Akinbamiyorin remarked, “The move signifies our organisation’s growth and our preparedness to leverage cultural nuances, offering a distinctive perspective with impactful communication strategies across African, UK, and EU markets.” Such expansion indicates a pivotal juncture in PR dynamics, bridging continental gaps and bringing forward the opportunity for collaborations across diverse stakeholders.
 

Our Experts

 
Cathy White, Founder and CEO, CEW Communications
Harry Webster, Managing Partner, Champion Communications
Jo Wilmot, PR Director, The Think Tank
Petra Smith, Founder, Squirrels&Bears
Claire Ayles, Co-founder, Eleven Hundred Agency
Donna Lyndsay, Sustainability Tech Lead, Ordnance Survey
Rachel Murray, PR Consultant, Fourth Day Public Relations
Joanne Hogue, Co-Founder and Partner, Smart Connections PR
 

Cathy White, Founder and CEO, CEW Communications

“In 2024, PR will, without a doubt, continue to incorporate AI in the practice. There is a massive opportunity for AI to help automate many PR processes and to play a role in helping to create content. We’ve seen it already, but I expect we’ll see more firms take AI and its benefits more seriously next year – with more designated ‘AI Heads’ for firms looking to stand out to the best clients. While AI should not be creating content that ends up published, a digital sidekick to bounce ideas and speed up drafting and ideation will save huge amounts of time.

“Automating much of the administrative and management burden of running an account will mean PRs can focus on the ultimate goal – getting the best results for clients. Pair this with the ability to use no-code solutions to build in-house applications, and PR agencies will increasingly start to run as tech companies with experts on hand to lead the best strategy and have the professional relationships and network to support it.”
 

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Harry Webster, Managing Partner, Champion Communications

“As we set our sights on 2024, the PR industry will need to anticipate and adapt to emerging trends and technologies. First and foremost, the PR landscape in 2024 will be shaped by the continued rise of digital media and technology. With the increasing dominance of social media platforms and the growing influence of online influencers, PR professionals must harness the power of these channels to effectively reach and engage their target audiences.

“Secondly, the role of data in PR will become even more critical. As technology continues to advance, we will have access to a wealth of data and analytics, enabling them to accurately measure the impact of their campaigns. This data-driven approach will empower the PR industry to make informed decisions and tailor their strategies to achieve maximum results.

“Additionally, there will be an increasing demand for personalised and authentic content. In 2024, PR professionals will need to focus on establishing meaningful and genuine connections with their target audiences.

“This will require a deep understanding of end users’ preferences and values, as well as the ability to craft compelling narratives that resonate with their target demographics.

“The integration of AI and automation will revolutionise the PR industry even further. AI-powered tools will streamline processes such as media monitoring and sentiment analysis, allowing agencies and in-house teams to work more efficiently and effectively. Automation will also free up time for PR professionals to concentrate on strategic thinking and building relationships.

“Lastly, crisis management and reputation protection will remain paramount in 2024. With the rise of viral social media trends and the potential for online backlash, as an industry, we must be proactive in managing and mitigating crises. Building and maintaining a strong brand reputation will be essential for organisations to thrive in an increasingly interconnected world.”

Jo Wilmot, PR Director, The Think Tank

Sparkle is not just for Christmas

“Things are looking pretty dire across the globe and there’s a general lack of optimism. People are feeling flat, which is why we should expect an uptick in playful campaigns. Just like how The Wizard of Oz was created in the 1930s as a distraction from the harsh realities of the time, we can anticipate a similar need for (metaphorical) glitter today.

“Last summer’s fascination with pink off the back of the Barbie film launch is a case in point. Now bringing this into the realm of B2B and corporate comms is an interesting one. Brands that can cultivate a combination of fun, empathy, along with pragmatism are poised to gain a significant advantage.”

Petra Smith, Founder, Squirrels&Bears

“With the overwhelming volume of AI generated content, authenticity and value will be even more important to stand out. Many brands and entrepreneurs forget about the value that journalists are looking for.

“The truth is, journalists don’t care about pitches, they care about their readers. And they have no interest in helping brands to promote their business to their readers unless they trigger interest and bring value to them, unless it’s paid advertising.

“To stand out in journalists’ busy inboxes, brands will need to position themselves as storytellers, sharing the story where the readers are the heroes of their story, not them – and creating emotional reactions that makes the reader feel that ‘this is me’, ‘I wish this was me’ or ‘I’m glad it’s not me’.

“There will be an even bigger emphasis on the social influence of those behind each pitch as naturally journalists will be looking at the biggest impact of the coverage. Social media following and personal branding will grow in importance and will be a differentiator between successful and unsuccessful pitches.

“Generic advice and uneventful stories won’t cut through the noise anymore, as journalists will quickly be able to establish the credibility and the influence of brands and individuals pitching.”

Claire Ayles, Co-founder, Eleven Hundred Agency

“As the dust settles on 2023, companies that cut back on PR due to economic uncertainty are starting to feel the bite. While cost-cutting measures in the face of market volatility may have seemed like the sensible choice, going quiet on PR can come at a steep price.

“Research from Analytic Partners shows that companies that doubled their marketing and PR spending compared to a competitor gained 15% market share on average. In 2024, expect to see a resurgence of investment in PR to drive brand recognition and trust, and attract and retain customers.

“PR is about building your brand and your business. As we enter 2024, companies embracing this shift will be the ones to keep an eye on.”
 

Donna Lyndsay, Sustainability Tech Lead, Ordnance Survey

“Validation and verification processes are going to grow in significance for companies as they wrangle new regulations and disclosures that affect their corporate reporting. These regulations are increasing focus on sustainable practice, emissions, environmental impact and climate risk. We need to have trusted monitoring, reporting and verification systems in place, which must be objective and transparent.

“Confidence must be restored in the accuracy of claims made in the voluntary carbon credits market. We can achieve this now by combining monitoring capabilities from space (Earth Observation), air and ground data collection. OS VeriEarth®, which was launched last year, combines satellite and ground-based data with location intelligence to create and visualise a baseline of a habitat in a target location.

“We may also see greater citizen engagement as technology enables companies to understand individual values through digital fingerprinting and AI capabilities, in turn leading to a greater need to protect individuals’ data from being harvested.

“AI will enable mass efficiency savings in the processing of data to enable patterns to be identified faster for predictive and preventative measures, such as to ensure appropriate use of land and the reductions of harms.

“An example of this will be the impending mandatory requirements for Biodiversity Net Gain in England. But the quality of data used to inform the AI will be critical to ensure that the insights created by AI models can be checked or validated and the provenance of training data, specifically ground truth data is known, otherwise we run a real risk of bias and skewed results leading to poor outcomes.

“Encouraged by the successes of last year’s COP28 we will see greater global corporate collaboration in the move forward to drive systematic change and to help the markets become a protective force.

“There will be significant battle lines drawn from those who resist the transition to those who see great opportunity and the need to change. The winners will be responsible for our planet’s future.”
 

Rachel Murray, PR Consultant, Fourth Day Public Relations

“Building trust is going to be a strong focus for PR campaigns in 2024. With more and more content created by generative AI (GenAI) and people increasingly getting their news from social platforms, the risk of disinformation is at an all-time high. Brands will continue to focus on authenticity – a somewhat cringey buzzword for 2023 but an important factor in proving the credibility of an organisation and the value of its offering.

“This will be really important for businesses demonstrating their ESG credentials. Greenwashing is being called out and values must be embedded into business models with real outcomes.

“Going back to the topic of GenAI, we will begin to see some crystallisation in its use by PR people in 2024. Rather than fear it, the industry will begin to embrace its ability to take care of non value-add tasks.

“I can see it being used increasingly to summarise large amounts of information (although the need for fact checking and verifying sources will remain) and to create frameworks for formulaic documents such as contracts.

“I wonder whether we may also start to see a renewed focus on creativity in the use of language, as people seek to differentiate their work from that of a computer. I hope that happens.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Joanne Hogue, Co-Founder and Partner, Smart Connections PR

“For the past couple of years, PR predictions have focused on the importance of social media engagement and ensuring clients are part of those conversations being said about them and their competition. Of course, social media is still a PR priority, but I think it’s the personalisation of a brand’s outreach and how its messaging reflects what is happening at the company that is more important than ever.

“That’s what PR practitioners have to get right. Connecting with the media, developing relationships and really creating personalised and high-level messages is simply an imperative in securing coverage.

“Additionally, we continue to see that the use of video content is a must have to gain maximum attention and effectively tell corporate stories. It is also important to share that content through as many social media channels as possible to gain the attention of different audiences (business connections on LinkedIn, older audiences on Facebook, tech on X, younger users on Tik Tok and Instagram).

“What’s interesting is that I have found that social media has become an effective way to contact reporters, too. It’s an alternative way to build those relationships outside of email and it I think it will become a priority for PR practitioners to look to social media for connecting with journalists on the coming year.

“Finally, thought leadership, especially in a competitive environment such as tech, will continue to be an essential component of every PR campaign in 2024.

“Helping clients think of themselves as thought leaders – not just product evangelists – and building thought leadership campaigns to showcase their expertise in core areas, will amplify any PR campaign.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

The post Part 2: Expert Predictions For PR in 2024 appeared first on 91̽��.

PR, in short, is fundamental for growing a successful business. Not only can it help generate a strong brand for a business, in turn creating credibility, but it can also lead to increasing profits, interest from investors and so forth.��

Discover what PR is, how it works and what the benefits to it are in this article.��

What Is PR?

PR, the acronym for Public Relations, refers to the management of company reputation and image. It encompasses all forms of media and communication, helping to build and manage client reputation.

When companies work on their public relations, the goal is to increase brand recognition and reputation. Companies who are better known will have more consumer trust and, thus, increased business. Generally speaking, consumers look for brands they have heard of who have a good reputation.��

PR firms are also responsible for damage control, managing any bad press that could negatively affect a brand’s reputation.

What Are the Benefits of PR?

There are many reasons why companies choose to focus on their public relations, regardless of their industry or how long they have been around. Below are some of the most common benefits to outsourcing a for your business:��

1. Boost Profits

When companies focus on boosting their reputation through a multichannel marketing strategy and by using PR practices, they will soon find that they have attracted the attention of new clients. The more a company gives customers the opportunity to connect to their business, the more revenue, leads and sales they are likely to have – boosting overall company profits.

2. Increase Brand Credibility

Consumers do not want to buy from brands that they do not know or trust. PR helps clients to build consumer trust by establishing their good reputation and credibility. There are many ways that this could be done but PR experts may use, among other strategies, leadership pieces to establish company credibility within the sector. They could also rely on influencer connections, networking or featuring an expert quote from someone high up in the company, affirming their role as an expert in the sector.

3. Change Consumer Opinion

PR can help change the way that consumers view your business. As the world becomes increasingly online, companies become more vulnerable to what the internet says about them – true or false – and have little control over their online reputation. PR campaigns can help boost the positive output about your company and overcome any negative feedback that you might be getting. Working with a PR team can make sure that your company is getting the right type of brand awareness and that consumers have a positive picture of your business.

4. Increase Online Presence

Businesses nowadays must have an online presence in order to be relevant among the sea of business out there. However, it is not merely enough to just exist online. They will need to have a strong online presence which means that they are highly visible to their target audience. Working with PR companies can ensure that businesses have the support and guidance needed to effectively market themselves online, safe in the knowledge that any damage control or issues with brand reputation can be managed by the PR agency.

Working with PR agencies to boost online presence is a great idea as they can offer expert opinions on the best channels and influencers to spread company messages and reach the right people. PR businesses are typically well-connected and can use their industry connections and sector experience to maximise your company’s reach.

5. Get Your Name Out There

PR companies are experts at writing and releasing press releases, publishing social media posts in relevant channels and connecting your business with the right people and influencers to take your business to the next level. Focusing on your PR will make sure that your name is out there not only in the right places, but that it is reaching the right audience. All of this will maximise your relevance and make sure that your brand comes to mind when consumers are looking for a product or service.

The post How Important Is PR? appeared first on 91̽��.

