Lucky Number 7!

We’ve just turned 7 and we’re super excited to be celebrating this milestone. Here are seven things we’re most proud of since we landed:

  1. Technical Marketing & PR is Born

In June 2011, Louise Matthews, landed Technical Marketing & PR. With over 10 years’ experience of working in marketing and PR, as well as strong links to businesses in the construction, engineering, manufacturing and technology sectors, Louise identified a gap in the market for a PR & Marketing business that specialised in creating technical content.

 

  1. Virtual Marketing Manager Service Launched

Identifying a need in the core sectors for flexible and competitive marketing support, the Virtual Marketing Manager Service was born. Technical Marketing & PR has positioned itself as an agency that can seamlessly integrate with existing marketing teams to provide flexible support, no-nonsense marketing planning and implementation.

 

  1. Relocation and Rebranding

In 2015, Technical Marketing & PR relocated from its offices in Derby, to Barry in South Wales. Following the relocation, Technical Marketing & PR exhibited at the Introbiz Expo where the new branding was launched, and the company announced it was laying down roots in Wales.

 

  1. Going for Growth

In 2017, the decision was made to move away from the business model of working with a team of ‘permalancers’ and recruit permanent in-house staff. Though working with ‘permalancers’ had historically worked very well for the business, Louise Matthews, wanted to grow and develop a strong close-knit team in South Wales where she could pass on her experience.

 

  1. Investing in Marketeers of the Future

In 2018, Technical Marketing & PR has offered paid work experience placements to students, reaching out to Cardiff University and Cardiff Metropolitan University to seek candidates. There is a need for hands on paid work experience placements in the sector and Technical Marketing & PR is keen to provide this wherever possible to give future graduates the experience they need to transition into jobs in the sector.

 

  1. Sustainable Partnerships

This year marks the 7th anniversary of the company’s partnership with clients such as Promethean, SIG, ROCKWOOL, Bowden Group and Lumin. These long-standing relationships are testament to the level of service the Technical Marketing & PR team offer.

 

  1. Looking Forward

Business growth and development continues to be a significant focus for Technical Marketing & PR, the company is expanding the team and investing in staff development to further enhance the range of services it provides. The team are looking forward to strengthening long-standing relationships and welcoming new clients on board.

 

To celebrate our 7th birthday, we’ll be doing a series of prize draws over the next few months on social media so make sure you’re following us. If you’d like to pop in for a chat, a cup of tea and maybe some birthday cake, then drop us a message!

Uplifting a Tired Community in Kenya – Thank You Helen

In May, we were proud to be able to send Helen our best wishes as she embarked on her trip to Nakuru in Kenya to support a local school and community. The trip was organised by Derby County Community Trust and African Adventures, but Helen needed to raise funds for the trip through sponsorship and donations. We were proud to be Helen’s main sponsor for a second year in a row.

Upon her return, Helen has shared with us how the trip this year was very different from last year and not what she was expecting. To Helen’s surprise, the children she met last year were in even more of a tired state. This is likely due to a combination of unrest in the region because of elections and the intense weather conditions.

There have been a lot of thunderstorms and flooding in the area which has caused significant problems with roads and infrastructure, especially in the slums. Many families that could afford to move to different areas have done so, leaving behind the poorest families. Despite having so little and living in such poor conditions, Helen told us how it was wonderful to see the families still laughing, and the children still learning and playing.

 

 

This year the team spent a lot of their time carrying out maintenance work on the school building. New guttering has been installed, paint work repaired, internal walls plastered, and external walls pointed. The team also raised the perimeter wall by adding two layers of boulders for increased security and fixed a main gate.

Whilst in Nakuru, the team celebrated Madaraka Day – a national holiday – with the children and some of their families. The team prepared a feast with meat, cabbage and chapatis. They built a swing and did lots of drawing and painting with the children, played with balls, bubbles and balloons.

With the funds raised the team managed to buy 92 school jumpers for the children. Although 250 jumpers were ideally needed, every child received something.

 

 

We’d like to take this opportunity to thank Helen for the amazing work she has done in Kenya again this year. We are in a privileged position to be able to sponsor such a worthwhile cause. Although the living conditions for the children weren’t as expected this year, it reaffirms how important the project is to help the families and children in need.

Syncro Secures Virtual Marketing Manager Service

Technical Marketing & PR has been retained to provide virtual marketing manager services to Syncro after successfully supporting the business at the Nursing and Dementia Care Expo in April 2018.

