Learn/PR-Strategy-for-Small-Business

Revision as of 19:24, 10 February 2011 by Aliza Earnshaw (talk | contribs)

By [[User:|]] on

Public relations can be an effective – and inexpensive – way for a small business to market its products and services to customers, other businesses and investors. It’s also a great way to create more links to your website, which can help boost your company’s visibility on the Web.

There’s more to the art of a successful PR strategy than sending out press releases and hoping they get picked up and turned into stories. You must build relevant and positive relationships with your target audiences, whether they are customers or reporters you hope will write about your company.

You can reach your audiences in a number of different ways:

Step by Step PR for a Small Business

For those of you running lean and mean in this tight economy, the luxury of hiring a PR agency may not be in this year’s budget. Fret not. Here is a guide to creating your own PR strategy on a shoestring budget.

1. Identify your goals. Are you trying to drive more traffic to your retail location? Are you trying to position your company for purchase, or to attract investors? The first step to any PR strategy is to establish what you want to improve or change in your business.

2. Identify your audience(s) and their media habits. Once you know your goals, determine who you want to communicate with and where they get their information. Are they on Twitter? Or do they read the local newspaper? [HOW do we find this out? A suggestion or two would be helpful.]

3. Build a media list. Research which reporters and bloggers cover your industry, and get their contact information. Check out:

• Newspapers • Radio and TV stations • Blogs and websites dedicated to news about your industry • Regional and national magazines that cover your industry, or companies like yours

4. Set up social media accounts. If any of your audiences use Twitter, Facebook, or other social media sites, you should make sure you have active accounts in these networks and are sharing news and conversation with people there. (links to how to build fans on Facebook and how to build followers on Twitter go here).

5. Identify what’s newsworthy. Maybe you have a new product to promote, or maybe you have a unique business story that deserves telling. Think about what’s going on in your company, and which groups of people might be interested.

Remember that, like a parent, your absorption in your company can skew your idea of what’s important. Reporters are often pitched stories of little interest to anyone outside the company pitching them. Here’s a reality check: If this story were about any company other than yours, would you want to read it?

6. Develop company messaging. Start with a company boilerplate that gives the basic info about your company – who you are, what you sell, what benefit people get from your products or services. Create a Frequently Asked Questions document – you’ll want this for your press kit, and you could also put it in the Press or Media section of your website.

Decide what you are okay talking about, and what you’re not. For example, if you’re a small private company and don’t want to disclose revenue, you might feel more comfortable talking about annual revenue growth in percentages.

7. Decide on a communication method. If you are announcing a new product or service, or any other major developments in your company, consider writing a press release (http://www.aboutus.org/Learn/Write-Effective-Press-Releases) or a post on your company’s blog. If the audience for this announcement is active on social media sites, make sure you announce your news on these sites as well. Make sure you include links to relevant pages on your website – that will get people to the right destination [link to landing page article] and can also improve your corporate website’s ranking in search results.

For a feature story idea, write a personal note to a reporter explaining why they might be interested in a story about your company. Point to previous story the reporter has written that are similar to yours. This helps the reporter understand that you aren’t pitching just anyone, and you’ll earn more respect. Plus, who doesn’t like knowing his or her work is being read, and read attentively?

8. Keep it consistent. Building a relationship on social networks or with members of the media means staying in touch! Once you have developed a list of things to promote and whom to promote to, make a calendar of when you want to make announcements.

If you get a chance to work with a reporter, keep him or her updated with new developments. If a customer engages you online, respond promptly and helpfully. Once people get a feel for your business and what you’re all about, you are officially executing a successful PR strategy.



Retrieved from "http://aboutus.com/index.php?title=Learn/PR-Strategy-for-Small-Business&oldid=20944142"