Edinburgh Business Lessons: Chris Batchelor, founder of Feel Good Comms

Sponsored

Chris Batchelor launched his communications agency, Feel Good Comms, at the beginning of this year. Here, Chris shares with us some of the lessons he’s learned about running a business and doing business in Edinburgh, as a member of the capital’s thriving entrepreneurial community. 

What is the biggest lesson you've learned from running a business in Edinburgh? 

We’re only eight months into the Feel Good Comms journey, so we’re still learning every single week. The biggest lesson for me is to not get bogged down on the long-term plan.

I’ve had ideas about where things might go, but then something completely unexpected and exciting pops up and takes us in a totally different direction. That’s the part I’m enjoying the most.

What do Edinburgh clients want – and how do you deliver it to them? 

When a client works with a PR agency, they want great coverage, great value and a great experience.

Regardless of the size of the business, everyone has a budget to stick to. I genuinely think if you look at our team’s experience, the results we're getting and the value we offer, we're going to be very hard to beat.

I’m super proud of the work we’re doing and how we work collaboratively with clients to deliver the best solutions and results. I’m confident our clients would say the exact same thing.

What strengths do Edinburgh businesses have? 

Edinburgh is an amazing city, with something for everyone. It obviously depends on your sector, but for customer-facing businesses, having that audience of a massive tourist crowd alongside a loyal local community is a huge advantage for growth.

Why do you choose to do business here? 

I wish I could say there was some strategic business masterplan behind it. The truth is, I was living and working in London, with my now wife. She’s originally from Edinburgh, so when it came time to properly settle down, we decided to trade the south for Scotland. I haven't looked back.

What are the main challenges of doing business here? 

When you launch a new agency, the immediate hurdle is people seeing you as new, rather than seeing the 14 years of experience you had before launching. But once you actually sit down and chat with people, that perception goes pretty quickly.

If you could go back and give yourself one piece of advice when you launched your business, what would it be? 

Just follow your gut and trust your own decisions.

What's one business decision that has proved transformative? 

A couple of months ago, we built our own brand-visibility tool.  It gives us the insights we need to build really effective comms and marketing strategies.

A big part of it is tracking a brand's visibility on AI platforms like Gemini and ChatGPT. I believe AI summaries are becoming the most important tool for brand discovery, while traditional PR coverage takes over for brand consideration. Being able to track exactly where a business stands with AI gives us an edge that sets us apart.

What has surprised you most about growing a business? 

When I launched Feel Good Comms, people I hadn’t spoken to in years reached out, and people I'd only just met helped spread our name.

It’s massively helped us build a client base that we absolutely love working with. I feel incredibly grateful to everyone who lent a hand or sent a kind word; it has meant a lot to me. 

How important are relationships and networking in Edinburgh's business community? 

It’s super important. There are loads of PR industry events, but to be honest, I’m less interested in those. I think our industry can sometimes fall into an echo chamber where we just tell each other how great we are.

I’d much rather get out of that and join groups with all sorts of different businesses. Not only is it a chance to share what we do, but you get a good idea of what businesses need. I’m part of the Leith Chamber of Commerce and the Shore Business Collective.  I’m loving being involved in the Leith community.

What opportunities do you see for Edinburgh businesses over the next five years? 

Edinburgh is only going to get more popular with tourists. There's this new trend around ‘coolcations’ which I think could be a huge opportunity. Everywhere is getting hotter, and I remember how unbearable London was during summer heatwaves. Businesses here that lean into being a cool, comfortable escape could do really well.

What trend do you think more businesses should be paying attention to? 

It’s probably past the point of being a trend now, but it's definitely AI. Simply put, if your brand isn't visible to AI, you're handing a huge audience right over to someone else.

What excites you most about Edinburgh's future?

I just love that there’s so much happening across every sector. The city is full of ambitious, exciting businesses, and we’re ready and waiting to support anyone looking to improve their comms!

@feel_good_comms