Six Questions for Microcap Companies Contemplating Public Relations

6-Questions-for-PR_Planet-MicroCap-Review-Winter-2024_2025-Issue

What Do Public Relations Firms Do? 

In our ongoing “back-to-basics” blog series defining public relations and investor relations, this post dives into the essential functions of PR agencies and the value they bring to clients.

At its core, a public relations firm helps businesses, brands and organizations shape their reputations and build relationships with diverse audiences—including consumers, customers, partners, investors, and legislators, among others.

Public relations services can vary widely depending on the client, objectives and budget. Below are some common tasks that PR firms typically handle:

  • Key Messaging: Developing central talking points that guide all communications with specific audiences. Each stakeholder group receives tailored messaging.
  • Media Relations: Securing positive media coverage through press releases, media pitches and by fostering relationships with journalists and media outlets.
  • Media and Presentation Training: Coaching individuals to effectively communicate with the media or deliver a presentation through specialized on-camera training, coaching and analysis.
  • Brand Building: Monitoring public opinion and sentiment and working to enhance or repair client reputations through proactive communication strategies.
  • Analyst Relations: Connecting clients with industry analysts to gain valuable endorsements, improved market perception and increased trust from potential customers, investors and partners.
  • Crisis Management: Navigating crises by managing communications among all stakeholder groups during challenging times to protect an organization’s reputation and minimize negative impact.
  • Digital PR and SEO: Creating and managing content for digital platforms like social media, blogs and websites to engage with audiences, while using SEO strategies to increase visibility and engagement.
  • Event Marketing: Organizing product or service launches, press conferences and promotional activities to help generate positive publicity and engage with target audiences.
  • Internal Communications: Developing communication strategies to ensure consistent messaging and alignment among employees, executives and other internal stakeholders.
  • Influencer Marketing: Identifying and collaborating with third-party spokespeople and thought leaders to help amplify a client’s message and reach target audiences.

Overall, PR firms play a crucial role in helping businesses and organizations manage their public image, navigate challenges and build strong relationships with their stakeholders.

George Medici, gmedici@pondel.com

Corporate America is Telling the Truth — Tips to Assure Reg FD Compliance

With so many voices billowing false narratives and confusion these days, it is sometimes challenging to discern fact from fiction. But amidst all the dubious rhetoric, it’s good to know that sanity still prevails in the world of public companies.

Corporate America is standing out as a beacon of clarity and truth. And this isn’t by accident. It is the result of carefully crafted regulations designed to protect investors and ensure the integrity of the market.

As a refresher, the Securities Act of 1933, affectionately known as the “truth in securities” law, mandates that buyers of securities receive complete, accurate and truthful information before they invest. 

The Securities Exchange Act of 1934, referred to as the “34 Act,” created the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a body to regulate trading of securities after they have been distributed.

And in the year 2000, the ‘33 and ‘34 Acts were further strengthened by Regulation Fair Disclosure (Reg FD), with the intent of preventing public companies from selectively disclosing important information to certain shareholders and market professionals. Rather, it created a level playing field for all investors by ensuring that material information is disclosed to everyone simultaneously.

As the 25-year mark approaches since Reg FD was enacted, and as the IPO market warms up for the new year, following are a few reminders to help issuers assure compliance:

  • Maintain a formal disclosure policy. Outline procedures for publicly disclosing information, such as through press releases and social media. Press releases are by far the preferred disclosure medium, followed by social media and the company’s website. However, if a company principally uses the latter two vehicles to disclose information vs. press releases, it must ensure that both are widely recognized as the issuer’s primary distribution channels.
  • Train employees. For companies in the process of going public, provide formal Reg FD training – in person or by Zoom – for senior staff and for those who may be privy to sensitive information, and periodically conduct refresher training sessions. Specify who is authorized to communicate with investors and analysts.
  • Anticipate disclosures. Plan ahead if possible, and when doing so, be certain to remind the inner executive circle of the mandate for confidentiality.
  • Review executive presentations. Have an IR advisor or in-house counsel review presentations to be certain they do not contain material non-public information. 
  • Establish black-out periods for trading. Black-out periods can help prevent inadvertent insider trading and Reg FD violations. Some companies limit executives to only trading on a 10b5-1 plan to avoid violations.

