The young breed of new age entrepreneurs is a bunch of magicians – people who are able to challenge conventional wisdom, people who can push engineers to create revolutionary products, and people who can impress people to the extent that they don’t mind investing a few hundred million in the ‘idea’. These young marketers can make ordinary people move mountains.
Come to think of it, writing an email to a journalist so that latter gives the startup a few words in the weekend tabloid – should not be much of a task for the entrepreneur. Turns out that even these magicians need to hire PR experts to create buzz in the press for their ventures, despite the fact that such services cost hundreds of dollars. Worry not, we’ve got some tricks you can adopt to save on PR spending so that your working capital can be used up elsewhere.
Any time you can save money during a recession is a terrific thing. You have taxes to worry about that do not seem to ever decrease; saving money is critical in every stage of your business’s growth.
The research approach
The standard respected journalist receives dozens of emails every day, with the standard pitch that’s something on the liens of “hey Matt, we’re building the most awesome CRM software in the e-retail space, and…”. The sad news, however, is that such emails hardly solicit any attention from industry expert journalists.
Try the smarter approach, spend some time reading recent stories by a few journalists, and strike a conversation through your email; probably something on the lines of “hey Matt, read your piece about payoff periods on CRM automation software. In fact, our team has identified 5 pain points, and ……” The basic philosophy is – research, relate, and strike a conversation, steering it to the ultimate aim of your first free press release.
Radio – The Real Killer
Contrary to forecasts, the radio has held on to its status as a reliable and much loved broadcast medium. Always remember, radio broadcasts always hinge on the element of immediacy. So, be on your feet, and whenever there’s any important news-worthy event relevant for your industry, track radio channels, and offer yourself as an expert with your opinion.
As long as society depends on the personal automobile to shutter them around radio will be a force to be reckoned with.
Then, keep track of radio channels and programs that accept call backs from listeners in debates, and when the discussion topics are relevant to your industry and area of expertise. You could get your team of executives to track different channels for such opportunities, and can then pursue them in a structured manner to get some free PR through the radio.
Superb Resources to Speed-Track Your Quest for Free PR
To close this guide, here are 3 resources you can start using today, for free, to move closer to your first free PR marketing pursuit:
- Google.com/alerts – You are probably already using this service, maybe for purposed other than PR. Google Alerts helps you monitor developing news stories, which is also a good indicator of what journalists are interested in.
- com or www.SocialMention.com – Almost on the lines of Google Alert, this service tracks social media networks for buzz related to your chosen topics, people, and what now. If social media is a part of your PR campaigns, this tool could be a differentiator.
- HelpAReporter.com – H.A.R.O. is a real winner, a portal where reputed journalists post their questions and concerns, calling out experts for inputs. You could be that expert, and in turn can get a mention from the journalists in their news stories. Pretty neat, right?