Welcome to BuyAssociation.co.uk

How to do your own PR

Introduction

You’ve taken the first big step and turned your brilliant idea into what should be an equally brilliant business so now it’s time to sit back and watch the money rolling in right? Wrong - because however unique and indispensable your product or service, if people don’t know about you, you won’t make a penny. So how do you get the word out? For anyone who has already tried to do their own PR, you’ll know it’s a tough old business. Getting it right, or getting it wrong, will make the difference between your big dreams ending up in the bin, or (after an awful lot of hard work) you and your family retiring on the profits and living happily ever after! We asked Melissa Talago, of Peekaboo Communications, who represents a number of mum-run businesses, for her top tips on doing your own PR, and making your business one of life’s success stories.

How to get ahead in advertising…

“Whether to advertise, and where, really depends on your business” Melissa tells us, “if you’re running a business that’s specific to a local area, then advertising in your local newspaper/magazines might be worthwhile. If you’re trying to reach a national audience, unless it’s a very niche audience, you’re going to need a big advertising budget to make a dent. The key is to identify who your target market is. Who’s going to be buying your product or service? What do they read? Where do they go? How can you reach them? Once you have the answers to those questions, you can decide whether advertising is an option”. And don’t for a moment think that advertising on it’s own will do all your hard work for you, think about how you can broaden your marketing tool kit to include PR, direct marketing and online marketing options too.

What can I get for nothing?

It’s simple according to Melissa, “public relations is one of the most cost effective marketing tools you can use – and if you do it yourself, will only cost you your time”.

Define your goals and plan ahead.

There are plenty of websites out there giving pointers on how to write a good press release and how to do PR but one of the most important aspects of public relations is to work out who your target market is. Melissa advises, “create a list of which magazines/papers you want to target and then call them to find out who the correct contact person is. If it’s a news story, the news editor might be the right person. Normally though it would be features or section editors e.g.: if you’re launching a new range of homewares, the homes or interiors editors will be your contact people. If in doubt, ask for the editorial assistant and they should be able to steer you in the right direction”. Don’t forget to follow up the release with a phone call afterwards offering further insight but don’t badger them. Journalists get 100s of press releases every week.

Make your press release work for them...

It’s always a good idea to try to put yourself in the shoes of the journos who will be receiving your press release. A really good way to catch their eye is to think about using a news hook. Melissa explains, “journalists aren’t going to just give you a free ad. They need stories of interest to their readers. The launch of your business is probably news – but you need to find an angle to make it appealing to their readers. If you don’t have any news, look at larger feature ideas. What’s your personal story? Do you have any interesting customer case studies? Are there any topical issues you can give an opinion on? For example, a client of mine - finkcards, launched a pack of conversation cards to encourage families to chat. We could have simply written a press release saying exactly that. But we asked the question: So what? Why is this needed and who should care? We then did some research into the benefits of eating together as a family and found an expert to support our findings. We then did a story on that. The products were featured in a number of publications and radio including a double page article in the Sunday Express S magazine on the art of dinner conversation for kids.

More pages

Page 1: Introduction
Page 2: The secret of good PR is…
Page 3: Trade Fairs and other events.

UK property insurance from intasure - Click here for great deals and up to 40% risk related discount on UK & overseas insurance

Free delivery on office supplies everything from stationery to office furniture

Pay As You Go Virtual Office Services - Free £15 Amazon voucher for new customers

Virtual receptionist service - monthly plans available with no set up fees

Get Your Website On The First Page Of Google On A Budget FREE website health check and white paper on SEO in a recession

Free ink cartridge click here new customers can order an ink cartridge for £0