Through Reg FD and other SEC mandates, corporations and their leaders are held to stringently high rhetorical standards – and they are doing a good job of adhering to them. Continued compliance requires awareness, regular refreshment, and constant diligent attention.

Roger Pondel, rpondel@pondel.com

Editorial Note: PondelWilkinson has been approved by the California Bar Association to provide Reg FD training to SEC lawyers for MCLE credit, and regularly provides such training to executives of pre-public and publicly traded companies.

Respecting the American Dream

As someone who came to this country with my family in the early 1980s, I’ve personally witnessed and experienced the opportunities that America offers. For most immigrant families, the United States was, and still is, considered the land of freedom and opportunity. A representation of hope and dreams to pursue better lives.

Four decades and numerous jobs later—from scooping ice cream after high school to waitressing through college—my professional aspirations embodied the dream that anyone, no matter their birthplace or background, can achieve success, and that upward mobility is within reach for all.

Today, I am a partner at one of the nation’s most highly regarded investor relations and strategic public relations firms, representing quality companies, large and small, in multi sectors throughout the globe.

Corporations, at their core, are made up of individuals. Regardless of position or job role, the vast majority of those individuals are people with values, ethics and the potential for positive impact, working together to achieve the common goal of growth, which ultimately benefits the entire organization.

However, achieving this growth isn’t just about the bottom line—it’s also about how we get there. It is crucial to remember that the principles of values and ethics, and the belief that we all have the potential to make a positive impact, can guide all of us toward a more constructive and unified future.

I take great professional and personal pride in working, alongside my colleagues, for a firm that advises executives in matters pertaining to communications with factual integrity. Honesty is not just a policy, but the foundation of trust. Investors, journalists and employees at all levels, and certainly including our society at large, depend on clear, accurate and transparent information to make informed decisions. Misleading and divisive rhetoric only undermines trust and stalls progress. When we prioritize forthright openness, however, we build credibility and foster a culture of respect and understanding.

By advocating for transparency and accountability within corporate practices, we challenge the notion of some, who believe that corporations are inherently symbols of self-serving greed, and instead, we seek to promote a different view, one where corporations can be agents for positive change and camaraderie.

With Labor Day celebrations now behind us, we recognize the many contributions workers have made to America’s strength, prosperity and well-being. We also embrace corporate achievement and the symbiotic relationship between production-line workers and those in the executive suite.

Together, we can foster more pathways and create new opportunities for people, regardless of origin, to achieve their own American dreams.

Judy Lin, jlin@pondel.com

What is Public Relations?

As part of our “back-to-basics” blog series on the foundational tenants of our business, we are dedicating this post to public relations.

Many people have heard of public relations, but not everyone truly understands what it involves. A common perception is that public relations is simply about interacting with the public. While there’s some truth to this, the reality is much more nuanced.

A useful analogy can help with clarification: In advertising, the emphasis is on self-promotion, where the subject speaks for itself. In contrast, public relations involves third parties objectively communicating on behalf of the subject.

Public relations, or PR for short, is a form of mass communications used to engage with different types of audiences, including consumers, customers, employees, investors and lawmakers, among many other stakeholders. Specialized disciplines such as investor relations, crisis communications, government and employee relations all make use of public relations tools and tactics.

PR may be utilized to inform, persuade, highlight a particular point-of-view or prompt a call to action. It could be about a specific product, company, service or issue. Typically, an organization will engage a public relations firm to create and implement a program aimed at influencing one or several key stakeholder groups. For publicly traded companies, for example, a robust PR strategy can help increase awareness and visibility among investors, who look to third-party messaging to help inform their investing decisions.

