The Public Relations Consultants Association (PRCA) has joined forces with legal partner Lewis Silkin to help protect creative ideas used in PR pitching.
The professional body that represents UK PR consultancies, the PRCA is bidding to help its members safeguard their intellectual property, at the same time protecting commercially sensitive client information.
Working with Lewis Silkin, the organisation has drawn up a pre-pitch agreement and a confidentiality agreement.
“Ideas and concepts in pitches are notoriously hard for agencies to protect. There is a real risk that those ideas could be taken and developed without involving (or paying) the pitching agency,” said Jo Farmer, Lewis Silkin media, brands and technology partner.
“A good pre-pitch letter like the standard one we have drafted for PRCA members will help address this problem for agencies,” she added.
Both documents are available now, for PRCA members only, and can be accessed in the legal section of the members’ area of the PRCA website. The organisation’s director general Francis Ingham describes them as “beneficial to both sides – creating certainty and confidence for the industry”.
Their publication follows the recent launch of the PRCA’s ‘Pitching for New Business’ guidelines, which include an online ideas bank where members can keep a safe permanent record of their ideas, pre-pitch.
“General feedback has been very positive,” PRCA communications director Matt Cartmell told PMLiVE. “People can see the value in this offering.”
Founded in 1969, the PRCA has more than 300 members world-wide, and represents the majority of the top 150 consultancies. It aims to raise PR standards, help members share best practice and lobby on the industry’s behalf. Members are bound by a professional charter and codes of conduct.