This isn’t the case for Giving To Services, in which their female CEO Leanne Holder is one of the youngest (if not the youngest) current cryptocurrency chief executive officers in the world. We catch up with Leanne to see how she got into cryptocurrency and find out more about Giving To Services, the cryptocurrency that gives back.

Leanne, tell us a little about yourself and some of your achievements?

I’m CEO of GTS and the lover of all things pink! I used to work at GTS as the Head of Relations before being promoted to Head of Partnerships and then I gained my position as Chief Executive Officer. Having owned multiple brands that have paved the way in both the automotive and the health industries I have become highly skilled in the building and directing of businesses. Some of my achievements include winning the Entrepreneur award in the Chwarae Teg Womanspire ITV awards as
well as being named in the UK’s Most Inspirational Female Entrepreneurs as well as ranking as a Top 10 Entrepreneur To Watch and being named in The 10 Young and Inspiring Businesswomen To Watch, globally.

Tell us about Giving To Services

Giving To Services is a company that provides a decentralised finance reward service to holders of the token ‘SVS’. A portion of the rewards generated for holders is donated to those professionals within the Health Service, Police, Fire and Military services, as a thank you for the sacrifices they make. The system is powered by the audited digital currency SVS, which enables transparent financial interactions between individuals, charities, institutions and other organisations connected with the provision of public services.

What are some things you have put in place recently at GTS?

We have joined many initiatives including the Crypto Climate Accord, as well as becoming members of Crypto UK, Fintech Alliance and Fintech Founders. We have also recently started the switch from ERC-20 to XRPL which will not only allow for
faster transaction times and lower transaction fees, but is also better for the environment. We were also recently awarded the Armed Forces Covenant Bronze Award which is something I am extremely pleased about.

What drew you to GTS initially?

Giving To Services is something that I loved the moment I saw it. The SVS token drew me in and I adored the concept of being able to use cryptocurrency to help others. I am honoured to be appointed CEO. Giving back is something that spurs me on each day, makes me feel great and is why I’m proud to be a part of this community. This is how I want every single member of the Giving To Services and SVS community to feel.

What is your mission as CEO of GTS?

My mission is this; we have already changed the lives of many. It is time to take that one step further and change the lives of absolutely everyone who needs our help through global philanthropy, using cryptocurrency and our impressive technology to
facilitate this. ‘Our Crypto Gives Back’ will always be the core of Giving To Services”.

Final thoughts, how is it being a female in the industry?

Being a female in a typically male-dominated industry is something I am used to within my previous career in the Automotive industry. I really enjoy the cryptocurrency world and everyone has been really friendly! Leading an all-male team isn’t scary as some would think; we are all in our respective positions based on our skillset and not on our gender so therefore we do not treat each other differently. I would love to be able to encourage more ladies into the tech space, in particular,
the cryptocurrency world and do my best across my social media to encourage and support where possible, while also standing up for the tech industry as a whole regarding topics such as gender equality/gender pay gap. I hope to be able to pave
the way for other women that are looking to become CEO’s within the space and motivate them along the way.

The post Meet the Woman Taking the Crypto World by Storm appeared first on 91̽��.

With much of the way people interact with businesses now being online, strong cybersecurity has become an integral component in fostering trust amongst consumers. But what happens when that trust is broken?

With cyber-attacks on the rise amidst the global pandemic and this new era of hybrid working, how can businesses prepare for the worst and and preserve their brand’s reputation?

91̽�� has gathered advice from a number of experienced PR professionals on how to do exactly that, and the importance of having a plan in place before an attack occurs…

Our PR Experts:

• Pearl M. Kasirye – Head of Public Relations at Pearl Lemon Official
• Rana Audah��– PR, Content and Digital Marketing Consultant
• Xanthe Vaughan Williams – Co-Founder of PR Agency Fourth Day
• Mary Glazkova��– Founder and CEO of This is Fine PR
• David Clare – Head of PR at Fox Agency
• Gareth Thomas – Managing Director, UK, of PAN Communications
• Georgia Christley – Account Manager at Carnsight Communications
• Simon Moss – Director of Element Communications
• Alice Jiga – Account Manager at Moonlight IQ
• Andrew Skinner-Shah – Co-Founder of Nara Communications
• Nicola Finn – Head of PR at Oggadoon
• Yvonne Eskenzi – Director of Ouvert Comms
• Nick Braund – Founder of Words + Pixels
• Jennifer Reid – Director at CommsCo
• Jules Herd – Managing Director of Five in a Boat
• Sarah Alonze – Head of Enterprise IT at Red Lorry Yellow Lorry
• Martyn Gettings – Head of PR at Tank
• Claire Simpson – Senior Communications Consultant at Hard Numbers
• Francesca Baker – Communications Specialist, Copywriter, Marketer and PR
• Carla Williams Johnson – Media Marketing Specialist at Carli Communications

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Pearl M. Kasirye, Head of Public Relations at Pearl Lemon Official

“Reputation management is an essential element of public relations for all companies. This is especially true for tech agencies that hold sensitive data. If there is a cyber attack that compromises the privacy of your clients, it’s important to remedy the situation asap.”

“1. Fix the cyber security issue, be transparent about what caused it and what is being done to ensure it never happens again.”

“2. Have a customer service rep individually contact clients to fully understand their frustrations and the scope of their frustrations. (This is important because it shows that the brand isn’t just trying to protect its image but actually cares about the customers’ experiences).”

“3. Write public statements to reassure people about the steps being taken to avoid future cyber attacks.”

“Notice that it’s not just about releasing statements, brand reputation is about what happens internally. When the clients are happy – then you don’t have to worry about your reputation going under.”

Rana Audah,��PR, Content and Digital Marketing Consultant

“Cyber attacks and data breaches as a result of human error are increasingly commonplace. The current climate is arguably a perfect recipe for more frequent incidents. Following a breach, a speedy response from brands is key to regaining the public’s confidence. Accountability and transparency are critical at this stage.”

“Brands should explain openly what has happened and why, how much information has been leaked, and what the brand is proactively doing in terms of damage limitation for those affected.”

“Communicating directly with those impacted, and more widely through the media, and owned channels, demonstrates that the brand recognises that it has made a mistake – either in terms of inadequate cybersecurity or poor internal data protection processes – however, it cares and is taking swift steps to prevent a recurrence.”

“Openly communicating soon after an incident, and with an appropriate level of regularity thereafter, will help to limit reputational damage and should be considered an opportunity to deepen the relationship between the brand and its audience.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Xanthe Vaughan Williams,��Co-Founder of PR Agency Fourth Day

Don’t pretend it hasn’t happened

“You are probably panicking and confused, but it is important to put out a statement explaining that you are taking it seriously and finding out what has been breached so that you can fix the problem. Don’t speculate either!”

Once you do know what the problem is, say what you are doing to fix it

“At this point you can apologise if you need to and decide what remedial action needs to be taken. It’s really important to be clear about how you’re fixing it as the big questions being asked will be “how did this happen?” and “how do I know it won’t happen again?”

If you can, try and take control of the story

“If you’ve suffered a particular kind of attack, try and lead a campaign to protect other organisations – as well as your own – from it in future. If it’s completely your own fault, tell everyone how your company culture/security systems will change.”

And finally, throughout the crisis, don’t forget to keep your own teams in the loop

“It’s too easy to think only of your external audiences at a time like this. Your own people will need support and reassurance more than most – particularly if they are also being bombarded with queries.”

Mary Glazkova,��Founder and CEO of This is Fine PR

“If a company collects and stores data, a data breach is always a distinct possibility. In other words, there is no “what if the crisis comes”, there is “when the crisis comes”. So you have to be prepared. The first step in expeditiously handling any threat or incident is to have an anti-crisis PR plan in place. It must include statements about:”

• “what has happen;
• what you’ve done to handle it;
• what you’ve done or will do shortly to better protect and prevent situations like this.”

“The statements should correspond to your business activities and the truth. Do not over-declare. You reputation is already at stake.”

“The information should be communicated to all the parties inside – BOD, employees, and outside the company – customers, partners, investors, etc.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

David Clare,��Head of PR at Fox Agency

“Be open and honest. Tell your customers what happened, how you are fixing it (or have fixed it), and what processes you are putting in place to prevent future attacks.”

“I’d suggest you focus on communicating to customers first and foremost, but have your team reach out to a high profile media outlet in tandem. Give them an interview as soon as possible, informing your customers and providing a consistent explanation that remains open and transparent. You can be sure that a high profile exclusive interview with the right media will be reported on by other outlets, allowing you time to focus on what matters most – the security fix and your customers.”

Gareth Thomas,��Managing Director, UK, of PAN Communications

“Firms are better prepared for attacks, but often overlook the recovery phase.”

“Not long ago, a cyberattack typically triggered a state of panic and confusion, followed by a scramble to pay hush money to the perpetrators, and then a (usually botched) attempt to bury the issue (‘Move along, there’s nothing to see here…’).”

“Thankfully, a combination of new regulatory requirements and better comms advice means most organisations now understand the need for transparency, honesty, and accuracy.”

“They have an issues response plan ready to activate, including a crisis classification system, stakeholder maps, decision trees, holding statements, and a defined Issues Response Group which allows the right experts to be assembled quickly.”

“Most know that taking ownership and apologising early is essential (yes, we know you didn’t do this on purpose, but who else takes responsibility, if not you?!).”

“This is progress. Many studies have shown people – especially younger demographics – are less likely to trust brands following a cyberattack, and this can directly impact sales. This trust usually recovers eventually, but how the incident is handled determines whether this takes weeks, months or even years.”

“But an area still mostly overlooked is how to talk about the attack once the immediate issue has been ‘resolved’.”

“This is perhaps understandable: after the shame/embarrassment/stress/long hours of a hack, you can see why it’s tempting to never want to speak of it again.”

“I’ve often seen companies make clumsy attempts to simply divert people’s attention by rushing through a new, big and shiny announcement.”

“This is counterproductive. To rebuild trust, it’s critical that you return to the issue proactively and show how you’ve learned and improved.”

“That ‘urgent review of your security operations’ you promised the day of the attack: did it actually happen? The ‘steps you are putting in place to ensure your customers don’t suffer in future’ – what are they and are they working?”

“Managing the heat of the moment is important. Being brave enough to reopen the old wound and explain how you’ve actually improved will go a long way to rebuilding trust and loyalty in your brand more quickly.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Georgia Christley,��Account Manager at Carnsight Communications

“We can all try our hardest to aim to prevent a cyber-attack by following best practices in our business strategies, but we can’t always avoid these attacks, bad things can happen to even the most prepared businesses. But they aren’t necessarily the end of a business. In many cases, a data breach can be an inflection point, with companies learning from the experience and coming back even stronger.”

“To help manage and mitigate these risks, it is critical to formulate a plan and be prepared.”

“1. Assess the risks and understand the risks to your brand and reputation from a cyber-attack.”

“2. Put together a ‘data breach response plan’ for handling a cyber-attack, when writing this keep in mind any questions that you may be asked by your customers and make sure to include a breach response team. Be transparent and timely – It is important to ensure rapid communication and response to breaches – A good rule of thumb is having a 24-48 hour response plan – especially if personal data was breached.”

“3. When building your ‘data breach response plan’ keep in mind the following…”

“If a cyber-attack does occur:

• What steps will the company take?
• Who will be available to handle the additional workload and provide the knowledge to get the situation resolved?
• Who will you need to notify alongside authorities, media and customers?
• What action is the business taking to help the affected people and how can you ensure information is sent to customers safely to reassure them all will be handled?”

“4. Ensure to keep a note of which specific data was breached and what steps can be taken to ensure this doesn’t happen again.”

Simon Moss,��Director of Element Communications

“The impact of a cyberattack cannot simply be measured in pounds or dollars, but in the reputational damage it inflicts upon an organisation.”

“We are proud to represent a number of cyber security firms and are well aware of the need to not only build the right defences but react in the right way too. The same is true of public relations.”

“Unfortunately, it’s now no longer a case of ‘if’ your company will be attacked, but ‘when.’ This inevitably leads to a tarnished brand image and a loss of trust in the brand, unless it’s properly handled.”

“Speed, transparency and honesty are your top three priorities when an attack happens. Immediately announce the attack to control the narrative (rather than letting the media run wild). Take full responsibility, be apologetic and sincere, and reassure stakeholders that you’re dealing with the problem.”

