Case study: Market Financial Solutions

Terms like ‘bridging finance’ and ‘short-term loans’ tend to conjure a particular image in people’s minds; and it’s fair to say, the image is often not a positive one, with the negative connotations that surround payday loans unfairly tainting the wider market.

So when, in the second half of 2016, we began working with Market Financial Solutions (MFS), we knew that reputation management was going to be hugely important. The London-based bridging lender was more than a decade old at this point, and while they had a strong, loyal customer-base, little was known about the business within the industry.

In a competitive, growing specialist finance sector, MFS needed to stand out. But getting its voice heard was not easy – the trade press is awash with a daily churn of press releases about lenders’ rates, personnel and milestones. It had to do something different. It had to educate brokers, landlords and investors about its products and specialisms.

Since 2016 MFS has been working with CRC, not just to appear consistently in the national and trade press, but also to create compelling, informative content for its website and social media.

CRC still delivers press releases about MFS’s latest news – this ensures a constant presence in trade publications. But crucially, this is complemented by three further types of PR activity:

1. Quantitative research – regular surveys commissioned on behalf of MFS, quizzing landlords, investors, brokers and homebuyers on the challenges they are facing
2. Thought leadership content – in-depth articles from MFS’s leadership team, delving into pertinent issues and trends from across the property and lending markets
3. Reactive PR – from government announcements through to house price data, when there is a relevant story breaking, MFS is commenting on it

Add in social media posts, blogs, and detailed reports – CRC delivers a holistic PR and comms package to make MFS stand out.