The Cardiff-based marketing and PR agency project managed Syncro’s whole stand presence and communications around the expo, including manufacturer liaison and literature production. Steve Long, Managing Director of Syncro, was impressed with Technical Marketing & PR’s delivery, highlighting the ease of integration into Syncro’s team and their ideas for the expo.

“Technical Marketing & PR have done an excellent job at putting the stand together. Due to their support, I have been relieved from all pressure regarding the expo, which has allowed me to focus on my daily business tasks.”

Louise Matthews, Director of Technical Marketing & PR, concludes: “We are proud of the success that we achieved for Syncro at the Nursing and Dementia Expo, and are looking forward to supporting them moving forward on a more proactive basis. It’s been a real pleasure to watch the business grow from a start-up to the success it is today. We’re proud to be able to help them in the next stage of the journey.”

Syncro is one of the UK’s leading suppliers of fire and security solutions, with Technical Marketing & PR working with them on a project basis since the business launched in 2014.

Pitching to Your Media

The relationship between the media and PR teams is one that is somewhat interdependent. The media need PR practitioners and PR practitioners need the media. With increasing pressure placed on journalists to increase their content output whilst resources are being squeezed, journalists are relying on press releases and stories to come to them like never before. Yes, this is likely to work in the favour of PR and marketing teams in the process of pitching stories, but it’s by no means grounds to be complacent about your media relationships. If anything, you need to strengthen your position in an industry where journalists’ mailboxes are being bombarded with content. That said, it’s also important that you act responsibly and professionally in your dealings with the media.

Pitching to your media is all about developing strong relationships and is a key part of any successful PR strategy. Here are some of our best tips for pitching to your target press:

  • Do your research

Before sending a press release, ensure that your content is relevant for a specific publication by checking what stories/ topics they cover. Make sure you have specific media lists and that these are regularly checked and updated. It’s far too easy to find a media contacts list online and ping them all a press release. This can be potentially damaging as you risk agitating journalists if you’re sending them irrelevant content. Your decision to target publications needs to be smart and calculated.

 

  • Find out the journalist’s preferences

Every journalist is unique and has preferred methods of communication. Some journalists like to discuss potential stories over the phone, others prefer content to be pitched to them via email. It’s a good idea to try and call the press desk in the first instance for a quick chat, if you have no success getting through, then drop them an email. Don’t be afraid to ask your journalist how they’d like to communicate, it will show them you’re being considerate and will allow you to interface more effectively.

 

  • Be concise

Don’t babble on. Make sure you know exactly what you want to pitch before you contact the journalist. Whether it be by phone or email, keep it short and concise. Journalists have very busy schedules and will lose interest quickly if you don’t get straight to the point. Get all the key details in – the who, what, when, where, and why. Don’t be afraid to explain to the journalist why you think it would make a great story. If you’re passionate about it, then it will seem like a far more attractive pitch.

 

  • Don’t be too persistent

Send your press release once. If you don’t get a response, then it doesn’t mean the publication isn’t going to run with it. If you really want to see if they’ve picked it up, add a read receipt, or if this isn’t successful then give them a quick call and ask if they’d like any further details or offer an interview. Alternatively, you could call the publication in the first instance, very briefly pitch the story and ask who the best person to send it to would be.

 

  • Meet the deadlines

Remember that journalists often have print deadlines to meet, these cannot be changed to wait for your content, so make sure you meet the deadline, or even better send the content ahead of the deadline. If you’re late sending your piece and don’t fulfil your end of the deal, the journalist will lose confidence in you and will be less likely to return to you for content in the future.

 

  • Keep the journalist updated

Keep the journalist updated with any developments to ensure that they know you’re proactively working with them. If they contact you, then you need to respond as soon as possible. If you leave them hanging, they may think you’re no longer interested and give the space to someone else.

 

  • Think proactively

Have the relevant content prepared so you’re ready to provide the journalist with whatever they need, quickly and efficiently. Often journalists will require a strong image, so have this ready to send or even better send it with the press release. If you can provide your journalist with a fully packaged piece, then they will be far more likely to pick it up.

 

  • Safeguard your relationships

Work to develop your relationships with publications on a general basis but also the journalists on an individual level. To have a named contact makes your job far easier as you’ll have a captive audience. Equally don’t abuse the relationship and make sure you’re working professionally with each other’s goals and objectives in mind.

 

If you can do all of these things then you’ll be far more successful in pitching to your media, which should result in more high-quality coverage. Find out more in our Guide to Strong Media Relations here.