The Art of PR Impact: Short Runways or Long Lead-ins?

This month, we answer a burning question from artists coming to the Edinburgh Fringe: what's our approach to getting them the PR action they crave, and how long do we need?

Artists and producers coming to the Fringe want similar things: bums on seats, rave reviews, and, critically, coverage.

When deciding who to call to give them PR momentum, there is one common theme: how long do you need? Does a long lead-in help? What happens if they come to the Fringe for a shorter run, or if they have opened after the festival has begun?

Having honed our strategies over time, we have gained good results for runs that were as short as five shows at the end of August, as for those which ran for nine shows in the first week.

Starting early

For some runs, we start work from March. We've got the lead time to raise awareness of the show, flag it up to relevant critics, set up joint activity with charities or other organisations related to the show's topic, including offering free tickets to early performances to boost word of mouth.

We flag up previews happening in other cities in the run-up to Edinburgh and invite critics to them when they are less busy. If they like the sound of the artist/show, we'll be in a much stronger position when we contact them again in advance of Edinburgh.

Starting early gives us more time to dig into your show. We find the angles to get the press interested and, over time, monitor and contact those journalists who cover those aspects.

We can work longer with the artist/producers in the build-up to come up with fun marketing and merchandise ideas to help raise awareness of their show. These include mirror stickers for women's toilets for a show about the life chaos of a Brooklyn waitress.

We value longer lead times. When we have a short runway, we have tighter timescales to generate awareness, follow up with contacts, and secure opportunities simply because schedules and decision-making processes often extend beyond the limited time frame.

Our longer-running projects, those we started working on back in March, gain more reviews and coverage. Pop-up events, broadcast and radio opportunities really benefit from earlier planning.

Starting earlier gives us the creative edge and space to build momentum, engage press, and work with institutions that need more advance notice, such as national arts organisations.

Tapping into our networks

Where we are based, we have access to a 'Festival Village' of suppliers from custom gift manufacturers, printers and photographers, who can work with us to develop ideas such as physical invites we can post to a handful of key press/industry contacts. We designed a pack of bubblegum for a noughties girl group piece of musical theatre, and a personalised Valentines card for a comedy show about online dating. 

A major part of our job is getting coverage for shows without necessarily talking about the show itself. So, we bring storytelling to the fore, such as placing news stories about an actor with a very generous benefactor, or a business feature about a set of artists talking about the cost of coming to the Fringe.  

We secure coverage on podcasts and local radio and discover performance and industry networking opportunities that we put shows forward for. The shows that have a longer run in undoubtedly give our media contacts more options to fit around their schedules.

More time also allows us to make use of the contacts we meet during festival networking events and at Fringe venue launches. Last year, we set up a photocall for a show and created a bank of fresh images to share with the media. We'll be doing more of those this year.

Let us work our magic

Inevitably, everything comes down to cost. Our impact can be just as dynamic if we start work in March as it is for an opening night with 72 hours' notice. But shorter timeframes mean tighter opportunities.

Ideally, we suggest that your show runs for as long as you can afford. It takes time for journalists to discover you and to get reviewers to come to your show.

Runs that open later have been known to get decent coverage, as the media like having something new to cover after hundreds of events have opened in the first few days.

Better planning, a longer lead-in, and a greater bank of creative storytelling opportunities give us the best chance at unlocking great results and achieving more success for artists.

Want to know how we can tailor a Fringe campaign for your show? Find out more about our Fringe PR services.

We designed a pack of bubblegum for a noughties girl group piece of musical theatre.

A personalised Valentines card for a comedy show about online dating.