If your campaign headlines are falling flat, your pitch emails are being ghosted, and your data isn’t turning into coverage – chances are, you’re not hitting your reader where it hurts.
Not emotionally, but strategically.
The best digital PR campaigns work because they solve something. They answer a question, expose a fear, or tap into a real-life frustration your audience is already feeling. In other words?
They target pain points.
Whether you’re pitching to journalists, talking to consumers, or trying to earn backlinks on high-authority sites – understanding what your audience cares about is the difference between a "maybe" and a front-page feature.
Here’s how to find those pain points and turn them into digital PR links:
Reddit threads. Facebook groups. TikTok comments. The Mumsnet board. These are goldmines of unfiltered frustration. If people are ranting about it, it’s relevant.
Example: We once built a campaign off the back of people complaining about noisy neighbours. It turned into a national story on homebuyer regrets.
Pro tip: Search forums using “I hate when…” or “Why does no one talk about…” to dig up real emotion-led content ideas.
When someone types “why does my landlord…” or “can you legally…” – that’s not just search volume. That’s someone in pain. And if it’s getting searched, it’s media-worthy.
Use tools like AlsoAsked or AnswerThePublic to visualise these questions and build campaigns that answer them.
Journalists love case studies because they humanise pain points. Want to make a stat about burnout go viral? Pair it with a relatable quote from someone living it.
“I cried in the toilet at work three days a week” is more powerful than a stat about 62% of workers being stressed.
Stats are only as strong as their headline. If your brand has access to boring internal data (returns, cancellations, trends), frame it around something that feels urgent.
For a travel brand: “Brits are panic-booking trips they can’t afford just to keep up on Instagram” – now that’s a pain point worth linking too.
Predictive PR is cool – but only works when it’s rooted in something real. Instead of guessing what might go viral, look at what already is. Validate your angle with TikTok trends, Google Trends, or press headlines.
If everyone’s moaning about overdraft fees, you don’t need a new angle – you need a deeper one. Find the why, not just the what.
At Cupid PR, our best-performing campaigns are rarely the flashiest. They’re the ones that made someone mutter “God, that’s so true.”
Tap into your readers’ pain points, and you’ll create content that doesn’t just earn backlinks – it earns attention, emotion, and headlines.
Looking for ideas that land you links and solve problems for your audience?
Contact us today.
No sales techniques here. I'll let you know what we can do for you. And if I don't think your website is right for Digital PR, I won't try and sell you anything you don't need.
Cupid PR, trading as DPR consultancy - Quay Street Manchester
