PAN Communications review

Strong — 4 of 5 on this rubric’s scale, from Poor (1) to Excellent (5). This dimension carries 25% of the total score.

Benchmark — across the 21 other agencies evaluated in this discipline, this dimension runs Excellent 13 · Strong 8. The typical agency here scores Excellent, and 13 of them score higher than this one.

What this dimension measures: Lands real, named tier-1 earned placements (not syndication or pay-to-play).

Scores high — Verifiable coverage in relevant top-tier outlets scores 4-5.

Scores low — 'Guaranteed placements' and press-release syndication score 1-2 (a red flag).

What we found — Named work supports earned-media capability, though outlet-level detail varies. That is the high band above, which is why it scored Strong.

syndication — content syndication: paying to put content in front of a media vendor’s audience in exchange for the contact lists it generates. The leads run colder than inbound and need nurturing.

Evidence: verified — checked against a named source you can open; the links under Sources below are where to check it yourself.

Excellent — 5 of 5 on this rubric’s scale, from Poor (1) to Excellent (5). This dimension carries 18% of the total score.

Benchmark — across the 21 other agencies evaluated in this discipline, this dimension runs Excellent 15 · Strong 6. The typical agency here scores Excellent, and none scores higher than this one.

What this dimension measures: Genuine, current relationships with relevant journalists and outlets in the buyer's beat.

Scores high — Named-beat depth scores 4-5.

Scores low — Generic wire-distribution or cold-pitch-only scores 2.

What we found — Longstanding specialist PR practice supports strong media depth. That is the high band above, which is why it scored Excellent.

Evidence: verified — checked against a named source you can open; the links under Sources below are where to check it yourself.

Excellent — 5 of 5 on this rubric’s scale, from Poor (1) to Excellent (5). This dimension carries 15% of the total score.

Benchmark — across the 21 other agencies evaluated in this discipline, this dimension runs Excellent 13 · Strong 7 · Adequate 1. The typical agency here scores Excellent, and none scores higher than this one.

What this dimension measures: Builds a sharp, differentiated story and messaging platform, not boilerplate.

Scores high — Strategic narrative work with examples scores 4-5.

Scores low — Template press releases score 2-3.

What we found — Brand narrative and positioning are core services. That is the high band above, which is why it scored Excellent.

Evidence: verified — checked against a named source you can open; the links under Sources below are where to check it yourself.

Strong — 4 of 5 on this rubric’s scale, from Poor (1) to Excellent (5). This dimension carries 15% of the total score.

Benchmark — across the 21 other agencies evaluated in this discipline, this dimension runs Excellent 1 · Strong 14 · Adequate 4 · Weak 2. The typical agency here scores Strong, and 1 of them score higher than this one.

What this dimension measures: Honest measurement — share of voice, message pull-through, quality of placement, tie to pipeline/reputation — not impressions and potential audience.

Scores high — Outcome-honest reporting scores 4-5.

Scores low — Vanity-reach math is a red flag scoring 1-2.

What we found — Integrated measurement is offered, though pipeline attribution should be defined. That is the high band above, which is why it scored Strong.

pipeline — the dollar value of open, qualified deals sales is working. “Pipeline created” ties marketing to money, where lead counts don’t.

attribution — working out which marketing touch actually caused a sale. Good practice names its model and its blind spots; bad practice quotes each ad platform’s self-graded numbers, which overlap and overclaim.

Evidence: verified — checked against a named source you can open; the links under Sources below are where to check it yourself.

Excellent — 5 of 5 on this rubric’s scale, from Poor (1) to Excellent (5). This dimension carries 12% of the total score.

Benchmark — across the 21 other agencies evaluated in this discipline, this dimension runs Excellent 14 · Strong 6 · Adequate 1. The typical agency here scores Excellent, and none scores higher than this one.

What this dimension measures: Deep in the buyer's specific PR need (B2B tech, corporate/crisis, consumer, analyst relations) rather than generalist.

Scores low — Named specialty with proof scores 4-5; jack-of-all-trades scores 2-3.

What we found — Clear B2B technology and healthcare specialization.

On the record — “PAN's official work library documents named client programs across B2B technology and healthcare.” pancommunications.com ↗

B2B — business-to-business: selling to companies rather than consumers — longer deals, more decision-makers.

Evidence: verified — checked against a named source you can open; the links under Sources below are where to check it yourself.

Excellent — 5 of 5 on this rubric’s scale, from Poor (1) to Excellent (5). This dimension carries 10% of the total score.

Benchmark — across the 21 other agencies evaluated in this discipline, this dimension runs Excellent 16 · Strong 4 · Adequate 1. The typical agency here scores Excellent, and none scores higher than this one.

What this dimension measures: Fit to the buyer's category and stage (startup launch vs scale-up vs enterprise).

Scores low — Named clients matching the buyer score 5; mismatch scores 1-2.

What we found — Strong for scaling and enterprise specialist brands.

Evidence: verified — checked against a named source you can open; the links under Sources below are where to check it yourself.

Not disclosed — 2 of 5 on this rubric’s scale, from Poor (1) to Excellent (5). Nothing was published about this, so it scores at the bottom of the scale — that is a finding about what the agency discloses, not about the quality of its work. This dimension carries 5% of the total score.

Benchmark — across the 21 other agencies evaluated in this discipline, this dimension runs Strong 1 · Adequate 4 · Weak 6 · Poor 10. The typical agency here scores Weak, and 5 of them score higher than this one.

Scores high — A public retainer anchor and reasonable terms score 4-5.

Scores low — Opaque pricing with long minimum commitments scores 2.

What we found — No useful public pricing located. That is what the low band describes, and nothing published resolves it.

retainer — a fixed monthly fee regardless of hours or output — predictable, but worth tying to a defined scope.

Evidence: unknown

Stronger here: Otter PR scores Strong on the same dimension.