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How Small Businesses Can Build a Big Brand With PR

Written by: Scott Lorenz

Article Overview: How can small businesses build a big brand? It’s simple. It’s with PR. As a publicist I’ve known this for years. I’ve seen media exposure launch everything from new medical procedures to special events and inventions. Why does it work? It works because PR is the bridge that connects large audiences with a single person with the big idea. How do you get it? You can do it yourself up to a point or allocate some money for a publicist.

How Small Businesses Can Build a Big Brand With PR

How can small businesses build a big brand? It’s simple. It’s with PR. Ever watch the very popular business program “The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch” on CNBC?

Every single guest cites ONE thing that propelled his or her business. What was it? Publicity-PR! It’s the one common theme that runs through the entire program. If you want to get your company “on the radar” then put PR into your plan.

As a publicist I’ve known this for years. I’ve seen media exposure launch everything from new medical procedures to special events and inventions. Why does it work? It works because PR is the bridge that connects large audiences with a single person with The Big Idea. How do you get it? You can do it yourself up to a point or allocate some money for a publicist.

Why PR and not Advertising?
People will tell their friends and associates about a product, book review or new restaurant they read about in a magazine or newspaper, see on television, or hear on the radio because the media is a third party, disinterested source disseminating the information. That's why getting media coverage is so important in starting the "word of mouth" every successful entrepreneur desires. Furthermore, people believe what they see in the media thereby granting a third party endorsement which is far more effective than a paid ad. Then there’s cost. A paid ad in the NY Times the size of your thumb costs thousands of dollars. Need I say more?

Here are several reasons why I believe it makes good business sense to hire a public relations firm to market your product or service:

PR firms can get you TV and radio coverage. A PR firm can get you interviewed on radio and TV. Every day thousands of interviews are conducted on TV and Radio stations across North America and several hundred are with experts and authors. If your in-house PR person is not trying to get interviewed by the producers of those shows they won’t find you because they simply don’t have time to look for you amongst the many interesting people clamoring for their attention.

PR firms have regular contact with national media outlets PR firms are in regular contact with journalists, editors, writers and producers from top national magazines, newspapers and radio/TV programs. When was the last time you talked to representatives from ABC's 20/20... Prime Time… CNN... People... Good Morning America... Newsweek... Publishers Weekly... Family Circle... Forbes... ABC Radio Network... Time Magazine... Dateline NBC... The View... Oprah's O magazine... Fortune Small Business... Cosmopolitan... Fox News... Good Housekeeping or Newsweek? Probably not lately. And your in-house PR person probably has not either. The reason? Your in-house person has not established the relationships with these media outlets. A PR firm with several clients can pitch one, two or three stories while talking to the same reporter or producer. An in-house PR department does not have this synergy which leaves your firm out of the loop.

PR firms have multiple resources such as an “experts subscription service.” My firm, Westwind Communications and other top PR firms belong to paid subscription services which provide dozens of leads every day from media members looking for an expert to comment on a particular story. PR firms present you and your firm as an authority on a particular topic and request an interview. The media will, in nearly every case, mention your firm in the story as it establishes your credibility with the reader.

Your in-house person is not likely to know about this service, or perhaps the several thousand dollars a year it costs to get the leads is not cost effective for a firm to buy this service. However, a PR firm can spread this cost over several clients and glean the hundreds of daily queries looking for the one that may work for you.

The bottom line: There’s no better way to build a brand than with PR. By the way, Donny Deutsch has a new book out, guess the name: Big Idea, The: How to Make Your Entrepreneurial Dreams Come True, From the Aha Moment to Your First Million.

-END-

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Article Tags: advertising, media coverage, media exposure, promotion for business, publicist, publicity, small businesses



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