Are start-ups leveraging PR enough to build their brand and image?
Be it a start-up, an established MNC or a developing personal brand, utilising the power of Public Relations is at the top of every organisation’s marketing and communications to-do list. According to a 2014 Nielson study, PR is almost 90% more effective than advertising. It is important to remember that the best success stories aren’t about high costs, but about managing the PR function with skill and experience.
IMAGEXX Summit & Awards 2022 saw an interesting panel discussion on ’Are start-ups leveraging PR enough to build their brand and image?’ Moderated by Xavier Prabhu, Founder and Managing Director, PRHUB, the panelists included:
Bhavya Sharma, Associate Director - PR & Communications, Urban Company
Gulrez Alam, Co-founder, Teamology Softech And Media Services
Priyam Divgi, Head - Corporate Communications, Wakefit
Rahul Nag, Head of Communications, PocketFM
Vasundhara Singh, Senior Vice President - New Business & Strategy, Value 360 Communications
Vikram Kharwi, Vice President, Adfactors PR
Do founders of start-ups really understand PR?
According to Priyam Divgi, “I think it goes back to where the founders kind of come from. I think a lot of the founders, at least in the past decade, have passed out of IIMs and IITs, so the knowledge of PR is very limited to start off with, but entrepreneurs in general are curious beings as well and if they value the function, I think they are interested in learning about it. So, it really comes down to whether they see PR as a function of value or not, and unfortunately or fortunately we are left with the owners to kind of educate founders to come up with or rather make them understand what PR really means and how reputation can impact a company.”
Bhavya Sharma, on the other hand, opined that most of them do comprehend that if done well, PR can be a fantastic tool for long-term brand building and can eventually help companies build brand loyalists and even retain or attract new talent. “So, I think they understand the goal or the outcome that needs to be achieved by a PR agency. But how to get there or how to get to that outcome is where they rely on their in-house PR teams or external agencies, and that’s where our expertise comes in.”
These are edited excerpts from the panel discussion. For the complete session, watch below:
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