originally posted to www.carnsight.com

We don’t sit as a panel, there’s no getting in a warehouse lift to meet us and no interviewer outside asking about last-minute nerves. But, in many other ways, there are similarities between our process and Dragon’s Den. That’s because the success of PR and social media is closely linked to an understanding of your business fundamentals. And they’re something we work to understand really quickly. 

To create a compelling pitch about a new product, to work out where we need to focus our media attention, or how to craft a powerful social media post, we need to understand the product really well.  

We need to know the problem it solves and why it will fly. We need to know where it sits in the market and what its competitors are. We need to understand the target audience, and how it suits their needs, how many people you’re expecting to engage, as well as any seasonality. And we need to know your overall business objectives. 

It’s these facts that will lead us to the essence of the business, and will enable us to make someone stop and pay attention.  

That’s why we start with our Four Lens Messaging Session 

Our work always starts with a conversation to understand what you’re trying to achieve, but the real gems are uncovered in our Four Lens Messaging Session. We’ve designed this discovery workshop around busy founders and their teams or stakeholders, and it’s where we get to the heart of your business in just a few hours. 

We call it a Messaging Session as some of the key messages we’ll communicate around your business will spring from this workshop. It’s our job to uncover the interesting angles, and they come from a deep dive into your world.  

We understand what will engage a journalist 

For PR, the press release you might write about your business is rarely the one we would. That’s not to say that some of the content will be the same, but we filter it through a journalist’s lens. Remember, they’re not there to promote your business, they’re there to engage their readers. 

Knowing the ins and outs means that we can pitch this correctly. Are you really the only business doing what you do? Are you actually the first to launch this product? It’s fine if you’re not, but we need to find out what you are doing that’s different. 

We find the stories behind the business 

People buy from people, journalists buy people’s stories, as will your audience on social media. How many times do you click on a link because there’s an interesting line about the person’s life in the caption? One of the great things about working with founder-led businesses is the interesting backgrounds of the founders themselves. Your journey and your daily life is just as interesting – and sometimes more so – than your business. We work to identify those. 

Focusing on a PR or social media campaign can mean opening yourself and your business up for more scrutiny. It can lead to amazing results. But we understand that people have boundaries, so it’s good for us to establish those upfront.  

Numbers really matter 

When we ask for the numbers behind your market, your product or your team, it’s because those numbers matter. It’s important to get the details right, and strong stories often lead with numbers. So, we’re not asking for clarification to channel our inner dragon, but to make a better story. 

Being open with us really helps if a crisis hits 

It’s something many companies are nervous about, but the reality is, most businesses don’t face crises regularly. However, crisis management is an important part of our job, and that starts with preparation. 

It’s not appropriate to share case studies of crisis management but the common factor is that good management starts with us really understanding the situation. A lot of what you tell us doesn’t get passed on, but it’s important that we know everything, warts and all, to be able to respond in the right way and be ready for any question. 

You can turn the tables on us when it comes to reviewing activity 

Accountability is key, so we have regular check ins with clients (bi-weekly or monthly), to talk results, and offer a live status report and CoverageBook tracker for PR. After the first three months we do a more in-depth review and then do it again at regular periods. 

This is when our clients become the dragons! It’s good to understand what’s behind the numbers, what’s been working well and what needs to change, so we encourage questions and comments. 

We keep checking in 

Businesses evolve and focusses change, and no one can ever know your business better than you do. So, our regular check ins ensure we talk about what’s going on in our clients’ business and the wider market. Sometimes people choose to hold another Messaging Session, which can help us understand what’s going on right now. 

So, never fear the dragons! When we know your business inside and out, we can make sure journalists and followers really understand it, too. Every question will help us get to a more powerful, authentic result. 

About Carnsight Communications

At Carnsight Communications we create strategies and campaigns to showcase our clients’ brilliant work through PR, content and social media. We help them get noticed by the right audience, at the right time. We specialise in creative agency PR.