Five tips to doing your own PR
Public relations is about helping to make people aware of your
start-up and make it stick in their mind so that when they need to
buy from the industry in which your business opeartes, they think
of your company first.
However, with no budget to hire a swanky public relations agency
and no experience of running a PR campaign, how do you compete with
the big hitters? Here are our top five tips to doing your own
PR.
Target
Personalised press releases go a long way in making connections
with the media. If you're contacting a journalist out of the blue,
make sure your product or service are relevant to them. Then give
an example of why your product fits in well with their publication.
A generic press release without the journalists name and no mention
of how your product suits their industry will almost certainly be
binned. "Know your subject," says PR guru Lynne
Franks the founder of Lynne Franks PR. "Keep to the truth and
understand the market and philosophy of the publication or media
you are dealing with."
Be social and follow
Social media is obviously a brilliant way of getting your brand
in front of potential customers and it gives you a platform to
engage and connect with them. "Being social on Twitter has garnered
me follower numbers of over 4,000", says founder of Gower
Cottage Brownies Kate Jenkins."These followers and customers
have been instrumental in shouting about my product and leading
celebrities literally to my doorstep in some instances."
Make fun videos
Setting up a YouTube account is free and it effectively allows
you to film your own advert. If done well, it can even result in
your clip going viral and racking up millions of views. "Making a
nice video results in the clip getting tweeted and shared," says
Will King, the founder of King of Shaves. "We did a short video with a
fake Andy Murray beating a fake Roger Federer using giant razor's
instead of tennis rackets. It cost us a sensible amount to make and
It helped to get's people exploring, laughing and talking about the
brand."
Show off your clips
Having a page on your website that shows off all of your media
coverage can help you to get even more press. Have a media page
that includes photos, videos and contact information in addition to
your clips. This makes it easier for other journalists to get in
touch and it shows them examples of how your business has already
been covered. Having a media page can also impress customers and
will result in them trusting you more.
Silence is not a rejection
If at first you don't succeed, then try, try and try again. Like
everyone else, journalists are busy people. Even though they may
not have replied to your first press release it doesn't mean they
didn't like your start-up. Every time you have a new angle, you
should drop them another email, as you could get in touch just when
they need a good story what they are looking for. Timing is
important, but making yourself a 'pleasant pest' can be the most
effective approach - just remember the emphasis should be on
'pleasant.'