HOW AND WHY DID YOU GET INTO PR?

My first job was at Woman’s Own, where I worked as a secretary to the consumers editor. Then I worked as a researcher for what is now a very successful online leisure facility. Then, 23 years ago, I met someone looking for junior PR support for a small agency in Covent Garden and I’ve been in PR ever since.

I’ve always been interested in journalism but the view back then was that PR was better paid and easier and I think there are actually a lot of similarities. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, PR was still a relatively new industry and suddenly there was an explosion in lifestyle magazines so it was an exciting place to be. It was growing at about 30 per cent a year back then; now it is more like three per cent.

HOW DID YOU GET INTO A POSITION TO START YOUR OWN BUSINESS?

In 1988 I went to work for Choat & Partners, which later became Nexus Communications. I worked at Nexus for several years and watched it grow from five people to 28 which was fascinating to watch.

Then, seven years ago, having made it to board level, a freelance PR consultant and I set up the Yes Consultancy. We started out as a team of three and now we are seven, with a turnover of £350,000.

Having your own business is a big change from being fairly senior at a large company. The business model is very different. I make sure there are always three people working on any account but you inevitably end up taking a huge responsibility.

WHAT SKILLS DO YOU NEED TO GET AHEAD IN PR?

You need great enthusiasm for the product and the clients because they deserve it; good organisational and communicative skills, especially verbal, but written as well, are also essential.

There is a definite crossover with journalism and media in general and you need a good understanding of both. You need to be very curious and have a real interest in human nature and the minutiae as well as the big picture.

There are lots of PR companies out there doing similar things so companies seeking representation will choose to work with people they like, as much as people who deliver results.

WHEN DID YOU MAKE YOUR FIRST FORAY INTO THE WORLD OF FRESH PRODUCE?

Nexus was well known for its fresh produce activity. The Banana Group was a big account for the agency when I was working there and that was a fantastic entrée into fresh produce. We had a “banana man” visiting schools and promoting healthy eating. That was before the days of the 5 A DAY campaign, but it was about encouraging children to eat fruit rather than sweets.

Then as the Yes consultancy, Pink Lady was our first client and we worked on that account from 1999-2005. Now we work with four fresh produce accounts - AVA strawberries, Jazz apples, Northwest Cherries and Royal, a Spanish stonefruit producer. All of our accounts are linked with the issue of health promotion in some way and we are keen to get some winter vegetable clients.

WHAT ARE THE PARTICULAR REWARDS OF WORKING WITH FRESH PRODUCE COMPANIES?

Fresh produce and the clients you work with can be as interesting as you want them to be. When you get a product like Jazz, it tastes superb and the name Jazz is wonderful but you have got a blank canvas as to what you do with it. You have to create an emotion around the product.

HOW DO YOUR FRESH PRODUCE CLIENTS DIFFER FROM THOSE IN OTHER SECTORS?

There are definitely differences between the fresh produce clients and our other FMCG clients. The fresh produce industry is still relatively small and it really is fascinating.

There is still quite a lot of camaraderie and our clients are impressively knowledgeable and so passionate about what they do. They tend to be commercial managers so they are really focused - they know their products and the business inside out, and they appreciate the benefit of good PR.

These are very busy people, whose roles encompass much more than just marketing so there is a lot of trust; the client relies on you to be proactive but they are also very responsive. They all appreciate the importance of maintaining excellent relationships with customers, especially retail buyers.

MORE AND MORE FRESH PRODUCE COMPANIES SEEM TO BE SEEKING PR REPRESENTATION THESE DAYS. WHY DO YOU THINK THAT IS?

The industry has probably been quite slow to capitalise on the opportunities of marketing and communication. But any serious producer with a message to be promoted is missing a trick not to consider PR.

There is a myth that campaigns start at around the £100,000 mark but £35,000 could buy a reasonably high-profile campaign if there is a good story to tell.

The product needs to be special - if it is coming from the UK, that is a definite selling point, or if it is organic, or little known. These days there are so many food writers wanting to talk about new products so there is a fantastic opportunity there for all the NPD in produce.

WHAT WOULD YOUR ADVICE BE TO ANYONE INTERESTED IN SEEKING PR REPRESENTATION?

Take the time to evauluate what any agency is offering. It is very easy to sell a PR programme to a client but much harder to deliver. Anyone can do PR but few can do it really well.

Consultancy PR can be a great option if people have the budget and want to leave it to people with more experience. But in-house PR can work well for others.

There are a lot of people entering the PR industry and having someone, even at a very junior level, to communicate the company’s activities can have a big impact on their relationship with the media.

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