YOUR NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION IN PUBLIC RELATIONS

Aside from raising sales and clients, extending your PR is one of the most acceptable New Year’s resolutions you can set for yourself and your business. To reach your target audience in 2021, you’ll need to increase your company’s exposure and awareness. “The difference between advertising and publicity is two four-letter words,” explains award-winning public relations specialist Jennifer Goddard Combs. Advertising is a paid service. “Publicity is completely free.” What’s the best approach to gain free publicity? Instead of depending just on cash, take matters into your own hands and capitalize on relationships.

Make a list

Because public relations is a dynamic field, your material should be as well. Please don’t put all of your eggs in one basket by creating a Facebook page and calling it a day; casting a wide net helps you identify where your material is most successful and will get the most significant momentum.

Because free media is the most acceptable media, don’t overlook any means of communication that might bring in new consumers or clients. While internet platforms are convenient to use and may help you reach a global audience, bear in mind that newspapers are far from extinct. Only about a quarter of news consumers claim they still read newspapers in print. Unlike an internet connection, newspapers will always be accessible, but don’t overlook online news sources. With an expanding variety of media to publish material online, the same print newspapers are likely to function digitally (text, pictures, video, audio recordings, etc.).

Remember that radio’s reach is a form of exposure that you should never take for granted. Reach out to local radio stations to check if they already have a piece on your business, offer to be a guest on other shows, or organize referrals to statewide or even national radio station contacts. To summarize, develop a list of the media you want to send your PR and pay close attention to where your information receives the most attention. Keeping track of the efficacy of your publicity as you go, unique to the publishing platform, ensures that your points of comparison for later are correct and allows you to optimize reach on future publicity efforts.

Check it twice

When it comes to managing your brand’s and business’s PR, consistency is crucial.

Even if you or your company’s resources don’t allow for weekly press releases, custom graphics, video packages, or entire multimedia campaigns, you can start by contacting those who can help you expand your existing content into those other domains. Work with a reputable public relations firm, such as The Goddard Company, to ensure that your content is distributed to newspapers, online publications, video-oriented news sources, and independent contributors to international publications such as Forbes and Business Insider. The importance of follow-up cannot be overstated. It’s easy for content to get “lost in the shuffle.” Establishing relationships and following up as needed won’t damage you or your business, and it will boost the possibilities of your material being shared with audiences outside your direct followers. This third-party validation notifies potential consumers and clients that you or your business is trustworthy and valuable enough to be covered when your material is published.