news

Four Nominations In The PRmoment Awards

The agency has been shortlisted four times in this year’s PRmoment Awards.

Rule 5 is nominated in four categories including Boutique Agency of the Year, Social Media Campaign of the Year, Best Use of Content, and Health, Beauty, Retail and Fashion Campaign of the Year.

Shortlisted entries include campaigns for The 2016 Track Cycling World Championships (x2) and premium cycle wear brand, Fat Lad At The Back.

The PRmoment Awards recognise the very best communications and PR professionals across the UK and are judged by eminent industry representatives. This year’s awards saw over 850 entries.

Results will be announced at an awards dinner at the Hilton Manchester on March 16.

Rule 5 is the New Ingredient for Pesto Restaurants

Pesto The Davenport REV-1-green-wall

Independent Italian restaurant group Pesto Restaurants has appointed the agency to deliver its PR and marketing communications strategy.

The retained brief will see the team provide support for all eight restaurants, located in the North West and Midlands. The agency will also be responsible for the marketing of all future developments including Pesto at Davenport Arms, the business’ latest £600,000 development due to launch in Marton, East Cheshire, next month.

Activity is already underway with the team working to further raise the profile of Pesto Restaurants, developing Group and regional specific programmes. Social media, CRM, events and communications activity are key components of the brief.

Speaking on the appointment, co-owner of Pesto Restaurants Sara Edwards said: “This is the first time we have looked to employ an agency and it was important for us to find a partner that fully understood our business as well as the sector.

“Rule 5 has a very good reputation in the industry. Their professionalism and knowledge of the sector was evident from the off and we’re confident they will contribute significantly to the future success of Pesto Restaurants. We are excited to start the new year with a new opening and a new partnership.”

Rule 5 Founding Director Julie Wilson added: “Pesto Restaurants is an incredibly interesting business. The scope of work and openness of the founders to explore new strategic approaches as they look to the next phase of expansion makes this a particularly exciting brief; it’s great to be on board.”

For further information on Pesto Restaurants visit http://pestorestaurants.co.uk/find-a-restaurant/

NRB & El Gato Negro Lead BBC News

NRB Blog 2.png This week we announced news of our work with the North’s largest hospitality exhibition, Northern Restaurant and Bar.

Today we share just one of the quality pieces of coverage achieved, as seen on BBC North West Tonight.

The feature, which aired on the lunchtime and evening shows, was secured on the back of the acclaimed exhibition’s study into the North’s most ‘restauranty’ cities, and provided exposure not just for Northern Restaurant and Bar but Rule 5 client El Gato Negro.

“It came as no great surprise to have research officially confirm that the Northern restaurant scene is booming. Talented chefs are realising the wealth of opportunity within the North, setting up their own ventures and cooking their hearts out for an appreciative audience” said Chief Executive of Northern Restaurant and Bar, Thom Hetherington.

“The positive coverage on the region’s restaurant scene this week -aired on BBC North West Tonight and delivered by Rule 5- has given the food industry the exposure it deserves. Our visitor numbers at the Northern Restaurant & Bar show are at a high.”

The coverage is just one example of the agency’s ability to seize the news agenda and develop a story with real broadcast appeal. Our clients’ objectives are firmly rooted at the heart. You can watch it here.

Tips from the top. What journalists really think when you’re selling-in

Selling in is core to a PR’s role and as the media landscape continues to evolve and develop, so must we. We are never too old or ‘good at PR’ to learn new tricks and getting insight from our peers is fundamental to growing our expertise.

That said, hearing those nine magical words – ‘can you send it through to the news desk’ – when you’ve finally managed to reach a real person after hours of being stonewalled by man’s friend, voicemail, can be frustrating.

News creation and distribution agency 72Point hosted a breakfast seminar last Thursday. Hosted by Doug Shields, Sam Allcock and Chris Brooks, the talk offered insider tips and advice to help extend the reach of radio, press and digital campaigns.

Notebooks, pens and mobile phones in hand to tweet using the official #72seminar hashtag, Account Executives Chidi and Rachel headed into town to hear what they had to say.

Here are just a few of the tips we came away with:

Send stories early

Journalists on national news desks start their day around 7 or 8am and head into news meetings at 10am. Get your news to them as early as possible to give yourself the best chance of getting on their agenda.

News site web traffic is at its peak at 9am, 1pm and 4pm, with the most popular content featured prominently on home pages and in dedicated ‘trending’ sections.

Keep it brief on the phone and don’t overlook the power of newswires

Tell them you’ve got a story and read the first paragraph. You’ll know if you’ve got their attention if they keep listening. Having the story on a newswire gives it extra credibility too.

Paid for promotions are worth thinking about

So you’ve secured coverage on a national news site and have hit a KPI. Being published shouldn’t mark the end of your activity. You should share links on social media and consider boosting your posts. What works in print shouldn’t be confined to that – extend the reach of all stories in rounded and integrated outreach.

Know your audience

Think about tailoring copy to fit in with style of your target title, as it will be noticed. This is especially true for radio. A press release written as a 15 second news bite shows the story at its full potential. Don’t forget to send the full story along with it for background.

Time is a premium

Make a journalist’s job as straightforward as possible. They just don’t have the time to chase you for extra information. Put the story’s key facts in bullet points at the top – the body of your release might be edited when published, but the most important details will remain.

RULE 5