“Publicly disclose the strategy you have of dealing with the cyberattack and respond to all queries quickly and effectively.”

“If the attack has compromised consumer data or networks, offer help or compensation. You may be reluctant to spend money when the cyberattack itself may well cost a lot, but instead look at it as an essential cost; you will lose a lot more in the long term if the public decides you’re an unfair, untrustworthy company.”

“By putting an actionable plan in place and staying in control, your company can avoid a PR disaster, and potentially even profit from it. In a world where cyberattacks are inevitable, effectively handling them when they occur may cause your customers to trust you more than ever.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Alice Jiga, Account Manager at Moonlight IQ

“Cyberattacks are one of the biggest threats businesses and individuals face. It’s estimated that cybercrime currently costs the global economy over $1 trillion; Ransomware attacks have increased dramatically. In an ideal world, every company already has a cyber risk and reputational management strategy in place that is evaluated continuously and adjusted to both internal and external developments, technological or otherwise. From a PR or brand value perspective the effects can be at least as costly as the initial attack, the cost of technical recovery and ongoing defences. The market and your customers in particular can be very fickle, and any loss of brand value hits the bottom-line hard.”

“Once a cyberattack happens, the company’s first step should be to address the issue, protect and recover the situation. A detailed investigation is obvious, but you need to retain the confidence of current and potential customers and your staff. If your clients have been affected in any way – even if they just think they might be affected – you must communicate with them, honestly and openly, reassuring them, if possible. While cyberattacks happen, trying to hide and hope the news goes away could do more damage to your reputation than the attack itself.”

“The second stage is to re-evaluate your company’s security and data practices. Be open about the transformation you are undergoing and your plans for future prevention and discuss these with stakeholders. The key is to be transparent in what you’re doing to mitigate this risk in the future.”

“This approach to managing your reputation is honest, transparent and has as final goal turning a critical incident into a success story. Learning from your mistakes and becoming a leader in managing cyber risk is a story most people would like to hear and learn from.”

Andrew Skinner-Shah,��Co-Founder of Nara Communications

“To start with, any founder, regardless of how small their company is, should be aware that they could be the victim of a cyber attack. Ignorance isn’t bliss, it’s at best a future headache, at worst a potential death warrant for your company.”

“The reason this mindset is important is that if an attack does occur, you have a small window, during which it can feel like the world is burning, to make tricky decisions and act. By preparing in advance – for example deciding on the necessary, standard communications steps – you’ll not only save time if an attack does occur, you’ll also reduce the number of big decisions required in the stressful heat of the moment.”

“The most crucial communications principle is transparency. Don’t try and cover things up or mask details because, beyond the fact it’ll breach GDPR or state laws, the truth will eventually get out. Any subterfuge could end up being an even more damning press story. Your customers will appreciate and respect your honesty.”

“Take the time to understand what’s happened by consulting with your IT team or external specialists, because you won’t be able to explain accurately if you’re guessing. Then, communicate clearly internally (employees, PR agencies etc.) and externally (clients, customers etc.). For the latter, draft a very carefully written statement – lawyers are useful here, and also ask for input from your IT specialists. This should accept responsibility and explain, in layman’s terms, what’s happened, and what you have done/are doing. Send this to your customers, and issue on social channels.”

“Journalists may or may not start to reach out to you for further comment. If they do, point them in the direction of your statement, and if they have additional questions, answer these offline, again with inputs from lawyers and IT specialists, rather than on a Zoom or phone call. This isn’t stonewalling, rather a safer way to convey potentially very technical information accurately.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Nicola Finn,��Head of PR at Oggadoon

Have a sense of urgency, but don’t panic!

“There has been an attack; don’t panic, think about the key crisis communication steps. As Sudhakar Ramakrishna, CEO SolarWinds stated from his experience of leading an organisation through a crisis, “It is one of those hair on fire situations where you don’t act like that, you don’t run down helter-skelter, you just kind of go step by step.”

Prioritise Your Stakeholders

“As news of your breach details hit the news platforms, expected or a surprise, your instant PR tactical reaction might be to drown out the bad press by trying to reset the misplaced perceptions, highlighting you’re the victim, trying to shift those negative brand mentions and coverage. However, customers, partners, employees and your supply chain are the priority. Your resources must be geared to your customers.”

Transparent Communications

“Transparency is the foundation of trust, as it creates empathy from employees, clients and partners. Ensure that you have a good understanding of the situation and share the facts as you know them – who, what, why, when and where. Create a continuous two-way conversation as you learn the details and the plan to resolve the situation. You can deal with the early breech press later in your wrap-up.”

Responsibility, Communication & Opportunity

“As any business can be the victim of a cyber attack, you will need to develop a PR strategy before your vulnerabilities become your downfall. There are three key actions in crisis management. Firstly, accept your responsibility and work to address the problem. Secondly, communicate with urgency and effectively with stakeholders, establishing a two-way dialogue. Finally, share what you learned during the different stages of the breach scenario. You can not only become a better individual and organisation but also share this with the cyber community, creating a collaborative community vigil to combat the threat actors. This is where you revisit the negative press at the start of the process.”

“Yes, your share price may well take a dip immediately after the breach, but by keeping a cool head to understand the situation, including how to address the problem and communicate about it, then you will strengthen both your reputation and your brand. To discuss cyber security crisis management or general marketing and promotion please get in touch with OggaDoon.”

Yvonne Eskenzi,��Director of Ouvert Comms

“Today, cyber-attacks are the biggest threat businesses face and they are no longer just a technical nuisance. They affect jobs, impact share price, damage reputation and customer trust and can even affect the very survival of a business.”

“But, planning crisis communications before a data breach or cyber-attack actually happens can help restore a business much quicker, with minimal reputational and brand damage.”

“Left unmanaged, a cyber crisis can swiftly destroy an organisation’s brand and reputation with little chance of recovery. A hastily released statement that fails to provide stakeholders with the information they need, or comes across as self-serving and insincere, can destroy years of work already spent to build the trust of customers.”

“Having a prepared and well-practised incident response plan in place, so an organisation and its employees know how to respond to attacks, is essential. Preparing a communication response plan for the event of a cybersecurity incident is no longer an excess of zeal, but a necessity for any company that wishes to minimise the damage of such an occurrence.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Nick Braund,��Founder of Words + Pixels

“The first step in protecting a brand and reputation after a cyberattack is to prepare. If your data is breached or your servers are hacked and you don’t have a reactive media plan, it’s too late.”

“Research has identified that a cyberattack occurs almost twice a minute, every minute. If your business utilises tech or data in any way, a robust plan based on your owned data and the implications of exposure is essential.”

“Vitally, communication needs to be clear, concise and quick. Information travels thousands of miles in a split second online. Waiting until you’ve fully assessed a situation will leave your stakeholders with countless difficult questions about your business’ security.”

“Pre-drafted statements from a single voice, typically the CEO or tech/security lead should be crafted in collaboration with the comms lead, key internal stakeholders and your legal counsel. As we’ve seen from hacks such as Ashley Maddison, the information which can be disseminated against your will may have a hugely significant impact on individuals, companies or society at large; whether financial, emotional or otherwise.”

“Taking ownership of the narrative, instead of others filling your void is a must. Any spokesperson must strike a key balance of compassionate, firm and accountable. Depending on the situation, a response needs to be swift outlining how the business is in control of the current situation and share needed information for affected parties.”

Jennifer Reid, Director at CommsCo

“For a long time, the stigma associated with cyber attacks put many organisations off reporting them, but with the rules introduced surrounding GDPR regulation, organisations are now under obligation to make breaches public. In a way, it’s done the world a favour in removing the stigma – attacks are no longer a matter of ‘if’ but ‘when.’”

“Preparation is paramount: organisations must ensure they have in place good network recording devices in order to get their hands on the definitive evidence they need to understand what happened. After that, it’s a classic case of disaster recovery PR: admit the breach or attack, report it under GDPR regulations, and then explain, with 100% transparency to all key stakeholders what was compromised and what will happen to solve the compromise and ensure adequate procedures are in place to prevent it from happening again.”

“It’s also essential to ensure you’ve got the right PR engine in place to deliver the news in the most meaningful and least detrimental way possible, and according to regulation: the moment businesses realise they’ve succumbed to a cyber attack is not the time you want to be going out to agencies to ask them to pitch.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Jules Herd,��Managing Director of Five in a Boat

“Avoiding a cyber-attack is impossible, at some point it will happen to every organisation. The key is in preparing for it, ensuring that you have a robust crisis management plan in place before the attack happens which you can then execute once it happens.”

“Trying to manage a cyber attack without a plan in place is like shutting stable the door after the horse has bolted. Unfortunately, many companies are not prepared which is when the sh*t really hits the fan. In this instance these are the measures that companies need to take:”

“1. Don’t panic either internally or externally – the last thing you want is an employee or a customer recognising your panic as it will inevitably have a knock on effect.”

“2. Get all teams internally on the same page as quickly as possible in regarding agreeing the right approach in addressing the issue.”

“3. Follow the correct protocols in terms of who needs to be informed. Depending on the type of organisation, this could range from governments to individuals to partners.”

“4. Be as transparent as possible and don’t leave it days before any communication takes place.”

“5. Provide solutions – this could be as simple as ensuring that customers change their passwords and sharing information regarding future preventative measures in case it happens again.”

“Finally, hire a good PR agency which can help you build out that all important crisis comms plan. Trust me, regardless of the size of the company, it will be money worth spending.”

Sarah Alonze,��Head of Enterprise IT at Red Lorry Yellow Lorry

“There are three cardinal rules brands should remember when responding to a cyber-attack. These rules will be your saving grace when the pitchforks are out, and stakeholders are demanding explanations.”

“Cardinal rule #1: Know and understand what happened before you communicate with anyone. It sounds basic, but any brands are guilty of rushing responses following a breach or leak, because speed is seen as paramount. Knee-jerk reactions and a lack of information on the incident will only make things worse. Balance haste with diligence – gather as much information as possible and then respond.”

“Cardinal rule #2: Beware the pecking order. Certain stakeholders should be notified before others. Inform the relevant authorities initially, and work with them to stem the impact of the breach/leak. Next, notify key internal stakeholders and any affected parties, preferably with one-to-one communication where possible. External, public-facing statements come after. This is critical to containing the issue in the most appropriate and sensitive way. And remember to always speak factually and sincerely – don’t patronise or use smoke and mirrors to deflect from the issue at hand.”

“Cardinal rule #3: Don’t repeat the same mistakes. You need to have an action plan of how to mitigate and prevent a similar incident from happening again, so that internal and external stakeholders know you’re taking the incident – and their relationship with you – seriously. This is why cardinal rule #1 is so important – without knowing what happened, you won’t know how to prevent a similar attack.”

“Unfortunately, cyber-attacks aren’t usually just a flash in a pan – there are often unanticipated or unforeseen, long-term ripple effects. So, even if you’ve abided by those three cardinal rules, ongoing vigilance and communication are critical. Provide regular updates to relevant parties as more information is unearthed – whether through a live blog, email communications or otherwise.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Martyn Gettings,��Head of PR at Tank

“Cyber attacks are becoming increasingly challenging for businesses and pose a significant risk of reputational damage if customer data is stolen or your product or service is forced offline.”

“When dealing with a crisis, it’s important to have plans in place to deal with all eventualities. It is always easier to respond if you have a clear crisis comms strategy, with all active participants and stakeholders briefed so the team can quickly spring into action. After an incident has taken place, it is vital that the organisation communicates clearly as quickly as possible.”

“The company should follow all GDPR compliance and communicate with the ICO, notifiable incidents must be disclosed within 72 hours. When communicating publicly, take responsibility for finding out what has happened and then fixing the issue – as well as apologising to customers for any inconvenience. However, don’t acknowledge culpability until a complete investigation is carried out. Communicate directly with customers that have fallen victim quickly and advise them what they should do to protect themselves.”

“Be clear once you’ve identified the problem, how you will fix it and how you will make sure it won’t happen again in the future. Make it clear what measures were in place to defend against cyber attacks and how the measures were overcome.”

