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Get Noticed Without Breaking the Bank! 5 PR Tips by Elaine Fogel
5 PR Tips
1. Present your company or organization as experts in your field. Send your local media a press kit with information about your areas of knowledge with a bio of the “experts” you want to promote. Follow-up with a phone call inviting the appropriate editor (for print) or producer (for radio or TV) for coffee. There’s no guarantee the media will bite at first, but when they see your periodic news releases that are newsworthy and timely, they may eventually call you for an interview or quote. It’s very important to be as accommodating as you can to meet journalists’ deadlines and return phone calls or e-mails in a timely fashion or they’ll go elsewhere. 2. Traditional media isn’t the only way to build buzz for your company or organization. Today, there are a plethora of online news release Web sites that can get you noticed in Cyberspace. This approach helps build your Web presence and can increase the number of page views for your site, thus getting out your chosen messages. Some of these release sites are free or charge incremental fees to increase your exposure by giving you options such as adding a logo or Web link to your release. If you want to drive traffic to your home page, ensure it has easy-to-find links to your current promotion or messaging. Otherwise, link directly to the selected page. Here are some news release sites: 3. Start a company or organization blog, or become a regular contributor to an industry or professional blog already in existence. Encourage your target markets to visit your blog - in your e-newsletters, print newsletters, invoices, statements, voicemail messages, and other marketing collateral. When they add comments, they not only help create a dialogue online, they also help promote their own companies or organizations. 4. Expose yourself. Check out local trade shows and community events for opportunities to get in front of your target markets. The key word here is “target markets.” There’s no point wasting your energy exposing yourself in places without the right targets. For example, if you market a B2B (business-to-business) service, there may be little value participating in a consumer-oriented event. If your product isn’t that costly, consider giving away free samples. Nothing speaks more volumes than a customer who’s tried your product and becomes an advocate. If you’re a nonprofit, make sure you have visual graphic images and materials that impart your case for support. If you provide a service, like bathroom remodeling, for example, look for ways to show the before and after of what you can do. 5. Write for association or community publications on your topic. A regular column keeps your company or organization top of mind with your audiences. If you do this pro bono, ask the publisher to include a one-line bio reference, including your e-mail address and Web site url. © 2006 |
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When your company or organization has a limited marketing and communications budget, it’s sometimes tough to break through the clutter of messages in the marketplace, especially when you’re up against the bigger guys. Getting noticed, however, may be easier to accomplish in your local area than trying to compete in a national or international landscape. Here are 5 PR tips that may help: |
