Win Publicity for Your
Business
Put your company in the limelight with
these six key steps to running your own media relations campaign.
By Kim T. Gordon
Winning positive publicity is the goal
of most small businesses--and it can take your company from obscurity to
national prominence. The key is to have an effective media relations
program, one that enables you to build relationships with the right
journalists and win publicity over time. Here are six essential steps
that will help you create a PR campaign that will put your company in
the limelight.
1. Make a contact list. Most
entrepreneurs have more than one type of story to tell. For example, a
story about the development of a new product might be of interest to
trade press in your industry or even consumer press in vertical
categories, while a story about your company's affiliation with a local
charity would be most interesting to your local business press. Decide
what types of stories your company has to tell, then develop a media
contact list with help from print publications and online sources
including: Bacon's MediaSource and Gebbie Press, which both provide a
free searchable database of media links.
2. Don't waste editors' time. The media
are only interested in stories that will help them sell more issues or
increase ratings--in other words, they want stories that are compelling
to their readers, viewers or listeners. If you don't have a story that
fits the immediate needs of a particular media outlet, don't waste your
energy sending extraneous materials. Either tailor a story specifically
for that outlet, or wait until the right opportunity presents itself.
3. Establish relationships with key
journalists. Instead of taking the "blast" approach to media
relations, it's often better to take the time to develop relationships
with select members of the media and provide them with exclusive
materials or story ideas. Making an exclusive pitch requires contacting
an individual journalist to discuss your story concept, then supplying
any follow-up data or materials that journalist might need to complete
the story. For example, imagine you're a professional organizer and have
a website visited by consumers. You might add a polling feature to the
main page of your site that asks visitors to rank their families' most
challenging organizational issues. The results of that poll could then
be turned into a story that you could pitch to a key magazine editor.
Get the idea?
4. Send great materials. Sometimes it's
smart to send your media relations list something other than the
standard release or media alert. Members of the media are inundated with
run-of-the-mill stuff--from minor announcements to ho-hum news. Some
media outlets get thousands of releases every day. What will make your
pitch stand out? One way to win publicity is to provide quality
materials that take some of the work out of covering your story, such as
by sending product photographs to magazines, e-mailing links to online
high-tech product demos, or providing a page of tips that writers can
use as story background or as a springboard to your interview.
5. Take the time to follow up.
Entrepreneurs new to publicity often overlook the fact that media
relations is about building "relationships" with members of
the media. It's not enough to blast materials to media outlets in the
hope they'll gain attention. It's vital to tailor stories appropriately,
send top-notch materials and then follow up by phone or e-mail. Don't be
surprised if the editor or journalist you contact by phone asks you to
resend your materials. After all, with the copious amounts of
information sent to the media, much of it is discarded, plus stories are
often assigned to freelancers. Be patient and respectful of the
journalist's time. If your current story pitch doesn't meet his or her
needs, find out what will so you can better tailor your next pitch.
6. Be ready with more. The best thing
that can happen in your follow-up call with a journalist is that you'll
spark an interest in learning more about you, your company or its
products and services. So be prepared to send a full media kit or any
supporting materials the media outlet may require. After you've made
your first few follow-up calls, you'll have a clear idea of what this
kit should contain. Just be sure not to overfill it. Remember,
journalists are overloaded with extraneous materials, so pare down your
kit until it includes just the essentials.
As you'll discover, the most vital
components of a successful media relations campaign are listening and
providing the best information to meet individual journalist's needs. If
you stay on top of your program and consistently work to place stories,
you'll successfully build relationships and gain coverage over time.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kim T. Gordon is the "Marketing" coach at Entrepreneur.com and
a multifaceted marketing expert, speaker, author and media spokesperson.
Over the past 26 years, she's helped millions of small-business owners
increase their success through her company, National Marketing
Federation Inc.
|
