7 habits of highly effective PR
Dear Lovely Business Owner,
Now, I know many of you are doing your own PR, or if you are not and you are looking for it to be managed; either way knowing 7 habits of highly effective PR will help you a lot!
1. Timing is everything
For your PR to he highly effective you need to ensure it is timed right. Now, the timing depends on the kind of PR you are doing though.
For example: If you are looking to get into the summer magazines in the UK, i would researching right now, and starting to pitch pretty soonish, to get on the journalists radar as they tend to plan 5-7 months at times ahead!
2. Support before you pitch!
To be highly effective with your PR, it is highly recommended to be supportive to the targeted media before you pitch them!
for example: one the best places to do this, is on Twitter where the media hang out most of the time. So, by following them on Twitter, chatting with, liking their posts, Retweeting their posts and even commenting on their posts, will help you a lot when you do this before you pitch them!
If they are asking for some help, such as a Retweet of a media request that they have; make sure you do this, as it will help you a lot!
This will help them to look at you as someone who is a partner in their work, not just someone who is trying to take from them, so that they you come to pitch, provided it’s relevant and interesting to them and their audience they will be far more receptive to you and your ideas!
3. Remember it’s about them, not you!
This might sound strange and many business owners and entrepreneurs find this incredibly hard to get but PR is about the media! PR is about you helping them media look good, and my PR mentor Steve Harrison( https://www.steveharrison.com) said and sound good to their audience.
Yes, you get to raise your profile, be taken far more seriously, generate leads, business and land opportunities and often more PR too, absolutely! But to be highly effective at PR you need to lead with how you can help them not your book, not your product, how you can help them and their specific audience!
4. Give them what they want!
This means, that when they ask to speak to you about how to reduce anxiety about going to the gym, in 3-4 short sentences that is what you give them. It does not mean you waffle on about why exercise is important! You stick to their brief, and they value and appreciate that!
5. Respond fast!
They are working to very pressurised deadlines, so the faster you can respond the better. For example: this could be that you have an email from them and you respond within minutes, where possible of receiving it, not the next day! Obviously, they are exceptions, when you might be with clients, on holiday or not working too. Where possible though to be highly effective with your PR you need to respond fast!
6. Appreciate the media
This one is something that can be done a few ways. Everyone no matter their profession appreciates being appreciated, and newsflash the media is no different!
You could after a PR win, email them a little thank you. You could tweet them a public thank you! You could send them a little thank you card!You could even send them a Direct Message on Twitter to say thank you!
By doing this, which few people do, it will help them to remember you, well, it will give you a greater chance of being remembered, and it will make you, in my view highly effective with your PR.
7. Milking the moment
When you do achieve a PR win it is vitally important that you milk the moment!
Why? Well, the purpose of PR is to raise your profile so people need to know that it has been raised!
So, proudly share it across your social media, let your people know, and absolutely get the ‘as seen on,’ logos for the publication such as the BBC on your website and across your business graphics!
This will help you to establish your authority, your expertise and people will take you far more seriously and think you are better than others in your field, yes really!
Sincerely,
Love Carrie x
