It grates when a wide swath of social media people I think are smart write off my profession in a somewhat self-serving manner. That kind of thinking was in evidence with the title of that panel: “Are PR Agencies a Dying Breed?” A more accurate panel (and what the panel and the post were really about) is “How are PR Agencies Changing.” It is also hard to not get exasperated when the points that were brought up in the panel and in the post as things that agencies should do are things that agencies are doing right now!

If it’s also true that, as Brian said, as an agency they’re not charging to write press releases or for media campaigns anymore, how are PR agencies going to make money? One of my thoughts is to help create the context for relationships with the media and third parties.

The other thought I had was that agencies can help clients move from reactive – and yes, thinking of PR as just press releases is in some way reactive – to a more proactive stance. That would include the integration of many tools that allow for putting the “public” back in public relations.

This was the thing that surprised me most about starting in the agency world. I expected my job to be writing press releases and pitching reporters. I have been thrilled to be able to work on teams that design social media strategies, help companies engage in high-level influencer relations, engage in traditional media relations and to work with clients to design internal Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives and policies. PR Agencies, and I think Edelman especially, are more farther along the curve than a lot of people are willing to give them credit for.

Richard Edelman, on his blog, recently touched upon this topic in his rebuttal to Jeff Jarvis’ predictions about PR agencies in What Would Google Do.

In Jeff’s world, companies speak directly with consumers, giving up control of product development, focusing on customer service instead of marketing/advertising, building strong relationships within communities of interest. Public relations actually plays a vital role in this new construct by making valuable information easily accessible and open for improvement. We provide big ideas that bring together constituencies (such as the Quaker Oats Substance) for action. We also offer advice to companies, encouraging them to take on the big issues of our day that inspire employees while offering new opportunities to make money.

I think agencies will be around for a while yet, in one form or another. Their history hasn’t always been auspicious and many still, frankly, don’t get it. But I think it is time for a lot of people to stop basing their perception of them on what they were and start thinking about what they are and what they will become.