Five ways PR can bolster a soft approach to sales and growth

In today’s fast-paced business environment, companies are increasingly adopting a soft sales approach to attract and retain customers. It’s a trend I’ve increasingly observed among our clients and it’s not difficult to see why it’s happening. Because today’s consumers are more discerning, they often prefer trustworthy connections and meaningful engagement with their brands instead of traditional hard-sell sales tactics, which can be perceived as aggressive. 

If this switch in customer behaviour shows anything, it’s that building a relationship and fostering trust with potential customers is more important than ever. 

I strongly believe that those brands deploying a soft sales approach should ensure their PR is working hard alongside them to support the same mission. Communications are integral to strengthening brand messaging, nurturing relationships, and establishing credibility with target audiences. It’s a no-brainer for PR to play a role in their clients’ business growth, especially if they want to achieve this in an understated, gentle manner. 

There are five key ways I believe PR can complement and bolster a soft sales strategy:

1. Earned endorsement is more compelling than owned messaging

Press coverage in a trusted newspaper or magazine is far more credible and softer than traditional advertising. Also, customers are more likely to trust and be influenced by editorial and journalistic endorsement. Media coverage builds strength in the brand by landing your message through an already trusted source. By building strong relationships with the media, businesses can have their brand’s story told in target publications, helping to increase brand visibility and awareness among target audiences. 

2. Expertise sells itself

When business-leaders and spokespeople are recognised as industry experts, it boosts the reputation and influence of their company. Therefore, profile-building should be an essential part of the PR strategy of any growing business. Landing speaker opportunities for industry events, securing interviews, contributing to articles in trade publications, and taking part in expert panel discussions all help to showcase expertise. By sharing valuable insights, trends and industry perspectives, the business-leader can demonstrate their knowledge of the sector, in turn building trust and increased levels of customer engagement.

3. Stakeholder engagement builds concrete relationships

Businesses should show their commitment to establishing meaningful relationships by proactively engaging with various stakeholder groups such as customers, investors, employees, and the local community. Engaging with stakeholders and listening to their needs, concerns and feedback can increase trust tenfold. It’ll also build a strong rapport to lay foundations for long-term loyalty.

4. Actions speak louder than words

Engaging with local or interest-based communities helps bring a company’s brand values to life. Sponsorships, prize donations, fundraising, and involvement in community events all have a place in a values-based growth strategy. Showing a commitment to social responsibility should be a central activity pillar of any PR strategy. Companies that do the right thing, and ‘walk the walk’ as well as ‘talking the talk’, are far more likely to build and retain a loyal customer base. 

5. Being prepared for the unexpected

PR is instrumental in managing and protecting a company’s reputation. When unexpected challenges arise, PR helps to communicate, address concerns, and mitigate potential damage to a company’s image. Through crisis communications planning, reputation monitoring, and proactive storytelling, PR ensures that a company’s reputation remains intact to minimise the negative impact of a crisis on sales and company credibility.

PR is a valuable tool in supporting a firm’s soft sales approach. It can help build brand awareness, establish credibility, foster relationships with key stakeholders, and manage reputation. By developing meaningful relationships and delivering value to its audiences, a company can differentiate itself from competitors, drive customer loyalty and ultimately drive sales growth. 

Any PR worth their salt realises that a brand’s value (and its bottom line!) lies with its reputation. Such reputations can’t be manufactured or engineered. They are built on what the business says and most importantly, what they do – not as a corporate entity, but as people, interacting with people.

While a business might own its brand, its reputation is ‘owned’ by their customers, stakeholders and influencers. It’s created through what they believe, hear, think, and feel about you.

That’s why PRs should always take their clients’ reputations personally. All reputations need a human touch, especially when growth is the ambition. And in this era of the soft sell, getting this ‘human element’ right – is more important than ever. As PRs, we have an implicit feel and understanding of ‘tone’ and how it resonates with consumers. In other words, PR can help convert a soft sell into hard sales.

Carol Middleton is account manager at Liz Lean Public Relations. She has managed a portfolio of clients for the Poole-based PR agency, serving B2B and B2C across sectors spanning hotels and catering, leisure, marine, motoring, hair and beauty, professional services, retail, not-for-profit, sports and tourism.