9 Problems a PR & Communications Consultant Solves That Marketing Alone Cannot

Your latest marketing campaign is crushing it – leads are pouring in, conversions are up, and your CAC is finally where it should be. But then your CEO gets ambushed in a podcast interview, a disgruntled employee posts on Glassdoor, or a product issue goes viral on Twitter.

Many startups make the same mistake: they put all their resources into marketing and assume it will cover every communication need. 

Marketing drives demand. PR protects what you’ve built. The gap is real: 70% of change initiatives fail due to poor communication, 42% of departing employees say better communication could have retained them, and 75% of candidates research your reputation before applying.

1. Stretching Limited Marketing Dollars for Maximum Visibility 

Marketing budgets are tighter than ever, yet companies still need to build influence and reach key audiences. Smart organizations are turning to PR as a cost-effective alternative that delivers exponentially more value than traditional advertising.

The PR ROI Advantage

• Editorial coverage provides higher trust and engagement than paid advertising, making it significantly more valuable
• One strategic PR campaign can generate millions in equivalent advertising value across multiple channels

Why PR Outperforms Paid Advertising

Unlike advertising, PR provides third-party validation – the social proof that builds genuine trust. When journalists, industry publications, and trusted voices tell your story, it carries weight that paid marketing simply can’t match. This credibility translates into authentic storytelling that resonates with audiences to make them feel something real. 

Whether from an influential voice on Substack, Reddit, or in digital press outlets, strategic PR ensures your innovative products and services get the validation they deserve through carefully cultivated relationships with journalists, industry influencers, and top-tier publications.

How a Communications Consultant Helps: A fractional PR & communications expert identifies opportunities within your marketing calendar to develop newsworthy angles that generate headlines. 

They transform existing marketing initiatives into PR strategies that amplify reach and influence—delivering maximum visibility for minimum investment while building the credibility that drives long-term business growth.

2. Boost Your AI Discoverability on ChatGPT, Claude AI, etc. 

Search has evolved. AI-powered search engines and voice assistants increasingly pull from authoritative news sources and publications when answering queries about your industry.

The opportunity: Strategic press coverage and earned content positions you as the go-to expert in your field, making your business more discoverable when potential customers and partners are researching solutions.

How a Communications Consultant Helps: They craft compelling narratives that resonate with both traditional search algorithms and AI systems, ensuring your company and expertise surfaces.

3. Crisis Communications and getting ahead of the story

Whether it’s a product failure, a lawsuit, a smoldering issue you are hoping doesn’t rear its head – or a social media narrative that you suddenly get included in, a crisis can strike when you expect it the least. The wrong message (or no message) can create reputational damage that outlasts the crisis itself.

How a Communications Consultant helps: Builds proactive crisis playbooks before issues arise, trains leadership to respond under pressure, and manages external messaging to minimize damage while protecting credibility.

4. Building founder visibility with the right audiences 

At the growth stage, your product isn’t the only thing under scrutiny. Customers, investors, and the media look for founders who can articulate vision and inspire confidence. While marketing can amplify your brand present, it cannot position a founder as a thought leader.

How a Communications Consultant helps: Prepares executives for media interviews, develops keynote speeches, secures speaking opportunities at major events, and builds profiles through thought ghostwritten and placed earned media leadership pieces.  

5. Brand Positioning & Strategic Messaging

Your brand story isn’t marketing speak—it’s the strategic foundation that transforms complex offerings into clear, compelling value propositions. Effective positioning reveals why you exist, the unique problem you solve, who you serve, and what sets you apart. When done right, it drives measurable business results.

The Research-Backed Impact

The data on strategic storytelling and positioning is compelling:

• Content that tells a story has a 300% higher engagement rate and consumers who read brand stories are 55% more likely to buy the product in the future
• Stories are up to 22 times more memorable than facts alone 
• Stories can increase a product’s perceived value by up to 2,706%
• Brands can see a 30% increase in conversion rates with effective storytelling
• Ads with emotional content perform twice as well (31% vs 16%) as those with only rational content

The Challenge

Many innovative companies struggle to articulate their unique positioning in a way that resonates with their target audience. Founders often create positioning statements that sound like novels—complex, unfocused, and difficult for customers and investors to connect with emotionally.

