Errisde Stacpoole

Let’s face it. The traditionally female-dominated PR and Communications field can still be seen as ‘fluffy’. Portrayals in the media are of spin doctors or party planners, reinforcing the notion that this work revolves around superficial image management. Much as women are still underestimated in the business world, PR & Comms can still be perceived as mere adornments rather than strategic imperatives.

Erris has never understood this – she’s always been driven by delivering measurable impact and has consistently produced bottom line results. Alongside an army of modern PR women, Erris is working to demonstrate and celebrate the vital importance of this discipline in helping businesses build trust, communicate change, and drive sustainable growth.

LITERALLY SHOOTING FOR THE MOON
Erris started her career in an unexpected place – making jelly for renegade food experience company Bompas & Parr. With dreams of becoming an astronaut, Erris humorously saw jelly-making as the closest thing to zero gravity on Earth. A born communicator most at home in fast-paced environments, she soon realised her talents extended far beyond the confines of a jelly mould or even outer space.

In her first agency role, Erris immediately grasped the importance of PR as a vital business tool, aligning comms campaigns with strategic objectives for clients like M&C Saatchi, Momentum, Ogilvy, and ITV. She was promoted three times in four years.

This talent for delivering tangible value was noticed elsewhere too, and she was headhunted by The Media Foundry to lead a small team – where she never lost a client and increased satisfaction by 12%. Headhunted again, Erris was asked by Publicis Groupe CEO Annette King to devise and execute plans to promote the group’s flagship agencies Saatchi & Saatchi and Leo Burnette London. Executing successful media events (with a 50% YoY increase in attendance) and establishing relationships with key media outlets resulted in a 30% increase in positive coverage, 20% increase in social media engagement, and an average 25% increase in brand awareness.

Erris was also able to mitigate significant business risk by developing a crisis communications process when 13+ businesses merged, aligning messaging, calming anxieties, and presenting a united front to colleagues and shareholders.
Time and again, Erris has proven the immense power of PR and communications in fuelling tangible business success – and she continues to assert that modern brands underestimate this vital field at their peril.