“Rebuilding trust after an incident will take time, and any recurrence of a cyber attack could be critical for brand reputation. Although the desire to reassure customers is natural, rushing to announce that the situation is resolved prematurely could do far more damage. Communicating clearly and as transparently as possible, while working closely with the legal department to ensure messaging is correct, will help to build trust at an unnerving time for your customers.”

Claire Simpson,��Senior Communications Consultant at Hard Numbers

“As in any crisis, transparency in key. If you fall victim to a cyber attack, make sure your customers hear about it from you first, through a direct communication channel such as email. The last thing you want is for them to find out via a third-party or word of mouth. This is not only important to retaining the trust of those affected but also reassuring your wider customer base that their data is safe.”

“In a digital world, we know that our information is never 100% secure, but poor communication around a leak can quickly exacerbate customer concerns and frustrations. So, it’s vital that a public response is forthcoming as soon as possible. On the most basic level, this should follow the CARE model of crisis response, expressing Concern for those affected by the attack, clarifying what Action is being taken to address the causes of the breach and, finally, seeking to Reassure stakeholders by demonstrating that such an attack is rare or won’t happen again.”

“If your business processes large volumes of data, it’s critical that you map out worst case scenarios relating to cybersecurity and how you would respond as part of your crisis planning – regularly stress testing these protocols to ensure their efficacy. Key to this is the creation of a crisis response team to lead the implementation of these protocols in the event of a cyber attack. This group should be well versed in fraud tactics and made up of relevant stakeholders from leadership, communications and legal teams to ensure a unified approach. However, not all attacks are created equal. While it’s important to agree roles and responsibilities in advance, be willing to adjust your approach if something isn’t working and adapt to the evolving situation in real time.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Francesca Baker,��Communications Specialist, Copywriter, Marketer and PR

“Cyber attacks are something the public are increasingly aware of. When they trust you with their information and data, they want to know that you can protect it. If a breach happens, it’s best to be open and honest about it. Cover ups cause long term reputational damage, whereas a clear and quick response makes everyone feel more comfortable.”

“I’d also recommend getting people on the phones or in the customer services branch with a brief and corporate lines. One of the the areas that businesses fail on is not having enough people to answer consumer questions, which is frustrating and leaves people more unsettled. Like everything with PR and corporate affairs, communication is key.”

Carla Williams Johnson,��Media Marketing Specialist at Carli Communications

“Reputation management is the name of the game when it comes to business. Being a victim of a cyber attack myself, I have a unique understanding of the devastation that it can wreak upon a business, though I may not be ‘tech savvy’ I do understand how to handle a crisis. Here is my four step framework or what I call the ‘ABCDs of Crisis Response’”

A – Act immediately

“Once you’ve been made aware, move swiftly so as not to incur any further damage to your brand. Communicate facts to those affected and apologise where necessary. Contact the necessary parties to help you manage the crisis such as your tech team or even customer service.”

B – Be visible

“Pay special attention to how the brand is seen in public. Use the media to convey your decisions, thoughts and emotions and how you intend to remain in service to your customers.”

“Use the media to feature your brand in a positive light.”

C – Change strategy

“As in, create a new plan. Your business has taken a major blow and you need to now factor this in.”

• “What can you do to recover or rebuild trust?
• What is the lesson learned from this crisis?
• What can it be implemented now to help you overcome this?
• What action is the business taking to help affected people?”

“Create a timeline and include any associated costs (people, processes or systems) to ensure things get done.”

D – Don’t give up

“I’m throwing this in to say that sometimes things happen you believe that all is lost and that may not necessarily be the case. You can recover from it once it’s handled well so do damage control and get yourself back out there.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

The post How to Protect Your Brand’s Reputation After a Cyber Attack appeared first on 91̽��.

One of these areas can often be PR, many without experience in the field unsure of where to start, the strategies best for their industry or how much you should be paying for PR experts’ services.

For startups unsure on how to approach their PR – fear not! 91̽�� has spoken with a number of experienced PR professionals on this topic, revealing some of the top tips on how to gain exposure…

Our PR Experts:

• Angharad Planells – Head of Business Development and Culture at RadioactivePR
• Tamika Martin – Ucreate PR & Events Management Ltd.
• David Clare – Head of PR at Fox Agency
• Yvonne Eskenzi – Co-Founder of Eskenzi PR & Marketing
• Kevin Maxwell – Director and Co-Founder of Maxwell Comms Ltd.
• Francesca Baker – Freelance Communications Specialist
• Ilona Hitel – Founder and MD of CommsCo
• Chenoa Parr – Freelance PR Consultant
• Kristin Marquet – Marquet Media, LLC
• Stacey Jaffe & Lisa Fox – Founders of
• Mary Glazkova – Founder and CEO of This is Fine PR
• Dan Griffiths – Co-Founder at Dot Star Media
• Kerry Ganly – Account Manager of Penguin PR
• Lucy Woods – Freelance Marketing Consultant
• Tori Porter – Founder of Tori Porter Communications
• Carla Williams Johnson��– Founder and CEO of Carli Communications
• Lucy Steadman – Senior Account Director (Technology & Innovation) at The PHA Group
• Michelle Hatcher – Publicist��at��Michelle Hatcher Media
• Jo Swann – Founder of Chocolate PR
• Hannah Patel – Director, UK at Red Lorry Yellow Lorry
• Tet Kofi – Cofounder at Journolink and Broadcast Journalist
• Adisa Amanor-Wilks – Director of Abjel Communications
• Darryl Sparey – Co-Founder and Managing Director at��Hard Numbers
• John Norris – Co-founder and Director of Moonlight IQ
• Nicola Finn – Head of PR at OggaDoon
• Martin Brindley – Founder of Alba Communications
• Jaillan Yehia – Head of Communications at Meddbase Practice Management Software
• Helen Croydon – Founder of Thought Leadership PR
• Georgia Christley – Account Manager at Carnsight Communications
• Julija (JJ) Jegorova – Founder at Black Unicorn PR
• Victoria Usher – CEO at GingerMay
• Love Norlin – Influencer Marketing and PR Executive at Redgert Comms
• Natalie Trice��– Career Coach, PR Mentor and Author of PR School
• Hannah Levitt – Founder, Green Banana PR
• Catherine Lane – Co-Founder of The Influence Crowd
• Nick Baines – Founder at Nara Communications
• Joanna Dodd – Managing Director of Rochester PR Group
• Ryan Haynes – Lead Consultant at Haynes MarComs
• Gemma Birbeck – Director of Loaded PR
• Callum Attew – Senior Consultant at Boldspace
• Simon Moss – Director at Element Communications
• Jessica Smith – Co-founder & CXO SomX
• Katie Morhen – Founder and Director of 52eight3
• Siobhan Lipnicki – Buzz Lead Media
• Seb Burchell – Digital PR Manager at NOVOS
• Oliver Bradley – Client Director at Words + Pixels PR Agency
• Ben Goldsmith – Managing Director of��Goldsmith Communications
• Rosie Davies-Smith��– Founder and Director of PR Dispatch
• Cordelia Meacher – Founder and Managing Director at FieldHouse Associates
• Charlie Le Rougetel – MD at BIGTOP
• Martin McGourty – Associate Director at PAN Communications
• Dina Mostovaya – Founder and Managing Director of Mindset Consulting

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Angharad Planells,��Head of Business Development and Culture at RadioactivePR

“It’s never too early to consider PR for your startup, but a good PR will let you know if it’s too early to hire outside support.”

“When you are ready, find an agency/partner that buys into your company’s vision and suggests measurable tactics that help achieve your business goals. For some, that might be a piece in a national newspaper, for others it might be a follow link on a niche site – whatever it is it should be part of the big picture for your startup, not just coverage for coverage’s sake.”

“At the end of every month a good PR partner should be able to show the value they’ve added. Front page of is amazing, but what did it do in real terms? Drive web traffic? Increase e-newsletter sign-ups? Attract interest from investors? Agreeing KPIs like this ahead of activity is important – it means both sides know what success looks like from PR work and ensures there’s no disappointment down the road.”

“Finally, understand that there will be peaks and troughs in PR. It’s not an exact science or a direct sales channel, but there’s no better way to build a brand reputation and push people into your sales funnel long-term.”

Tamika Martin,��Ucreate PR & Events Management Ltd.

“Top PR Tip – Be Authentic: Imagine you’re in the journalists shoes and ask yourself, what it is that you are trying to convey and what makes your story compelling and appealing to the audience you want to attract?”

“Approaching PR has no exact book of rules but approaching it strategically and with a concise desired end goal is something I swear by. Be sure to practice active reading & listening religiously. Keep one step ahead by keeping updated on what is current within the news and media.”

“If you can work your way backwards from the end goal, feel confident that you have a timely and captivating ‘hook’, the rest just flows with ease. You should never need to force a good pitch idea. Being authentic, well researched, taking your time, enjoying the process of being the storyteller and brand builder on behalf of your clients or business is definitely rewarding, especially when you reap good results.”

“Another good rule of thumb, quality often triumphs over quantity. Gone are the days of press releases being distributed over a wire service never as compelling or lands your story more visibility. Your ultimate goal is to be heard amongst the noise in what is often an overly saturated market of news and content.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

David Clare,��Head of PR at Fox Agency��

“First, get someone onboard with PR experience – whether that’s a hire, a freelancer, or if you’re ready for it, an agency – they’ll be able to help you navigate the media landscape, understand how PR works, and set expectations (especially when it comes to what you think is news versus what the media knows is news).”

“Once you have someone with experience in the field, start building your media assets. This is a very tactical stage, but if missed, you’ll find yourselves scrambling around to get things sorted, so get your ducks in a row first. Develop your talking points, your opinions, basic things such as your media lists, company boilerplate, and imagery, plus spokesperson assets such as bios and headshots.”

“Now you’re ready to go out to the media. If you have a story (launch, major partner, significant hire etc.) then pitch it out – but take a ‘sniper’ approach and select a few key journalists who you’re certain will be interested. Don’t scattergun anyone with ‘journalist’ or ‘reporter’ in their Twitter bio.”

“And if you don’t have a strong story, that’s no problem. It’s a great time to meet the media, brief them on your company, explain what your company does that’s unique, what your vision is, and key milestones you hope to reach. You may not get coverage from such conversations, but you’ll build the foundations of a strong relationship that will pay dividends when you do have news in future.”

Yvonne Eskenzi,��Co-Founder of

“Engaging with a PR company is an exciting time in a start-up’s journey. They will first want to work with the PR company to get their messaging spot-on. It’s easy for those close to the technology to become blinded by what they think and include far too much technical detail, so really work with the agency to find USPs and think about the who, what, where, why and how.”

“Create a mind-map or post-it note board when brainstorming to organise thoughts – this will help simplify the message, while not forgetting key points. If the start-up has outside validation of their solutions or customer feedback, it’s important to share these and try to align as much as possible to business, financial and operational issues that will help shape the overall PR programme.”

“Once this stage is completed and the company has rock-solid messaging, form a content strategy plan around not only product development (which has limited interest to the press), but also the issues that have been identified that the start-up is helping to solve and key spokespeople for the organisation. Think about content creation around “Top 10s” (top 10 things you didn’t know about X’; ‘Top 5 issues in Y and how to solve them’, etc).”

“Also consider what kind of proprietary research, surveys or reports the start-up can produce to support the content strategy. Finally, based on the messaging and issues the start-up is solving, create a slide deck that clearly illustrates the market gaps where the solution fits in and what the company does differently to solve it to be prepared to engage with key analysts in their business sector.”

“Most of all, ensure there is time to dedicate to PR – a two-way relationship always works best. Ultimately, PR is all about working together to produce the best outcomes!”

