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We’re back

chris@precisionpr.co.uk — Mon, 15 Apr 2024 17:56:32 +0000

Precision PR is once again accepting new projects

After a couple of years during which we had to scale back our activities, we’re now able to stat accepting new projects. We’re available for content creation, PR consultancy and sustainability programmes.

At some point soon, we’ll be available to take on new websites and full PR programmes again. Chris and Cary are both healthy again, and we’re rebuilding our team of associates and specialists. So if you’re looking for a specialist in digital imaging, medical imaging, services to dentistry, practice management software or sustainability, please get in contact. We’ll be happy to discuss your requirements and how we might held.

Please email chris@precisionpr.co.uk or call +447432 189149.

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Case Study: Heditude 2019

chris@precisionpr.co.uk — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 14:02:10 +0000

Once upon a time in a rural Essex village …

Heditude is a community music festival. It’s the vision of a local man, Aaron Stevens. But it was brought to life by a small band of his friends – and Precision PR Limited. This is the story of how a bit of marketing discipline can turn a little dream into a successful music festival attracting 800 people and raising a four-figure sum for charities – even though it rained.

How Precision got involved

Facebook is the simple answer. When the organising team initially worked out what they needed to do, one thing that was obvious was a website. Precision PR was a brand new business at the time. As we are based in Sible Hedingham (the home of Heditude) we responded to a request for help.

Nothing much happened initially, and we thought we’d been lost in a wave of enthusiasm to get involved. But eventually, the organisers asked us to meet, agree on terms and define a brief for the site.

Our initial task was to build a WordPress website. This had to carry all the public notices and a description of the event. We advised on the addition of a number of pages and built the initial site. We also advised that we should also create a blog page for announcements and news stories that could be distributed through social media, leading readers back to the website where they could also get supporting information.

What happened next?

With the site up and running we started building content, such as announcements about the bands as they were signed, and about things such as tickets. It quickly became apparent that many people wanted to buy their tickets online, particularly if they lived outside of Sible Hedingham.

The Outside Chancers – Heditude 2019

We looked at plug-ins so we could manage this on the site, but that was going to be too complicated on the available budget, so we instead recommended setting-up an account with Eventbrite. Whilst this meant that Eventbrite took a cut, managing online sales was incredibly simple, and all that was needed to promote these sales was a blog or Facebook post that included a link the Eventbrite page.

Another bright idea was the creation of a second stage for acoustic acts. This means that Heditude can allow the sound crew 30 minutes to turn-around the Main Stage. But the music never stops – it just gets a bit more gentle while the next group gets ready.

Were we successful?

Point Clear – Heditude 2019

Yes. We sold one-third of advance tickets through Eventbrite and helped get 700 people to Heditude 2018. We also caught the attention of the local press, generating a full double-page centre-spread in the Halstead Gazette and further stories about the bands before the event and about the charity donations afterwards. All told, Heditude 2018 was able to donate £1,100 to charities – the first year of Heditude.

And this year?

Heditude asked us back for Heditude 2019. We were asked to update and manage the website (www.heditude.org) and generate news coverage. We also ran the Eventbrite site again and added direct mailing to promote ticket sales to people that bought tickets for the 2018 event, contributing to the total of about 800 people who attended (more than 10% of the combined populations of Castle Hedingham and Sible Hedingham).

‘Missy Lou’ of Hargreaves at Heditude 2019

We worked with our partners at East West Design to redesign and refresh the website. We also created commercially usable copies of the Heditude logo (so it could be ‘multi-purposed’ and reproduced accurately). Finally, we created a series of posters and fliers, together with a matching programme for the event. We wrote, designed and laid-out the programme – and we even sold a bit of advertising space for it. And to cap it off, we’ve been running market research through a simple, low-cost Survey Monkey survey to find out all we can about why and how people bought their tickets.

What about the weather?

Tracey Ashmead, Heditude event secretary, said; “Initial figures suggest we have made a similar amount to last year, maybe slightly more. That would suggest ticket sales were higher as we weren’t charging in advance for U12’s this year, yet money taken is about the same. But we still have money and donations coming in. So all in all (bearing in mind the rainy weather) a very successful and enjoyable day.

