Everything you ever wanted to know about PR (but were too afraid to ask)

In this week’s LinkedIn Live, our client lead Ness Kent spoke to PR superstar Pippa Goulden about PR for startups and how it can work for bootstrapped founders.?

We always come away from conversations with Pippa with so many ideas, and we’re sharing our favourite tips and takeaways right here (or you can watch the session in full ).

? PR is about storytelling and endorsements, not just media coverage

When we think of PR, we often think it’s a dark art, inaccessible to most founders, and that it’s simply about getting a bit of press coverage to promote your product or service. But in fact, it’s all about getting third party endorsements, and getting other people to tell your story.?

Think about your audience and what they want to hear from you; what’s new or interesting about the problem you’re solving, what life experiences encouraged you to start your business, what industry norms are you trying to change? Then look at who your audience trusts and engages with already - from publications to podcasts to speaking at events. Give them human connection and an opportunity to learn more about the story behind your brand.?

? You don’t need a big budget to get started

The only thing you need to get started is confidence and time! The biggest barrier is simply getting started.?

Pippa encourages founders to get started with PR early in their journey as it helps you to recognise the right opportunities, build relationships with journalists and other brands and influencers in your industry, and practice how to pitch your business. As long as you’ve got your story and a website to drive traffic to - then you’re ready to go!?

Getting started is also about understanding what journalists are looking for and where your business fits within a publication (or podcast, or event). Think less about pushing your brand and more about starting a conversation.?

Pippa’s top tip: Remember you’re not your audience, so start by immersing yourself in their world - reading the publications they’re reading, listen to the podcasts they’re listening to, etc. Understand their world, then look for ways to get featured or mentioned by offering interesting content and stories.?

? You can 100% do your own PR

Pippa says that PR is not rocket science, and this is so true.?

We think PR agencies are great, but the cost is simply out of reach of many bootstrapped founders. What you can do at this stage is upskill yourself and your team to do your own PR and then engage an agency further down the line.?

A huge plus of doing your own PR is that no one knows your story better than you. This is a perfect opportunity to craft it exactly how you want it.?

? It’s not always easy to measure, but you’ll know if it’s working

Pippa says that you will know when PR is working for your business because people will tell you that they read your comment in an article or heard you on a podcast.?

Print and off-line PR isn’t as easier to measure as online (but that’s not to say it’s not worth doing). We use Google Analytics to measure spikes in website traffic, and native social analytics for mentions and comments.?

You should also think about how your PR can integrate into the rest of your marketing - celebrate it in your newsletters, shout about it on socials - remind your audience about what others say about you.

If you would like to learn more about doing your own PR, Pippa runs a session on this subject in The Scale Up Marketing Accelerator , our online self-guided programme for bootstrapped startups. Designed to give you the tools you need to scale your business, in a format that allows you to learn at your own pace.

If your business is out in market and starting to build momentum, this programme will empower you to work strategically and with the knowledge and tools you need to hit your targets for a fraction of the cost of a full-time marketing team.?

? 21 video masterclasses and practical downloads, packed with examples and specialist content from our network of marketing experts

? Closed Slack community with access to the Scale Up team and other founders, where you can ask questions and get feedback

Get lifetime access for ￡995 (inc VAT)