PR checklist:

• Identify your target audience – E.g. Investors, Channel Partners, IT Managers, etc.
• What’s the story – what’s exciting – USP? What are your business objectives? Do you have a ‘product / services roadmap?
• Which key issues do you address? Who are your main competitors – how many do you have?
• Who are your key spokespeople? Why are they interesting? Do you have good photos of them? Are they media trained?
• Do you have any research – this can be key to get unique coverage? If not, how can you get original research/facts/figures?
• What do you want success to look like – what’s your vision? What is your press wish list? What are the top 10 publications you want to be in?
• Which three vertical sectors do you want to reach immediately?
• Do you have case studies/testimonials?
• Do you have a product demonstration?
• Which trade shows events are you attending, exhibiting or speaking at?
• Do you have a Company backgrounder on all investors?
• Do you have collateral as physical or virtual handouts – Product Sheets, Brochure, Investors, Customers, Recruitment, Website, Facebook, Blog, YouTube, Instagram, others?

Kevin Maxwell, Director and Co-Founder of Maxwell Comms Ltd.

“Don’t assume stressed and cynical journalists will be instantly drawn to a press release. A better approach might be an introductory pitch about you and your business that’s relevant and interesting to a journalist.”

“Before you put pen to paper, look through the following questions – the answers will help you be more strategic in your approach as well as maximise the chances of generating meaningful coverage:”

What do you want out of a PR / media campaign?

Do you want to generate new users or catch the eye of potential investors?

Who’s on your media title ‘wish list’?

Do you want coverage in trade, national titles, start-up or tech titles?

What high resolution digital assets do you have?

Journalists will want videos, logos, screen grabs and photos for their stories.

How unique are you?

What’s your USP and who are your rivals?

Sector background information

What are the independent reports facts and figures that help reinforce your business model?

What case studies do you have?

Case studies bring life and colour to a journalist’s story as well as providing a sense of validation.

Do you fit into the bigger picture?

What are the current stories and issues relevant to your sector a journalist will find interesting?

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Francesca Baker,��Freelance Communications Specialist��

“Think about your target audience and where they are spending time. Yes we’d all like to see our business in a double page spread in national newspapers, but is that where people are looking for information about start ups like yours? Focus on your audience, and let the outlet know why what you have to say will offer value.”

Ilona Hitel,��Founder and MD of CommsCo

“For talented entrepreneurs and startups doing great work around the world, PR is often low on the list of priorities, when the primary focus is on R&D, finding finance, securing customers, and hiring. However, PR supports many of these initiatives and can help scale the business, so a low-level campaign should run in sync with these priorities.”

“First, start with the ‘story’, the why you came up with the product or service, and what you are fixing for your customers. Choose your position in the market, and the gap you are filling to differentiate from your competitors. Once you have this it will be easy to communicate the key message consistently to your audience via the sales and the marketing team, and across online channels. It’s amazing how many companies don’t have the ‘killer’ messages agreed early on. This will help ‘create and establish your category’ and enable customers to understand what you offer.”

“Ensure you use any customer stories to sell the ‘why’ they bought into you, what problems you fixed, to enable other companies to follow suit. In the absence of a customer, you are going to have to rely on any research to support the market need.”

“You should also make sure you are topical – following the news agenda and calendar to optimise your opportunities. A good PR agency will build a content plan that maximises the calendar and news events. Your PR should be external (rather than internal facing) and resonate with issues facing the market.”

“If you’re wondering about kicking off your PR and marketing, ask yourself what the risk is of not doing it. It is all about momentum, and as your profile builds, more opportunities arise. At the end of the day, if you’re not marketing your proposition to customers, it’s almost guaranteed your competitors will be.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Chenoa Parr,��Freelance PR Consultant

“Create a media list with the ‘follow the leader’ technique: Not sure where to start with media coverage? Check out your competition!”

“It’s often referred to as the ‘follow the leader’ technique and is a great way to figure out which publications you should appear in and can help inform your PR strategy.”

“You can do this in one of two ways. First, simply go to your competitor’s website and check out their ‘press’ page which will include a list of media appearances.”

“Secondly, just Google their name and you’ll get a list of online media featuring their brand. Note down where they’ve appeared, the headline, date and the journalist’s name. This gives you a working list of potential media sites that may be interested in your product. The headlines provide food for thought as to how a journalist may cover your brand and can be eye opening as it’s probably different to what you expect.”

“The date tells you how recently they’ve covered the story. If it’s within the last week they probably won’t cover something similar but may be interested in a fresh perspective that moves the story on. If it’s been more than 6 months, there may be scope for pitching your story with a different angle.”

Kristin Marquet,��Marquet Media, LLC��

“Startups can approach PR in an easy manner by determining what makes their businesses newsworthy and credible. Newsworthiness involves what makes your business interesting and unique, while credibility is all about what makes your business trustworthy.”

“Newsworthiness can be a new product or service launch, opening a new office, or making a new hire. Credibility involves what makes consumers trust your brand or business. These are the two most important elements to launching an effective PR campaign.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Stacey Jaffe & Lisa Fox, Founders of Espresso

“As an agency who works predominantly with start-ups and growing businesses our approach concentrates on getting under the skin of the brands we are working with to firstly, understand the business founders and their background as a means to tell their story and build a brand personality and second to understand their business objectives to utilise PR to help achieve them.”

“Our approach is not one size fits all, each client is unique with their own story and goals. Our passion and proposition is to help start-ups achieve their business and personal objectives through the means of PR.”

“The PR landscape has changed significantly over the last year, the boom of exciting new businesses and innovations supported tremendously by the British public has resulted in new forms of media and new opportunities for growing businesses.”

5 top tips from Espresso on how start-ups should approach PR:

1. Work with a like-minded agency who believe in and fully understand your brand
2. Reserve budget for the absolute must have opportunities
3. Take time to understand your customer and who truly influences their decision-making habits
4. Think hard about media targets, whilst some coverage / publications may look impressive, they may not reach your audience
5. Work with the right influencers, it’s not all about the numbers, take time to investigate engagement and followers

Mary Glazkova,��Founder and CEO of This is Fine PR

“Don’t pay for PR: Don’t get me wrong — good publicity can bring startups many benefits, from recognition among investors and partners to building the brand’s public image. But many early-stage companies spend tons of resources on PR every month just to satisfy a craving to be featured in top-tier media.”

“Do PR yourself: A lot of PR can be done in-house in the early days — for free. For a company in its earliest stages, the best PR comes from founders themselves. Living and communicating company values, joining meaningful conversations on social media, starting a personal blog and industry networking can be more meaningful for getting your company known than fruitlessly trying to pitch the BBC, Le Monde or Handelsblatt.”

“Determine your goals and hire a PR person when needed: Some examples of times to bring on a PR consultant at an early-stage startup include:”

• Product launches
• Expansion into new markets
• Venture funding rounds
• Accelerating recruitment
• Participating in major industry events and competitions

“An experienced PR consultant can not only advise how to handle press at those times, but also do the valuable introductions, help to prepare and coordinate publications — and much more.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Dan Griffiths,��Co-Founder at Dot Star Media

“In many startups budgets will be tight. My advice would be to get on #journorequest on Twitter. This hashtag is popular with journalists posting requests for interviews and case studies. If you can help a journalist out with an on-brief response, this provides an uncomplicated way of landing media coverage.”

“Before responding have spokespeople briefed and available to comment, make high quality product and portrait images easy to find, and respond promptly when you hear back from an interested journalist. These things can make all the difference.
The hashtag is busy with thousands of posts every day. Competition for the best requests is fierce. If you have zero budget, try using Tweetdeck or similar to setup relevant keyword filters – e.g. “#journorequest +fintech OR +edtech”. Use the mute function to remove as much of the noise as you can.”

“Spending all day monitoring Twitter is unrealistic for most, so services like IFTTT or Zapier can be used to generate alerts.”

“If you do have some budget, save yourself time by subscribing to one of the specialist journalist enquiry services who also monitor the #journorequest hashtag, such as Dot Star Media (disclosure: that’s us) or Press Plugs. Both services offer free trials.”

Kerry Ganly, Account Manager of Penguin PR

“It is staggering and also very inspiring the number of businesses which have been created during the past 12 months,” said Kerry Ganly, account manager of Derby-based Penguin PR; recent winners of ex-Dragons Den star Theo Paphitis’s Small Business Sunday scheme.

“We have seen a wave of young start-ups and also companies re-imagining their business model and, as these entrepreneurs look to grow their businesses, they may wish to start consolidating their position in the marketplace and investing in skills – or, indeed the right people – to help them to run their business successfully.”

“Public relations – PR for short – is key to helping you to raise the profile of your business. It’s a profession which a lot of journalists choose to do when they fancy a change of career, because there is quite an overlap; journalists want to write about news and the job of a PR professional is to get your business in the news, to raise its profile.”

“PR is not marketing; it isn’t a sales message. No media outlet will touch your story if it’s too ‘salesy’.”

“PR gives your brand a human identity, informs and educates people about what you do, raises awareness in your local industry or community and creates opportunities.”

“If you’re going to write your own press release, consider this: What is your news? When did it happen? How interesting is my story or, how can I make my story more interesting?”

“Find the right target audience and remember the six W’s – Who? What? Where? When? Why? HoW. Remember quotes and always accompany your press release with a relevant, good quality picture. Make sure the photo is 300DPI (dots per inch) and send as a jpeg – not embedded into the email.”

“The file size should be no more than 1MB and remember to include a caption; include lots of faces in your picture and, if you can, go outside. Ensure that everyone in the picture, particularly if there are children in it, has consent and, when pitching your news to the media, keep your pitch short, sweet and to the point.”

“Copy and paste your press release into the email and always add a contact number, so that if the journalist wants further information, they can contact you.”

“Choosing the right PR agency is essential. There are many ‘free’ resources out there for start-ups to use; searching the hashtag #journorequest on Twitter is great. Many journalists post requests for story ideas using this hashtag.”

“However this can often be time consuming and we would always advise contacting a PR professional to help out.”

“Experience and seeking out those people with experience – be it PR professionals, accountants or HR consultants who can help and support you – is vital in making your business a success.”

“Take advice, ask questions and surround yourself with like-minded people.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Lucy Woods,��Freelance Marketing Consultant

1) Keep it inhouse where possible

“PR might not be the first priority for a tech startup and if budgets are lean, outsourcing is a sure way to rattle the cage. So, prioritise PR by appointing a team member or a freelancer to get to know who’s who in your industry. Who are the journalists writing about your product or service offering?”

2) Weave it in your monthly comms activity plan

“If PR isn’t spoken about during the comms and strategy meetings, you’ll never get noticed by the press. So ensure all company updates are flagged with the comms team in case there is something juicy which can be whittled into a press release.”

3) Ditch the pdf attachments

“Nothing more annoying that downloading a Word doc on a mac and the formatting going all strange. Or downloading a PDF and trying to copy and paste….gross.”

“Add your press release into the body of the email you’re sending out to journalists – with a high res supporting image or a link to an open drive of imagery.”

4) Don’t be afraid to resend your press release

“Journalists are busy people, and get loads of emails so don’t be afraid to send a couple of follow-up emails. If you find yourself opening up a fifth nudge email….it’s probably time to call it a day.”

5) Long live the Founder narrative

“Founders and entrepreneurs are interesting people (more often than not) so there will always be a founder angle that can be leveraged for PR purposes. Those regular comms meetings will help identify when and how to use it.”

Tori Porter,��Founder of Tori Porter Communications

“PR is what will set your start-up business apart from other players and competitors in the industry. However, it’s important for startup founders to understand the associated costs with getting their name out there. PR is an investment and a long game.”

“One is understanding the importance of consistency. From my experience, short term PR only creates short term results. The moment you stop the PR, the coverage gently trickles to an end. So essentially, you want to look at PR as being a key and consistent part of your business. Laying the foundation in the press takes time and when you’re consistently pitching to press & telling the unveiling story of a growing business, the results are more regular and authentic.”

“If you’re new to PR, It’s important to understand that results don’t happen overnight. Once you’ve got your assets together and created your press releases, you’ve got to spend time nurturing relationships with press and building their trust in the brand. A feature may depend on timing or the journalists editorial calendar. Plus, some magazines work with lead times of 3-4 months in advance so it can take time for coverage to come out. Over time, your business will build credibility.”

