Welcoming an external team into your business can be challenging. As a PR agency, we understand that we have to earn our client’s trust and we’d like to think we’re pretty good at doing that, with a number of retained and returning clients acting as proof of this.

Therefore, we put a lot of time and energy into building those relationships with our clients. We respect and value them and what they do, both as individuals and as a business. We work hard to understand them (see our messaging session blog to learn more about how we reach this point).

For us to deliver the best PR results possible, our clients have to be able to let their guard down.

Let me explain what I mean by that.

Think of it like a relationship

Any relationship needs to be built on the foundation of mutual trust, respect and understanding – a PR/ client relationship is no different. As a PR agency, our job is to get to know the business inside and out, pretty and ugly. If things are being kept from us, we can’t do our job. We can’t address issues and we can’t control the message.

On a bad day

One of the things we cover in the very early stages of working with a client is what they are like ‘on a bad day.’ Basically, we talk about the negative bits – the gaps in the business, the places where things have been overlooked, the experiences that were handled poorly, the challenges faced internally. It is absolutely vital that we lay that stuff out on the table in order for us to do the best job that we possibly can.

We’re not here to judge. We’re here to help! It comes back to developing trust.

We can be off the record

Although we never advise off-the-record conversations with journalists – we have many of these with clients

We need to know the full picture so we can understand what to focus on.

We are happy to sign NDAs if the information is challenging.

It will help us to prepare and focus on the good stuff

It also helps us to prepare lines for the questions that you don’t want to answer or the eventualities that will hopefully never happen – such as:

• The event we were helping to plan where someone with a vendetta could have turned up
• The disgruntled ex-board member who was a loose cannon
• The unhappy customer who was threatening to go to the media

An outside perspective

Your PR agency is ultimately on your side, but they’re also an outside perspective. This is a positive thing! They can look at things from a different point of view and may be able to shed light on some of your business blind spots.

I love a saying. I find myself increasingly trotting them out – probably more so the older I get. I can almost see the eye rolls from here! The thing is, the news agenda might constantly change (minute by minute, at the moment) but certain PR principles remain the same. Here are the most useful sayings in PR you might hear me utter.

Forewarned is forearmed

Preparation is vital in all aspects of PR. It’s why we start off with a deep dive into your business with our Three Lens Messaging Session – so that we’re ready to answer quick questions from journalists and respond to media opportunities proactively.

The same is true for media interviews. If you can prepare answers to the most common questions – including those you don’t want to answer – you’ll feel a lot more confident going into an interview and representing you and your business well. We always offer a call with clients before an interview and written notes where it would help. Even if they’ve done interviews many times before, we need to bear in mind what’s going on in the news and what fresh questions might come up. We have some top tips on preparing for a journalist interview on the blog.

It’s an art not a science

This was one from my sister, who also works in communications, and has been a very useful sounding board for me (thanks, Char). Sometimes I wish PR was a science with a proven formula, and that effort in always equalled effort out. But mostly, I embrace the fact that PR is an art and sometimes things come off that you couldn’t have imagined working. That’s why, as business you should work with creative people who can quickly adapt and fully understand the media process.

Success breeds success

I found myself saying this just last week. If you’re building a profile from scratch, be realistic and allow time for this to happen. Your PR consultancy could land a stellar piece of coverage immediately, but often it takes time. Once you have a few pieces under your belt, it’s much easier for you to be sold in, as any journalist will do due diligence on an expert commentator.

We talk to clients about the building blocks of content – even featuring some interesting, pithy pieces on your blog giving your views is a great place to start. We’ve sold people in on the strength of a good blog before. There’s much more about building profiles through PR on our blog.

You can lead a horse to water

This is another key one – with PR, you can do everything well, and provide a publication or a journalist with exactly what they’ve asked for – but ultimately, the end result is out of your hands. It’s sometimes even out of their hands, as it might fall to an editor above them. The skill is in getting the best possible results in every situation, and managing everyone’s expectations along the way.

There’s more about why we don’t guarantee media coverage on our blog, and even more about the difference between advertising and PR.

