 1 position in the world, thanks to a year of close to 14% growth. Burson finished 1997 with fees of around $265 million. Hill & Knowlton finished in second place, with fees of close to $190 million. The industry's top 100 firms created more than 1,500 new jobs last year, growing their workforces by an average of 20%.
"This is clearly a boom time for public relations agencies, which are finally earning a place not only in the marketing mix but also at the corporate policy-making level," says Paul Holmes, editor of Inside PR.
