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Rosie Davies-Smith&nbsp;shares advice on how to best PR your business during the current uncertain and tough circumstances.

I'm Rosie, the founder of <a href='https://prdispatch.com/' target='_self'>PR Dispatch</a> - the UK's first affordable PR membership platform for product-based eCom businesses I am also the founder of PR agency LFA. I started PR Dispatch to offer affordable PR support to brands who couldn't afford to spend thousands on a PR agency each month. We give our members everything they need to pitch their business and products to the press.
Since 2014 I've worked with thousands of brands and nothing makes me happier than teaching brands how to do their own PR and get results. It's been an honour to be recognised for our work with PR and small businesses through a number of awards (2016 Natwest Great British Creative Industries Entrepreneur of the year and 2019 Enterprise Nation PR advisor of the year).
I started a PR agency with no previous PR experience (find out more <a href='https://prdispatch.com/about-us' target='_self'>here</a>) so I truly believe that anyone can do their PR if they just know how.
Interested in pitching to the press, but don't know where to start? The best way to learn more about what we do and how we can support your PR journey is to join one of our next membership tours. A perfect opportunity to ask any questions you have. Register here https://prdispatch.com/book-a-tour - hopefully, see you there.

Founder

We're living in unprecedented times with start-ups and small businesses in particular feeling the strain of the COVID-19. We know that a lot of businesses are being forced to rethink their strategy and one area which is key right now, more than ever, is PR.

Because more people are online, more content is needed, meaning that the press will be producing features more frequently. People are turning to the media for their entertainment and if you can keep your brand visible you'll potentially be able to capture a wider audience.

Here we share some information on how to best PR your business during these uncertain and tough circumstances.

With more people working from home, the demand for entertainment is higher than usual. The press is still working and are looking for businesses to feature, and we've noticed journalists being more active in their approach; posting frequent 

 tweets via Twitter and asking what their audience is keen to read about.

This tough time has opened up a wider dialogue between the media and it's consumers. People's mindset and priorities are shifting and the press understand that they will need to tailor their content and topics accordingly.

The press is dependent on small businesses to produce content and vice versa, so they're acknowledging that it's more important than ever to champion small businesses and put the spotlight on the challenges that you are facing.

They want to hear real-life challenges, stories and tips from business owners themselves. Are you reshaping your business completely to stay afloat? Let the relevant editors know. You don't need a groundbreaking story, the key is to find a relevant press angle.

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While you should still pitch to the press as normal, one crucial thing to bear in mind is how relevant your business, brand, service or products are at this particular time. Be more careful than ever about the wording you use in your email pitches as you don't want to risk leaving a bad taste, potentially damaging a press relationship or your reputation.

Most editors will also be working from home meaning they will likely be having a few more social media breaks than usual. This is an ideal time to reach out and interact with relevant press via Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram or similar platforms. While time is of the essence at the moment, using even 5-10 mins every day to be more proactive through social media can lead to great press opportunities and help you be seen.

I've been featured. Am I okay to talk about the article and what's the best way to share it?

Sharing your press is a great way to extend the reach of your success and help your business appear credible amongst your audience. It's still great and important to do this, however, use this opportunity to champion fellow small businesses at the same time.

Have you been featured in an article talking about other small businesses? Mention them and reference any other similar businesses where relevant. Now is not the time to worry about or think about your competition. Now is the time to stand in solidarity and support each other the best that we can.

Don't forget about your marketing strategy

Aside from your PR strategy, the messaging you communicate through your marketing and social media is equally important and should be carefully considered. Posting social media content manually opposed to scheduled content is essential now as you'll avoid any unfortunate insensitive backlashes.

The same goes for your digital marketing. Do you have any ads live containing wording which could potentially be misread or cause complaints from customers or press?

With so much uncertainty in the air now is not the right time to bombard your customers with sales-heavy marketing. You need to and should of course still do everything you can to keep your business going, but be considerate and sensitive. Everyone is feeling the impact of the COVID-19 and if you've been thinking about making your marketing more human now is a great time to do so.

If you are going through tough times it is absolutely fine to voice this to your audience. By sharing your thoughts and your concerns you'll be amazed to see how much support you'll receive, while feeling less alone about the challenges you're facing.