At its core, public relations involves creating awareness between a brand or organization and its key audiences through carefully crafted messaging. These messages, often referred to as “talking points,” answer the essential question: What are the main points we want to communicate to these audiences?

The next step is determining how and where these messages are delivered. Talking points are transformed into various types of content, which are then distributed across a wide range of mass and specialized media, including news outlets, industry publications, digital and social media, broadcast channels, and more.

A fundamental objective in PR is how best to reach target groups where they work and live. Until the Internet, TV and newspapers were very influential, and still are to some degree. However, reaching targeted audiences in today’s Web-based world has become increasingly complex.

That’s why PR often is considered more of an art than a science. Crafting content that resonates with people and makes a real impact requires a great deal of critical thought and creativity within legal and regulatory confines, of course. Press releases, videos, newsletters, social media posts, podcasts and op-eds are just a few of the many essential tools used to inform and engage key stakeholders.

Whether it’s encouraging consumers to buy a product or investors to buy or hold a stock, or positioning a CEO as an industry expert, the ultimate goal of public relations remains the same: to help effect change and action, and to communicate with people in meaningful and transparent ways. That’s what public relations is all about.

George Medici, gmedici@pondel.com

Samantha Campos-Esquivel Receives the 2024 Cecilia Wilkinson Memorial Scholarship

First-year USC graduate student and full-time media strategist, Samantha Campos-Esquivel, is the latest recipient of the Cecilia Wilkinson Memorial Scholarship.

We recently had the distinct pleasure of meeting with Samantha Campos-Esquivel, a graduate student at USC who has been selected as the recipient of the 2024 Cecilia Wilkinson Memorial Scholarship.

Bestowed annually over the last 15 years, the scholarship celebrates exceptional first-year graduate students at USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism who exhibit a profound passion for public relations or investor relations.

Samantha is a true embodiment of dedication and determination, pursuing her master’s degree in public relations and advertising, while simultaneously excelling as a full-time strategist at Horizon Media, a full-service media agency.

“I look forward to creating meaningful change in this line of work and showcasing my love for storytelling and this industry,” said Campos-Esquivel. “Studying at USC Annenberg has been a dream, and in these past few months, I have felt the impact and magic that a program like this has to offer. It is an honor to receive the Cecilia Wilkinson Memorial Scholarship and to have the support of tenured firms like PondelWilkinson in fulfilling this dream.”

Born and raised within the vibrant cultural tapestry of Los Angeles, Samantha developed a profound appreciation for the art of storytelling, particularly within the realms of music, cinema and television. Driven by her love for storytelling, Samantha found her calling in brand strategy and public relations. Beyond her professional and academic pursuits, Samantha is an enthusiastic explorer of diverse narratives, constantly seeking out new literary works, TV series and music that inspire and captivate her.

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Samantha for this well-deserved recognition and for her dedication and commitment as she navigates the demands of both academia and the professional world.

Natalie Mu, nmu@pondel.com

5 PR Tips to Help Your Company Thrive in 2024

Strategic public relations plays a vital role in fostering positive relationships with key stakeholders, whether it is investors, customers, strategic partners, or employees. Getting the right message to the right audience is paramount to any successful outreach campaign.

Limited attention spans coupled with crowded marketplaces and platforms have made it difficult to effectively deliver value propositions. To help companies cut through the clutter and resonate with audiences, consider these five tips for developing and implementing successful communications strategies.

