Can anyone offer a bit of PR advice?

[Gordon N]

Calling all SBFers with PR or journalistic experience...

I am on the scrounge for some hints, tips and pointers for an idea that I am working on. Working on the basis that good PR does not have to cost an arm and a leg, I am looking to raise local awareness of my business, the services offered and more importantly how it can benefit the local business community.

My idea is to produce an editorial detailing the importance that should be placed on a company web presence, and how if marketed correctly it can increase sales/leads and expand geographical reach. Nothing new there I hear you say, but in my immediate area there are few if any companies using the Internet as the powerful business tool that we all know it can be. I believe that this is partly due to the 'this is the way we have always done it' mentality that exists up here and throughout the Highlands also. I would like to produce this document in a way that it can be released to the regional press in a style that will make it desirable to print. I will also filter it out through some online article distribution systems as part of my SEO campaign (some deep links always help the pagerank!)

My problem..... I have absolutely no journalistic experience whatsoever, I have never written an article or press release and have no idea how to 'sell' it to the papers in a way that will give me good PR and credit for a good article.

Firstly - is this a tactic that others have used to successfully promote their business for free?

Secondly - excluding a three or four year degree in journalism, are there any good sources for writing guides or journo tips online?

Regards,

Gordon

PS. I am already ducking to avoid the huge number of 'pearls of wisdom' that I hope are coming my way!

 

[Power Lunch Club]

Hello Gordon,

Firstly why weren't you at out PR event yesterday them....hmmm? You would have got loads of free PR advice!!!

The lady that we had at the event Penny Haywood....amazing...and if you visit her web site at PHPR Ltd or start at PHPR Ltd - PR to boost business and go to the downloads page.

You'll get these FREE downloads to kick you off, with these headings...

5 Golden Rules for Writing Successful Press Releases
5 ways to get in the press when you don't have any news
10 Ways to Get on the Features Pages
DIYPR for Putting the Buzz Into Your Business

It's a good start for you.

Also I can help you with a big list of contacts....but I'll PM you about that

Kind regards

The other Gordon

 

[Gordon N]

Firstly why weren't you at out PR event yesterday them....hmmm? You would have got loads of free PR advice!!!

I would love to have attended the event Gordon, however the was the small matter of the 350 mile round journey!

I will have a look at Penny's site and grab the downloads you mentioned, sounds like a good place to start.

And I look forward to receiving your juicey PM!

Thanks again,

Gordon

 

[Power Lunch Club]

I would love to have attended the event Gordon, however the was the small matter of the 350 mile round journey!

A mere hop skip and a jump...LOL!!

Gordon
PLC

 

[Idea15]

Hi Gordon,

I've placed advertorials along the lines of the exact subjects you describe in local media and it took me five articles before I got a single callback, which turned out to be from someone I already knew! I'm not saying it's a waste of time, but it is an uphill climb. The best written article in the world is still not going to persuade your average small town Scottish business owner to stop fearing the big bad inter-web net thingamy.

Penny PR (sounds like someone on Balamory...does she live in a coloured house and sing happy songs?) can tell you about the directory of media contacts which, for a big chunk of cash, you can be listed in as an expert. Media sources would then phone you for quick quotes on relevant articles. I have not done this myself - one of my clients has, and she gets quoted in the media every now and then, but she has never had a callback from anyone who saw her quote and thought "hey, she's the one for me" - so I am taking her experience as the norm.

My one practical tip is to remember that you and I are technical people - we understand things which are a mystery to others. When writing for a general audience, simplify your text to be as non-technical as possible. Then tear that up and simplify it all over again.

Good luck!

 

[Scottish Business Owner]

Hi Gordon,

Alison's comments are spot on. You will need a local angle to get any chance of coverage, Like she days web presence has been done to death, you have to think of it from the readers perspective.

Heather's comments are also though quite a common experience. PR is by no means instant and it may take a few releases just to plant a few seeds. I'm sure PR people would also recommend that you follow up the release even if it's only to build up rapport with a journalist. I think for PR to be success it needs to be planned and sustained and I totally understand why most businesses give up before they reach that tipping point, it's a lot of effort for very little return.

PR is an area that I would like to explore so I may contact Penny and see if she'd be willing to do an article or partake in a podcast

If you would find it useful why dont you post up a draft release and we can all give you comments as that way more people benefit

 

[Gordon N]

My one practical tip is to remember that you and I are technical people - we understand things which are a mystery to others. When writing for a general audience, simplify your text to be as non-technical as possible. Then tear that up and simplify it all over again.

Good luck!

That is some sound advice Heather, and well noted. This is something that I am aware of when speaking to people but that is usually guided by their facial expression - not something you can judge on paper!

Thanks,

Gordon

 

[Gordon N]

Alison's comments are spot on. You will need a local angle to get any chance of coverage, Like she days web presence has been done to death, you have to think of it from the readers perspective.

and Alison I couldn't agree more, and this is something I am looking at. There is a big focus just now amongst networking organisations and HIE to spread the word about some of the interesting and innovative businesses operating in the North of Scotland generally increasing exposure. Their hope is that this will go two ways and actually draw more business (and potentially businesses) up North. This is the angle I am going to look at, and I hope that you would agree that it is a good one.

If you would find it useful why dont you post up a draft release and we can all give you comments as that way more people benefit

Goes without saying!

Regards,

Gordon

 

[Idea15]

That is some sound advice Heather, and well noted. This is something that I am aware of when speaking to people but that is usually guided by their facial expression - not something you can judge on paper!

Thanks,

Gordon

Just as an illustration, I tried writing a piece on SEO which was constrained by the publication's 300 word limit. After running it by my non-technical friends, I had to pick another topic. There was simply no way I could explain SEO from a professional perspective to an average reader in 300 words. So you have quite a challenge ahead of you. Best of luck!

 

[Idea15]

In the end, as I was wondering "what the hang am I going to write in 300 words", the phone rang - it was someone's PA asking "yeah, how much does a web site cost?" and then being very flustered when I asked her to clarify what sort of web site she was looking for.

As much as the call made me want to bang my head into a wall, it made me realise that a lot of businesses still think web sites are things which can be ordered over the phone like pizzas. I even sympathised with the secretary as I can well imagine a boss of a certain age asking his assistant to phone around and "get a few quotes for web sites" as if they were office supplies. So I made an article out of it.