Tag Archive for: PR strategy

Public Relations Strategy in 2024: Navigating the Landscape

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In today’s world, what is the role of public relations, and how should you create a public relations strategy? Many people think of PR purely in terms of articles placed (earned media), when in fact, PR strategy is a cross-functional objective that enhances business goals through reputation management.

How Does PR Support Business Goals?

PR is not a strategy – PR supports a business’ over-reaching goals. It’s completely possible for a company to be successful without PR, but it’s near impossible for a company to become a household name without PR. So whether your objective is raising capital, recruiting better talent, quickening the sales process, or preparing for your pre-IPO, a proper PR strategy is a critical partner in success.

How PR Supports Business Goals

  • Build credibility or trust.
  • Reputation management.
  • Brand/company awareness.
  • Harnessing media to support business goals.
  • Incorporating digital media in a brand and business-relevant manner

What is a Public Relations (PR) Strategy?

A public relations strategy answers the following questions:

  • What is the desired outcome of a positive company image with stakeholders?
  • Who are the stakeholders and target audience?
  • What company key messages resonate most successfully with the target audience?
  • What trends can the brand utilize to improve its image with stakeholders?
  • What research is relevant to stakeholders?
  • What content are the stakeholders consuming?
  • What activities are the stakeholders attending/participating?
  • What is the existing media coverage on relevant topics and key messages?
  • What assets does the company have to support PR initiatives, or what needs to be developed?
  • What PR initiatives are competitors utilizing, and how can the company differentiate?
  • What KPIs will be tracked to measure the effectiveness of the PR strategy?

Ultimately, a PR strategy provides the roadmap for the PR campaigns. It will incorporate data, messaging, and brand research to develop a positive public opinion of an organization, brand, product, or person for a specific business goal. PR strategies are often cross-functional and stakeholder-dependent. For example, you may have an overarching PR strategy for the brand with the goal of attracting financing, but within that strategy is PR for consumers and even an internal communications plan for employees.

In the above example, you would expect the CEO, CFO, and/or board members to be actively engaged in investor relations, a CMO, product manager, or marketing manager to be involved in consumer PR, and HR to be involved with an internal communications plan.

We believe in crafting PR strategies that align with our clients’ overall goals and values. This includes identifying key messages, choosing appropriate communication channels, and engaging with the media and the public in a way that enhances reputation.

Our approach emphasizes proactive communication to showcase the positive aspects of our clients, address potential issues, and foster strong relationships with the media. We leverage various platforms, such as social media, press releases, and events, to create a consistent and compelling narrative that resonates with the audience.

An effective PR strategy is about responding to crises and building trust and credibility over time. By staying attuned to industry trends, monitoring public sentiment, and adapting our strategies accordingly, an effective PR strategy will ensure companies maintain a favorable image in the eyes of their stakeholders.

How to Develop a Good Public Relations Strategy in 2024?

In order to create an excellent PR strategy, there will be considerable research, internally and externally, including audience analysis, media trends, and competitive analysis. A public relations strategy can take anywhere between 4 weeks to 4 months to create, depending on the ambition of the goal and how complicated the strategy will be.

A good public relations strategy aligns with the goals and the company brand and incorporates hard data and insights. There are different expectations of a PR campaign vs. an ad campaign; transparency and authenticity are expected in PR, as is an understanding of how to communicate with the media.  Communicating with the media is different than direct communication with your target audiences. Journalists have different expectations and requirements to satisfy before a story will be published, and journalists don’t see themselves as marketers – the role of PR is to bridge the gap between the journalist’s needs and the company’s. At its best, it’s symbiotic, but the any PR strategy will go awry when it doesn’t meet the needs of the journalist.

Understanding your metrics and KPIs is essential as well. Experienced PR professionals know how to analyze goals and ensure they match the plan and vice versa. For example, if the ambition is to be a household name, then the media budget – earned, paid, owned – needs to match that ambition. We’re fans of saying all things are possible, but the lower the budget, the longer it takes.

A solid PR strategy also needs to have a firm grip on the trends and tools that can support or derail a strategy. The media landscape is constantly evolving, and it’s important that any PR strategy take into account the entirety of the media and analyze which of these items presents opportunities and which presents threats. Further, there are hundreds of thousands of PR crises a year, and in the volatile and dynamic post-pandemic landscape, companies who don’t plan for a crisis are creating a very expensive scenario for themselves. Crisis like cyberattacks put hundreds, if not thousands of startups and mid-size businesses every year.