Ska-Mite doing what they do best – the clue’s in the name!

“There’s no-doubt that Precision PR played a big part in ensuring Heditude was successful last year and that it grew this year, despite the weather.”

For 2019, Precision PR achieved a 5.1% uplift in Eventbrite sales (despite lower ticket prices), coverage by several ‘Festival’ websites, created multiple news stories in local papers, and once again (with the help of two of our regular local freelance photographers) had another centre-spread in The Halstead Gazette.

What does this mean for you?

One of the areas of PR in which we have much experience is communications around events. We’ve handled PR for dozens of organisations exhibiting at trade shows. We’ve also handled one-off technology showcases and press events, and now at community music festivals. So if you have an event or an exhibition for which you would like PR and marketing support, please call Chris on 07432 189149 or email cary@precisionpr.co.uk

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Getting digital marketing right

chris@precisionpr.co.uk — Wed, 12 Dec 2018 17:10:05 +0000

Don’t shout – whisper

Digital PR and marketing apparently provide businesses with some distinct advantages over traditional methods. People will tell you that you can reach a bigger audience. Well, you sort of can, sometimes. But traditional media still has a massive reach.

They will also tell you that, you can more easily reach a better-targeted audience. Well, that’s true also true to an extent. But trade papers are by definition, read by people in the trade, and local papers by people who are local. So so don’t dismiss them as a targetted communications channel.

However, the biggest advantage of digital PR and marketing is ‘trackability’. They allow you to easily find out who you’ve reached and what effect your message has had. And this is the point.

Many people spend a great deal of time and money gathering data about who has seen their online marketing efforts. Some will then spend further time trying to work out what this means. However, the real key to success with digital marketing is continuously responding to the data to build your reputation and improve your marketing activities.

What to do

Tailoring your message to match the market is really difficult. It is too easy to believe that your vision is perfect and become so invested in it that you cannot make adjustments. You can have the best product in the world, but if your audience doesn’t understand what they will gain from buying it, then they won’t.

Success comes from cutting through the noise with a message that addresses the needs of the individual. So if your message doesn’t mean something to that individual it’s just part of the noise.

Let’s face it, you don’t really care if your competitor on the other side of town has a beautifully designed website. What you care about is getting more new customers or patients, and existing ones spending more money with you for premium services.

So work out what you need to do to let people know why they should trust you. In other words, what do they want to hear from you?

Show people that you are the expert in your field. That doesn’t mean just telling them – it means giving them reasons to believe. In other words, tell them something they will find useful.

Show them that you care passionately about your industry and profession. Let them see that you have pride in your work. In other words, demonstrate meaningful innovation and understanding of new developments.

Show them that you care about them. Focus on their needs and look at your business from their perspective. In other words, think how you would react to your message if they were sent to you by a competitor.

Show them others who you have carried out work for. Let them identify with those people and see that you are the right choice for them as well. In other words, put emphasis on testimonials and case studies that explain what you deliver.

And above all, don’t ‘sell’ to them. Digital marketing lets you cut to the sale so easily. But resist the temptation – give them space and time to ‘buy’ from you. In other words, people will only become happy customers or patients if they see real value in the products and services you offer.

In a world of shouting, the clearest sound is sometimes a whisper.

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Have you ever heard of Rehab4Addiction?

chris@precisionpr.co.uk — Tue, 20 Nov 2018 08:50:02 +0000

Advice for those seeking recovery from addiction

A couple of weeks ago I received an email from a gentleman. He was asking me to provide a link to his website from the website of my band. Normally I consign such emails to the ‘blocked sender’ list. But this one caught my interest because of the song he mentioned, namely our recording of ‘When all you have is a hammer’ by Gretchen Peters.

For those unfamiliar with the song, it’s about a military veteran who deals with trauma he suffered by hitting the bottle.

So, I read his email again, called him and had a chat. I politely declined his initial request, and instead offered to write this blog post. Because, frankly, the song, his choice of it, and his backstory all resonated with events in the lives of people I know – including family.

So, what’s the score?

