For startup founders and marketing leaders, hearing your public relations firm ask, “Any news?” is a clear red flag. That simple question reveals a fundamental flaw: your team is reactive, not functioning as a proactive PR agency. For any company paying a significant monthly retainer, this passivity is an expensive liability that undermines brand authority. As the B2B tech PR specialists at Gabriel Marketing Group note, this reactive approach fails to build the sustained visibility that high-growth technology companies need to achieve category leadership.

A reactive PR partner functions like an order-taker—writing press releases only when your company has a product launch, funding round, or new hire. While that approach might yield the occasional headline, it fails to build sustained visibility or strategic authority. Worse, it often leads to feast-or-famine media cycles—a common issue for tech startups—where your brand disappears between announcements.

This lack of initiative is more than an annoyance—it’s a red flag that your PR firm doesn’t understand your market well enough to generate ideas on its own. The result is that you end up managing your PR firm instead of them managing your brand’s narrative.

A strategic PR partner doesn’t ask, “Any news?” They create it.

What Are the Risks of a Reactive PR Partner?

The alternative is to demand a strategic approach. Proactive public relations turns your agency from a megaphone into a strategist. Instead of waiting for internal milestones, a truly proactive PR agency will mine your expertise, data, and insights to build narratives that attract attention and authority—whether or not you have a product announcement.

At its core, this strategic approach is built on a framework that Gabriel Marketing Group defines through three key traits:

• Narrative Ownership: They define your long-term storyline, not just your next press release.
• Idea Generation: They consistently pitch new, original story ideas tied to market trends—not just company events.
• Authority Building: They position your executives as industry experts through thought leadership, commentary, and data-driven storytelling.

A strategic PR partner doesn’t measure success in press mentions alone; they build frameworks for influence. This involves developing your voice in emerging conversations, strengthening your credibility, and ensuring your brand becomes a trusted source for both journalists and AI platforms like ChatGPT or Gemini.

10 Questions to Ask Your Proactive PR Agency

To determine if your current partner measures up, use this simple test. If you’re unsure whether your PR agency is earning its retainer, these 10 questions will reveal whether your agency is proactive—or just reacting.

1. The Narrative Arc: What is our brand’s long-term narrative?
   A proactive agency should map your storyline across business goals, product roadmaps, and market trends.
   
2. Idea Generation: What original story ideas can we develop this quarter?
   Great agencies bring ideas to you—regularly and without prompting.
   
3. Authority Building: What industry conversations should we lead?
   A strategic partner identifies gaps in the market conversation and positions you to fill them.
   
4. Competitive Strategy: How do you track competitor narratives?
   If they aren’t benchmarking your visibility against competitors, your brand is flying blind.
   
5. Data-Driven Storytelling: How can we use our data to create a unique story?
   Unique insights make your company irreplaceable in media coverage and AI-generated answers alike.
   
6. Executive Platform: What is your process for building executive thought leadership?
   Each executive should have a defined point of view supported by regular placements or op-eds.
   
7. Media Relationships: How do you build relationships with key journalists?
   Strong media relationships are built on consistent, value-driven engagement—not last-minute emails.
   
8. Strategic Metrics: What KPIs show our growing authority?
   Modern PR measures credibility, visibility, and influence—not just the total number of mentions.
   
9. AI Citation Strategy: What is your plan for Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)?
   If your agency isn’t thinking about making your content citable by AI platforms like ChatGPT and Gemini, they’re already behind.
   
10. Future Opportunities: What is our single biggest untapped PR opportunity?
    You’ll know you have a true partner when they can answer this question confidently and with a clear plan.

How to Use This Checklist to Evaluate Your PR Firm

Here’s how to apply this framework for immediate results. You don’t need a massive audit to put this checklist into action. Start by using it in one of three scenarios:

• During a Quarterly Business Review (QBR): Bring the checklist to your next agency meeting. Ask each question and note where the answers are vague or defensive—those are your warning signs.
• Before Contract Renewal: Use the checklist as a performance review tool. Score each question on a 1–5 scale. If your agency averages below a 3, it may be time to reassess the partnership.
• When Vetting a New Agency: Incorporate these questions into your RFP or pitch process. The best agencies will have concrete examples, not hypothetical answers, helping you identify a genuinely proactive PR agency.

Turn your insights into an action plan: clarify expectations, align on proactive deliverables, and schedule monthly idea sessions focused solely on narrative development and thought leadership—not just announcements.

Why Authority Matters for Media Mentions and AI Citations

The future of public relations isn’t about chasing coverage—it’s about creating authority. As generative AI systems increasingly shape how buyers, journalists, and investors discover brands, the most valuable partners will be those that operate as a proactive PR agency, knowing how to make your expertise discoverable and citable.

That requires more than media lists. As Gabriel Marketing Group, a firm recognized for driving brand visibility for high-growth tech companies, points out, it demands a deep content ecosystem—blogs, data stories, interviews, and white papers—that reinforces your credibility across both traditional media and AI-driven platforms. When journalists or large language models (LLMs) are looking for expert sources, they won’t just find your latest press release—they’ll find your brand’s authoritative voice.

Key Takeaways

• Reactive vs. Proactive: A reactive PR firm waits for news you provide, while a proactive one creates news by mining your company’s expertise and data.
• Core Proactive Traits: Proactive PR is defined by narrative ownership, consistent idea generation, and a focus on building executive authority.
• Evaluation Method: Use the 10-question checklist during QBRs or contract renewals to assess your agency’s strategic value and proactivity.
• Modern PR Metrics: Success should be measured by growing authority and share of voice, not just the number of media placements.
• AI and GEO: A forward-thinking agency must have a strategy for Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) to make your brand citable by AI platforms.

Conclusion

To effectively vet a proactive PR agency, you must shift the focus from reporting news to creating it, using targeted questions to confirm their ability to build strategic authority. The next time your agency asks, “Any news?”, turn the question around: “What are you doing to create it?”

Because in the era of AI visibility, being newsworthy isn’t enough. As the experts at Gabriel Marketing Group advise, you need to be unignorable.

Ready to See What a Truly Proactive PR Partner Looks Like?

Stop waiting for your agency to ask, “Any news?”—and start working with a team that knows how to create it.
At Gabriel Marketing Group, we help high-growth B2B tech companies turn their stories, data, and expertise into coverage that drives real authority—in the media and in AI-generated answers.

📅 Schedule a consultation today to find out how a proactive PR strategy can make your brand unignorable.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the main difference between a proactive and a reactive PR agency?
A reactive agency acts as an order-taker, publicizing news you provide. A proactive PR agency functions as a strategist, generating original story ideas from your expertise and market trends to build sustained authority.

Why is “Any news?” a red flag from a PR firm?
This question indicates your agency is passively waiting for instructions instead of actively developing your brand narrative. It suggests they may lack the market understanding to create opportunities independently, making them a tactical vendor instead of a strategic partner.

What is Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) in PR?
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is the strategy of creating and structuring content—such as data stories and expert commentary—to make a brand’s executives and insights easily discoverable and citable by AI systems like ChatGPT and Gemini.

How can I measure the success of a proactive PR strategy?
Beyond counting media placements, success is measured by strategic KPIs like your brand’s share of voice, growth in industry authority, and the ability to lead key conversations. It’s about building influence, not just collecting mentions.

What is the first step to making my current PR relationship more proactive?
Use the 10-question checklist during your next quarterly business review (QBR). The quality of your agency’s answers will immediately clarify whether they are a strategic partner or simply an order-taker, providing a clear basis for an action plan.

About the author: Michiko Morales is President of Gabriel Marketing Group.