How a Communications Consultant Helps: A communications consultant develops strategic messaging frameworks that work across all channels, from investor pitches to customer conversations. Using data-driven insights and proven storytelling methodologies, they refine positioning, create key messages that cut through market noise, and build narratives that resonate with ideal customers, investors, and industry stakeholders.

What you get:

• Clear, research-backed positioning statements
• Consistent messaging that drives 30%+ conversion improvements
• Stories that create emotional connections and build trust
• Scalable frameworks that grow with your business
• Strategic messaging that increases perceived value and memorability

Sources: Stanford University, OneSpot, Institute of Practitioners in Advertising, HubSpot

6. Strategic Key Messaging Development (Beyond Taglines)

Do you know your 3 key messages? These aren’t marketing taglines or elevator pitches. These are the strategic communication pillars that should guide every high-stakes conversation –  whether you’re on stage, in front of investors, speaking to the media, or leading your team. 

Clear, compelling key messages translate directly into business value because they differentiate you, communicate your purpose, and transform nervous executives into confident thought leaders.

The Business Impact of Effective Messaging

Research demonstrates the tangible value of strategic communication:

• 86% of workplace failures stem from ineffective communication 
• 72% of business leaders report that effective communication increases productivity
• $1.2 trillion in annual losses across the U.S. are attributed to miscommunication
• Companies with effective messaging frameworks see 20-25% improvement in team productivity
• 60% of business leaders report increased employee confidence through clear communication

The Challenge

Many leaders struggle with inconsistent messaging across different audiences and contexts. Without a clear framework, executives often:

• Sound different in every interview or presentation
• Fail to differentiate from competitors when it matters most
• Miss opportunities to reinforce key value propositions
• Create confusion among stakeholders about what the company stands for

How a PR & Communications Consultant Helps:

A communications consultant develops core messaging frameworks—the 3-5 key messages that capture what makes organizations relevant, timely, and uniquely positioned to solve critical problems. This isn’t about crafting taglines; it’s about creating strategic communication pillars that work across all contexts.

Core services include:

• Message Architecture Development: Clear hierarchy of core messages, supporting points, and proof points
• Audience-Specific Adaptation: Tailoring key messages for investors, media, customers, and internal teams
• Media Training & Coaching: Preparing leaders to handle tough questions, pivot conversations back to key points, and deliver quotable soundbites
• Crisis Communication Preparation: Ensuring messages hold up under pressure
• Executive Presence Coaching: Building the confidence and delivery skills that make messages memorable

Results:

• Consistent differentiation across all stakeholder interactions
• Media-ready soundbites that journalists actually want to quote
• Enhanced executive presence and confidence in high-visibility moments
• Crisis-tested messages that protect and enhance reputation

Your key messages become your competitive advantage—opening doors with media, investors, and customers while ensuring every interaction reinforces your strategic positioning.

Sources: McKinsey, Fierce Inc., Bureau of Labor Statistics, Harvard Business School Executive Education

7. Going Beyond Campaign Metrics

A strong marketing campaign can fill a pipeline with leads, but it doesn’t reassure investors that your business is stable or credible. Before investing, they want a clear picture on how you handle risk, governance, and long-term vision. 

Earned media, or press coverage,  is also known to drive credibility among these stakeholders. Consistent updates, growth tracking, and consistent brand messaging can eat into your work schedule as a founder. 

How a PR & Communications Consultant Helps:

A communications consultant builds internal communication frameworks that scale with growth, preventing information silos and maintaining culture during rapid expansion. They establish clear protocols for remote teams, create stakeholder alignment strategies, and design change communication plans for mergers, pivots, and organizational shifts.

Results:

• Maintained culture and morale during rapid growth
• Reduced miscommunication across teams
• Stronger stakeholder relationships through consistent updates
• Higher employee retention through improved alignment

8. Navigating Sensitive Issues 

Today’s business landscape is filled with landmines. Startups increasingly face tough questions around pricing and inflation, environmental responsibility, diversity and inclusion, regulatory compliance, and geopolitical risks. One misstep in your messaging can trigger social media storms, customer boycotts, and investor concerns.