Ten steps to a modern public relations strategy

  • Consider your 6, 12, 24, and 48-month goals, and review the budget you have allocated to ensure your budget matches your goals.
  • Determine KPI and metrics baselines.
  • Research your target audiences using social media conversation, data, and stakeholder surveys.
  • Research media cycles and trends to identify media opportunities throughout the year.
  • Determine what key messages will work most effectively with your target audience.
  • Determine what gaps exist in the marketplace communication.
  • Identify three types of content and channels that will support your strategy.
  • Determine what PR platforms will support your strategy.
  • Identify relevant metrics and quarterly KPIs to track.
  • Develop or update the crisis communications plan.

What Will a Good PR Strategy Do for You?

Your PR strategy is like a finger print – there really isn’t one quite like it. Others may have the same business goal in mind, but the path to getting there should reflect your company’s distinct voice and brand. The goal of a public relations strategy isn’t to set everything in concrete but rather to provide a deep understanding of the goals, audience, and measurements so if changes are made; they are done so specifically to adjust within the necessary parameters. For example, if your goal is to attract investors, it’s important to consider what investors want to know and how to articulate that into PR campaigns; it will look very different than a campaign targeted towards consumers. Consider these parameters so your entire process from content to outreach is consistent.

A good PR strategy should include:

  • Identify proven key messages that are effective to the target audience and reflect the brand.
  • Identify baselines of metrics and growth goals that align with budget and timeframe.
  • Identify what PR objectives will be most effective for the target audience and the brand’s desired outcome.
  • Develop corresponding PR campaigns.
  • Identifying corresponding content opportunities.
  • Identify potential brand crises and create a crisis communication plan.

Digital PR Strategy

Is a digital PR strategy different from a PR strategy? No. Today’s PR strategies should incorporate digital platforms, content, and communication channels. A PR strategy that doesn’t incorporate at least some of these considerations isn’t incorporating modern PR principles. Avaans Media was originally founded as a digital communication agency, so our roots are firmly planted in the earliest days of social media. Today, digital media is a vibrant arm of public relations, as are content and earned media online. Digital perspectives should be included in your PR strategy as an integral part rather than a separate aspect. There may be other elements of your overall digital plan (pay-per-click for example), but your PR should be firmly integrated with the rest of your digital programming. And, of course, all these elements should work together to deliver trackable improvements toward your business goal.

A good PR strategy should incorporate at least three digital PR components

  • Organic search audit.
  • Keyword analysis and opportunities.
  • Social media audience audit and opportunities.
  • Social media brand audit and opportunities.
  • Brand mentions across platforms and forums audit and recommendations.
  • Owned content or native content development.

 

The importance of a strategic PR in 2024 approach in supporting business objectives cannot be overstated. Beyond its traditional role as a reputation management tool, PR has evolved into a dynamic and integral part of overall business strategy. From building credibility and trust to driving brand awareness and fostering stakeholder relationships, PR plays a multifaceted role in shaping the success of a business.

Companies that recognize the strategic significance of PR are better positioned to navigate challenges, seize opportunities, and cultivate a positive and enduring presence in the market. As businesses continue to face unprecedented levels of scrutiny and competition, a from startup to IPO, well-executed PR strategy remains a linchpin for sustained growth and success. For PR expertise, contact Tara Coomans and her team at Avaans Media, who are PR experts for ambitious companies.

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Why Do PR: Should You Hire In-House or Agency for Marketing and PR?

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Why do PR? Emerging or growing brands often ask should I hire in-house or use a PR agency?

They’re asking themselves this question against a wild backdrop and volatile marketplace. But even during corrections, thousands of businesses are finding their footing and growing. It truly is the wild, wild, west in right now. The reason executives are asking themselves this question is because regardless of lay-offs and investment size, what both these businesses also have in common are some enormous plans that require PR and marketing.

