Episode 5

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Published on:

12th Sep 2024

S5 E5: People-Centric PR: Why Understanding Your Audience is Critical

In the dynamic world of brand marketing, integrating the voices of consumers is not just a best practice — it's a necessity.

In this episode, Jen Belcastro and Bill Southard explain why listening to the consumer is crucial for brand success. They discuss how understanding consumer behavior, preferences, and emotional connections can lead to more effective marketing campaigns and business strategies.

Consumer research is an investment that can save companies from costly missteps and ensure they remain responsive to market changes and consumer needs.

This ongoing and adaptive process is not a one-time effort but a continual practice that sustains brand relevance and drives continuous improvement.

Jen advocates for starting small to win stakeholder buy-in for consumer research. This could involve initial stakeholder interviews to identify gaps and build a case for wider research, demonstrating the value through incremental insights.

Key Takeaways

  • Putting people at the heart of marketing strategies helps to build strong emotional connections with the brand.
  • Identifying the correct target audience is crucial; often, companies have assumptions that may not be accurate.
  • Consumer research, even on a small scale, can reveal vital insights that lead to better product and marketing decisions.
  • Tracking brand performance and consumer behavior year-round is essential for ongoing success and adjustment in strategies.

About the Guests

Jen Belcastro is Founder & President of Escalate Strategies. She has spent over 20 years as a Consumer Insights & Brand Strategist at mid to large corporate agencies, serving clients from multiple verticals (B2C and B2B). She has a depth of experience in both qualitative and quantitative methodologies with a particular passion around helping clients grow winning brands that truly make the world a better place. After witnessing how typical big company challenges — high overhead, politics, bureaucracy, complex staffing models, and employee burnout — were to the direct detriment of the clients they claim to serve, she founded Escalate Strategies to offer clients direct access to her senior-level experience, entrepreneurial creativity, and laser focus on strategically impactful results.

Bill Southard is founder and CEO of Southard Communications, a firm he founded in 1994. Under his leadership, Southard Communications has shown significant growth across a number of market segments. Headquartered in New York City, the firm has executed successful public relations, digital marketing and communications and social media campaigns for a wide range of B2B and B2C companies, for several of which the agency has been recognized with industry awards. Southard has four decades of experience in the public relations industry. Prior to founding his current firm, he was executive vice president/general manager of Dorf & Stanton Communications, an agency that was sold in 1989 to Shandwick. The agency has worked on a number of iconic brands in the toy and game space including Etch a Sketch, LeapFrog, The Elf on the Shelf, Pound Puppies and Slinky, to name a few.

About the Host

Abbie Fink is president of HMA Public Relations in Phoenix, Arizona and a founding member of PRGN. Her marketing communications background includes skills in media relations, digital communications, social media strategies, special event management, crisis communications, community relations, issues management, and marketing promotions for both the private and public sectors, including such industries as healthcare, financial services, professional services, government affairs and tribal affairs, as well as not-for-profit organizations.

PRGN Presents is brought to you by Public Relations Global Network, the world’s local public relations agency. Our executive producer is Adrian McIntyre.

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About the Podcast

PRGN Presents: News & Views from the Public Relations Global Network
Leading a business effectively in today's fast-paced and interconnected world requires expert guidance and a strong communications strategy. The Public Relations Global Network is here to help.
PRGN Presents is the essential podcast for international business leaders, non-profit executives, and those who hire public relations, marketing, and communications firms. It provides an exclusive look into the ever-evolving world of PR and communications, featuring experts from the Public Relations Global Network, “the world’s local public relations agency.”

Is your message winning hearts and minds? No matter where you do business, there is a PRGN member agency in your region with the deep industry expertise, international experience, and local market knowledge you need to connect with your target audience and achieve your goals.

Whether you're an executive looking to improve your organization's communication strategy or an in-house marketing professional looking to bring in an outside firm to support a specific campaign, this podcast will provide valuable insights on how to communicate effectively and build lasting relationships with customers, staff, and communities around the world.

In each episode, you’ll hear PR professionals and industry experts share valuable insights and perspectives on the latest trends in public relations, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG), media relations, crisis management, investor relations, stakeholder engagement, executive thought leadership, and strategic communications.

About your hosts

Abbie S. Fink

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Abbie S. Fink is president of HMA Public Relations in Phoenix, Arizona and a founding member of the Public Relations Global Network. Her marketing communications background includes skills in media relations, digital communications, social media strategies, special event management, community relations, issues management, and marketing promotions for both the private and public sectors, including such industries as healthcare, financial services, professional services, government affairs and tribal affairs, as well as not-for-profit organizations. Abbie is often invited to present to a wide variety of business and civic organizations on such topics as media relations, social media and digital communications strategies, crisis communications, and special events management.

Adrian McIntyre, PhD

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Dr. Adrian McIntyre is a social scientist, storytelling strategist, and internationally recognized authority on effective communication. His on-air experience began in 1978 at the age of five as a co-host of "The Happy Day Express," the longest-running children's radio program in California history. Adrian earned his PhD in cultural anthropology from the University of California, Berkeley, where he was a Fulbright scholar and National Science Foundation research fellow. He spent nearly a decade in the Middle East and Africa as a researcher, journalist, and media spokesperson for two of the largest humanitarian relief agencies in the world. Today he advises and trains entrepreneurs, executives, and corporate teams on high-performance communication, the power of storytelling, and how to leverage digital media to build a personal leadership brand.