Will Wood - Sports & Comedy PR

Will Wood (pictured with one of his sports clients, Man City and England player Micah Richards) first got an interest in PR at university when he started learning the trade while promoting comedy gigs in Manchester. He started working as a freelance PR, specialising in his two passions, sport and comedy, while still a student, eventually creating an agency around all his various projects, Multitude Media. Will still specialises in the sport and comedy sectors, working for both individuals and companies in both those industries. We spoke to him about his career to date.

How did you get into PR?

I began getting some experience of the sports industry during my gap year, and carried on working on some sports projects when I started at university, including a stint at Sky Sports. I was also made Sports Editor at the Leeds Guide. But I began moving into PR via my other passion, comedy. I did the publicity on some comedy nights in Manchester and got a bit of a reputation for getting people down, getting reviewers in, and building a bit of profile for the people I worked with. Plus I really enjoyed it, so I decided to keep going on the PR route.

Why did you set up Multitude Media?

I started taking on various PR projects on a freelance basis while I was still at uni – at one point I had six projects on the go at the same time. By my second year at college I was working for a Premier League footballer and some large companies. But I became conscious that to move forward I needed to build my own brand, so that there was something to link all my projects together, and that’s why I created Multitude Media. I also felt that having an agency to base my work around made things seem more professional, and less like I was a jack of all trades juggling lots of different projects.

You continue to work for both companies and individuals, how do the two compare?

It’s more similar than people often say. The individuals we work with are their own company, their own brand. It’s true that with corporate clients we’re often operating on a much larger scale when it comes to our strategy, and will also probably be focused on a specific region or market, but much of the practice itself is the same. Regardless of whether it’s an individual or a brand, it’s still about achieving press coverage that will deliver tangible progress rather than just impressive AVEs.

You obviously do media relations work, but what other kinds of PR services do you offer?

Although we’re a young company we offer a wide range of services. I was adamant from the off that we would have a number of strands to our business, so that we could help meet all of our clients needs. So, we work with a lot of up-and-coming comedians who probably don’t need crisis management support, but some of our high profile sports clients maybe will need that kind of thing, and I was keen to ensure they wouldn’t have to go elsewhere to get it. With some clients we also offer other services like sponsorship consultancy and media training.

You work in both sport and comedy, how do the two compare?

There’s similarities across the two, particularly when looking at the individuals rather than the brands we work with. First and foremost, often footballers and comedians both don’t understand what PR can do for them, nor do they have the inclination to find out. Some even see it as a bad thing, that they shouldn’t be seen to be using PR. However, we teach them that good PR is not just about shmoozing a client’s way into the papers, rather its about looking at each individuals strengths and interests, and using those things to build profile. We may place some clients in the celebrity weeklies, but with others such coverage would be detrimental to their personal brand. Pragmatism and common sense are key.

Both sport and comedy come down to performance. If a footballer plays well, the PR opportunities are endless, as the fans and their employers are supportive, and people want to hear from them. Similarly, if a comedian has a good show or excels in a particular TV or radio role, there are far more open doors for them. People are interested in finding out more from those people as they’re on an upward trajectory. TV and radio are craving comedy at the moment, and to that end there’s some pitfalls for young comedians in that they’re propelled into fame at rocket speed and, as well as the perks, that brings with it certain challenges. Both sport and entertainment operate on short timeframes.

What kinds of PR support do sports people need – is it about building a ‘personal brand’ or avoiding press intrusion?

It’s about building a personal brand. Press interest is part and parcel of their job. Our work is about building a positive image for that person, and to help them get closer to the fans without opening them up to further intrusion. It’s not often mentioned, but footballers are keen and delighted to interact with fans if they can do so without that interaction being hijacked, and this is where Twitter has been an interesting development.

Let’s also be clear – we work with sports clients who I believe are first and foremost good people. People that reach a certain profile will always be susceptible to criticism or negative press, and once that’s accepted you can move forward. If they make a mistake, they’ll hold their hands up, which is important. Some of the recent press, with high profile figures trying to put out fires in a forest, isn’t something we would advise or practice.

The live comedy industry seems to be thriving, does that make it easier to get mainstream coverage for comedy clients?

Absolutely. I watched Channel 4 the other night and every prime time show was comedy, and I believe it broke their viewing records. There’s a massive and growing audience for comedy, and it’s not just within the one genre – comedians are being used in documentaries, magazine shows and everything in between. And that interest carries through into the press and media.

You represent clients at the Edinburgh Fringe in August, how did that become part of your year?

Whilst at university, I publicised a gig that fellow University of Manchester student Eleanor Thom had organised at The Comedy Store called ‘Just For A Laugh’. Having managed to persuade the powers that be at the venue to give her a one-off night there, Eleanor recruited other students to perform, including Joe Lycett, Jack Whitehall and many more.

On the back of its success, Eleanor and five of the other girls involved set up a sketch group called Lady Garden and decided to go up to the Edinburgh Fringe in 2008, and asked if I would help with the press again. The rest is history, as they stormed it, and became one of the really talked about shows, despite having a PR with little knowledge of the actual comedy industry at that stage. I enjoyed it so much I was certain that it would become a regular fixture in the Multitude Media calendar.

Is there a project you’re particularly proud of?

There’s a few. Because I always set out to work with people long term as opposed to offering quick fix PR, I take particular pride in those clients we worked with very early in their careers who are now beginning to take off.

The comedian Joe Lycett is a great example, as we began working with him two and a half years ago and he’s just got a part in a prime time Saturday night series on BBC 1 with Micky Flanagan and Alexander Armstrong. That’s because he’s brilliant, he’s got a fantastic agent in Sarah King and because we helped to get him press coverage on the back of each success he had along the way to build his profile.

I’m also proud to be involved in major projects such as the Human Trafficking Foundation, which is helping to fight trafficking in the UK and beyond, but that’s for very different reasons obviously.

How has social media impacted on the kind of PR you do?

Where social media was previously seen as an add-on service, it’s now essential in every single project we work with. People, particularly large brands, were initially wary of social media, but they now recognise
that it’s invaluable for connecting with their followers, audience or customers in an immediate way, and that often people are far more engaged when communicated to via social media than, say, an official website or printed publicity. Also, companies have always looked for ways to find out what their audiences think, and social media is a ready made platform for that. Sometimes feedback through social media can be brutal, but taking that on board is the first step to improving.

I also sense the PR industry, and our clients, are now getting more familiar with social media and what it can do for them. Having attended some terrible, terrible social media conferences in the past where ‘experts’ offer the kind of advice you could expect to find on the back of a cereal box, it’s also reassuring to see that even those who would describe themselves as technologically illiterate are quickly getting to grips with things like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. No longer is social media being lead by those with the glassless frames.

What advice would you have for someone considering launching their own PR agency?

Do it. Get a good accountant, fit the work to your interests and make sure you get people around you that you trust. To be able to keep hold of clients, you need to be able to offer all the services people require and that means you have to be pragmatic and learn quickly. And make sure you get press coverage that will directly benefit your client as opposed to being white noise. In something like PR, your company’s profile is entirely built around the success of your recent projects, which means that if you do a good job, you’ll continue to progress.

Tell us something about yourself we couldn’t find out online

I was very lucky, aged 10, to have breakfast with Pele when a friend and mentor took me to meet him when he opened the Manchester United Museum.