There’s nothing more frustrating than having a great product or service that no one knows about. If this sounds like you, then you need public relations (PR).

PR planning is often an afterthought – but, if you want your business to thrive and reach a wider audience, it shouldn’t be. What other people think about your company is crucial to raising your profile. To do that, you need to be front-of-mind when they are looking for someone in your field who they can trust.

So, while marketing is necessary for people to learn about your product or service, it is also essential to include PR in your wider strategy. PR connects the broader public to the people in your organisation, allowing you to foster long-lasting relationships with your audience and maximise your sales while you’re at it.

Curious to know more? Here are our dos and dont’s to help you develop the ideal PR strategy:

Do know what your company stands for.

Whether your company is great at corporate social responsibility (CSR) or contributing innovative ideas to your sector, your company stands for something – and that’s the story you should be telling. PR can help you do just that, so get planning!

Do think about storytelling.

Storytelling is a great way to connect with people. After all, we’ve been telling stories around campfires since the beginning of time. Think of the stories that you want to tell, find the platform that will suit them best and you’ll be on the path to achieving great public relations.

Do champion the people in your organisation.

Marketing connects the public to your products and services, while PR connects them to your people, which helps you foster those desirable long-term relationships. If you’ve got a great team, get together and figure out what stories you can tell between you. Chances are, this will help you resonate with more people for a long time to come.

Don’t make your PR plans too vague.

Being unclear about your PR targets doesn’t allow much room for accountability or progress tracking. We suggest setting clear goals in your PR strategy. One way to do this is to champion the people in your company by featuring them in a magazine or newspaper. Set that as your goal for the month and make it happen.

Don’t make things complicated for the media.

If you’re hoping to pitch a story to a journalist, why not make things straightforward for them by preparing a handy media kit? This would typically include your business’ latest press release, as well as photos and information on the people that they could interview. This will make it easier for the journalists to do their jobs, so they’ll be more likely to help you out.

Don’t approach PR from one angle.

With public relations, the sky really is the limit. Any business or organisation has loads of stories to tell – it’s just a question of finding the right ones. Sit down and brainstorm all the possible angles to a given story. Then, come up with the different things you could pitch to journalists on various platforms. Approaching it in this way will maximise your public relations campaign.

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