As a boutique PR practice, we often get calls from start-up companies, entrepreneurs or small businesses saying they want public relations. They engage us, but in some cases, the process does not turn out the way either party expected. One of the reasons is that many small businesses don’t understand what PR is, how it works or how best to work with PR consultants and firms.
1. The client doesn’t understand what PR is or what to expect (don’t worry, most people don’t), but is too afraid to ask.
Nobody really knows what PR is, so I have found that PR people need to educate clients. For example, many businesses want/expect to be on the front page of the Wall Street Journal or featured on the Today Show. While this is a possibility, it takes time — sometimes months, even years, so smaller placements should be considered. (more…)
Want to look like a hero to your customers? Solve a problem. We helped our client, www.HealthGate.com, position themselves as a superhero coming to the rescue of consumers looking for cost transparency in healthcare. The story focused on how costs vary from hospital to hospital for an MRI. Our client was positioned as one solution: a website that provides costs upfront for a host of health services. Especially important since most people never reach their deductibles and employees today are sharing more of the healthcare cost burden. Read more at http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/2-investigates-shopping-out-pocket-medical-procedu/nXdRR/. And check out the positive PR we secured for them in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution: http://www.ajc.com/news/business/push-for-price-transparency-in-health-care/nWhJD/.
Are you a business that has a product or service that will help ease the upcoming changes and confusion in healthcare? Call us at
404-641-6170, or email wendy@alpinepr.com.
Nothing says boring like a press release that reads: “ABC company today announced its new thingamajig product at the Wizziwig expo.” ZZZZzzzzzzz.
With Twitter forcing us to give the news in 140 characters and Instagram encouraging us to send a picture to say 1,000 words, the press release needs to stand out, dare I say – sing – to set your company apart from the competition and escape a reporter’s delete button.
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Remember how your grandmother used to bake a cake? She would throw in a pinch of this and a dash of that, with no recipe in sight. It was all instinct and practice. Well, media relations is something like that. It takes a number of ingredients in just the right amount to make a successful media placement.
I’ve been working with a new client for the past 2-3 months. It’s a new company that wanted to get the word out about their online health care service, which keyed into the trend about the high cost of health care. Last weekend, as a result of our efforts, an article about their business not only appeared in the daily newspaper, but made the front page of the business section. (more…)
In the beginning, there was fear!!
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What would I say?
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I’m not that original.
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Everything I have to say has been said before.
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How do I begin?
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I don’t have time to blog!
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My business is too small.
I initially had all those same reservations. I was encouraged to start my own blog by a client who blogs. I was impressed. I didn’t have other clients who blogged. He told me about a service he uses that assists you with blogging, finding topics, writing and editing and even promoting your blog on social media. I decided to jump in. The president of the blogging company said, “You’ll see. It’s addictive.” And you know what? He was right.
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Once you’ve made the commitment to blog, the next hurdle is “What do I blog about?” Here are 5 tips for finding or creating interesting blog topics.
1. Follow your industry e-newsletters
See what they’re writing about and pick a topic to research, expand and opine upon. If you can give your take on a particular topic, you start developing your “voice.” And once you share it, you will find that others may respond, adding their thoughts to the discussion.
2. Research topics you’re interested in on the Internet (more…)
Despite the fact that my first blog in this series was about the importance of blogging, I have to admit that I have only recently started. I’ve been in the PR business for 20+ years and have read many blogs, but never thought I could do it.
A client recommended a service called Phone Blogger that assists with blogging, finding topics, writing, editing and even promoting your blog on social media. After talking with them, I decided to jump in. Vik Rajan, Phone Blogger co-founder, said, “You’ll see. It’s addictive.” And he was right.
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One of the questions I frequently get from clients is:
“Do I need a blog? What should I blog about?”
In fact, that’s what I asked myself when I first started thinking about blogging. But the truth is that in today’s social media driven world, you can’t afford not to blog. Blogging lets you create content, position yourself as an influencer in your industry, and increases your web visibility through search engine rankings.
Here are five reasons why you should be blogging:
Have a voice.
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In the last blog, we talked about promotion resolutions for PR clients. In this one, we focus on resolutions specifically for PR professionals:
- Brush up on your writing skills. Take a writing course or seminar, or read a book about writing. Or, just read. The best way to improve your writing is reading other people’s work.
- Improve your time management skills. (more…)
It’s the New Year!! What resolutions have you made? Have you decided to lose weight? Exercise more? Take more time out for yourself?
Here is a list of resolutions that might help maximize your public relations efforts in the year ahead:
- Outline your promotion goals and objectives for the year. (more…)