Utilise the power of social media to give a shout out about other small businesses and help raise their profile. Whether that's through a blog post, an email marketing, an Instagram post or a LinkedIn article.

How to do PR in times of uncertainty

Rosie Davies-Smith shares advice on how to best PR your business during the current uncertain and tough circumstances.

Rosie Davies-Smith&nbsp;shares advice on how to best PR your business during the current uncertain and tough circumstances.



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Sarah Jane Phelps is the founder of Practically Positive in every way.

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Having worked with business owners ranging from one-man start-ups to large companies requiring different level of services, I have developed a passion for the profession and I am driven by the success of my clients.&lt;br /&gt;
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I have spent many years in business working at boardroom level, holding various positions before being motivated to start my own practice, Makesworth Accountants, where I have blended my technical skills in accounting and tax with my business skills derived from my time in the industry.&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="https://makesworth.co.uk"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Awards&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Finalist: Best Brand Building&lt;/strong&gt; (British Accounting Marketing Awards)&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Highly Commended: Independent Firm of The Year - South-East, England 2019&lt;/strong&gt; (British Accountancy Awards)&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Shortlisted: Accounts and Tax Adviser of the Year 2019 &lt;/strong&gt;(The British Business Awards)&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;My objective is to add value to my clients&amp;rsquo; businesses through the application of my extensive experience and knowledge in accounting, tax, HMRC investigations, business start-ups and much more.&lt;/p&gt;

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Chartered Accountant

Accountancy, Taxation and Business Advisory

Accountancy, Taxation and Business Advisory Services in the UK

&lt;p&gt;I started my career in journalism and was lucky that the content marketing revolution meant my particular skills - storytelling, audience engagement, creative idea generation&amp;nbsp;and so on - were soon in demand in the business world.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;From drawing out the heart of a brand&amp;#39;s message to creating powerful headlines and calls to action that drive... well, action... I help businesses stand back and ask the question, &amp;quot;So what?&amp;quot; It&amp;#39;s what separates indulgent copy from copy that hits the mark with target customers / clients and actually achieves a business goal.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Quality and precision are central to everything I do and&amp;nbsp;I have brought together a team of skilled professionals who have the same&amp;nbsp;level of commitment to doing their jobs to the best of their ability every day.&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;I&amp;#39;m also passionate about flexible working and wellbeing in the workplace and am 100% committed to making sure that I do everything in my power to ensure that Rin Hamburgh &amp;amp; Co is a great company to work for as well as with.&lt;/p&gt;

Director

Website Copywriting

Your website is your online representative. Every word, sentence and paragraph combines to create a lasting impression of your business. And that’s not all it has to achieve. As well as creating compelling copy to drive your brand message and objectives, we’ll also think about:
● Accessible copy layout - including subheads, bullets and pull quotes to maximise scannability on the page.
● Search engine optimisation (SEO) - working with you or your web team to include your chosen key words and phra

Thanks for visiting my profile ??

Let me introduce myself.

I've been living in a world of strategic creativity for over 23 years (so far) and have worked both client-side and agency-side, as well as operated a successful agency myself, which means over the last couple of decades, I have been at the table having strategic conversations with 1000's of businesses and leaders, helping them apply creativity so they might grow themselves and their organisations.

Today the 'day job' is heading up the UK chapter of The Spill Teem®, a global
Design Consultancy who work with organizations worldwide to help shift their thinking culture.

The Spill Teem® have an extensive background in service, product, communication and behavioural design and collectively carry 30+ years of human-centred Design experience, business strategy, and cultural change work.

My work also regularly involves delivering keynotes at events, speaking to teams, at leadership groups, masterminds and retreats. I also deliver lectures, seminars and provide training when required on the topic of brand, strategy, storytelling and human-centred design.

If you would like me to come and speak to your group or at an event or want to know how you can work with me or Spill Teem®, then please don’t hesitate to get in touch anytime.

Head of Spill Teem UK

Tim Elliott

Thanks for visiting my profile 🙏

Let me introduce myself.

I've been living in a world of strategic creativity for over 23 years (so far) and have worked both client-side and agency-side, as well as operated a successful agency myself, which means over the last couple of decades, I have been at the table having strategic conversations with 1000's of businesses and leaders, helping them apply creativity so they might grow themselves and their organisations.

Today the 'day job' is heading up th