It’s PR, not ER

At the end of the day (there’s another saying, creeping in!) our jobs are important, but we shouldn’t ever be anxious about them. I don’t want my team (or me) to be up all night worrying about work. We keep things in perspective, and we try and work people who do the same. PR is responsive and can be hit and miss, but we have to understand what’s within our control and what’s not within our control.

So there you go, some of the most useful sayings in the world of public relations, and no doubt, I’ll be using at least one of them again soon.

“I feel like we’re saying the same thing over and over.”

This is something we hear a lot from our clients. And it’s a valid concern. No one wants to be banging on about the same thing forever. That being said, you’d be surprised how important repetition is when it comes to PR.

PR is all about spreading and emphasising your key messages. That means repeating the message more than once and in more than one place.

What might feel like a simple and obvious thing to you – a message that forms the very basis of your business and the problem it solves – is likely not as obvious to the wider industry, hence why your business exists, right? Though it may feel redundant to you internally, externally it’s those very messages that you need to repeat. That’s how you become known and that’s what you become known for.

For example, at Carnsight Communications, we’re always talking about how important PR is for your business. Even more specifically, we’re always talking about why PR is so important for SMEs. We’re always repeating that message, and we repeat it because that’s what we do and what we want to be known for. There are number of key messages we push:

• PR and Small/Medium Size Businesses – why it’s important and why it doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg
• The importance of local and trade press – why businesses shouldn’t be ignoring it
• The importance of flexible working
• etc, etc

They’re not revolutionary ideas, especially not for us internally, but they’re messages our target clients need to hear and be reminded of. And we have our own special take on them, our own expertise and insights.

There will definitely come a time when you need to vary your messaging, but I can almost guarantee that that time will come much later than you think. Also, evergreen content will always be needed and this is where your key messages can come in yet again.

Revolutionary, unique and groundbreaking comments and takes are fantastic. Of course, we love those in PR! But they’re rare by their very nature – and there’s nothing wrong with that. There’s no such thing as an original idea, right? We’re all building on those that came before us.

Sometimes it’s not about saying something that’s never been said before, it’s about saying something well and in enough ways to reach someone new and have it resonate.

Are you curious about what a social media executive role involves? In today’s world, most of the population have some sort of social media presence. Social Media is a great way to stay connected with friends across the globe, as well as stay up to date with both local and global news.

It’s no surprise that businesses have embraced social media as part of their marketing strategy, with 57% of the 5.8 million small businesses in the UK having a social media presence (Socialbuzzing, 2019.) As this figure continues to grow, social media roles are in high demand with businesses looking to up their social media game. In today’s blog, we’ll go through what a social media executive job involves and what they can bring to the table.

Brainstorming to generate creative content

Social media executives are responsible for suggesting ideas that are tailored to both the specific audience and social media platform. This part of the role involves a lot of chasing in order to get clients to send over suitable photographs, whether from a work outing, a few office shots or photos of team achievements. It’s important to keep content fresh and varied, with a mix of media and as well as topics.

Tracking relevant awareness days 

Tracking awareness days that are relevant to a business is a great way to generate both social media posts and blog ideas. A social media executive will create a tailored content calendar for each business they manage which will help in scheduling content appropriately. With the help of social media scheduling platforms such as planable or loomly, social media executives can optimise posting times to reach as large an audience as possible. Scheduling ahead of time also ensures that a business has posts lined up and ready to go, guaranteeing consistency.

Editing blogs and posts using keywords

It is important that businesses focus on the use of keywords when writing blogs and posts. By integrating keywords in text, you will strengthen SEO, allowing your content to reach a larger audience. A social media executive will work on weaving keywords into both new and older blog posts, which will also increase organic traffic onto your business’s website.

Reporting and providing analysis

Social media roles involve monitoring the level of engagement posts are receiving and producing reports on a regular basis. By collecting data in the form of page visits, likes, shares and comments, we can find out if our strategy is working or not and adjust to improve. Content can also be tailored better to the needs of the business’s specific audience.

We hope these points have helped you decide if your business would benefit from having a social media person on the team, or feel free to read our blog post on how social media analytics can help your business here.

Are you making the most of the coverage you’ve achieved through PR? Can you lay your hands on it quite quickly or is it languishing on a link, in an email, on a spreadsheet (or even a shelf)? As with any part of the marketing mix, PR works best when you use it in conjunction with other channels, and there are a range of ways you can maximise any coverage achieved to real effect. Read on for our top tips on making the most of your media coverage.

