Public Relations
More Than Just Press Releases
Like every marketing tool, Public Relations has gone through some big changes in the past few years. Today, PR is much more than sending out a press release.
A complete Public Relations effort should include: case studies, customer testimonials, messaging to employees, community goodwill articles, crisis management, new product rollouts, onboarding employees, executive interviews, technical white papers, speaking engagements, industry events, trade show activities, and much more.
The Opportunities:
No matter your industry, there have never been more opportunities to get writing and trade press working for you. Along with traditional media, you can now create content for your website and emails, or send it to online bloggers and publishers. There are also free online PR outlets available. And did we mention social media?
Every piece of content posted or covered by industry media will earn backlinks and improve your SEO efforts. If the link is from a high quality publisher or social media site, it will show up in search results for you company. When consumers see your product, service, or technical advice in a variety of media outlets, brand equity increases and you earn their trust.
The Challenges:
1. The competition for attention for your content and press release is at an all-time high because anyone with a computer and a decent email publisher/ blog list can send out content and press releases repeatedly.
2. The turnover of editors and bloggers today is constant, so you must continually update your database to keep it relevant. Even lists from costly services like PRNewswire become outdated quickly.
3. Servers at publications may block emails they see as spam, so it's important to work with a reputable firm or individual with good contacts to ensure your news gets through.
We Get Results
It takes a good amount time and consistent effort to see results.
Many company's PR programs fail simply because no one was willing to commit to the effort year after year. Full Scale Marketing gets results because we are extremely consistent (and persistent) in our efforts.
Don't just take our word for it. Ask to talk to some of our Public Relations customers!
What Sets Full Scale Marketing Apart?
We work extensively with your sales and marketing teams. Your PR program will work in conjunction with your other marketing activities and we will make adjustments as business goals change throughout the year.
We'll help you develop a PR strategy based on your business goals to help increase your website traffic, sales leads, or phone calls. Then we'll track the results, always taking notes about which particular PR piece had the biggest impact.
We track all pieces of coverage and do a monthly & yearly cost comparison against what you would have paid for an ad online or in a hard copy of the publication.
We post all PR on social media platforms and share and like key editors' social posts.
We'll accompany you at trade shows to meet with editors, vendors, and customers; helping you build relationships and discover potential editorial opportunities like case studies or testimonials.
If your content or press release doesn’t earn coverage within the first three days, we'll figure out why and rework the piece until we earn the coverage you deserve.
No extra fees like a large agency. Get the results you deserve at a better price. We help clients with an annual PR budget of only $25,000 receive close to $1 million in coverage compared to what it would have cost to advertise for the same amount of space.
Ask to see samples from our history of press releases, case studies, and other content developed for our clients!
Executive Corner: How to Communicate During a Crisis
It's the era of transparency and the days of "no comment" communication by executives during a crisis are over. Today, via social media, customers, employees, suppliers, or even communities can spotlight your company with negative news.
Before the crisis gets out of hand, sit down with a few vital team members and hash out your response. Limit it to 2-3 people, because just like in a kitchen, too many cooks will spoil the broth.
Most importantly, your message should be honest and provide enough information to convince your employees, vendors, and customers you genuinely understand the situation and have a plan for moving forward.
Next, brainstorm what questions you might get from all fronts and compose at least one solid reply.
Now it's time to start making phone calls. Contact all key individuals with a significant stake in your company and relay the message. They'll have concerns, so be prepared to answer their questions.
Finally, email the message to all other stakeholders, such as employees, vendors, and suppliers.
The bottom line here is to communicate quickly, honestly, and often. If the crisis continues... do it all over again.
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