The right public relations campaign, in front of the right audience and at the right time, is an invaluable tool which should be at the very heart of any marketing strategy worth its salt.
Traditionally, PR meant a press release announcing some news, research, or timely information which can either be placed quickly and succinctly; or on which to base a longer piece of editorial coverage such as a feature.
The press release has evolved over time and, while they still have their place, these media alerts, as they are also known, are starting to vie for attention with more evergreen content, such as thought leadership articles.
When it comes to earned media or pure editorial, rather than paid media (aka advertorials), credibility is the reward. Editorial coverage means what you are talking about is genuinely of interest and/or of importance. Anyone can take out an expensive advertisement, but column inches are more likely to gain traction with both consumer and business clients.
However, earned media is intensely competitive, especially today in the world of online, on-demand news and features. So what are the main points to remember when preparing and launching a PR campaign?
- Do your research. Find out which journalists and which publications write about what and in what style and whether they are the best market for your business – why would this article be of interest to them and how will it reach your target market?
- Make the content grammatically perfect and typo-free (a fresh pair of eyes to run through it before sending off is a big help) and get to the point of what the article is about early on.
- Prioritise quality over quantity. Don’t throw something out to every media outlet you can find and hope it sticks. When it comes to local or regional media, there are strict geographical areas they will cover.
- Arrange some industry experts as spokespeople for your business and do some media training for them. A missed deadline for an interview is never a good look and the journalist will see your business as unreliable and go elsewhere.
- Collate an approved commentary bank which is ready to go when a journalist is looking for expert industry comments or opinions
- News-jack. See what is going on in the breaking media and offer a relevant story or article. Follow the latest trends and contribute on those lines.
- Build and foster relationships with journalists, including freelancers – they are looking for ideas for commissions.
Stick to the story rather than the marketing spiel – and think about what triggered my interest in journalism as a career: the pen is mightier than the sword.
iMarketing is a leading digital marketing agency offering search engine optimisation services in Ipswich, including search engine positioning campaigns to help you reach a global market, drive more traffic and increase company profits.
If you are interested in our public relations services, contact us today to start the conversation of how we can help you tell the story of your business.
