Working in PR means wearing a lot of hats. One day you might be hosting an event, the next curating a viral social media presence, measuring PR campaigns, analysing PR dashboards or just calling a list of journalists with a press release. This is one of the many things PRs love about their jobs – no two days are ever the same, but it’s not always easy to shapeshift day in, day out.
Having a community within the PR industry can be a lifesaver. Following other PRs on social media offers support and inspiration (and sometimes benchmarks) in a world where it can sometimes feel like you’re shouting into the void.
So you might want to know who the most influential PRs are. There are a lot of big personalities out there and we’ve narrowed down a list of the top 100 PR influencers to follow in 2021.
Contents
Methodology:
Our list of 2021’s top 100 PR influencers is taken from BuzzSumo’s Twitter Influencer tool:
- Focusing on the information provided in the ‘Bio’ section of the influencers’ Twitter profile – this search prioritised whether the influencers’ profile includes “PR”
- BuzzSumo returned the top influencers sorted by ‘Relevance’, which is how the list was sorted from 1-100. ‘Relevance’ simply means an average of all the key metrics that make an influencer a success, including follower count, average retweets, retweet ratio, verified status – even the number of times an influencer appears in relevant Twitter lists.
- The only ways in which the data was cleaned was through omitting companies and non-English language profiles.
BuzzSumo’s Influencer tool identifies the most influential accounts with a particular bio keyword, or those who have mentioned a particular term or shared a piece of content.
It shows the most relevant accounts with their follower numbers, average retweets, retweet and reply ratios, and their page and domain authority – but initially sorts by relevance. Let’s see what it revealed.
What does the typical PR influencer look like?
Followers
The average number of accounts a PR influencer on Twitter follows is 7,823, and they have nearly three times as many followers, an average of 22,312. This might seem a good indicator of what makes them so influential.
Replies
The list also showed that, like all good PRs, the top 100 are a very chatty bunch. On average 30% of all tweets from the top 100 PR influencers are replies. In fact, the majority of their posts involve sharing…
Shares & retweets
35% average of all tweets from the top 100 were sharing URLs and content, and 21% were retweets. And people like what they say – the average number of retweets they receive is one per tweet.
Verified status
Taking a closer look at what might make them so influential, we noticed that 34 out of the 100 accounts on our list are verified by Twitter – in fact 11 out of the top 20 in the list boast a blue tick. Being verified might not be the key to being influential on Twitter, but it definitely helps.
Instagram influence
We also found Instagram accounts for 31 out of the top 100, although only six of those were in the top 20. Perhaps being on multiple channels isn’t a key factor in being influential here.
What do the top 10 PR influencers look like?
Followers
The top 10 PR influencers have 40% more followers (33,476 vs 22,312) and follow 40% more accounts (11,844 vs 7,823) than the average PR professional.
Replies
The top 10 PRs are also more likely to reply: 39% of all their tweets are replies, in comparison with 30% from the average PR influencer.
Shares & retweets
Interestingly, the top 10 PR influencers are less likely to share URLs than the average PR influencer, with 35% of all their tweets containing URLs in comparison to the 38% seen from the remaining 90 influencers. Could this be a classic case of quality over quantity? We’re all familiar with Twitter spammers – those who bombard our news feeds with links to their content on a daily basis.
The top 10 PR influencers are 3% more likely to retweet content (24% vs 21%) and are twice as likely to receive a retweet, which reaffirms the quality of their posts.
Verified status
The top 10 are all verified.
Instagram influence
Half of the top 10 PR influencers had built on their personal brand with a linked Instagram accounts.
The Top 100 PR Influencers To Follow In 2021
| Position | Influencer | Twitter Handle |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rich Leigh | @richleighpr |
| 2 | Natasha Koifman | @natashankpr |
| 3 | Kami Huyse | @kamichat |
| 4 | Stephen Waddington | @wadds |
| 5 | Deirdre Breakenridge | @dbreakenridge |
| 6 | Peter Himler | @peterhimler |
| 7 | Sarah Evans | @prsarahevans |
| 8 | Andrew Bloch | @andrewbloch |
| 9 | Kelli Matthews | @kmatthews |
| 10 | Brian Hart | @brianhartpr |
| 11 | Tressa Robbins | @tressalynne |
| 12 | Martin Waxman | @martinwaxman |
| 13 | Ty Mays | @perfectpitchpr |
| 14 | Richie Escovedo, APR | @vedo |
| 15 | dorothy crenshaw | @dorocren |
| 16 | Kellye Crane | @kellyecrane |
| 17 | Mary Lower | @prmoxie |
| 18 | Julie Bonn Blank | @juliebonnblank |
| 19 | Jenna Oltersdorf | @jennasnacks |
| 20 | Abbie S. Fink | @abbief |
| 21 | Michael Sebastian | @msebastian |
| 22 | Heather Whaling | @prtini |
| 23 | Mark Borkowski | @markborkowski |
| 24 | Kristie Aylett, APR | @kristk |
| 25 | Bob Pickard | @bobpickard |
| 26 | Andy Barr | @10yetis |
