What Even is PR?

If you’re a small business owner, you have one goal. To create more visibility for your business. Increasing how and where your business appears and who it connects with makes all the difference when you and your team are dialing in your marketing efforts. One way to do this is through a public relations (PR) strategy. Maybe you’ve heard of PR but don’t really know what it is or how it can fit into your overall business goals.?

You’re not alone. Business owners know they need a PR plan, but don’t always know where to start when creating it.?

While in Los Angeles for a retreat with entrepreneurs ranging from the owner of several fitness studios to a bespoke fashion designer to a real estate investor, I asked these entrepreneurs what PR means and how it’s different from other types of marketing. I got a multitude of answers and some misconceptions.?

Defining PR

PR is any communication that impacts your reputation in the outside world.?

PR sometimes gets confused with publicity, which is part of PR, but not the sum of its parts. While publicity is all about getting your name mentioned in the media, PR requires a more holistic strategy of curating where and how your name or business appears so that the right audience connects with your message at the right time in order to grow your business.??

This requires a return to the fundamentals like identifying who your ideal client is, what your buyer's journey looks like, and understanding that it’s not enough for someone to read about you or hear you on a podcast. PR makes the most of publicity by amplifying it through social media, email marketing, and other digital channels (hello, digital marketing ) so that you can engage with and sell to your ideal client or customer.

Implementing Your PR Plan

If you’re ready to start planning your PR for 2023, or just tuning up your efforts in the final quarter of this year, make sure you include these four components:

1. Goal(s): The impact you want to make.

Maybe you want to get a press mention each month because you need to double your revenue. Your PR goals should tie into your business goals.?

2. Strategy: How you’ll make that impact.

Maybe your goal is to send 10 pitches a month in hopes you’ll get at least one article published a month. If that’s the outcome you want, your strategy needs to include identifying three to four really great pitch angles, and then calendaring out important, relevant dates throughout the year when it might make sense for a journalist to write about what you’re doing.?

3. Tactics: The tools you’ll use to encourage action toward your goals.

Your focus is on press mentions, but when it comes to tactics, you’ll need to be prepared to elevate any publicity wins through digital marketing to really move the needle on your business. Will you include your news mentions in a monthly or bi-weekly email? How will you share your latest guest column or podcast appearance on your social channels? Are you confident that you are investing time and energy in the right 1-2 social channels, or are you trying to be everywhere all at once without a clear strategy? Delegate and eliminate as needed.??

4. Timeline: When you’ll implement your strategy.

If you want to get one press mention a month, you’ll need some time to get your ducks in a row. First compile a list of reporters who might be interested in covering your news. After identifying these reporters, come up with three or four evergreen pitch angles that are truly worthy of media coverage. You can even create a simple one-page media kit to go along with these pitches, or at least make sure you have a headshot and bio ready to go. Calendar out what you’ll do by when so that you can stay on track with your plan and hit your goals.?

Did Your PR Plan Deliver Results?

You’ll know if your PR plan was successful if you see results from your efforts. Maybe you or your business is nominated for an industry award, or you’re fielding more requests to speak at conferences. Maybe you see an increase of contacts in your email list, or your Instagram following grows. Maybe you have reporters start asking for your opinion and expertise when they are writing about a topic related to your industry because you’ve pitched consistently. Maybe the number of qualified leads is triple this time last year, and you find you need to staff up to keep up with the business you’re bringing in.?

Ultimately, PR is about what’s possible. PR is a scrappier strategy than paid ads because people (despite the scapegoating of the media these days) still trust articles more than advertising. Study after study shows that PR is up to 90% more effective than ads at building credibility and authority over the long haul. Not to mention focusing your efforts and money on PR is more affordable than paying for ads.

Why PR and Why PR Now?

PR brings you, your business, and your mission to the forefront of the public eye so you can share your story. Who holds the mic determines whose story is told, and it's time to plan how you’ll tell yours.?

If you would like to see how you can incorporate a PR strategy to grow the reach of your business, you can access our 1-page PR plan here . This 1-pager will get you started on your PR journey so you can start doing PR correctly and efficiently by planning out tactics, creating an action plan, and working on a timeline that delivers results.?

How have you incorporated PR into your business strategy? I’d love to hear your thoughts!?