Doesn’t it always seem that the cool people in books and movies have jobs in fashion, advertising, or public relations? The cutthroat fashion industry is equal parts glamour and anxiety, but hey, they look good. Advertising jobs require patience, creativity, determination, and a thick skin. Once you take away the cushy paycheck, you are left with demanding clients and a lot of stress. However, if the entertainment industry is to be believed (ha ha), the people who work in advertising are young, thin, sartorialists of the highest order, and really, really good looking.
The public relations industry is treated the same way, but only if you work in sexy fields—fashion, hospitality, retail, and interior design spring to mind. At its most basic level, though, public relations is all about four things: generating interesting news (or press) releases, sending that news to the right people, pitching stories, and, if need be, containing damaging news/stories.
For small business people, getting press is a great way to boost visibility and position yourself as a leader in your industry. You are doing something newsworthy! You must be important! To get you started, here is a step-by-step guide to creating an in-house public relations machine.
- Before you even write a press release, you need to put together a targeted media list. Start with your local and regional newspapers and magazines. They are always looking for interesting news stories, and, especially in this economy, they like to write about upbeat, local success stories. Figure out who covers your industry by looking up the publication online; if that doesn’t yield a definitive answer, call them. If you live near a major metropolitan area, repeat this process with that city’s newspaper. Next up are the regional and national publications that cover your industry. Again, repeat process of figuring out who to add to your list.
- Now that you have a targeted media list, sign up for a press release distribution service like PRNewswire, PR.com, or pressreleasepoint.com. Your press releases will be sent out to thousands of media outlets and further your chances of getting press.
- If you’ve never seen one, surprise!, press releases are formatted in a certain way. Use a search engine to look up “press release templates” for a visual example. If I explained it here, I’d just be wasting space. Just remember two things: Write them on an electronic version of your letterhead and insert what’s called a boilerplate at the end (it’s basic information about your company, such as your mission, years in business, etc.).
- Time to think of newsworthy press releases to distribute. It’s easier than you think. One of my clients is a wine bar restaurant located in a quaint, historic town. I write and distribute press releases for them twice a month (consistency is key in the restaurant industry). Here are subjects I have written about: new menu items, new wine flights, profile of the chef, a wine cooler giveaway, a regular nutrition series they host that is led by a holistic nutritionist, wine dinners, a new produce vendor the supplies them with local and mostly organic products. I think you get the idea.
- When you send out your first press release to your targeted media list, preface the message by introducing yourself and saying “I’d like to add you to my media list”.
- Once you are comfortable sending out press releases, you can pitch stories to writers (via phone). If you are about to launch an exciting new product for example, decide where you’d like that story to appear most. Call the writer at that publication and tell them why you think this story would be of interest to their readers. If they say no, choose another writer to call. Be persistent!
Once you send out a press release, whether or not it’s published, put it on your website’s “news” page. If you don’t have a news page, you need one!
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