| 27 | Rick Murray | @rickmurray |
| 28 | Frank Strong | @frank_strong |
| 29 | Ron Culp | @culpwrit |
| 30 | Aleesha C | @aleeshacpr |
| 31 | Marian Salzman | @mariansalzman |
| 32 | Valerie Simon | @valeriesimon |
| 33 | Ed Zitron | @edzitron |
| 34 | Charlie Dahan | @cbdahan |
| 35 | Sally Falkow | @sallyfalkow |
| 36 | Cathy Larkin | @cathywebsavvypr |
| 37 | Hans Kullin | @kullin |
| 38 | Jennifer Berson | @jenerationpr |
| 39 | Ike Pigott | @ikepigott |
| 40 | Sachar Klein | @sachark |
| 41 | Elise Mitchell | @elisemitch |
| 42 | Todd Defren | @tdefren |
| 43 | Melissa Agnes | @melissa_agnes |
| 44 | Katie Moffat | @katiemoffat |
| 45 | Thomas Pleil | @tp_da |
| 46 | Peter Shankman | @petershankman |
| 47 | Stuart Bruce | @stuartbruce |
| 48 | Keisha McCotry | @keishamccotry |
| 49 | Karen Swim | @karenswim |
| 50 | Aliah Davis-McHenry | @aliahpr |
| 51 | Shonali Burke | @shonali |
| 52 | Elissa Freeman | @elissapr |
| 53 | Todd Van Hoosear | @vanhoosear |
| 54 | Alex Shapiro | @alexshapiropr |
| 55 | Dirk Singer | @dirktherabbit |
| 56 | TechPRMaven | @techprmaven |
| 57 | Barbara B. Nixon | @barbaranixon |
| 58 | Katherine Roepke | @roepkepr |
| 59 | Daniel Tisch | @dantisch |
| 60 | Christoph Salzig | @pr_ip |
| 61 | Nathan Burgess | @prcog |
| 62 | David Teicher | @aerocles |
| 63 | Pam Perry | @pamperry |
| 64 | Deborah Weinstein | @debweinstein |
| 65 | Rachel Kay | @rachelakay |
| 66 | Joseph Thornley | @thornley |
| 67 | Michelle Olson | @shelbyo |
| 68 | Courtney Forrest | @courtyforrest |
| 69 | Jeremy Pepper | @jspepper |
| 70 | Jon Silk | @jonsilk |
| 71 | Charlotte Shaff | @charshaff |
| 72 | Ashley Oakes Scott | @ashleyoakes |
| 73 | Judy Gombita | @jgombita |
| 74 | Karla Jo Helms | @jotopr |
| 75 | Mark Ragan | @markraganceo |
| 76 | Simon Huck | @simonhuck |
| 77 | Bill Stoller | @publicityguru |
| 78 | Shel Holtz | @shelholtz |
| 79 | Kate Finley | @kateupdates |
| 80 | Alison Brod | @alisonbrodmc |
| 81 | Neville Hobson | @jangles |
| 82 | Nicole Garner Scott | @drgarnerscott |
| 83 | John Sternal | @sternalpr |
| 84 | Mikinzie Stuart | @mikinzie |
| 85 | Catherine Hill | @chillpr |
| 86 | Paula Johns | @paulajohns |
| 87 | Aerial M. Ellis | @aerialellis |
| 88 | Stu Campbell-Carran | @mrstucampbell |
| 89 | Sandra Fathi | @sandrafathi |
| 90 | Candice Nicole | @candicenicolepr |
| 91 | Adam Isserlis | @adamiss |
| 92 | Lizz Harmon | @lizzharmon |
| 93 | Kirk Hazlett | @kirkhazlett |
| 94 | Ken Jacobs | @kensviews |
| 95 | Stephan Fink | @stephanfink |
| 96 | Sabine de Witte | @sabinedewitte |
| 97 | Lacey Haines | @laceyhaines |
| 98 | Brad Phillips | @mrmediatraining |
| 99 | Mike Schaffer | @mikeschaffer |
| 100 | Dave Fleet | @davefleet |
What we’ve learned from the top PR influencers
Followers aren’t everything
The honor of having the most followers on the list goes to, surprisingly, the 76th most influential account @simonhuck.
What about following? The account with the second highest number of followers on the list, @publicityguru, returns the love by following the most number of people – but sits in position 77.
Both of these accounts are relatively low in terms of influence, which goes to show that quantity of followers isn’t the key to being influential. It seems to be more important to focus on quality content and conversation to build influence.
Always create conversation
When we focus on the engagement-led conversational metrics BuzzSumo offers, we can see a different picture of influence. These metrics showcase the influencers’ ability to generate strong engagement – which can often be prioritized over followers – and is super important for both PRs and their clients.
For instance, if you’re launching a new product, retweets will help get the message out there, so you’re going to want to engage with audiences that are likely to retweet. And if you’re looking for influential PRs for inspiration and a sense of community, you might be more interested in accounts with high reply ratios, so that you can join the conversation.
The account on the list with the highest average retweets is unsurprisingly within the top 10 PR influencers. Taking position 8, @andrewbloch averages a mammoth 10 retweets per tweet!
Influence is multi-faceted
While the number one most influential PR account, @richleighpr, has fewer followers than some accounts on the list, he’s part of a tight community who will listen to what he says. He’s got a blue tick, 72% of his tweets are replies and he gets an average of two retweets for each tweet. His influence seems to come from having a polished presence, and leading the conversation.
This all goes to show that while individual metrics are important, it seems the way to get to the top of this list is to have the perfect balance of a few of them – something PRs know a thing or two about, given all those hats they wear.
Check out our newly updated content marketing influencers list, and learn from the top marketers in the industry.
Influence is a fickle creature, but having an insight into what creates it can help. If you want to understand influence or create your own influencer list, BuzzSumo is here for you – try our 30 day free trial.
Planning your next PR campaign? Read our guide on 7 Best Practice PR Tips For Your Next Campaign.
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