Frequently Asked Questions

We maintain comprehensive databases of journalists covering technology, financial services, healthcare, and other sectors across Irish and UK media. This includes national publications like The Irish Times and Financial Times, trade publications serving specific industries, regional newspapers and radio stations, and digital media platforms. We track journalist preferences, story formats, and editorial calendars to ensure targeted, relevant pitching.

Journalists seek stories with news value, human interest, or broader industry relevance. Compelling stories include significant product launches or business milestones, research findings or industry analysis, executive appointments or company expansions, customer success stories with measurable outcomes, industry trend analysis and expert commentary, and unique company culture or innovation approaches. Stories must be timely, relevant to publication audiences, and supported by credible spokespeople.

Media training includes message development and key points preparation, practice interviews with likely questions, guidance on interview techniques and body language, crisis scenario preparation and difficult question handling, understanding different media formats (print, broadcast, podcast), and post-interview follow-up protocols. We provide ongoing coaching and feedback to build spokesperson confidence and effectiveness.

Response times vary by media type and story urgency. Breaking news requires response within 1-2 hours during business hours. Feature story inquiries typically need response within 4-8 hours. Longer-lead stories may allow 24-48 hours for response. We maintain 24/7 availability for urgent situations and provide clear response protocols for different scenario types.

PR costs vary significantly based on campaign scope and agency expertise. Monthly retainer fees typically range from €3,000-€15,000 for ongoing services. Project fees range from €5,000-€25,000 for specific campaigns. Factors influencing costs include seniority of team members, scope of services required, campaign duration and complexity, target markets (Irish only vs Irish and UK), and measurement and reporting requirements.

We measure PR effectiveness through multiple metrics including media coverage analysis (reach, frequency, message penetration), website traffic increases from media coverage, social media engagement and share of voice improvements, lead generation attribution from PR activities, and stakeholder feedback through surveys and qualitative research. Monthly reporting includes coverage summaries, key message analysis, competitive benchmarking, and business impact assessment.

Key cost factors include seniority and experience level of team members, scope of services required (media relations, content creation, events), geographic coverage (Irish only vs Irish and UK markets), campaign duration and intensity, measurement and reporting requirements, crisis availability and response capabilities, and industry specialisation and regulatory complexity.

Initial media coverage typically appears within 4-8 weeks of campaign launch, depending on story complexity and media relationships. Thought leadership positioning develops over 3-6 months of consistent activity. Brand awareness improvements become measurable after 6-12 months of sustained PR activity. Business impact including lead generation and sales influence often becomes apparent after 6-9 months of integrated PR and marketing activities.

Campaign timelines depend on complexity and preparation requirements. Simple media relations campaigns can launch within 2-3 weeks, comprehensive campaigns with content development require 4-6 weeks preparation, product launch campaigns need 6-8 weeks for optimal preparation, and crisis response can be activated within 24-48 hours with proper planning and retainer agreements.

Crisis management PR involves protecting and restoring reputation during challenging situations. This includes crisis planning and risk assessment, immediate response protocols and messaging, media management and stakeholder communications, internal communications to employees and partners, regulatory compliance and legal considerations, social media monitoring and response, and long-term reputation recovery strategies. Effective crisis PR requires preparation, rapid response capabilities, and strategic thinking under pressure.

Crisis planning involves comprehensive risk assessment and scenario planning, crisis team roles and decision-making protocols, pre-approved messaging and response templates, media contact strategies and spokesperson designation, internal communication protocols for employees and stakeholders, regulatory compliance and legal considerations, social media monitoring and response procedures, and regular plan testing and updates.

Immediate response includes situation assessment and fact gathering, crisis team activation and communication, initial stakeholder notification including employees and key partners, media monitoring and response coordination, legal and regulatory compliance review, social media monitoring and management, and documentation of actions taken for post-crisis analysis.

Reputation recovery involves comprehensive reputation monitoring and measurement, strategic communications planning to rebuild trust, stakeholder engagement and relationship rebuilding, thought leadership development to demonstrate expertise and reliability, corporate social responsibility initiatives to demonstrate values, continuous improvement and transparency about changes made, and sustained communication efforts over 12-24 months.

Retainer relationships provide ongoing availability, strategic counsel, and consistent relationship building with media contacts. Project work suits specific campaigns with defined scope and timeline. Many clients combine approaches, using retainers for ongoing counsel and media relations with additional project fees for intensive campaigns like product launches or crisis management.

Major announcements require 6-8 weeks preparation for optimal results, including strategy development and message creation, media list development and relationship building, content creation including press releases and supporting materials, spokesperson preparation and media training, coordination with internal teams and external partners, and measurement framework development.

Relationship maintenance involves regular, valuable contact without constant pitching, providing exclusive insights and expert commentary, respecting deadlines and editorial preferences, offering background briefings and industry context, introducing journalists to relevant sources and experts, and maintaining consistent, professional communication. We track relationship history and preferences to ensure personalised, effective engagement.

SaaS companies typically require thought leadership development to establish credibility, product launch communications for new features and releases, customer success story development for social proof, industry analyst relations for market positioning, content strategy including blogs and whitepapers, conference speaking opportunities and industry event participation, crisis communications for service outages or security issues, and investor relations support for funding rounds.

We translate technical concepts into business benefits and real-world applications, use analogies and metaphors to explain complex processes, focus on customer outcomes rather than technical specifications, develop visual content including infographics and videos, create tiered messaging for different audience sophistication levels, and provide media training to help technical experts communicate clearly with journalists and customers.

Financial services communications must comply with Central Bank of Ireland and FCA regulations, including accurate representation of products and services, appropriate risk warnings and disclaimers, compliance with advertising standards for financial products, data protection requirements for customer information, and regulatory approval processes for certain types of communications. We ensure all content meets regulatory requirements whilst remaining engaging and effective.

HR tech companies demonstrate value through quantified customer success metrics, case studies showing measurable business improvements, industry benchmarking and comparative analysis, thought leadership on workplace trends and challenges, integration with broader business strategy discussions, and clear connection between HR technology and business outcomes like productivity, retention, and cost savings.

Budget requirements depend on campaign scope, duration, and objectives. Project-based campaigns typically range from €5,000-€25,000 for specific initiatives like product launches. Monthly retainer fees generally range from €3,000-€15,000 depending on service scope and seniority of team involvement. Crisis management requires immediate availability and typically involves higher monthly retainers of €8,000-€20,000. Long-term reputation building programmes require sustained investment over 12-24 months.