Anthea Fosti
Anthea Fosti heads up the award-winning Zeus PR, a well-established full-service PR agency serving a nationwide client base, by developing multi-platform, highly cost-effective media and influencer campaigns, closely aligned with the client’s business objectives.
- Tell us a little bit about your business…
We are passionate about building reach and awareness for B2B and fmcg brands of varying size, with impactful, reputation building print, digital and broadcast PR campaigns.
- How did you get into the industry?
At university I was the chief writer on the campus newspaper, and this whet my appetite for an interest in PR. After I graduated, I enrolled on a Master Degree course in Public Relations and was honoured with a joint student of the year award from our professional body the CIPR, so I knew I had found my niche! I then cut my teeth at what was then one of the largest PR agencies in the UK as a graduate trainee, and still remember every detail of my first client project.
- What are the biggest opportunities and challenges in your industry?
At Zeus PR, digital media outreach plays a substantial role across all of our client campaigns, and daily we are seeing more digital platforms springing up, affording us ever increasing opportunities to profile our clients. However, the flipside is that traditional print media has been in decline for over two decades, as circulations and advertising revenues decrease.
- How would you describe your leadership style?
You will have to ask my team, I hope they would say collaborative, supportive, participative.
- How do you get the most out of the people who work for you?
By acknowledging the very many successes of my colleagues, and being fair and supportive. Realising that team members all have a life outside of work. Traditionally PR agencies have had a bad reputation for staff sitting each other out at the end of the day, not wanting to be the first to leave. Here, if anyone is in the office past 5.30pm, then it’s all hands-on deck to share the workload to be on hand to support.
- What are the most crucial elements to your business running smoothly and being successful?
An empowered, confident and happy team, coupled with an unfailing commitment to client delivery.
- How has the past 12 months been for you?
The agency has enjoyed the best year yet in many ways – from welcoming interesting new clients to being entrusted with exciting additional projects from existing long-standing customers.
- What will the next 12 months look like for your business?
Hopefully even better! We also welcome new opportunities, and this includes supporting smaller businesses, as we bring our considerable experience of working with larger brands to developing high impact campaigns for ‘newcomers’ to a sector.
- What are the highlights of your career so far?
Successfully managing the group communications strategy that brought together 4 very different major retail chains into a single group was an early career highlight. For me, the major highlight however has to be setting up Zeus PR, which enabled me to put into practice everything I have learnt along the way to create, what I now feel is the optimum client offering.
- What’s the biggest business mistake that you’ve learnt from?
Keeping disruptive influences in the business when they have out stayed their welcome, if an employee isn’t passionate and engaged then it is time for them to leave. As an employer, you can only bend over backwards for so long before the negativity becomes corrosive.
- What’s the best piece of business advice you’ve been given?
Take good business advice!
