The Pearlfinders Index for the first quarter of 2013 has been published this month, giving an inside look into where the most opportunities lay for PR agencies. They have spoken to 5,000+ marketing decision-makers across all industries to uncover areas of opportunity for every discipline. When it comes to consumer PR, the numbers have changed significantly over the past couple of years. Across all sectors, FMCG - Food offers the best chance for agencies with 15.2 per cent of all opportunities for investment available. Compared to the first quarter results in 2012, this percentage has risen from 11.5 per cent and taken the lead over the Leisure sector – which has dropped from 13.2 to 9.5 per cent this year.

Top 10 Sectors for Consumer PR

Actual number of agency opportunities

(Source: The Pearlfinders Index - Q1 2013)

As for corporate PR, things could not be more different. The number one sector in this realm is Financial Services with 13.4 per cent – a giant leap from only 6.9 per cent last year – with FMCG - Food coming in ninth place (4.9 per cent).

Top 10 Sectors for Corporate PR

(Source: The Pearlfinders Index - Q1 2013)

PR agencies are preparing to review the way they work with different sectors over the next 12 months, and there are clear areas of opportunity here. FMCG - Food (15.2 per cent), Industry/Manufacturing (9.9 per cent) and Leisure 9.1 per cent) all come top of the board with a change and increase in attention compared to the previous year.

Upcoming PR Sector Reviews

(Source: The Pearlfinders Index - Q1 2013)

Looking at the overview of relevant PR disciplines, consumer PR, digital and corporate PR are the areas that will be addressed for review by most.

Upcoming Discipline Reviews

(Source: The Pearlfinders Index - Q1 2013)