“Before beginning your PR journey, spend time understanding the ‘Why’ behind your brand and your story/ what you’re trying to achieve with PR. If you don’t know your story and your mission, how can someone else sell it successfully? Once you’ve got this sorted, make sure you have all the assets ready. Images of your products, a founder bio, a website, and start planning your launches in advance and letting your PR know as they will be working towards journalist’s lead times.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Carla Williams Johnson, Founder and CEO of Carli Communications

“Many startups think that getting press is out of reach but really it’s not. This is a simple four step process anyone can follow:”

R: Results – “Identify which media you’d like to target based on your message; this will ensure your hard work will pay off. Whether you’re into health, relationships or business, find the magazine, podcast or publication that best suits you and start making your wish list.”

E: Evaluate – “Take stock of their audience; is it made up of your ideal customer? Do they have the reach you’re looking for in terms of community or international appeal? How would your contribution enhance their listeners, readers of viewers? Remember it’s about them.”

A: Align – “How does this media align with your goals. What would you like to accomplish? Increase engagement and awareness, more opt-ins? Also, ensure the media is aligned with your values as well. Sometimes a publication may seem great, but your values and theirs do not align and may do more harm than good. Make sure you feel that it’s a right fit.”

L: Leverage – “Use work you’ve done previously (free or paid) to give yourself credibility.”

Lucy Steadman, Senior Account Director (Technology & Innovation) at The PHA Group

“Journalists receive hundreds of pitches daily, so it’s vital that you can concisely show what makes your business stand out and why it’s important – without marketing jargon. In phrasing this, think about how you fit into a bigger, topical news issue – is there a societal problem you are solving? A currently difficult process that you are simplifying? The main question to answer is: why should they care about this?”

“You’ll also need a ‘why now’ in your pitch to create urgency and show why a journalist should cover your business now and not in a few months’ time (or never). Did you just complete a fundraise, for instance, and could offer that news exclusively? Or is there a major media story in the news already that you have a unique opinion on or solution for? The ‘why now’ is crucial in helping you cut through.”

“Another common misunderstanding about the media is assuming that they will write what you ask them to write, or that they will let you review the copy before publishing. This is not usual practice – so don’t target publications that have never covered a business like yours, and don’t say anything in an interview that you wouldn’t want to see in writing.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Michelle Hatcher,��Publicist��at��Michelle Hatcher Media

1. Know your audience – “Can’t stress this enough. No, in fact, I shall stress it again. There is no point giving yourself a megaphone (which is what PR has the potential to be) if you don’t know what direction you’re pointing it in and who you are going to shout at. Know what they want, know their voice, their language, their ins and outs and everything else. Know what they want to hear and how they want to hear it. Then you are halfway there. Get the message right and everything will slip into place.”

2. Manage your expectations – “OK, so everyone wants to be on the front page of the Evening Standard or The Times, and hey, want your shot on Vogue? You might have to scale it down a bit unless you have bagged yourself a moon landing or the arm of the next hot thing. Start small (which will bring me on to point 4 later) and manage where your voice fits. It might not be wise to consider Vogue unless your business fits their audience anyway. Be realistic, that way the fall isn’t going to be so high up. Think of what you are truly after – is it raising brand awareness? Generating leads or creating sales? Are you after thought leadership? Better customer relations? Stronger profile? Do your SMART test and understand first why you want to launch a PR campaign, which brings me neatly onto point 3…”

3. What do you want PR for? “This might seem like an odd question but finding the true answer to this can really knuckle down to what’s driving you. I have met countless clients who ‘just wanna get our name out there’ which is great but when I ask why? I often get odd looks. You have to know why you want it. Is it because you think you should or because it’s the done thing these days? Be clear about what you want from it and how you want your business to be seen. Or it could be a waste of time.”

4. Don’t forget the local press! “They are dynamite for any business and must never be overlooked. After all, it’s where a lot of national press get their stories from. A big story you see on the Beeb might well have started off as a local report. Local and regional press are friendly and they will want to work with you but make sure your stories are relevant to their audience. Don’t pitch to the Brighton Argus when your story is in Bristol.”

5. Measure measure measure! “Actually, this could be PR’s only bad trick. It’s almost impossible to measure PR at the same level as marketing, for example. You look at reaches and estimates. It’s hard to track if you are looking for sales but great for engagement, especially if you are interested in gathering likes, comments and shares on the digital platforms. Even so, you need to still see where your buck is getting you. Digital PR campaigns carefully interwoven with SEO strategies will earn you credibility with search engines especially combined with quality backlinks.. .but that’s for another post!”

Jo Swann,��Founder of Chocolate PR

“PR for startups should be a no brainer – why wouldn’t you want to launch your business into the world with confidence and conviction? Use the ultimate PR hook of being ‘new’ to get yourself in the press. Often people don’t do this, due to feeling nervous, not ready, ‘too new’�� – but here’s the thing – being a startup is a PR story in its own right and you really must milk this opportunity!”

“Gaining media recognition at the start of your business can supercharge your growth, building credibility and visibility from day 1.”

“So – what to do?”

1. “Launch with PR. Seize the moment. Tell the media about you quitting the 9-5, about you following your passion and purpose. Tell them why, what led you here, and share what mission you’re on “

2. “Claim your expert status with PR – You don’t have to have a million years experience to be an expert. Your expert status comes from the 360 degree version of you – your life experience, qualifications/career path, values, purpose. Illustrate and own this with a strong bio then submit guest expert knowledge sharing articles”

“It all starts with you. Help your audience to get to know you from day 1 so you can find ‘your people’ through sharing your story and knowledge through the media. Those who need you will resonate with you – and they are your ideal clients.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Hannah Patel,��Director, UK at Red Lorry Yellow Lorry

“My first piece of advice would always be to slow down and think it through. The fact that you exist isn’t news on its own. And unless you happen to be Microsoft or Amazon, neither is the fact that you’re launching a product, looking for investors or have closed an investment round. You need to think about why you exist, and be able to articulate that in a compelling and engaging way. Focus on telling that overarching story, rather than just being ‘faster’, ‘cheaper’ or ‘better’ than those who have gone before.”

“And if you think you don’t have competition, I’m afraid you’re wrong. Everyone is competing with someone else for share of voice and mind – even if their product or offering is totally different to yours. So, understanding why you’re different is key.”

“Finally, look outside, before looking inwards. Define the problem (or problems) you solve and who you solve it for, then gather data and stats to support this. If you can connect this with a broader industry issue or story and have a constructive but fresh opinion, you’re on the right track.”

Tet Kofi,��Cofounder at Journolink and Broadcast Journalist��

Relationships are in the DNA of PR – “PR requires you to build 3 relationships: with the journalists that can give you coverage, the media that are the platforms trusted by your target audiences (you need to find out what your target audiences read), and the customers that buy your services and validate them with purchases.”

Coverage is Earned – “Knowing what to say in your stories or news, meaning the content you send journalists, activates your relationship with journalists. Remember, without your news, quotes, and case studies, they’ve nothing to share. Their entire raison d’etre is to provide insight into trends, developments, breakthroughs, disappointments, and solutions in your sector. Only you can provide these. Getting the journalist’s attention is simply a matter of earning it by providing them with material they want to share.”

Timing – “Finally, get your timing right. Your industry has a news agenda or a set of issues that are topical and causing interest at any given time. You get noticed by journalists by sharing insights and experiences that inform the current ongoing discussion in the media. Do that and Journalists will not only carry your news but use you as a trusted future source and contact.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Adisa Amanor-Wilks,��Director of Abjel Communications

“A solid public relations plan is an important and efficient way to get your company’s name out there and raise awareness about what you do. But hiring an agency to build and manage your PR efforts can be expensive. Fortunately, there are a few things you can do now to kickstart your PR efforts. And they won’t cost you much but time. Here are three things you can start to do today to boost your company’s image in the public.”

Write and submit guest posts – “People are always looking for different perspectives on various issues, and so a blog post is a great way to demonstrate your knowledge and understand your industry. You can create your blog and/or send these to your local media to publish.”

Conduct original research – “Conducting your research helps give you data you can use for your communications and brand positioning. Look into issues that affect your industry and matter to your audience. Then start conducting some study into the case. Collate the information you get and present it to your audience. By offering unique data, you’re positioning your company as a credible source for your clients and media.”

Get involved with a community charity – “There is no better reason to volunteer your time and resources to charity than the joy that comes from helping others – but there can be some added PR benefits when you donate your time to a worthy cause. Your participation can generate good PR through a press release or news article about the collaboration.”

Darryl Sparey,��Co-Founder and Managing Director at��Hard Numbers

“Be clear on why you’re investing in PR to start with, and what the outcomes are that you want to drive. If you’re a consumer-facing app, looking to drive downloads, I wouldn’t start with PR as my first investment in marketing. Once you’re clear on the objectives and how you define success, you need to understand who the audience is, and what the messaging and proposition is to them. This is something we can help perfect, but you need to have an idea of this. The audience can’t be “consumers over the age of 18″, either! Once this is agreed, it’s time to engage professional help, whether in-house, a freelancer or small agency. I wouldn’t advise founders to try and do this themselves without prior experience.”

“For start-ups, case studies are a great way to get exposure – media awareness of your client can be helpful in securing coverage. Write into all customer contracts that they have to provide a case study. 50% of your clients won’t question it, 25% will, and you’ll negotiate. The remaining 25% will flat out refuse, but you then have a contractual clause to negotiate a concession from your prospective client if you remove.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

John Norris,��Co-founder and Director of Moonlight IQ

“Start by focusing on developing a strong foundation through messaging – brand values – USP/differentiators – and understand why people should care.”

“Before anyone can become your client, they need to know you exist, what you do, and why you should be the preferred choice. We review every piece of client communication with the “two question test”:”

• So what? If you can’t answer this, start again.
• What’s in it for me? Bring relevance and value to your target audience.

“When setting out to develop the core messages, take time to produce a SWOT to understand the business in the wider, real-world context.”

“The aim of PR is to create and maintain a desired profile and perception of the brand values and benefits to customers. The brand should be easily recognised and consistent across all points of contact, including website, collateral, etc. Every touchpoint should look and sound like the same company.”

“A percentage of owned content is discounted by your audience, and direct advertising is often forgotten, but earned media is worth its weight in gold. Having external sources mention your business can make a major difference, but they first need to know you exist, what you do, and the benefits you bring.”

Nicola Finn,��Head of PR at OggaDoon

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Martin Brindley,��Founder of Alba Communications

“Like many things in life, when it comes to public relations (PR) it is a case of all or nothing. PR is a momentum game. Just sending out a press release and then doing no follow-up activity would garner minimal results. Far better to drip feed news stories and content to your target press over an extended period. This not only helps to build your credibility in the eyes of the journalist but shows how active you are in your marketplace.”

“The good news is that undertaking ongoing PR may not be as expensive as you might think. By avoiding bloated agencies that have large fixed costs to cover and turning to expert freelancers, you can have a solid ongoing start-up PR campaign for as little as £1000 a month.”

Jaillan Yehia,��Head of Communications at Meddbase Practice Management Software

“Not all tech companies have the budget or the bandwidth to hire a dedicated PR agency in the start-up phase, but that doesn’t mean they can’t approach their own PR with the same professional mindset – and basic toolkit – an agency would use.”

“Firstly, never underestimate the number of times you will field the same questions about your technology product or service.”

“However small and busy your team is, make an effort to write a set of key messages that define your points of difference, as well as the answers to all the obvious questions you expect to be asked in your first years of business. Doing this up front means you can reach for the same carefully crafted answers whenever a PR opportunity arises.”

“Secondly, remember how important it is to state the obvious.”

“Create a boilerplate about your organisation and add it to any corporate communications; not unlike an elevator pitch this is a short statement summarising your company and offering, so you don’t leave anyone guessing.”

“Spending time on these PR basics in the start-up phase will save countless hours of work later and define your brand from day one, ensuring a clear and consistent message which can be finessed as your business grows.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Helen Croydon,��Founder of Thought Leadership PR

“The First thing to think about before you approach the media is not who to contact. But how you envisage your story format to fit in.”

“Most people think of a news story as the main avenue to get into the media. But journalists think of stories as being either news, features or opinion pieces (written by guest contributors). They are in fact quite picky about what news is. For a startup, there aren’t that many things that could be newsworthy. Maybe a new round of investment or the release of a new report might make ‘news’. But sadly the launch of a new product is not considered news, nor is the fact that you have appointed a new senior figure.”

