A deeper dive into PR for
owner-managed businesses
Owning your own business is a dream for many people. It is an opportunity to showcase a particular skill or ability, an idea, an invention or method of working that is particular to the business owner, their values and aspirations.
Once in business there are so many elements to think about over and above the founder’s key skill; those at the top of an owner-managed business often find they have very little time to do the things they are best at or enjoy most – or conversely, are so busy doing those things, that they aren’t able to tackle anything else and struggle to drive the business forward.
Accountants and lawyers are often hired early on to deal with the number crunching and contract issues, followed shortly afterwards by a marketing or business development specialist to go after the sales.
Savvy businesses are usually keen to explore PR at this point, as a means of adding credibility and third-party endorsement to their marketing efforts. A vital part of business success is making your prospective clients and customers aware of who you are and what you do – through the media, across all your digital marketing platforms and other touch points – and PR enables this to be done in a newsworthy, interesting and creative way.
You may have some of the PR skills yourself and want to take responsibility for building your profile as the “public face” of your business, there is a danger that you may be too close to it to do it justice. What may be ‘business as usual’ to you may be news to others.
Finding a public relations agency that understands where you are in your business journey and what is important to you right now is vital to success. At Empica, we have worked with many owner managers at different stages, from start up to scale up to exit, helping them to identify their narrative, shape their communication messages and develop a meaningful strategy aligned to their wider objectives. We also bring objectivity, consistency and a joined-up approach.
What are the advantages of working with a PR agency?
There are many advantages to you in your role as owner-manager as well as to the business and its staff. These include:
PR to enhance your brand
A strategic public relations agency will help you to be clear about your brand values and communicate them authentically and in a way that will resonate with your customers. At Empica, we help our clients to develop a narrative and tease out brand stories that will get their key messages across in a powerful and meaningful way.
There are likely to be bumps along the way. Rival businesses may start up, undercut you or try to wrestle your clients or customers away. A consistent and persistent public relations campaign that is dynamic, intelligence-led and always evolving will help keep you ahead of the game.
What are the advantages of outsourcing PR to an agency?
Many owner-managed businesses are not large enough to employ a dedicated PR practitioner and even if they have in-house marketing staff, it is unlikely they will have the PR expertise to deliver the desired level of media coverage.
Even the most successful SMEs often prefer to outsource their PR to a specialist agency. At Empica, we often work directly with owner-managers or their marketing specialists. We invest time and energy into building long term relationships that grow with our clients’ businesses and we see ourselves as very much a part of their team.
Within a PR agency there will be many people with different skills that the owner-managed business can tap into and are unlikely to find in a single member of staff. Agencies are also a melting pot of ideas and creativity – and an independent resource, providing vital advice and hands-on support when needed, over and above the agreed deliverables.
And it is often easier for an owner-manager of a business to show their vulnerability, sense check ideas and express any challenges or concerns to an external agent rather than an employee or fellow director.
What PR support do owner-managed businesses need?
In summary, public relations can help with the development and delivery of your marketing aims and broader commercial objectives. It can help to build your reputation and protect it against threats, including negative customer reactions and reviews, rival businesses, adverse economic conditions and the setbacks of life, including fire or flood!
If you are an owner-manager... congratulations!
As an owner-managed business ourselves, we understand that it can be lonely at the top. Having a public relations practitioner alongside you as you grow and develop may provide the ‘trusted friend’ you need, providing advice in good times and in bad, to build and safeguard your reputation, give you a voice and ensure your success stories are properly communicated.
PR to help you achieve your strategic aims
Most of our owner-manager clients want to grow their market share and attract more clients and customers. There are often other audiences to consider too. For example, having a high profile can help to secure funding for business growth and development. Banks and investors tend to look more favourably on those with a higher profile and repeated evidence of success.
It can also help make an owner-managed business look attractive for take-over or sale. Sometimes, the public relations person is the only one that knows about the owner-manager's intentions for the business and it can be a delicate process to manage and communicate effectively with internal and external stakeholders. PR as part of an exit strategy is often a year in the planning and execution.
PR to put you in the public eye
Sustained, positive media coverage provides valuable third-party endorsement and credibility for your business. All businesses grow by recommendation and the media coverage that your PR agency will achieve for you can have the same impact as a trusted referral.
Your PR agency will act as a sounding board for ideas. We will advise on what is likely to resonate with journalists and what isn’t. We will help you to present information in a creative and newsworthy way, to grab attention and generate the media coverage you are looking for. We can even trial different approaches, for example around the launch of a new product or service and can undertake market surveys to gain insights and evolve what we do so you get the best return.
PR to aid recruitment
At Empica, we have helped many business owners and their HR teams (if they have them) to build their employer brand and attract key staff. Putting together the right narrative to attract the best candidates is critical, using all channels available to bring your values to life and give people a real sense of what it means to work for you. This needs to be borne out at every touch point and throughout the interview process, with PR helping to ensure communications and behaviours are aligned.
Internal PR
Shaping messages for staff as a business grows also falls into the category of public relations. It is vital that staff receive the same messages as people externally – and ideally first. A good PR practitioner will shape written and verbal announcements and advise on the timing and best way to deliver these to staff, taking all factors into consideration including the challenges of multi-site communications.
PR for award entries
Using their detailed knowledge of your business and its success stories, your PR agency can identify award schemes that will get you in front of your key audiences and help raise your profile. We collate all materials and undertake all copywriting for the award submissions, helping you and your staff get the recognition they deserve.
Award short-listings and wins also provide good PR opportunities, including media exposure, networking talking points, added credibility for new business pitches and tenders and motivating staff.
To find out more about how we can support you with your PR and content creation, please get in touch by calling 01275 39 44 00 or emailing contact@empica.com
PR to inform videos and other content
At Empica, our PR team works closely with our videographer, designer and others in our content creation team to ensure all forms of communication, whether visual or written, are consistent and on-message. These services are particularly valuable to owner-managers who do not have a comprehensive in-house marketing function.
We undertake all aspects of video production in-house, from corporate videos to training resources to social media reels. We work within our clients’ brand guidelines to develop social media assets and other digital marketing content, printed communications and media.