So you've decided you want to give Public Relations a try. You like the idea of positioning yourself as an expert, generating awareness of your business, the third party credibility factor that publicity provides, and the fact that for the most part PR is free marketing.
That's great! In fact, I love PR as a small business marketing tool so much, I include steps for getting started using PR in Step 9 of my 10stepmarketing System.
I've been using PR for years and even though I'm not a PR pro by any means, I've had pretty good luck getting my news picked up. For example, a few years ago, my daughter's softball team did very well in the equivalent of the Little League World Series.
However, when we returned home from this big tournament to see the local Little League team plastered all over the news merely for participating in the Little League World Series, I couldn't help but feel the girls deserved equal coverage.
I asked a local PR firm that I used to work for if they'd pitch the story to the media for me, on a pro bono basis (meaning at no charge). Because they were friends they agreed. Unfortunately after two weeks of pitching, they could not get any of the local media to bite on the story.
Determined to get the girls equal coverage to the boys, I gave it a try myself. And within a few days I was able to get coverage of our girl’s team on the 5pm news - a reporter and camera crew even came out to a team practice to film and interview the girls. From that point on I realized that one of the major keys to getting media coverage is being passionate about what you are pitching.
Plus, I used the hook of the Little League World Series to get their attention and tie into a story they were already covering every single day.
Consider how you can use your passion for your business or industry, or a current media story or trend to get your business media coverage. And, if you'd like to educate yourself a bit more about using publicity to market your business, my Step of the Month Club topic for September is "How to Use Public Relations to Market Your Business For Free." This call is happening on Tuesday, September 11th and is free for all Step of the Month Club members.
And if you can't make the live call, it will be recorded and made available as an mp3 download. If you're not currently a member, you can join today and get one month free (new members only please). Click here now to learn more and join today!
The Publicity Hound is another PR resource I recommend. You can get free PR tips every week and register for a free 89-day publicity e-course here.