PRCA report highlights growing optimism among UK agencies

Optimism in the UK PR industry saw an improvement during the third quarter of 2015, according to a new report from the Public Relations Consultants Association (PRCA).

The newest PRCA Consultancy Barometer indicated that 48 percent of its member consultancies were more optimistic about the industry during Q3 2015, reflecting an increase of 14 percentage points from Q2.

Moreover, 49 percent reported significant or marginal increases in client budgets – up by nine percentage points from last quarter – while 56 percent were optimistic about their own consultancies.

PR agencies were less optimistic about the UK economy, with 51 percent expecting economic growth over the next 12 months, down five percentage points from Q2, though only nine percent expect conditions to get worse.

The report also showed that 94 percent of consultancies expected staff numbers to increase or stay the same, while levels of over-servicing were shown to be on the wane.

Francis Ingham, the PRCA's director general, said: "Once again, we are seeing impressive growth in client budgets and industry optimism, suggesting that communications will continue to see a strong and successful 2016 and beyond."