“Your idea may be more suited to a feature. For example you may have observed a new trend in your industry, in which case could you put your company forward as a case study to support that trend. Or, if your idea is based on personal advice – then perhaps you could suggest one of your senior leaders could write something about their unique take on something.”

“Only when you’ve figured out what you are pitching, can you then identify the platforms which run that sort of story, and then the role of the journalists you need to pitch to.”

Georgia Christley,��Account Manager at Carnsight Communications

Identify your USP – “why did you start the business in the first place and what do you offer that your competitors can’t? Try and distil this into a few lines or a paragraph. This is your elevator pitch.”

Have a think about your target audience – “what media are they reading or watching? Think about a range of titles from local sector to national and try and get a feel for what content they feature – interviews? News stories? Opinion pieces from business owners?”

Only launch when you are 100% ready to go – “when your website is live and flawless, and the company is ready to sell or be contacted. The planning phase before this and working out the messaging is just as key as the launch itself.”

“Think about your key sales periods and look at what is going on in the market.”

Start sowing the seeds – “when you receive your first bits of coverage, shout it from the rooftops, share on social media platforms – this helps build you a sustained profile.”

“Give PR the time it needs and make yourself available if journalists do come back – always respond promptly. Good PR is about building a relationship.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Julija (JJ) Jegorova,��Founder at Black Unicorn PR

“Always do your homework on a journalist you are planning to get in touch with and tailor your pitch before hitting ‘send’. There’s nothing worse than sending out templated mail-merges.”

“Basic research includes making sure that whoever you get in touch covers similar stories: read what they wrote in the past, find what makes them ‘tick’, if relevant – mention their past work. When sending a pitch – keep it short (a few paragraphs) and relevant: briefly introduce who you are, provide context, describe the problem you are trying to solve (beef it up with stats if you can) and talk about the solution that you/your company is providing. Don’t forget to provide relevant info right away: be it a press release or a G-drive with your press kit/background info/research/photography.”

“Be wary that journalists get dozens of pitches per day and they are under immense pressure, so it is up to you to make sure that they have all the relevant info at hand.”

Victoria Usher,��CEO at GingerMay

“Operating in a competitive and fast-paced industry, technology startups can leverage PR to establish a strong market presence. To do so, they should keep three tactics top of mind.”

“First, they should develop a thought leadership narrative that covers their areas of expertise and knowledge. Whether through interviews or opinion pieces, this approach will help to educate target audiences and build an authoritative voice in current industry conversations.”

“Secondly, monitor breaking news and provide insight or commentary on topical developments. Known as newsjacking, this tactic furthers professionals’ reputations as thought leaders and builds stronger relationships with reporters from key publications. Last but not least, tech startups can focus on search engine optimisation (SEO) strategies to create informative, quality website content that improves organic traffic and user loyalty.”

“Using these approaches to PR will not only amplify a tech startup’s reputation, but will also attract new business and enhance client retention by offering valuable and reliable insight into the key industry topics that matter to them.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Love Norlin,��Influencer Marketing and PR Executive at Redgert Comms

“Seeing a big photo of your face in the media can be great for your ego, but it’s not enough reason to splurge on PR. Media coverage can be helpful for startups wanting to get their story out, but without something newsworthy or unique to say, PR efforts risk falling flat. I often find that companies have their minds set on which type of communication service they need, and then retrofit their needs into it, thinking that, PR for example, will solve all their problems.”

“The first thing you should do is to carefully outline what you wish to achieve. Once you’ve got your objectives straight, I’d advise meeting with different types of agencies or a full-service agency. Knowing what your goals are you’ll be able to provide a much clearer brief, and better evaluate different proposals on how to reach them. You might find that investing in influencer marketing, SEO or Paid Social services will be better use of your money, or indeed, that PR is exactly what you need.”

“It’s pretty simple really: set your objectives, do your research and don’t start throwing money at a PR agency before you have all options on the table.”

Natalie Trice,��Career Coach, PR Mentor and Author of PR School

“There is no doubt that PR is a powerful communications tool and one that can help start-ups to proactively go out into the world and make a big impact.”

“From the word go, PR is a marathon, not a sprint and the intention is to be in it for the long term. Key to success is cultivating and nurturing relationships with the right contacts for you and your brand, which again, won’t happen overnight but, it is really worth putting in the time and energy to find those journalists, influencers and podcasters and investing time and consideration with those people.”

“By doing this, you are more likely to then start to see a sustained trail of media coverage – be that comment pieces, features, interviews or expert profiles – and this is what will put you top of mind for clients – current and potential – as well as investors, other members of the press, and, your peers will wonder how you keep popping up everywhere!”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Hannah Levitt,��Founder at Green Banana PR

“Timeliness is key. Even when you have the most exciting new product launch, or story, picking an optimal time to tell the media is so important to increase your chances of securing a feature.”

“Press coverage might not immediately translate into an increase in sales. Whilst a direct spike in website traffic and sales is always a bonus from press coverage, rest assured that press coverage is still a great way to introduce your product/brand to new potential customers who may convert at a later date.”

“Shout about your coverage. A seal of approval from a third party is something to highlight to your community; over newsletters, social media and even hero quotes on your homepage.”

“Quality over quantity. Highlight the top publications that you want to be featured in and focus your efforts on a targeted list rather than trying to be everywhere all at one. Journalists can tell when a press release has been blasted out and always prefer a tailored pitch.”

“The day you plant the seed is not the day you eat the fruit. Securing press coverage can be a timely process that requires patience and consistent work. From crafting your pitch, to creating assets, to the outreach and (much-needed) follow ups, but it’s all worth it in the end- you just need to be patient, keep abreast of current news and trends, embrace creative thinking and have fun with it!”

Catherine Lane,��Co-Founder of The Influence Crowd

“The most common mistake tech start-ups make is to focus on the product itself – what whizzy new features it has, or which great technology was used to build it. This approach will only win over a small percentage of your potential audience. To win over the rest of your market, you need to focus on the stories behind your product.”

“What problem is the product solving and what difference will it make to customers? Do you have any case studies or pilots willing to share how the product has transformed their life? Are there any colourful anecdotes from your early days in business or even childhood experiences that are relevant to its story? Approaching your communications from these angles will get you far greater exposure.”

“Never underestimate the value of the visual image either. Quirky photographs of the product and your team will help, as would an animated walk through of the product’s impact in action. By investing in this area at the start, you ensure that when the media come knocking, you will get more of their time or a larger feature than less visually clued-up rivals.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Nick Baines, Founder at Nara Communications

“My advice is simple: give the media what they want. The more journalistic startups can be, the better PR results they’ll secure. Reporters are not in the business of writing adverts about companies; they have their own areas of expertise, readers who they’re loyal to, and editors breathing down their necks.”

“Startups need to consider how best they can offer real value to a journalist. Is it data that shows a societal shift that’s newsworthy? Is it expert commentary that sheds light on a niche issue? Is it a piece of industry gossip you can provide ‘off the record’ (though please consult a PR professional in order to do this the right way)?”

“Finally, the most obvious – and yet often-ignored – piece of advice: read a journalist’s pieces. Learn what they write about, what they’re interested in, and how they structure their articles. This will inform your pitches, and make the journalist-startup relationship symbiotic rather than transactional.”

“Because ultimately, if you give a journalist what they want and nurture that relationship over a long period of time, one day they might even be amenable to writing that free advert for you.”

Joanna Dodd,��Managing Director of Rochester PR Group

“As a startup, it’s incredibly important that you take ownership and control of your reputation; don’t leave it to chance, to others, or even to your competitors to manage.”

“When planning your PR, ensure that you’re clear about what you want it to do for your business. Our view? Consider it as a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between your brand and your audiences. The best PR is carefully planned with time to formulate ideas, finesse messaging, create materials and ensure the right audiences are being targeted with the right messages.”

“In terms of defining what you want to get out of your PR activity, check back on your business objectives and plan your PR activity to help you achieve these. For example, for the business objective of reaching a sales target, you may need more or new audiences to know about your brand, and you would want to give them a reason to engage, eg a clear call to action, whether that be to drive traffic to a website or convert to purchase. The PR objective would therefore be to generate more awareness.�� Other classic startup objectives include successfully launching a new product or service, attracting the right talent, or securing investment.”

“Always think what’s in it for the journalist and the end reader/viewer of your message – not just what you want. Then you can tackle the interesting task of deciding which PR tactics will help achieve your goals.”

“Finally, remember that a good reputation isn’t earned overnight, it takes time to build. It’s important to think long term, while also looking for that short-term impact.”

“Rochester PR Group is a London-based consultancy specialising in UK market entry and international clients including startups and scaleups, which feature heavily in its portfolio. Rochester’s work ranges beyond traditional media relations and social media relations campaigns to include a wealth of services including brand positioning and messaging development.”

For any questions, comments or features,��please contact us directly.

Ryan Haynes,��Lead Consultant at Haynes MarComs

“When embarking on any PR campaign, consider how you will calculate success. You need to know your commercial goals to decide what you want to gain from media coverage; whether it’s new customers, new partners, raising product awareness or appealing investors.”

“This will make a difference between going for targeted sector-specific campaigns or embarking on a national media campaign. Circulations are worth considering, but bear in mind that while big is great sometimes a niche, engaged audience will deliver better results.”

“The location and size of an article is also important. A tiny snippet can be missed, as can one in the wrong section of a print title or online magazine. Sometimes brands get extra mileage if it is referenced in the contents page or a newsletter.”

“When sharing information about the product or company consider use of keywords and messaging to keep your proposition consistent and give extra weight to wider marketing and SEO efforts.”

“Results may vary from audience reach and type, to levels of engagement, or increasing backlinks to your website to build domain authority. Set up Google Analytics to record results as this could represent the success of someone reading about you. And avoid using old fashioned measurement techniques such as Equivalent Advertising Values.”

“No ‘one size fits all’ method will work when measuring the success of a PR campaign, so make sure you focus on the outcome to measure the success and iterate your approach.”

Gemma Birbeck, Director of Loaded PR

“The best advice I can give to start-ups looking to incorporate PR into their growth strategies is to aim for relevant and targeted exposure, rather than trying to achieve mass coverage anywhere and everywhere.”

“A starting point to achieving this is to identify which publications you should be appearing in and what you should be talking about. It might feel tempting to reach out and pitch for a feature solely focusing on your product or service, but the reality is most publications will regard this as an attempt for free advertising.”

“What you want to do instead is spend some time developing a series of customer personas based on your target audience. Get to know their current challenges, the issues they may face over the next 12 months due to political, environmental, societal, technological, legal and economical changes, and what kind of information you can provide which may act as solution to their current or possible challenges.”

“Then, make use of free tools such as SEMrush, Answer the Public and Buzzsumo to identify the specific areas of interest and topics they engage with the most, and pull it all together into a research document. Review the information you’ve gathered and begin to ideate some titles for thought leadership pieces, creating synopsis’ of what each article would cover.”

“Once you’ve created these, you can begin to explore the publications your audience is reading and identify how your thought leadership pieces might work for these publications. Look at how the articles are structured, who the journalist is that writes about the topic you are proposing, and the tone of the articles they share, and document everything so that when it comes to pitching your article idea to them, they recognise you’ve done your research.”

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Callum Attew,��Senior Consultant at Boldspace

“By definition, startups innovate in everything they do. But creativity and ingenuity should not be confined to developing new products or implementing new ways of working for staff. PR – or how you tell your story to the outside world and get people talking about you – is as important when it comes to growth, not just to attract customers but potential investors, staff and the other important partners any start-up will need on its journey to success. Ambitious brands rightly want a voice in the conversations most relevant to their business, but they have to earn that voice – and that’s where PR comes in.”

“Sitting at the heart of any effective PR strategy should be data. Setting clear objectives at the start of any campaign helps you to outline the trajectory you want to head in, but data ultimately helps you to get there. It helps inform what you should be talking about in the first place by identifying what’s really driving conversations (as opposed to just what you think), and it ensures you can constantly optimise what you’re doing to focus on what works and binning what doesn’t.”

