We had a meeting with a long standing client just recently who told us ‘It’s been so useful working with you. I didn’t understand how PR worked but now I understand how it works in harmony with other marketing activities to have an impact on sales’.
His comment was refreshing to hear because we spend a lot of time talking to clients about how they can significantly improve the impact of PR by aligning campaigns to their business objectives and communicating the outcomes to their audiences. A great example of this is to share any media coverage achieved making the coverage into content for social media.
Instead of thinking of it as a one-off piece of coverage, think of it as content which you can use to reach an even wider audience.
There’s so much you can do with your press coverage which will allow you to engage with your audience in a more meaningful way, create debate and discussion and show that you are an expert in your industry and there are so many platforms which make it easy for you to show your expertise and to reach a wider audience so why not use them?
Sometimes it feels like we’re teaching our grandmother to suck eggs. Everyone knows what the different platforms are but finding the time and – sometimes – the confidence, to use them effectively can be the challenge.
The client we’ve mentioned above has really made the most of his coverage. He has columns and opinion pieces in a number of different trade publications which are published in both print and in online publications.
It works in different ways. Firstly, the print coverage drives people to find and connect with him on LinkedIn and Twitter.
He then publishes the online column on his profile and asks his network what they think. Just asking them for their opinions drives people to read his articles and to respond with their own opinions which in turn generates discussion and debate. He’s not afraid of people debating his views, in fact he encourages it as it not only gives them a chance to air their views and for more people to see the original article, it also gives him an opportunity to back up his claims and his views.
Had he relied on the print press coverage, yes, it would have had an impact and raised his profile but it wouldn’t have allowed him to engage directly with other people and have conversations with them in the same way.
By making PR a key part of his marketing strategy as a whole, he has made his press coverage go further, reached more people resulting in client enquiries and speaking opportunities and cemented his position as a thought leader in his industry.