Usually, once a business owner decides to take a certain direction or strategy and put it into practise in their business, it is sometimes challenging to know where to start. The same applies for beginning a public relations strategy. Where to go from here?
Your first step in creating a PR strategy is to delegate the task of media liaison and publicity to someone in your team.
This person could be yourself, an assistant or marketing coordinator, or it may be a new employee you hire especially for the job. It could also be a PR Consultant that specialises in generating news, preparing and distributing media releases and following up with journalists. Effectively, it doesn’t matter who is responsible, as long as they have the time, interest and resources to do a proper job of it. Time for it For public relations to really work and be a success, it is not something that can be done on an ad hoc basis, when time allows. PR really needs to form an important part of an overall business plan, and have time dedicated to it each and every month. To really be recognised in the industry, a business owner needs to provide constant relevant commentary to the appropriate media. If you only contact them every once and again, you are not creating a reputation for yourself and the media will quickly forget your name.
Try to contact the media with something newsworthy and relevant at least once a month.
Eventually, you will find they are coming to you. Passion, or at least interest, in it It goes without saying that the jobs that get done first and the best are usually those that we have an interest in. The jobs we find difficult or boring tend to find themselves at the bottom of the list. It’s only natural that we are not all experts at everything. So be honest with yourself – are you or the person you have elected, really the best person for the job? If you are not a public relations expert, but interested in learning, with the help of this tool kit, you can certainly become really successful. But if the thought of writing a media release bores or frustrates you to tears, then it’s worth re-considering your choice. The right resources The public relations resources that you, or the person elected for the job, need are really time, some know-how and the office essentials (computer, Internet connection, email account and phone). If you have delegated the job to someone else, be aware that your time will still be required. Not only to pay their account, but also to help communicate news and information about the business, help brainstorm ideas and approve any material written. Of course, then you will also need to make yourself available for photos and interviews if all goes well.