“Only by tracking everything from brand exposure to sentiment to what your competitors are talking about, and then overlaying the key business metrics that matter to you, will you get a real sense of how well your PR is functioning. PR for vanity’s sake is pointless – it must be a core part of driving the all-important bottom-line and growth metrics.”

“PR is often seen as an archaic industry, lugging behind others when it comes to technology and innovation. But by putting an emphasis on data from day one you can strategically and effectively take steps to enhance your brand visibility and avoid being left in the dark.”

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Simon Moss, Director at Element Communications

“The UK is a hotbed of innovation, with thousands of startups founded every year, blazing a trail across a wide range of industries. But what this has created is huge competition and crowded marketplaces where it can be difficult to stand out from the crowd.”

“When embarking on their PR strategies to build awareness, relevance and credibility, startups must first leverage their strengths. Startups by design are entrepreneurial, problem-solvers, born out of taking on the challenges in front of them. To connect this to an audience, it needs to align with a vision and purpose to win the hearts and minds of the people who will buy their product or service. This requires the startup to show ambition and interest in bigger macro issues that impact social and economic trends that trigger emotive responses.”

“It can be difficult for startups, who have yet to gain a significant market share, to demonstrate their credibility in the market. So when devising their PR strategy, they must balance creativity with authenticity, as impactful campaigns should demonstrate the personality and passion of the business and their founders.”

“PR is often a significant investment for startups at a time when every penny matters. Because of this, the traditional PR ‘retainer’, offering little in the way of firm commitments, often fails to inspire founders and entrepreneurs. Companies making their first investment in PR must be confident that they’ve found a partner who will not only run standout campaigns for them, but are able to back up the talk with a commitment to business outcomes.”

Jessica Smith, Co-founder & CXO SomX

“Get crystal clear on your purpose. What problem are you solving and why? Who are you solving the problem for and how are you the best people to solve the problem? The pressure test it with people outside your organisation – can someone that has never heard of your organisation understand what you’re doing?”

“The answers to these questions should exist in a few short bullet points, acting as the cornerstone of your communications strategy, running through the centre of every PR asset and piece of content you publish internally and externally. The best communication is always simple, authentic and makes your purpose shine through.”

“In the early stages of a start up, you can absolutely do PR and communications yourself. Once you have your key messages and you know what audience you’re trying to reach, research which journalists are writing about related topics and keep a list.”

“Make sure you’re following them on socials and keeping abreast of the news they’re covering so you know how to make your story relevant to them. There are some great blog posts and tutorials on guide you through the process of writing a press release. Remember it’s not always about getting journalists to write about you. Particularly as a start up, you need to consider your company’s social channels as a news channel too sharing regular and consistent content that adds value for your audiences.”

“Once you’re ready to consider working with an agency, do your research and take your time to find the right parter that suits your business. Finding an agency that feels like an extension of your team and has the sector-specific expertise to deliver an integrated programme across multimedia content and PR is the key to success.”

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Katie Morhen, Founder and Director of 52eight3

“Throughout my career in the events and MICE industries, I’ve witnessed and embraced the changes that public relations has taken. The PR and comms industry has evolved at quite some pace, partially to keep up with the equally developing, and demanding, needs of the current corporate climate.”

“I’m of the opinion that taking a digital approach to PR is best. That is not to say that traditional PR does not have a place, going digital merely provides an extension to allow businesses to track traffic and activity, with the benefit of easier campaign measurement. Digital data is easier to digest and therefore helps inform future advertising and purchasing decisions, i.e., if it’s getting traction from a particular magazine article, look to partner with this outlet.”

“Digital PR is the real bread and butter for my team at 52eight3. It’s a go-to link building technique to give us the best possibilities in brand awareness and gives a real vote of confidence for both targeted audiences online, but also search engines. Our guides are a great insight for any start-ups looking for digital guidance within events. Digital is a real winner.”

Siobhan Lipnicki,��Buzz Lead Media

“For any start up, PR should be part of the business plan from the very beginning. A good communications strategy from the start, both public facing and internally, will benefit every aspect of the business. It affects how successfully you can recruit new talent, how attractive it is to invest in your company and of course your ability to find customers.”

“Many start ups hire a PR agency or consultant only after chronically delaying their launch. Even if you are not in a position to take on a PR consultant on a long-term basis, hiring someone for a specific campaign or to launch a new product or service can be the key to success. Be sure to quiz them about their contacts including journalists, bloggers and influencers, their results from previous campaigns and ideas to achieve the impact you want for your brand.”

“Don’t underestimate the power of social media. It is an essential marketing and PR tool that all start ups should use to their advantage. Even if your PR consultant is not managing your social accounts or the content, they should include all your channels in their editorial ideas and planning meetings to maximise the success of campaigns.”

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Seb Burchell,��Digital PR Manager at NOVOS

“PR for startups can be tricky as there are so many marketing channels to choose from and so many ways to drive awareness! It goes without saying that firstly, you need to create a PR strategy and identify the areas of the media/public you want to target and that are actually suited to your business, and then plot your route on how to get there. Acknowledge budgets and resource as well as this can take significantly shape what you’re able to do.”

“In a dream world, you work for a start-up that’s created something that’s genuinely good, and subsequently, your product has naturally created hype. If not the product, you can look for some personal angles related to the founder’s background that could be pitched to make a compelling story. It is also worth looking into getting some local coverage as the local press is more responsive to pitches and you can use the opportunity to build credibility.”

Oliver Bradley,��Client Director at Words + Pixels PR Agency

“The main problem that startups face when starting to do some PR, is that they approach journalists with something they want – usually, this means coverage for their business. However, this is unlikely to get a result. Founders need to reframe their thinking and ask themselves, ’how can I help this journalist and add value to their work?’.

“In order to do this, you need to understand the journalist, the publication and what they write about, which takes time and research.”

“Start by reading everything, from the national media to the trade titles for your own industry, and those of your customers. You’ll quickly notice trends in the type of stories being written, how your competitors are positioned, and the journalists writing them (and their opinions). It will also help you understand the type of information and detail a journalist needs to write a story, from facts and figures to punchy soundbites.”

“Once you’ve identified a few journalists that you want to approach, don’t pitch them straight away. Engage with them on social media, read and share their articles, give your opinion on them so you open a constructive conversation with them. When you’re finally ready to pitch them your story, you should offer everything you know they already need to write, tailored to their publication – from the hook to the data. The result will hopefully pay off and set the tone for a long-term, value-based relationship with them.”

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Ben Goldsmith,��Managing Director of��Goldsmith Communications

“Technology startups should develop their PR strategy with two main thoughts in mind: audience and messages.”

“In terms of audience: startups need to think specifically about who they want to reach. Not just broad industry areas or geographies, but particular levels of seniority, job roles and similar. In terms of messages, startups need to ask the question: what do you want those people to understand about your company? Not just: what are our key differentiators? But, how do our key differentiators really make a difference to customers, investors or future employees?”

“Before any of this, startups need to work out whether PR is the most direct route to their desired outcome. To use an example: if a company’s overarching goal is to reach a broad audience of new parents, and to convince them that their product is the safest on the market; is targeted advertising perhaps a better route than media relations? PR can be hugely impactful, and a route to real influence, but you need to know exactly why you’re doing it, and for what ends.”

“And, of course, read the news every day. It will help you understand what makes an interesting story (and what won’t make it into the news at all).”

Rosie Davies-Smith,��Founder and Director of PR Dispatch

“The key piece of advice that I can give startups wanting to start doing PR is to do your research. Actually read the publications you want to be featured in and look at what topics they focus on; then think about how your business could fit into those topics. Also consider how far ahead of publishing a publication is compiling their features as there is no point in contacting a magazine about your summer story if they’re already working on Christmas.”

“Secondly, once you know what your pitch will be about you’ll also need to make sure you have the right assets. This is usually imagery as the press is a very visual medium so have relevant high quality imagery that you can share as well key product or brand information that an editor will need in order to feature you.”

“And last but not least, remember that it’s never too early to start doing your PR. You don’t need to have been in business for a set amount of time before you start reaching out to the press as long as you have your imagery and assets ready you can start your PR asap.”

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Cordelia Meacher,��Founder and Managing Director at FieldHouse Associates

“In their desire to show how innovative they are, startups often unnecessarily overcomplicate what they do, obscuring the exciting truth with buzzwords they think will inspire investors, customers, and the media but in fact often prove to be turn-offs. Time-poor journalists are inundated with emails from startups trying to break through – they don’t want to have to crack the Enigma code to work out what you do and whether it’s worth their while finding out more, let alone actually writing about you.”

“In building out your key messages, take a breath and consider how you’d describe your business to a generally well-informed but non-specialist friend or relative and go from there – avoiding jargon and being succinct is far more useful than information overload. Focus on articulating the problem you solve, why it matters, and how the way you’re doing it is different to and better than others. If the target is interested, they’ll let you know – less is more.”

“Another thing to bear in mind is timing. If you’re going to contact a journalist, make sure you have something meaningful to say beyond alerting them to your mere existence. It can be a frustrating experience all round, and impede future opportunities, if a founder becomes tight-lipped and doesn’t make a conversation worth the journalist’s while.”

“Finally, never underestimate the importance of powerful imagery. Being able to provide some arresting visuals can sometimes make the difference between securing coverage or being passed over. Invest in good photography – of team members, products, facilities, etc. – that can accompany news stories or profiles, but make sure it’s visually interesting and not just another corporate headshot.”

Charlie Le Rougetel,��MD at BIGTOP

“Whether you’re a startup or have been around for decades, have a tiny budget or a huge one, your approach to PR should always be the same: what are your objectives? What the hell do you want to get out of it? Do you want to drive traffic to your website? Sell product? Raise awareness of your CEO as a thought leader? Attract investment?”

“Once you’ve established that, then you look at where those people live on and offline – how can you reach them? Is it through the nationals, tech trades, VC press, business media, GQ, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok?”

“At that point, figure out your messaging – what you want to say to them? To do this, first ask what they need from you to meet their business objectives; what problems can you solve?”

“Next up, budget. How much money can you afford to spend and how often and who’s going to manage your PR – someone in the office, or an external agency/freelancer?”

“Once you’ve established all of this, you can create your strategy and outline exactly what your gameplan is to get your messaging to the right audience through the right platform. It may be through news releases, thought leadership articles, insight papers and reports, video, social media, blogs to ramp up your SEO, influencer activity, hiring ambassadors or brand advocates… whatever you choose, good luck and remember there are very few quick wins, so make sure you are in it for the long game.”

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Martin McGourty,��Associate Director at PAN Communications

“In the startup world, PR is especially important. It can offer growing businesses with a need for speed the chance to fast track their credibility – and this can be the making or breaking of an early stage company that has to raise funds quickly.”

“VCs look for shortcuts when making investment decisions, and third party validation in credible media they trust can help tip the scales. So, PR is a vital investment to support startup growth. This investment doesn’t always have to be money though. In the early days, it can be your time. Rather than paying for it, bootstrapped founders could do their own PR. Journalists like to learn about exciting new ventures directly from the smart people behind the idea, so founders should consider reaching out to select influential media to build relationships and introduce the business.”

“This approach is not sustainable as the business scales, however, and your time gets squeezed, and your stakeholders and communications needs become more complex. At some point, you’ll need dedicated media experts on the team to tell your story, whether hired internally, externally (through an agency) or both. They can help you really move the needle with stand-out strategic narratives and messaging that talk directly to your key audiences, and creative campaigns that grab media attention, drive brand awareness and sales.”

Dina Mostovaya,��Founder and Managing Director of Mindset Consulting

“Can PR help a startup raise investments? It can. But it is important to remember that if you want to raise investments in a year, you need to start doing PR today.”

“PR is about relationships that directly affect funding. So there are 5 points to consider before attracting investments.”

• Think about your company’s positioning. How do you want to be perceived? It is essential to be able to answer the question “Who are you and what are you doing?” simply and concisely.
• Prepare and practice a clear pitch in 3-4 sentences. Be ready to present the product and intrigue a potential investor as quickly as possible.
• Write a PR dogma for the team. The startup team should definitely understand how to act and what to say in the public space.
• Make an Investor hub on your website or on any other protected resource.
• Continuously develop the network and build strong relationships with influential people.

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