Many companies have concerns about hiring agencies, they worry about finding the right PR agency, they worry about disclosure to people outside the company; they worry about failure. Those are legitimate concerns, many of those same concerns can be an issue with employees, but with an agency, they can be addressed with strategic questions and planning, and taking a little time to get to know your potential pr agency. And the good news is that the best agencies seem to know one another. If you find a great marketing agency or a great branding agency, chances are, they know a PR firm they like and trust.

In-House PR Advantages

Proximity

If you like having someone to bounce ideas off on a whim, in-house PR teams offer that flexibility more than PR agencies. PR agencies are typically a little more formal about meetings and goal-setting.

Cross-Departmental Integration

As companies and brands grow, it’s often great to have someone in-house who formalizes internal communications and ensures other departments are considering PR implications.

Agency Management

If you’re managing multiple agencies, like a marketing agency and a public relations agency, having an in-house point person is a great advantage. Agencies will often work together, but someone needs to ensure the brand’s objectives are always at the forefront.

But what are the practical business reasons for hiring an agency over an in-house team for brands?

Cost-Effective

A single hire’s salary can cost you more than an agency, and that single hire, because they are human, has limitations. Agencies specialize in providing you with the team of specialists you need when you need them. Add this to the fact that you won’t be paying benefits, payroll taxes, and health insurance, and it adds up to savings for both big brands and startups.

Think about it, in addition to your CMO and/or a Communications Officer, who will each need a manager and team, including a media relations specialist, a content writer, a social media manager, a graphic designer, and a multitude of marketing and listening tools which can all easily add up to $400,000 or more, plus benefits.

Plus, if something dramatic happens, it’s also usually less expensive to separate from an agency. Many PR agencies, including us, have a separation agreement in the contract that spells out the process if something radically changes, so it’s a reasonably straightforward process that brings peace of mind to executives in this volatile time.

The IRS Sees PR Agencies As an Expense

Agencies streamline payroll AND they are also a straight business expense.  Talk to your CPA about what makes the most sense for your business.

PR Agency Superpower: Scaleability

Think of your agency as your expansion team. In addition to receiving top-notch strategy and planning, you’ll also have access to team members who are in the thick of it and can give a point of view from the front lines too. When you have a team of people, it’s easier to tap into insights and trends that you might otherwise miss. But it’s also important to note that when you hire a cannabis PR firm or a cannabis marketing firm you’ll get a team of professionals who can more easily scale up during launches or big campaigns.

Even if you do decide to take certain elements in-house, your agency continues to serve you with perspective and resources that support your in-house team. For example, many brands want a PR expert in-house for a multitude of reasons, especially corporate communications and investor relations. But your PR executive still needs a team to help execute, especially in the area of media relations. Few in-house communications executives are actively pitching and engaging with journalists as often as our team is, our media relations team is a top-notch time saver for in-house PR teams.

Seeing the Forest Through The Trees

It’s easy to lose perspective when there’s a lot going on. An agency can provide additional listening and strategy insights you might not have considered. Having a team that has your back and isn’t bogged down in your office politics can really keep things moving along.

In-house team members tend to be front-line advocates internally. And that’s a really important role, especially if you’re trying to build a culture as many brands are. But those day-to-day tasks, meetings, and internal cajoling tend to make consistent outward-looking perspectives difficult. Use your agency to bring you a consistent overall vision of the marketplace and strategies that will set you apart for the long run. Look for agencies with whom you can have open and collaborative dialogue to get the most out of your agency.

Get to Work Fast!

The right agency can get to work much faster than onboarding an employee.  Agencies have a client on-boarding process that will be systematic and strategic because they want to get to work too. You won’t spend your time showing someone where the coffee maker is, you’ll spend your time reviewing strategy and goals.

Access To The Latest Technology & Tools

You pay a fair share for platforms and services that are critical to your business. So do agencies. We have top-notch monitoring, analytics, and communications platforms – you get access to those without adding those non-critical operating costs to your bottom line.

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Is A Press Release Worth It?

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Is the press release dead?  For years now, that question has been hanging over the public relations/journalism world. And the question is a fair one – when millions of press releases are issued daily, often without consideration of the journalists receiving them, do press releases work anymore? And issuing a press release through a credible pr distribution wire service is an extra cost of about $3,000 or more depending on variables like length, number of images or videos, and frequency.