The gentleman’s name is Oliver Clark, and he helped set-up Rehab 4 Addiction to provide advice for people seeking drug and alcohol rehab clinics in the UK. Oliver told me that he got involved in the charity because of his own personal experiences.

Being a bit unthinking sometimes, I used to have an unsympathetic attitude towards addiction and alcoholism. But recently, I’ve realised how much damage was done to some of my family members by a crime committed against them. That’s led to a couple of them showing serious addictive tendencies. And then I thought about my wider family and realised that several others have had mental health problems and issues with alcohol, again in reaction to things that have happened to them through none of their own fault.

In fact, berievements and being on the receiving end of a serious crime has damaged several people I know, leaving mental scars such as depression and anxiety. And while I’m not aware of any family member having a drugs habit as a result, I do know a couple who consume more than a sensible amount of beer and whiskey. Others have had relationships collapse, trouble holding on to jobs and difficulties with education as a result of trauma.

I’m a fairly ordinary sort of person from an ordinary sort of family. So I have little doubt that my family’s experience of addiction and mental illness is nothing unusual.

So I thought I’d find out a bit more about Oliver’s charity, and help raise awareness (and SEO scores) by writing this blog post.

What does Rehab 4 Addiction do?

In a nutshell, Rehab 4 Addiction offers a free hotline dedicated to helping those suffering from drug, alcohol and mental health problems. Rehab 4 Addiction was founded in 2011 by people who overcame drug and alcohol addiction themselves. You can contact Rehab 4 Addiction on 0800 140 4690.

The charity facilitates admissions into over forty rehab clinics across the United Kingdom and internationally. Its advisors have extensive knowledge of a huge selection of alcohol rehab and drug rehab services throughout the UK and abroad. They create rehab programmes which cater to specific needs.

Mental health awareness

At the time I’m writing this it seems everybody (or at least every media outlet) is talking about mental health. Yet it still seems to be a taboo subject – somebody else’s problem. Well, I don’t think it is.

I’ve suffered anxiety and depression, so have several other members of my extended family, and some have resorted to alcohol to help forget the things that torment them. And I’m sure if you look around you’ll see people you know who have or are suffering mental health issues (major or minor). I think organisations such as Rehab 4 Addiction offer a very important source of help for those who can no longer cope with (or hide) their problems.

I’d like to thank Oliver Clark for contacting me. I hope my blog post helps to raise attention to Rehab 4 Addiction for both those who need its work and those who might like to support the charity.

If you would like to comment on the work of this charity and others performing a similar role, please contact me.

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Cyber-security Basics

chris@precisionpr.co.uk — Wed, 29 Aug 2018 09:39:36 +0000

Simple ways to protect your business

David Bailey’s iconic image of the Kray brothers

50-something years ago, protecting your new business in London often meant paying money to the Kray Brothers or the Richardson Gang. These days the threats faced by new businesses are less likely to involve physical violence and more likely to involve data theft.

So what should you do to protect an e-business start-up from modern-day gangsters and criminals?

Cyber-security isn’t an optional extra

Cyber-security is a business essential. No-one can afford to ignore it, and it’s even more important for digital businesses. Not only is your core asset at risk, data management and security is now covered by a stack of legislation and regulation. Get it wrong and there can be serious consequences.

It’s a good idea to make sure you’re insured, but insurance companies are understandably keen to make sure you do everything in you can to protect yourself.

So what do insurance companies expect, and what do you need to do to protect your fledgeling e-business?

Data security

Never overlook the need for regular data backups – they should form the basis of every data security policy. If you have an IT failure they are often the only way you can recover your work, your own data, and data owned by customers. It also makes sense to regularly check the quality of your back-ups and how well your recovery procedures work.

Back-up has been a central plank of computer operations and data security from the earliest days – and for good reason

Back-ups are also a required to comply with many regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), Payment Card Industry (PCI), Data Security Standards (DSS) and the ISO 271001 standard.

These regulations and standards insist you create policies for internet and email usage, and data protection. Make sure your whole team understands and follows these policies. That way things are less likely to go wrong and are easier to fix if they do.

