The Challenge

The UK gardening market is highly competitive, with established retailers and publishers dominating both search results and consumer trust. While Sapcote Garden Centre had strong product expertise and retail foundations, the brand needed stronger third-party validation to stand out nationally.

Key challenges included:

• UK Authority Building — Competing with long-established garden centres and household-name brands

   

• Search Visibility Beyond Products — Ranking for gardening advice and seasonal queries, not just garden supplies

   

• Year-Round Relevance — Maintaining visibility outside peak spring and summer gardening seasons

   

The goal was to position Sapcote not just as a retailer, but as a trusted UK gardening authority, with Andrew Porwol recognised as a reliable expert source.

Objectives

• Increase UK brand visibility through earned media coverage
  
• Position Andrew Porwol as an expert voice on gardening and plant care
  
• Strengthen Sapcote’s reputation as a trusted UK garden centre
  
• Support SEO growth through authoritative editorial mentions

   

The PR Strategy

The Sprout PR executed a proactive and reactive earned media strategy focused on expert commentary, seasonal relevance, and journalist-first storytelling.

Key initiatives included:

• Targeting UK and international journalists covering gardening, home improvement, and seasonal advice

   

• Pitching timely, search-relevant gardening topics aligned with UK gardening cycles

   

• Positioning Andrew Porwol, owner of Sapcote Garden Centre, as an expert source for practical, experience-led gardening advice

   

• Providing clear, journalist-ready expert insights from Andrew in response to editorial queries

   

• Securing placements in high-authority home and garden publications trusted by UK audiences

   

By anchoring the campaign around Andrew’s expertise, Sapcote was consistently represented as a knowledge-led garden centre, not a promotional retailer.

Highlighted Media Coverage

Coverage topics reflected real UK search intent, from winter gardening and festive plant care to common gardening mistakes and low-maintenance planting.

Results & SEO Impact

Through consistent earned media and expert positioning, Sapcote Garden Centre achieved:

• Increased brand visibility across high-authority UK and international publications

   

• Stronger association with gardening advice keywords relevant to UK gardeners

   

• Ongoing referral traffic from evergreen home and garden content

   

• Improved trust signals supporting long-term UK SEO performance

   

• Enhanced credibility for Andrew Porwol as a quoted gardening expert

   

Repeated expert citations helped strengthen Sapcote’s authority with both search engines and consumers.

Why It Worked

Rather than pushing products, the campaign focused on answering the questions UK gardeners are actively searching for, using Andrew Porwol’s practical, real-world expertise. This editorial-first approach ensured Sapcote’s insights felt genuinely helpful — making journalists more likely to return for future commentary.

Conclusion

This campaign demonstrates how earned media and expert-led storytelling can build real authority in a competitive UK market. By positioning Andrew Porwol as a trusted gardening expert and aligning advice with seasonal relevance, The Sprout PR helped Sapcote Garden Centre grow visibility, credibility, and long-term search performance across the UK gardening space.