Post on 22-Nov-2014
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PR 101 for Small Businesses
Michelle Garrett
Garrett Public Relations
www.michellegarrett.com
Twitter: @PRisUs
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Today’s Agenda
• What is public relations?• PR vs. advertising • Where to start: News items and press lists • Content: Press releases and press kits• Partner public relations• More PR opportunities: Editorial calendars,
awards, speaking gigs, contributed articles• Publicizing your PR• Resources• Wrap up/Q&A
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What is Public Relations?
BuildingMaintainingPromoting
Reputation or Image
CompanyProduct
PersonalityOrganization/Association
Cause
Impact
•Favorable Image/Reputation•Awareness/Visibility•Interest•Support•Alter Behavior•Influence Public Opinion
the
of a
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PR vs. Advertising(Hint: They’re not the same!)
PR Advertising
Indirect marketing tool to influence target audience
Direct marketing tool to influence target audience
Pitch/place articles Buy advertising space
Public perceives news stories as credible sources of information
Public perceives ads as biased towards the advertiser
Easier on marketing budget
More expensive to implement
So where do I start?
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One way to get started is to think about what makes your company newsworthy? • New location• New product or service• New hires• Upcoming event—e.g. open house, charity
event, sponsorship of an event, speaking engagement
• New partnership
Now, what about content?
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Once you choose/prioritize your newsworthy items, what’s the best vehicle to use to get the news out? •Press release•Blog post•Social media updates•Customer success story/case study•Contributed article
What’s next?
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• Develop a list of your key press—think about what your potential customers are reading
• It could include: • Local press (e.g. Business First, Columbus Dispatch)• Trade press (e.g. Inc., Popular Mechanics, Woman’s
Day, Health, InformationWeek)• Business press (e.g. Wall Street Journal, USA Today)• Broadcast media (WCMH, NBC, radio)
What about social media?
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This could be an entire topic on its own!
But it could include:FacebookTwitterLinkedInPinterest Many, many others….
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Writing a good press release
• The steps: collect information; conduct interviews if needed
• Include any research, facts or figures: if you don’t have your own, cite some from an article
• Begin drafting the release—write, then rewrite; walk away, then review and rewrite until it’s solid
• Style of a release—follow news style (inverted pyramid)—who/what/when/why/how up in the first paragraph
• Format: Headline/sub-head/paragraph/paragraph/quote/paragraph/pricing and availability/closing boilerplate
How to issue the news
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• Wire services: free and paid• Send it directly to the reporter(s)--they look to PR
practitioners to make their jobs easier• When working with reporters: adopt a service-
oriented attitude toward the media• What reporters need from you: timely responses,
honesty, a helpful attitude--a willingness to go the extra mile to help them do their job
• Don’t promise if you can’t deliver; follow up; know what they cover
• Other channels we discussed previously, including a news area on your site, social media and so on
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Preparing for media interviews
• If you’ve never done interviews, practice! • Choose the best spokesperson(s) depending upon the
subject matter• Go over some basic media training tips at the minimum;
you can hire a pro to do in-depth training and taping, if needed
• Do your homework on reporters and publications—look at some stories they’ve written to get a feel for how they write
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Press kits
• So, what goes in a good press kit? • Include the basics that would help a journalist
write about your company: press releases, company profile, company fact sheet, executive bios, logos, marketing brochure, business card/contact information
• Include the same items in your online press kit
• You can customize the content, depending on what event it is
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Partner Public Relations
• Opportunities sometimes arise to work with a partner company on promoting an alliance, event or other initiative
• Decide on the strategy • Work with the partner to “divide and
conquer” the PR responsibilities• Leverage the partner’s resources, if
possible, to help get the work done
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Editorial calendars
• What is an editorial calendar?• Check your target publications’ editorial
calendars online• Compile all data in a format that works
for you, such as an Excel spreadsheet• Contact the editors; prioritize based on
topic and deadline date
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Awards
• Awards can help bring visibility and credibility to a company
• Research awards that are available in your industry and through publications
• Keep track of submission deadlines• Enter appropriate awards programs• No guarantees• Once you have the content, it can be
repurposed
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Speaking Opportunities
• Decide on venues—research and choose appropriate opportunities
• Write a speaking abstract • Submit the abstract and any other
requested information per the requirements
• Prepare your spokesperson for the talk; Rehearse!
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Contributed articles
• Many publications accept contributed articles• Research publications in which placing a
contributed article might help raise the visibility of your company
• Develop an abstract of a topic to suggest—try to avoid a product or company-focused topic
• Trends make good topics for contributed articles
How to Publicize Your PR
• Once the article appears, push it out using appropriate channels—web site, social media, and so on
• Once you secure a speaking engagement, promote it
• Once you win an award, publicize that news
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Realities of Public Relations
• It takes time! PR is a process…
• Don’t expect to make the front page of the Wall Street Journal overnight
• Your idea/activity MUST be newsworthy to receive coverage. Ask yourself, “why should they care?”
• Remember, with PR, there’s no guarantee what will be reported or how it will be stated
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Tools and Resources
• Wire services: Businesswire, PR Newswire, PRWeb
• Media databases: MyMediaInfo, Cision, Vocus
• Clipping services: BurrellesLuce.com, Vocus• Organizations: Public Relations Society of
America (PRSA), Social Media Club
So what if I decide I don’t want to do it myself?
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• Hire a “coach”—someone to help answer questions
• Hire a freelance consultant to do some of the work on an ongoing or project basis
• What about agencies?
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Wrap-up
• Questions…..?
• Thank you!
Michelle Garrett
Garrett Public Relations
www.michellegarrett.com
michelle@michellegarrett.com