Hiring a publicist is not usually at the top of an entrepreneur’s to-do list. Some businesses consider marketing expenses to be luxuries today when, in fact, an increase in strategic marketing is even more vital during a recession.
Public relations is part of an increasing category of strategic communications known as earned media. This is in contrast to paid media such as advertisements or endorsements. The difference is also often explained as “Push vs. Pull” or interruption marketing vs. permission marketing, or engagement. 
What does pull or engagement-based public relations mean for small businesses? There are any number of possibilities, many of which would depend on your specific business characteristics and needs. An abridged list of the basics is here:
1. Strategic Copy
· Write and market a company blog focused on thought-leadership rather than self-promotion
· Develop an editorial calendar for all outreach and promotions
· Draft news releases for basic company announcements such as founding, financing, new products/promotions, special events, landmarks or anniversaries, new client acquisitions, new partnerships/vendors, new executive hires/promotions, etc.
2. Media Engagement
· Circulate news releases among interested trade, B2B and consumer outlets
· Track industry news and reporters’ interests to find opportunities for your company’s spokesperson or CEO to be quoted
3. Targeted Audience Involvement
· Initiate strategic outreach plan to target audiences such as potential clients, existing clients, consumers or employees
· Create specific e-newsletters for target constituencies
· Develop project-specific hooks, such as surveys, promotions or special events
4. Monitoring and Measurement
· Provide media training to ensure that messaging is clearly and effectively articulated
· Monitor competitors’ media to see opportunities for comment, clarification, refutation, piggybacking, etc.
· Measure results and reevaluate strategy as necessary
A company’s desired level and types of exposure vary according to the company’s priorities at various stages of its development, be it startup, expanding brand or established industry leader.
What’s good for one company might be ill-advised for another but, more often, what’s good for one company has little positive impact on another relative to other tactics. A client’s priorities might span from “Get quoted as an expert in a handful of trade publications this year” to “Publish the leading blog in my industry.” The point of either of the above campaigns—and all those in between—is a strategic approach to reaching target audiences.
This is the first of many more posts on small business PR and marketing. What from the above would you like to hear more about? What was left out? Looking forward to your feedback…