Keeping the bad guys out

Make hiring a trained specialist a priority, to take responsibility for your IT security. In fact, you will probably find some insurance companies insist on it. You also need to nominate a Data Protection Officer to comply with GDPR.

But even before your business grows to that point you can take some simple steps to stop unauthorised access to your computer systems.

Hackers come in all shapes and sizes, and with an equally diverse range of motivations

Try to use private certificate-based authentication, 2-step verification or passwords which are changed at least every two months. Also, make sure wireless networks are secured and use firewalls to protect external network gateways.

Install (and use) anti-virus and anti-spyware on all your computers. Many people don’t do this, yet it’s surprisingly easy to infect a computer without this simple step.

Less obvious is the need to apply updates and security patches to operating systems. Most successful cyber attacks exploit weaknesses in old versions of Windows and similar products. Never use a version that the author no-longer supports, and make sure all desktops automatically download updates. Yes, it can be a time-consuming annoyance, but it’s not as time-consuming as dealing with the effects of a security breach.

It’s also very important to stop terminated employees from accessing your systems. If they have been fired they will have a grudge. If they’ve moved to a competitor they have no loyalty to you. So while it may feel harsh to treat a former co-worker like this, it prevents a serious security risk.

There are security products available to fit every use and every budget

Looking after the crown jewels

If you process or store financial or sensitive data, you need to take extra steps to protect it. Make sure that all financial or sensitive data on your system is encrypted. It’s easy to do, with many apps now available and options in various common online or desktop systems. Make sure you also encrypt removable media like portable hard drives or USB memory devices. The same applies to laptops and other devices you might take out of the office.

It’s also a good idea have a system that manages and records how and when financial and sensitive data is used, and by whom.

Another vulnerable area that is often forgotten is your waste bin. When you throw away or recycle financial or sensitive data – including information on printed reports, CD’s and old hard drives – make sure you do it securely.

Do you know if it works?

Creating policies and installing software is one thing, but how do you know it works?
Make sure you check the reports generated by your security software and other systems monitoring access to your data and network. If something unexpected has happened, investigate it properly. You will need to make changes to stop it happening again, but you may also need to report breaches to the authorities, customers and your insurer.

Don’t forget to test your data and cyber security on a regular basis. You can do this yourself, but a specialist consultant will also look for a ‘way in’ that you’ve never even thought of.

Even for the tech-savvy, preventing cyber-crime can be baffling. However, taking these few simple steps will help make sure today’s virtual ‘Reggie and Ronnie’ are a lot less likely to ‘pay you a visit.’

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New website launched – Heditude 2018

chris@precisionpr.co.uk — Mon, 29 Jan 2018 15:55:20 +0000

Heditude 2018 – website by Precision PR

Heditude 2018

We were recently asked to create a website for Heditude 2018, a local community music festival.

The site took us just over a week from approval of our initial design to launch. This includes managing approvals by the volunteers who run the festival in their spare time.

Pearl Dental Software

We’ve now built three websites (as well as our own) that have each driven sales inquiries for their respective owners. We can produce simply structured text-driven websites, post-driven news based sites, or more complicated brand-critical sites for national organisations, and we’ve also written text for other marcoms agencies for use in their own customer projects.

If you have a website requirement, please get in contact. We will write, project manage or design and build the site you need.

For more information please get in contact.

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Press Release – New Win

chris@precisionpr.co.uk — Tue, 24 Oct 2017 12:40:59 +0000

Pearl Dental Software gets social with Precision PR

Everyone loves a trip to the dentist, right? Well, maybe not, but the team behind Pearl Dental Software are determined to help make the process as painless as possible.

As part of its efforts to bring the company’s powerful, UK-specific solution to as many dental practices as possible, Pearl’s developer – Baker Heath Associates Limited (BHA Ltd) – has appointed Precision PR Limited to manage a social media campaign.

“We’ve probably reached the limits of selling Pearl by word-of-mouth,” says Ben Baker, MD of BHA Ltd. “Precision PR is going to help us tell more UK-based dentists, practice managers and other dental professionals about our system.”

Precision PR’s initial brief is to help build a multi-channel social community, defining and creating a range of content, and providing wider marketing consultancy. The company was chosen for the Pearl project because the founders have a history of success in both digital imaging and dentistry.