Firstly, why do more with media coverage?

Of course, media coverage will reach people as that’s its job, but what if you can extend its reach? Just look at what publications themselves are already doing – sharing their news on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter as that’s where they can reach even more of their audience. Not to mention individual journalists doing it themselves on their social channels. There’s a lot you can do to make coverage work harder.

So, how can you use your coverage?

1. Newsletters

Email newsletters (or even paper newsletters, as one of the brands we work with uses) are a great way to update clients, prospects and peers on your latest services, offers and news. They’re also an ideal place for you to share media coverage achieved. Sharing published pieces – not just blogs – demonstrates the authority of your opinions and your profile.

The best newsletters are short, succinct and blend news and opinion – you can even just have a small “in the news” section at the bottom with headlines and mastheads of publications. We have more top tips for email newsletters.

2. Sending to prospects

We tie in our PR plan with your new business focus, so if you’ve had a piece published that’s relevant for a prospect, why not share it with them? Some people do this through LinkedIn or some via email. It can work well if you’re already in dialogue with them about the issue, but it can also work as a cold contact. Perhaps it’s relevant to something they’ve said publicly that you can refer to.

Sharing a link or reproduced article (“have you seen our piece in Business Leader on the topic?”) has more authority than sending a link to a company blog (although those definitely have their place, as you’ll understand if you’re reading this!)

3. On social media

Are you sharing your coverage on your social channels? A comment and tagging the publication and journalist are a really good idea, too. Reshare and like the original as well as considering summarising the key points in a post. You can share the same piece in a few different ways at relevant times. If you’re stuck, have a look at our quick social media guide to comments, shares and tags.

Different channels work in different ways, but LinkedIn and Twitter are generally popular and give you different options for sharing. Instagram is much more visual so ensure the image is right.

4. Sharing on your website

You can link to articles from your website or use published pieces as inspiration for blogs. This is a great way to get two bites of the cherry and potentially help your SEO efforts. Just be careful not to duplicate content completely, word-for-word.

5. On industry sites or trade bodies

There are plenty of industry trade bodies and organisations that welcome member news. Make sure you’re maximising them! It doesn’t take long to share press articles with them. They may share online and on their own newsletters and they often include links, that other publications may not, depending on their editorial policy.

6. In an annual summary

It’s handy to keep track of coverage achieved each year and it’s a good reference for a new PR consultancy or team members. You can quickly see what you’ve been communicating that year and where. You can even use it as part of a welcome pack to your company.

7. On your slack or intranet – or the humble pinboard

Your internal audience is also really important. I remember how it felt to not be part of the PR process when I worked in marketing – the senior people seemed to be featured in articles and I had no idea about the strategy or what it meant for the company. Actually, good company PR can be really good for team morale, amongst other benefits.

An easy way to get your team on board is to share media coverage wherever they’ll see it – even if that’s a page cut out and displayed near the coffee machine. Your PR consultancy or PR agency could also offer to come in and share the PR strategy and results with the company, as we often do.

Sharing correctly

It’s also important to say that there are rules surrounding what coverage you can and can’t share without buying a licence – but these don’t apply to every publication. Please refer to The National Licensing Authority for full details.

If you’re wondering if it’s time for your business to start a newsletter, this post is for you. You might be thinking ‘I’m nailing it with my social media channels and have been consistently putting out quality content in blog posts, so why would I need a newsletter as well?’ There are countless benefits that come with starting a newsletter that you don’t get from other forms of media and communications. Read on for three top reasons why you should create a newsletter for your business.

A newsletter can help you stay connected

A monthly newsletter helps you connect with your current audience. Let’s face it, not everyone chooses to spend their time scrolling through social media endlessly – but everyone has an email address. Emails are a key means to directly connect to your existing audience. And unlike social media which requires constant upkeep through engagement, newsletters are a simple way to share important news and keep your audience informed. With the click of a button, your news will be instantly distributed to your mailing list.

Newsletters are also an important way to keep your business fresh in the eyes of those who have already done business with you. This encourages clients who have already used your services to either do so again and/or keep them reminded of your brand, which may lead to more business from those they have recommended you to.