  • Streamline key messaging. Organizations are always competing for the same share of voice, whether it is aimed at customers or investors. Platforms are just too “noisy,” and messaging is not getting through, resulting in lost opportunities. Target audiences must be clearly defined along with extremely focused corresponding talking points to impact relevant stakeholders.
  • Engage influencer marketing. Once thought only for consumer products, influencers are developing sought-after b2b followings on a range of diverse topics, from AI to telecommunications. With the increasingly difficulty of earned media coverage, successful PR professionals are collaborating with these thought leaders for building corporate and brand awareness and engagement.
  • Don’t forget about corporate social responsibility. This is still relevant, especially since companies embracing ESG and CSR initiatives will be competitive leaders and drive long-term value creation. Deploying ESG and corporate social responsibility programs enhance corporate and brand reputation, as well as help drive tangible business opportunities.
  • Utilize data analytics and SEO. The ongoing shift toward digital platforms and SEO integration should be mainstays to any corporate communications program. From improved visibility to lead generation, optimized content – organic and paid – attracts traffic to  websites and helps organizations achieve greater ROI.
  • Leverage non-traditional channels. Organizations should think outside the box to identify PR opportunities. Product placement tie-ins and even realty television may be applicable for certain brands and companies. Retail investing also has surged in popularity. A range of high-traffic platforms that cater to individual investors have emerged and are actively on the lookout for new investment ideas.

Investing in strategic public relations builds credibility, trust and brand reputation through effective storytelling. Shaping smarter and more targeted narratives cultivates strong relationships with key stakeholders that achieve real results, from building awareness to enhancing shareholder value.

George Medici, gmedici@pondel.com

Overcoming Challenges: The Path to Successful ESG Program Implementation

While the adoption of environmental, social and governance (ESG) programs is becoming increasingly important for building a sustainable future, implementing such initiatives does not come without its challenges. Cost, ROI, engagement and clear messaging are just a few of the many factors to consider when it comes to corporate sustainability.

Below are some common concerns with commonsense solutions that may help companies better prepare for ESG deployment.

  • Capital allocation: Investing in and implementing ESG initiatives may require significant financing, which can be a hurdle for some companies, especially smaller organizations with limited resources. Not all ESG programs are costly, however. Starting slow and building a longer-term strategy over 2-3 years is good practice. It could be something simple, such as reducing a company’s carbon footprint by using energy-efficient lighting or adopting a hybrid workplace.
  • Complexity and measurement: Determining the right indicators, collecting reliable data and establishing standardized frameworks can be arduous. Companies can overcome this challenge by leveraging emerging technologies, collaborating with industry peers and engaging with ESG consultants and experts to ensure accurate and transparent reporting.
  • Benchmarking: It is important that organizations perform in a manner to maintain their performance, and at the same time, mitigate risk and capitalize on the potential benefits of sustainable business practices. Falling behind on these initiatives may lead to missed business opportunities. A good rule of thumb is to set realistic, achievable goals aside from regulatory obligations.
  • Stakeholder engagement: Balancing the diverse expectations of multiple audiences can be very demanding. Companies can use existing technologies to set up open communication channels with each of its targeted communities, from employees and investors to customers and suppliers. Social platforms can be used to garner support and to ensure that ESG programs align with stakeholder needs.
  • Integration and alignment: ESG programs often require changes to organizational structures, investment decisions and risk management practices. Since companies are constantly evolving, meaningful ESG practices can slowly and strategically be integrated into existing operations. What’s needed are leadership commitment, employee education and training and clear ESG goals that align with the company’s mission and values.
  • Regulatory environment: Compliance with multiple reporting frameworks and keeping up with varying regulatory and local jurisdictions often can lead to uncertainty. Engaging with policymakers, industry associations and subject matter experts can help companies stay informed and adapt their ESG programs to meet evolving requirements.

Today’s business and social climate are having a trickle-down effect on ESG. Large organizations, for example, are requiring smaller companies to adhere to ESG criteria as part of their global supply chains. Moreover, a growing number of institutional investors will not invest in companies without an ESG program in place.

Lack of standardization, inconsistent data quality and subjectivity are adding to the confusion when it comes to ESG. As a result, Bloomberg predicts more ESG-related shareholder lawsuits this year, which was highlighted in a recent Morgan Lewis webinar.  

Studies suggest that those companies embracing ESG will be competitive leaders and drive long-term value creation. ESG is not as complicated as it may appear. Deploying a program that does good – without breaking the proverbial bank – not only enhances brand reputation, but also will be well received among investors.

George Medici, gmedici@pondel.com