“Chris has a good background in PR and social marketing for 2D and 3D-CAD, visualisation software and other imaging technologies. Cary is a fully trained and registered dental nurse. The perfect skill-mix for our products,” explains Mr Baker.

The campaign is designed to consolidate and improve Pearl Dental Software’s share of the highly competitive practice management software market. Precision PR plans to demonstrate Pearl’s ease-of-use, excellent support services and the cost-effective UK-focused reporting functions needed for NHS, mixed and private practices. Early activities have already increased LinkedIn followers significantly (for the company’s directors and sales team), and the first of a series of case studies will be published shortly.

Further information about Pearl Dental Software can be found at: www.pearldentalsoftware.com

Notes to editors
Pearl Dental Software is developed by Baker Heath Associates Limited in Leicester, and is designed to be used by independent dental surgeries and businesses running a small chain of surgeries. It has the specific features needed to support treatment both NHS and Private patients. It works seamlessly with all leading brands of imaging and x-ray sensor, and with most leading brands of CEREC system (used for on-site manufacture of dental prosthetics and devices).

Pearl Dental Software’s LinkedIn page is:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/11252778/

Pearl Dental Software’s Facebook page is: https://www.facebook.com/PearlDentalSoftware

Other channels launching soon…

Precision PR Limited is an independent PR agency, specialising in B2B and imaging technologies, ERP and manufacturing software, online security software, and software for the music industry. The company calls upon extensive experience of pan-European and Transatlantic PR campaigns, as well as domestic campaigns.

Contact Chris Webb:
Email: chris@precisionpr.co.uk or Tel: 07432 189 149

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Coming from America?

chris@precisionpr.co.uk — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 10:35:34 +0000

In 1999, when I started work for Hyperion as EMEA PR Manager, the internet had already begun to change the international communications landscape. Companies could no-longer conduct discrete communications and media relations programmes on a country-by-country basis. What was said in California on Tuesday could be known to UK and European journalists on Wednesday morning. And what was done in France on Thursday could be read about in Canada on Friday. This immediately brought huge challenges for the co-ordination of announcements and consistency of messages that many people still find difficult to grasp.

Let’s centralise

Some organisations take the view that all communications should be best handled centrally; carefully crafted and controlled messages can be distributed across the internet through ‘wire’ services and email lists. While it might first appear that this makes global communication simpler, there are a few ‘barriers’ when it comes to Europe, particularly for international technology businesses.

Language

Europeans speak HUNDREDS of different languages and dialects. The 28 nations of the European Union alone have 24 different ‘official’ languages. And while many publications are in English, outside the UK and Ireland, most are not. The small editorial teams at trade publications or business desks rarely have time to rework your story into local language. To translate a simple press release into all of EU’s 24 official languages would cost thousands of Dollars/Pounds/Euros. You therefore need to be very precise about where your target audience resides, what they read and the best way to reach them.

Social Media

You can’t rely on Social Media in Europe. Yes, most of the search engines and social media platforms used in Europe are owned by US corporations, and Europeans are familiar with Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, etc. But uptake varies widely from country to country, and some favour Twitter over Facebook, or Instagram over YouTube. In addition you have the complexity of regional offerings such as Xing in Germany, fulfilling the role of LinkedIn for many German-speakers.

Value your Journalist

European journalists like to feel valued – just like US journalists. If you have a story for them, they like to know it is for them and not just for everyone or anyone. Most countries have ‘national’ newspapers read across the country, and many have national broadcasters such as the BBC. These top-tier publications have real impact everyday on their readers and viewers. It’s therefore important to deal with them strategically and to build long-term relationships offering value and insight. Exactly the same applies to trade journals. They may have relatively small readerships, but they are often deeply embedded in their industry.

Changes in international PR

I am fascinated by the changes within European media during the last 20 years, brought about by the internet and globalisation. But I find the things that have stayed the same are even more interesting.

The complexities by the VP of Corporate Communications / Director of PR should never be underestimated, particularity when the organisation is expanding into Europe or developing its European markets. In my experience, local understanding and a strategic approach are critical success factors.

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