1. Rolling the Pitch

Available for over a year

This episode will change your life. Seriously. It's a big claim and carries an enormous risk of over-promising. Welcome to the latest episode in our mini-series on the Golden Rules of PR. This week, David Yelland and Simon Lewis look at the risks of rolling the pitch - of laying the PR groundwork - for a forthcoming announcement. As the Chancellor Rachel Reeves found out in the run up to the Budget, trying to manage expectations can seriously backfire. But we all do it - we try to soften people up ahead of delivering some tricky news. David and Simon explain why there are very sensible reasons for doing this. The problem is - if you say what's going to happen and people react badly - how do you change your plans without being accused of making a U-turn? Producer: Duncan Middleton Editor: Sarah Teasdale Executive Producer: Eve Streeter Music by Eclectic Sounds A Raconteur Studios production for BBC Radio 4