PR: The secret sauce for business success

A Q&A session with Flo Powell, Joint Managing Director, Midnight Communications

Midnight is a Brighton-based, nationally operating B2B PR agency, recently awarded as Small Consultancy of the Year at the PRCA Dare Awards in London and the South East.

It works with some fantastic clients across the country. For example in Sussex, it works with London Gatwick on its charity and community group funding programmes, with law firm Mayo Wynne Baxter, with a BCorp modular housing manufacturer called Boutique Modern and with Newhaven Enterprise Zone, to name a few.

You recently gave a keynote at the Sussex Business Show, how did that go?

I decided I was bored of PowerPoint so to switch up the format, I approached Sam Thomas to help me deliver a live Q&A, hot on the heels of the launch of his new brand Different Hats. His support meant that my speech was enjoyable, engaging and fun instead of being dry, nerve-wracking and boring.

We met to discuss the key messages I wanted to deliver and he came up with a list of questions – he was there as support throughout the whole process of preparing for the session and then interviewed me on stage on the day. So, if you’re looking to deliver an engaging presentation without the fear factor, a live interview is a great option and Sam is a fantastic team mate to have by your side!

When someone approaches Midnight looking for PR, what are the first questions you ask them?

Our initial questions are who are you, what do you do and, crucially, who do you do it for? This last question is the most important. Once we’ve understood what your business does, what sector you’re in and what you’re selling, we need to know who your target customer is. This is fundamental to any marketing or PR campaign.

If you’re a start-up and haven’t started selling, the question is who do you think is your target audience and why? Have you conducted market research? Have you looked at your competitors and who their target customers are?

We’ve been through this process as Midnight. Several times over, in fact. It’s important to remember that your target audience might change as your business grows and develops, so it might not be a once-in-a-lifetime task but an annual review.

Once you’ve got clarity on who you are targeting, everything flows from there.

What are your top tips for smaller businesses trying to get press coverage?

First of all, if you’re looking to send out a press release, make sure what you’ve got to say is actually newsworthy – launching a new website or app is not news.

You’re far more likely to get coverage if your story is accompanied by a great image, so invest in quality photography.

Make it journalist-friendly by sending the press release in the email body, attaching a proper-sized image (make sure it’s around 1mg – not a tiny thumbnail), and providing succinct and informative pitches and accessible contact information.

Grab their attention with a great subject line and then make it as easy for them as possible to copy, paste, publish.

What common mistakes do people make with their PR campaigns?

Avoid expecting press coverage for commercial messages as editorial messaging is key in PR. The news cycle is now so fast that anything that happens in the world is already on social media before a newspaper can report on it, so what journalists want more than anything is expert opinion. As one of our senior team members recently commented: “only opinion is left” … so make sure your spokespeople are prepped and media trained.

Tell us about your favourite campaigns

Newsjacking campaigns top our list because they’re fast paced and fun and can result in some seriously heavyweight press coverage.

One of our national clients is BCIS (Building Cost Information Service) which is a joy to work with for numerous reasons, not least because they are lovely people. Through newsjacking, we’ve secured national coverage for them across various platforms including The Times, Sky, and BBC Newsnight on trending topics including HS2 and the RAAC concrete crisis.

Have you seen a shift over the past 3 years – especially since the pandemic of how people communicate their message?

Since the pandemic, two main trends have emerged. People’s attention spans have massively reduced, and customers place trust as the most important factor in their buying decisions. So how do you very quickly create trust with your target customer? Get the leaders of your business out in front, engaged with your PR and marketing campaign so your customers can see the humans behind the brand.

Make sure that any claims can be evidenced – customers can see right through diversity lip-service and green washing. You need to be authentic about your messages.

What three things do you want people to remember when it comes to PR?

Make sure you have clarity on your target audience, get your spokespeople media trained and invest in professional photography. PR is a great way to raise your brand awareness and communicate your key messages. There are some wonderful agencies that can help. Midnight is one of them.

www.midnight.co.uk