How effective are your business communications?

Over the years I've met hundreds of businesspeople who value public relations, understand it can drive business growth, and want to be talked about in the press.

But most are not ready to hire a PR agency. 

Some lack the operational structure required to manage and support an agency. Others lack the provable traction, people, or case studies to interest journalists. 

• Is your in-house sales and marketing team overwhelmed with branding, sales materials, events, advertising, and content production?

• Do you need help building a content engine, and producing compelling content that people will engage with, for sales, marketing, social media and PR?

• Would you like to establish your people as thought leaders, and earn regular media coverage?

First, two things I'm not.

• I'm not a freelance publicist, who can go into a little black book of contacts and deliver immediate media coverage. Freelancers who do media relations well are usually sector-specialist, invest continually in a small pool of deep media relationships and know what those journalists want and when. If you have a story that's ready to go, and just need someone to sell it in, others can do that more cost-effectively than me.

• I'm also not a PR agency. PR agencies have teams who can deliver every aspect of comms; messaging, consultancy, content, campaign development - as well as media relations. Well-established agencies can deliver a far wider range of service, work around the clock in multiple verticals and markets - as well as maintain good media relationships.

What I can do is bring twenty-plus years of broad PR experience to your team; advising board-level people on comms strategy and where it fits in the organisation alongside sales and marketing, and supporting operational-level people on day-to-day tactical delivery. My focus will be on helping you build an effective in-house/ agency comms team so you can make better use of the resources you have.

I also know lots of very good publicists and agencies (not least The PR Network, for whom I am currently contracting) and if that's what you need, I'd be happy to make a recommendation. 😊