058 Becky Sales
PR Manager, Paymentology
Becky Sales is PR Manager at Paymentology. Before Paymentology she was agency side at SkyParlour, directing PR strategies for fintech scale-ups. She has appeared on the Women in Fintech Powerlist.
“From a PR perspective, the hard part is finding the story beneath the terminology.”
The interview
What’s your coffee ritual?
I quit coffee almost as quickly as I started. It felt like an office rite of passage, but mostly just made me feel like the Jaws theme was playing internally. Now it’s homemade iced matcha with almond milk, which sounds more pretentious than it feels.
What was your first marketing job?
I joined Kindred Agency Limited as an intern fresh out of university, loved it immediately, and never really looked back. I worked across everything from government campaigns and STEM initiatives to, gloriously, the Potato Council. I also spent one boiling July day dressed as Paddington Bear for an Action for Children campaign, which felt like a pretty strong introduction to agency life.
Which newsletter, podcast, or book do you recommend most?
Industry-wise, I’d have to be biased and say The Issuer Academy podcast! We’ve built it over the last year and have featured some amazing fintech founders talking about their journeys and what great payments experiences look like. More broadly, I’d recommend Viv Groskop’s How to Own the Room. I spend a lot of time supporting spokespeople ahead of speaking engagements, and it’s packed with smart, practical advice on presenting with confidence.
What’s an underrated growth channel in fintech?
I’m a huge advocate for building your own personal brand. So, slightly annoying answer perhaps, but your own LinkedIn. If you’re not showing up where your audience already is, someone else in your space probably is, and they’re taking the opportunities that could be yours.
What keeps you up at night?
Quite literally, new ideas just before bed. I’ll suddenly become convinced we need to pitch something immediately, and then spend far too long lying awake figuring out how to make it happen. Surely that’s not just me.
What are the most useful measurement tools you use in your work?
I’m a big fan of Muck Rack. It’s a great PR reporting tool for benchmarking against competitors and understanding share of voice.
What’s one fintech brand (other than your own) that’s getting marketing right?
Wio Bank in the UAE. In under three years, it has become one of the region’s standout digital banking success stories and has been recognised as one of the world’s best digital banks. Marketing-wise, it knows exactly who it’s talking to, with clear positioning, relevant messaging, and a product roll-out that shows a real understanding of what customers actually need.
Why is marketing so hard?
From a PR perspective, the hard part is finding the story beneath the terminology. You’re working in a category full of technical language and similar phrases, so real cut-through comes from clarity, relevance and having something meaningful to say.
Whose answers to the above questions would you most like to read?
Laura Watkins, Director of Media and Marketing at 11:FS.