What to do when two big-hitting PR clients go head-to-head – yet only one can celebrate victory

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Find out why our Edinburgh PR agency found itself with split loyalties for the BT Cup final 

PR Photography for Scottish rugby's BT cupTHERE’S nothing like a grand sporting occasion – such as a derby day encounter or a big a cup final – to bring out tribal rivalries (main pic supplied by the SRU).

The weekend past saw one of the main events in the Scottish rugby calendar, as the two top amateur teams in Scotland met in the national stadium at Murrayfield to duke it out for the prestigious BT Cup.

Normally the team at our Edinburgh PR agency would have been far more focused on the weekend’s big football match, where Hibs met Falkirk for a place in the Scottish Cup Final.

But this time around it was the rugby which captured all our attention – and dramatically split our loyalties.Public relations agency Holyrood PR in Edinburgh works for both sponsors of the 2015 BT Cup

Why were we suddenly so interested in the fortunes of Borders-based Hawick RFC and their cup final rivals, Edinburgh’s Boroughmuir RFC? After all, we’re fair weather rugby fans at best, normally only following the Scottish national team in action in the Six Nations or the upcoming Rugby World Cup.

Despite our limited knowledge about club rugby for this year’s epic final we felt like we actually has some skin in the game. In fact, we didn’t just have a dog in the fight – we had two dogs in the battle, on opposing sides.

As it turned out two of our biggest clients were also at loggerheads on Cup Final day – as the main shirt sponsors of the opposing two historic and proud rugby clubs.

Public relatiion agency in edinburgh Holryood PR provides public relations services to Banks RenewablesIn the green camp were wind energy specialists Banks Renewables, who were sponsoring Hawick. While Edinburgh-based network and communications expert Commsworld, where sponsoring the men in blue from Boroughmuir.

We’d like to extend our congratulations to the Boroughmuir club and to Commsworld, who ran out the eventual winners on the day. And our commisserations go to Hawick and Banks Renewables who were on the wrong end of a 55-17 trouncing.

The breakdown in play 

Putting aside the rugby rivalry, we thought we’d put forward two of our team to suggest why each sponsor deserved their shot at cup glory.

Chris Fairbairn, Junior Account Executive, said:

Public relations team member Chris Fairbairn of Holyrood PR in Edinburgh“Having worked extensively with Banks Renewables in my first six months at Holyrood PR I’ve witnessed first-hand its passion for supporting the communities that host its developments.

“This includes in Hawick, the town closest to its proposed 15 turbine Birneyknowe project and not too far from my own home town of Berwick.

“Sadly it wasn’t to be but in my opinion, Banks Renewables deserved to win on Saturday for various reasons. Over the years we have won many accolades for our work together, so it would have been nice to see Banks having an excuse to party.”


Keep it simple stupid! Find out how Holyrood PR kept to the basics to deliver a positive coverage with a technical story for Commsworld – and see the outstanding PR results here


 

Account Director and fan of Boroughmuir RFC’s shirt sponsor, Commsworld, Brian Lewis, said:

Public relations account director with Scottish public relations agency, Holyrood PR in Edinburgh“Commsworld is an ambitious firm doing great things to support business in Edinburgh and across Scotland.

“Combining recently with City Fibre the network service provider will transform Edinburgh’s digital infrastructure, enabling gigabit speed and world class connectivity – truly worthy work

“In truth I was completely torn by the final as I work closely with the team at Banks Renewables and I also have mates on both rugby clubs Management Boards, but as I live right next to Boroughmuir’s Meggetland base, I had to back my home club.

“It’s fantastic that the Commsworld team have yet another opportunity to celebrate with the rugby glory following on from a hugely successful spell for the firm – all of which has been captured online and in print across Scotland’s biggest business media titles.

“And on a personal note the great news is that I get to give Chris a bit of stick for being a loser – something he is very used to due to his passion for Newcastle United (couldn’t resist).”


 

 Recently we delivered a record-breaking haul of positive media coverage for responsible developer, Banks Renewables – learn the secrets and see the success story first hand


 

 With our Scottish public relations agency you can always be on the winning team

Commsworld and Banks Renewables are both highly distinguished and successful firms that have chosen our PR agency in Edinburgh to help raise their profile and to spread the word about the hugely positive operations.

To find out how your business can enjoy all of the benefits of a hugely improved media and PR profile, give us a call on 0131 561 2244 or fill in the simple form below and we’ll get straight back to you.