Given their expense, is a press release worth it?
What we’re talking about here is legitimate company news that is appropriate for a wire service, but isn’t securities and exchange or public shareholders requirement. So this legitimate news could be based on research, a new hire, a new product, it can even be a statement based on industry news, issued over a pr distribution wire service like PR Newswire, Business Wire, Globe Newswire or similar who distribute and publish an online press release.

A press release is but one tactic in the media relations tool kit. It’s extremely unusual that your news, even your most exciting news, (“We launched..! We bought…! We secured…!”), applies to every single media site, without customization about why it applies to the reader or journalist’s beat. There are plenty of occasions when direct outreach to the media contacts database will generate better quality and more tailored media coverage. Plus, journalists aren’t really all that jazzed to receive the same (untailored) information as hundreds of thousands of other journalists; at that point, they view it as a status update instead of news.  But then why do these services charge so much?

Well, most quality pr distribution wire services reach thousands of outlets at once and most will get reprints of your press release in at least a few national online media outlets.  But that press release syndication can come in handy on the web.

The press release isn’t dead, it’s just viewed differently by both journalists and public relations professionals today. So when SHOULD you go through the expense, sometimes over $1,000 per release, of using a wire service? Here are 5 times issuing a press release over a wire service can serve your strategic interests.

It’s Still Got Social Proof:

When you search on a business name and  the release appears under “news,” tell me that doesn’t impress you a little? Of course. That’s why earned media is so valuable. Vendors, customers, investors, they all like seeing that too. It shows you’re committed to your brand, your growth, and your reputation. If you’re positioning for acquisition, IPO, or investors, having a consistent history of press releases provides credibility and social proof.

Consistent (but not overwhelming) press releases are also a good way to stay in front of news outlets. When your brand is top of mind at the moment editors are assigning stories or looking for ideas, it allows your public relations budget to go even further. Press releases also offer background information for journalists writing today’s story; they serve as a good historical marker to your company’s achievements, which can get buried on a website.

You’ve Got Video on a Major News Item:

If you or your company has a unique point of view on a breaking news item, especially if it’s video,  TV stations are always looking for high-quality video for of-the-moment topics, that’s a great opportunity to send out a well-timed press release.  Make sure your video has a distinctive point of view and that it’s relevant to your key messaging. Make sure your video is high quality enough for TV and name your video using relevant and keyword researched words.

Help producers and journalists by using your press release to give context to your quote and be sure to show the speaker’s name clearly in the content.

You’re ABSOLUTELY Clear On Your Audience:

Most of the time your audience is the press, after all, those are the subscribers to wire services – to pretend there is any other primary audience is misleading. But given that most journalists aren’t responsive to press releases, there may be an opportunity to be a bit disruptive.  There may be an occasion in which your release speaks directly to the consumer as opposed to the journalist with a jazzier (note: not promotional) lingo, maybe direct to consumer quotes, and direct to consumer ideas or recommendations that could also interest slow-news-day fodder. Note: we’re not really dealing with many slow news days these days.

Sometimes those press release reprints can give you enough legs to support other content initiatives and social proof initiatives.

Let me be clear: do not treat a press release like a blog post, they are complementary, not interchangeable. But, addressing to the consumer’s issues within the context of a newsworthy release may be a useful, if non-traditional, tactic occasionally.

You’ve Done Keyword Research:
If your website is new, or if you’re trying to build traffic, these consistent high-value links can contribute nicely to your SEO. Let’s be clear sending out press releases alone isn’t enough to radically change your SEO, but it can be part of your off-page tool kit that supports your overall SEO strategy.

Keep in mind, a press release jacked up with keywords isn’t effective AT ALL. Google’s got your number and generally, a press release written only for search engines is ineffective; it’s also considered spammy by journalists, so used wrong, it can discredit your company in the eyes of the media outlets.

What you want to do is keyword research on ACTUAL news so you maximize the opportunity. Wire releases DO create high-value inbound links. Plus, wire service releases generally present well in search results, so it’s a double-win if you or your PR team have done their keyword research.

The Moment is Momentus

Using a press release to document a historic moment in your company’s history presents a timeline and momentum to your company and adds social proof. Also, going back to the keywords, press releases live in “news” for much, much longer than even an earned media story.

Press releases using this strategy also serve as a way to get press on track to watch for future announcements, clarify your business positioning, or get stakeholders on the same page.

