Time is precious, so thank you for grazing.
I'm Lucy Bridle, founder of Herd PR - a no-nonsense B2B PR & communications specialist by trade. In B2B, I'd describe myself professionally as someone who has bought the t-shirt and sold it several times (but not before embarking on a thorough research, measurement and evaluation process).
Keen to combine earning a crust with a passion for writing, I fell into the world of PR in my early 20's after a brief dalliance with the notion of becoming a Fleet Street journalist. Instead, I responded halfheartedly to a post-graduate PR position at a boutique B2B tech agency in Cheshire. Initially, seduced by the lure of working on a press conference in a swanky London hotel (and the thrill of launching the first Palm Pilot to the assembled glitterati of the 90's tech media world), very quickly and surprisingly the world of B2B marketing became my stomping ground. I soon realised it wasn’t about long lunches and press launches - but all about learning your craft, understanding your audiences, rolling up your sleeves and applying an awful lot of elbow grease. My ensuing career has been punctuated by the opportunity to develop, experience and learn from the best of the best in B2B, on home turf and internationally.
Whilst suited and booted, I held the position of Head of PR as an Executive Board Director at a global B2B marketing communications agency. Working with a diverse raft of b2b sector clients (anything from construction, engineering and building materials through to financial services and nutraceuticals). A healthy collection of industry awards were clocked up in the process.
The working day was never short of a cryptic industry acronym to decipher, a technical manual to decode - or a copy of WET News - that's Water & Effluent Treatment News, to those sadly not in the know. There, I was fortunate to work with a talented collection of creative, research, data, digital media and web specialists as part of an integrated agency team - as well as servicing a roster of dedicated PR-only clients.
In 2009, I relocated to Bath with my young family in search of a more flexible and quality work-life. I was dizzy from the perennial merry-go-round of the big agency set-up and driven by the appetite to offer a more stripped-back, honest counsel. In response, Herd was founded in 2010 as a 'no-frills, hardworking' consultancy, offering strategic PR, content & communication services to local and national clients, with a strong focus on the South West and London.
Twenty plus years in and a self-professed dinner party bore. I'm still hooked on B2B, try as I may to shake it. There aren't too many sane people that get excited about construction supply chains and the latest procurement solutions - but I am one. The suit and heels may be long gone, and I've now swapped WET News for the latest (online) issue of Construction News - some things will never go out of fashion.
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That's enough about me - if you'd like to know more about Herd and what we can do, drop me a line. You can also find me chewing the cud on LinkedIn.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucybridle