There’s something that happens in almost every marketing team—usually driven by sales pressure or leadership expectations—where anything that doesn’t generate direct leads starts to be questioned. And in that moment, public relations is often one of the first areas to enter the uncomfortable conversation, not because it doesn’t add value, but because it doesn’t fit neatly into a dashboard—especially when the discussion is about measurable ROI.
When the pressure is on revenue, quotas, cost per lead, or pipeline volume, PR becomes difficult to defend. There are no obvious clicks, no immediate conversions, and no clear attribution that justifies its impact without additional explanation. So the inevitable question arises: is it worth the investment?
For those of us who work in PR and understand its value, the answer is yes. But often, we need to convince other teams. And what sits behind this question is not really about PR itself, but about a very specific way of understanding marketing—one that prioritizes immediacy and easily measurable results. Marketing teams often understand this balance, but sales teams don’t always see it the same way.
One of the strongest arguments is that today’s buyers don’t begin their relationship with a brand when they fill out a form—but much earlier, when they start researching on their own. According to Google and Gartner, most of the buying process happens without direct interaction with vendors. Buyers compare options, consume content, and build their own perception long before reaching out. During that journey, your brand is already part of the conversation—even if you’re not measuring it.
Demand Gen Report shows that B2B buyers consume between three and seven pieces of content before moving forward. And in many cases, that content doesn’t come directly from the brand, but from media outlets, articles, or third-party mentions that are perceived as more neutral and credible.
This is where PR starts to make sense—not as a channel that captures demand, but as one that shapes how that demand is formed. When a brand consistently appears in relevant media, participates in industry conversations, and builds presence in editorial spaces, it may not generate a lead at that exact moment. But it is shaping how that lead will perceive the brand when the time comes.
Multiple studies have consistently shown that audiences trust third-party content more than direct advertising. This means that media visibility doesn’t just amplify reach—it builds legitimacy.
Because one of the biggest challenges today isn’t generating leads—it’s getting those leads to convert. Data from G2 suggests that around 79% of leads never become customers. Among the most common reasons are lack of trust and unclear value proposition.
According to HubSpot, strategies based on content, SEO, and authority-building tend to reduce cost per lead over time compared to purely outbound approaches. PR acts as a catalyst within that system: it amplifies content, strengthens organic positioning, and places the brand in spaces where the audience is already looking for answers.
So the question isn’t whether PR generates leads on its own—but how different lead generation performs when PR is part of the strategy versus when it isn’t. In a landscape where buyers research more, compare more, and trust less, trust is no longer a “nice to have.” It’s the difference between leads that convert—and those that don’t.
