All things to all people...

The thought of being all things to all people consistently mystifies me. I see agencies who are clearly traditional PR houses and have extensive expertise in traditional PR and media, recently add things like social media, new media, seo etc etc. I also hear these same agencies tell their prospective clients things like "oh, ya... we handle that too" or "yes, we can take care of the social". My first question is .... What is "the social" - please define.

So far I have only seen people and companies that are very good at a niche do extremely well and have yet to see watered down companies do well at everything. Michael Jordan is an incredible basketball player.... But baseball.... Soccer.... ?

Companies that focus on what they are good at and know in and out do very well and are truly the companies to deal with for a specific need. If I have a need or a want regarding men's suiting, it's a certainty that I will get better knowledge, customer service and recommendations from a niche fine mens suit store rather than going to macy's. While macy's is a good store and has a wide variety, you won't find the very best in mens suits or in expertise regarding mens suits.

If you need a litigation attorney.... go get a litigation attorney and don't try to get a general law firm that possibly can handle your litigation needs and since you are hiring them anyway... maybe they can also do your legal papers and corporate filings and on and on. This strategy will lead to mediocre results and if that is what you are searching for... well you can find that by the hoards. However if you want the very best solution to handle your exact needs or problem, my suggestion is to go with the niche specialized people or companies. It's a smart move all around.

You wouldn't put all of your HR work and recruitment work on your treasury or admin people because they are somehow related would you?

I would much rather be surrounded by incredible niche people and companies that I work with that do incredible work and get the desired outcome I am going after because they know their stuff rather than trying to find the one company that is trying to be everything to everyone jamming every service under one roof trying to make it all fit rather than truly focusing on what they are good at.