Why I taught a machine how to not write a press release.
First I asked AI to give me a a ‘Robot News Agent’. Wasn’t happy with the initial results. So then I thought a…
The methodology
PR that is built for growth, not activity.
Most PR programmes are activity-led — a list of things an agency will do, with no clear connection to what the business actually needs. Full Funnel PR is different: a system that connects PR to the audiences you need, and the growth you are after.
What it is
A system, not a strapline.
Full Funnel PR is a business system that allows growth businesses to use PR to drive specific objectives — and, over time, to build in-house PR capability by closing the gap between where they are and how the elite PR operations work in large firms.
Audiences, not just prospects
It considers all the audiences, or ‘publics’, that your business wants to engage — not just sales prospects.
Designed for growth
Which people are on the outside who you need on the inside in order to grow, and how can you convince them to choose you?
A system, not a strapline
Built of components, each designed to make PR as effective as possible — consistent, repeatable, always focused on business goals.
For constructive disruptors
Optimised for business leaders trying to do something different, with a clear sense of vision.
Audiences
PR works across your whole business — not just your sales funnel.
Journalists are a very tough crowd. The methods that work to interest them in your business, and then get them to engage, clearly work. So why stop with them? Full Funnel PR starts by asking which audiences actually matter to your business goals right now.
Customers
“We want to sell more to our customers.”
Advocates
“We want people to recommend us.”
Prospects
“We want new people to buy from us.”
Investors
“We want people to invest in us.”
Partners
“We want to develop supply chain relationships.”
Team
“We want to hire the best people.”
The methodology identifies which audiences to prioritise, how many are needed, how many are out there, what might be getting in the way of them acting — and what PR needs to do to move them through the funnel.
How funnel thinking worksThe system
Nine interlocking components.
Each component pulls together what I have learned over 25 years working in PR, building on lessons from business and management, combined with learning from some of the smartest minds in psychology, leadership, communications and advertising. A business’s PR maturity can be measured by its progress on each one.
Strategy
Deciding why we are doing this, and what the business stands for.
01
Growth Strategy
Discover. Brief. Scope.
Defines how PR maps to commercial objectives. A structured discovery, strategy brief, and scope of work ensure every activity traces back to a real business need.
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02
EOS Business Story
Mission. 3 Uniques. Values.
Brand messaging built on the EOS framework. Establishes what the organisation stands for, what makes it different, and the values that inform every communication.
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03
ABCD Leadership Story
Authentic. Backed. Competent. Destined.
A framework for developing spokesperson messaging and identifying the right communication role, turning founders and leaders into credible, media-ready voices.
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Narrative
Finding the story, and testing it before it reaches a journalist.
04
PEST Attention Triggers
Political. Economic. Social. Technical.
Uses PEST analysis to identify the external forces that give stories natural media hooks, finding those moments before the pitch is written.
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05
6A Customer Story
Audience. Action. Arc. Argument. Authority. Attention.
The core storytelling framework. Forces the right diagnostic questions before a word is written, so every piece has a defined audience, a credible voice, and a real editorial angle.
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06
TRUTH Pitches
Topical. Relevant. Unusual. Tension. Human.
A five-element test applied to every story before it reaches a journalist. If any element is weak, the pitch is reworked before outreach begins.
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Activation
Turning the method into assets, cadence and relationships.
07
PR Assets
Supporting. Pitching. Publication. Activation.
A structured approach to creating and deploying the materials that drive PR activity, tracked across four categories so nothing is made without a clear purpose.
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08
Content Calendar
10 themes. Consistent cadence.
Ten repeatable content themes that give communications a disciplined, varied rhythm, building a body of work rather than a stream of disconnected posts.
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09
Media CRM
Tier. Awareness. Outreach. Track.
Treats media outreach like a sales pipeline, with tiered targeting, awareness tracking, and a live link between contacts and the assets pitched to them.
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The creator
Made by someone who has spent 25 years doing the work.
Full Funnel PR was created by Matt Phillips, a fractional Director of Communications. He began as an intern at the BPI and became its lead spokesperson, ran corporate communications at the BBC around the iPlayer launch, sat on the leadership team at Propeller PR, and founded and ran the pay-as-you-go agency PPR.
He is writing the method down because PR “doesn’t get the credit it deserves, isn’t valued highly enough and isn’t always used to full effect as it lacks a standard model and methodology.”
Thinking in ink
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Questions
Full Funnel PR, briefly
What is Full Funnel PR?
Full Funnel PR is a business system that allows growth businesses to use PR to drive specific objectives, and over time build in-house PR capability by closing the gap between where they are and how elite PR operations work in large firms. It is built from nine interlocking components and considers every audience a business needs to grow — not just sales prospects.
How is Full Funnel PR different from normal PR?
Most PR programmes are activity-led: a list of things an agency will do, with no clear connection to what the business actually needs. Full Funnel PR builds on the fundamentals of earning media coverage in four ways: it considers all audiences rather than just prospects; it is designed around growth; it is a system of components rather than a strapline; and it is optimised for constructive disruptors.
Who is Full Funnel PR for?
It is aimed at Series A companies and mature SMEs — innovative, constructively-disruptive, growth-stage businesses whose leaders are trying to do something different with a clear sense of vision.
Who created Full Funnel PR?
Full Funnel PR was created by Matt Phillips, a fractional Director of Communications with more than 25 years in PR. It is also the working title of his forthcoming book.
See what Full Funnel PR would look like for your business.
A short, no-obligation call. We will talk about where you are trying to grow, which audiences matter, and whether the method fits.