Do we believe press releases are dead? No, we do not. We also don’t believe every announcement needs to come in the form of a press release. Use press releases strategically, and to compliment your media relations,  and they will serve you well.

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Creating a Customer Focused Communication Strategy

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The Communication Strategy Everyone Will Thank You For.

We’re inundated with messages every day. As communicators, it’s up to us to have  some empathy for our audience, whether that audience is the press, an employee, a customer, or an investor.

Yet, this single communications strategy I’m about to share with you is so simple, so basic, you’ll wonder why you’re not doing it already.

Before we go any further, let me ask you, which would you rather be:

A product or a movement
A cause or a movement?
An idea or a movement?

If you don’t care, I’ll save you-you can stop reading right now.
If you want to be a movement, it’s time to re-frame your thinking.
If you’re going to have a movement that matters, you’re going to need people to get on your side.
PEOPLE.
Not Twitter accounts, not Instagram followers, not Facebook likes.
These are vanity metrics that provide little insight into the passion and interest people have in your brand, product, or personality.

Are You Really Ready?

If you’re ready, you’ll re-frame your thinking.
If you re-frame your thinking, it will change everything.

So get ready…
The world is crowded now with communicators, marketers, messengers, and “me, me, me.”
Some days it’s soul-sucking.
It’s why everyone who uses social networking says brands ruin everything.
And yet…people WANT to receive messages, they just want messages tailored to them.
One of the reasons digital marketing is so powerful is that it creates a give and take in the relationship.
It provides an opportunity for the customer, the reader to think about their favorite subject for a moment: them.
But here’s the rub:
It takes strategy, focus and creativity to create content that your consumer wants to see.

So, please.
As you review your communication goals and communication strategy, stop for one moment and think about the reader, whether they’re a customer, a client, an investor, or an internal employee.
Make it about them.
That single phrase is the one thing so many brand communicators ignore.
Why? Because it takes serious work to “Make it about them.”
It means getting serious about audience identification.
It means getting serious about your brand, it’s voice and how it relates to the audience.
It means diving in on messaging and strategic choices in advertising.
It means actually creating a relationship and even (GASP) an in-person relationship with your customer or client.
It means, communication and branding for the long haul,  not some flash-in-the-pan-make-it-go-viral-I-need-some-vanity-numbers-now kind of campaign.

And while we’re thinking about it, let’s consider language and what it says about our strategy.
If you’re saying you’ll “use influencers,” do you think you’re thinking about it from the “All About Them” standpoint?
If you’re talking about how you’ll “promote”  your message, event, or idea, does that sound like you’re getting ready to make it interesting to others?
If you’re talking to a PR agency, a strategist or a social media consultant who is using words like “promote” and “use” you really must ask yourself if you’ll have an opportunity for a customer relationship.

I still see and hear this language every day on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, everywhere.
It’s gotten to where my eyes glaze over.
Guess what?  So does everyone else’s.

Let’s step it up, together.
We can do this.
We can make what you have to say interesting and relevant to the right people at the right time.

Now What?

Here’s my communication strategy challenge to you.
Go check your last 10 social posts.
See how many times you used the words “we, us, or I.”

How much of your content was about the consumer?
How much of your content was strategically shared to reinforce or create relationships?
Is there anything there that would make someone curious?
Is there anything at ALL that makes people feel ANYTHING?

How do YOU make people feel?
If you make them feel ANYTHING you’re miles ahead.
If you make them feel stronger, smarter, special, you’re really hitting on something.
If you made them terrified, scared, outraged, you’re really hitting on something.

People rarely forget how you made them feel.
But YOU’RE utterly forgettable when you make them feel nothing.
Digital branding and marketing is a long game, with peaks at appropriate times.
But always it surrounds emotion.

Regardless of the movement you’re trying to start, start with the idea that “you” are not necessarily interesting.
What’s interesting to people is what they do with “you.”
How you make them laugh or think.
How you make their lives easier, better, or richer.

Here’s another reason to re-frame your thinking: it takes discipline and thought to create content that makes people pause.
That’s why so few marketers do it.
So while everyone else is “zigging” go ahead and “zag.” and watch how it changes the way people respond to your brand or product.

That is all.

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