The danger: Marketing agencies aren’t equipped to handle these nuanced topics. They’re trained to create compelling copy, not navigate reputational risks. What sounds clever in a campaign brief can backfire spectacularly when it hits the real world.

How I help: I bring journalistic expertise and crisis-tested judgment to protect your brand when addressing sensitive topics. I help you reframe challenging stories, craft messages that acknowledge complexity while demonstrating accountability, and develop responses that actually strengthen stakeholder trust rather than damage it. 

When the stakes are high, you need someone who understands that every word matters—and knows how to communicate in ways that build your reputation instead of putting it at risk.

9. Change Communications & Reputation Protection  

High-growth companies often prioritize customer acquisition while neglecting how poorly communicated organizational changes devastate employee morale, trigger costly turnover, and permanently damage employer brands.

The Business Impact

• 70% of change initiatives fail due to poor communication 
• 42% of departing employees say better communication could have retained them 
• $1.2 trillion in annual losses from miscommunication across the U.S. 
• 75% of candidates research employer reputation before applying; 55% reject companies with poor reviews 

The Challenge

Growing companies face critical communication failures:

• Inconsistent messaging during restructuring
• Lack of transparency breeding rumors and distrust
• Poor timing of sensitive announcements
• No crisis communication plan when issues escalate
• Disconnected leadership during transitions

How a Communication Consultant Helps: They develop change communication strategies that protect your business, retain talent, and strengthen your employer brand during transformation.

Core Services:

• Change Communication Planning: Message frameworks, stakeholder mapping, strategic timing
• Crisis Communication: Early warning systems, rapid response protocols, media relations
• Employee Retention: Internal communication strategies, leadership training, feedback mechanisms

Results:

• Preserved employer brand reputation
• Crisis-ready organization with tested protocols
• Protected company valuation through reputation management

How to Choose a PR & Communications Consultant or Fractional CCO for Your Company?  

Not every consultant can handle the chaos of a scaling business. Here’s what to look for when you choose: 

• Early stage companies face unique challenges. Choose a consultant with proven startup and growth experience.
• A good consultant complements marketing rather than competes with it.
• A good consultant can identify PR opportunities to amplify and stretch your marketing dollars to reach wider audiences without a hefty ad spend while building trust. 
• Strong consultants can provide crisis playbooks, messaging frameworks, media training, and investor communications.
• Have the ability to position themselves as a fractional CCO to provide C-suite insight without the cost of a full-time executive. 
• They must fit into the company’s culture as they are required to work closely with founders, boards, and teams.  

Meet Victoria Kirk, Your Communications Consultant

Victoria Kirk is a PR & communications strategist with over 20 years experience working with startups and growth stage companies across North America. She has supported startups and organizations and associations through the pressures of scale, from securing funding and hiring talent to building customer trust and keeping stakeholders aligned.

As a Communications Consultant and fractional CCO, Victoria works directly with founders and leadership teams to:

• Uncover your unique brand story and positioning to make you stand out. 
• Create messaging frameworks that unify investors, employees, and customers.
• Prepare crisis communication strategies before they are ever needed.
• Build executive visibility through media, speaking, and thought leadership.
• Strengthen internal communications to improve culture and retention.
• Develop investor and board communications that inspire confidence.
• Develop a PR & Earned Media strategy and frameworks to drive coverage in the media. 
• Set up your internal PR department and train your marketing team to handle PR for a sustainable model. 
• Develop a corporate social responsibility strategy and co-branded partnerships. 
• Build annual and project PR & Communications and marketing communications strategies. 
• Develop social media strategies, ghostwritten op-eds and articles, news releases, b-roll, scripts for executives. 
• Storytelling frameworks and editorialized brand narratives.

With Victoria, you get the benefit of senior communications leadership without the overhead of an agency or full-time hire. Her approach is practical, focused, and customized to fill critical gaps where your team needs support most.

Book a consultation to learn how Victoria can support your growth.