Developing a new model for selecting public relations firms in the high‐tech industry

Purpose – This study develops a new model for selecting public relations (PR) firms based on high‐tech industrial perceptions. Design/methodology/approach – The proposed model comprises two parts. The first part employs the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) for criteria weighting. The second part applies the grey relational analysis (GRA) to rank alternatives and select the optimum PR firm in the high‐tech industry. Findings – Analytical results indicate that high‐tech enterprises consider criteria in the following order of priority: media ability, campaign ability, strategic planning, service team, cost consciousness and relationship maintenance. Furthermore, this study uses the example of a renowned high‐tech communications manufacturer in Taiwan to demonstrate the effectiveness of the model in PR firm selection. Originality/value – The proposed model helps high‐tech enterprises to effectively select PR firms, making it highly applicable in academia and commerce.