Increase audience trust and business’s credibility through your newsletter

Sharing consistent and credible information through a newsletter will increase your business’s authority, allowing you to come across as a professional in your field. Make sure to provide readers with information that they can learn from or take and use in their own way. Showing personality is equally as important in your newsletters, so be sure to include team news, fun pictures of outings or office shots. By showing the more human side of your business, you will be able to build trust with your audience as people are more likely to find connections with other human beings than with a brand or business.

An important tip to keep in mind is quality over quantity. You do not want to send content out just for the sake of it. If you have nothing valuable to share, bombarding your mailing list with bad content is not a good idea and you will probably scare off people who have previously shown an interest in what you do.

Learn more about your audience

Newsletters work in a way that adds to the other content your business is putting out. For example, you can link to your website and social media channels from your newsletter, encouraging an increase in website traffic. You can also use newsletters to collect data on your audience such as, who’s reading which newsletter, how many click-throughs you’re getting and the most popular reading times.

You can then use this data to provide more tailored content to your audience, which further encourages traffic to your pages. Remember that at the end of the day, it’s never about you – how successful your business becomes is always in the hands of your clients or customers.

If you need help writing a newsletter, read our top tips for creating a successful newsletter.

Have you ever been criticised for hopping on the bandwagon of the latest trend? While there’s definitely a time and a place – this can actually be an incredibly effective communication and marketing strategy. It’s called newsjacking!

PR is a fast-paced yet rewarding career. We’ve all heard the saying that ‘life is too short’ right? So why waste your time in a career that doesn’t make you happy?

Being happy at work and loving what you do is an overall productivity booster. It’s a known fact that when you love what you do and feel happy at work – you tend to see a boost in your productivity and it enhances your staff’s performance. People who enjoy their job will more likely be motivated and produce a higher quality of work! Carnsight Communications recognises the need to ensure a healthy working/life balance.

PR: Why Carnsight?

For those of you who know the team at Carnsight Communications – it’s quite likely you will know that we all enjoy our roles. Carnsight Communications is a great company to work for with a flexible approach to a work/life balance.

Did you know, according to a 2021 survey, that more than a fifth of UK employees (21%) like their job or employer less than they did pre-pandemic? And nearly half of those employees (42%) also said that their job had become boring, repetitive, or dull. While a further quarter of these people believe their job had lost all meaning!

PR can definitely not be labelled as boring – that’s just one of the reasons why people like me, love our work so much!

Why is working in PR so rewarding?

Here are some of the key factors that play a part in keeping us all happy at work at Carnsight Communications;

In PR, we work on a variety of topics and sectors

Firstly, we work on a variety of topics and sectors – each day is never the same! We are able to work on many different campaigns from product launches to crisis management. The role brings so much variety and is fast-paced which doesn’t allow for boredom!

The joys of a Coverage Buzz

Coverage Buzz – there is nothing more rewarding than getting coverage for our clients – the buzz never gets old! If you’ve ever experienced the excitement of securing coverage, then you will know exactly how exciting this is. The buzz is always heightened when sharing with supportive team members or clients and they share the coverage too.

There is always something to learn in PR

The ever-changing nature of the industry means we as PR professionals have to stay on top of trends and must continually evolve with the times to stay ahead of the game –  keeping us busy and our minds active! What’s not to love about learning and self-development?

The Dream Team

We learn from the inspiring team around us – each member of Carnsight Communications brings their own expertise and skillset to the company. We are all able to learn from each other and work together as a team to create the best solutions for each project.

Proactive and empowering

Having worked in PR for a couple of years now, I can positively say that PR is not for everyone. A career in PR is fast-paced and there is always work to be done. You must be proactive and find solutions to problems rather than hoping that things may blow over or pass.  This can be empowering.

PR involves so much variety on a day to day basis

There is always a number of projects to work on . This includes managing clients’ teams and ensuring you balance your time across them all can be challenging. PR professionals usually keep many plates spinning at once and that certainly keeps us on our toes!

If you are one of those people who said you now find your job dull or boring, why not have a think about starting a role within PR? Take a look at some skills needed for a career in PR and media here.

Or look further into the expectations versus the reality of Public relations here.