Press coverage is extremely important. Any business owner would love to have their organisation mentioned in the media. For this reason, many employ Public Relations firms or have their own in-house PR professionals. Despite this, press coverage is not impossible to achieve on your own. In this article, you tell you how to do it.
A guide to achieving press coverage
Here are 6 steps to take to achieve (almost) guaranteed press coverage. Follow these, and you’ll be good to go.
1. Pick your target
Target a specific publication or journalist with a corresponding area of interest. By appealing to a writer’s existing passion point, you’re far more likely to get a foot in the door. If you’re not sure where to start, head to Google – a simple topic search will quickly reveal the names of journalists who regularly cover it.
Dive a little deeper by trawling through their Twitter accounts, identifying views and areas of interest. Once you’ve done that, craft your story to appeal to these points.
2. Offer exclusives
By offering your story as an exclusive, you have a far greater chance of success. Rather than emailing your pitch, give the editor a call and ask for their input upfront. This way you can expertly craft your story in line with their suggestions. As a result, you’ll ensure that when your story arrives in their inbox, they’re expecting it.
3. Work the calendar
It might feel contrived to use occasions like Valentine’s Day and Christmas to score press coverage for your brand, but the reality is that journalists are hard pressed for seasonally-specific content over these periods.
For instance, if you’re a property brand, you might want to consider an article focusing on tips for couples looking to buy their first home together.
Another way is to request a copy of your targeted publication’s editorial calendar, which will identify the topics to be covered over the course of the year. By writing a story specifically for a planned feature, you have a good chance of success.
4. Team effort
Being credited as the sole purveyor of expert insight in an article is undoubtedly first prize for any business. However, the reality is that journalists prefer an unbiased story with multiple sources. By pitching a story angle and offering up multiple spokespeople able to add further insight, you are making a journalist’s life easier.
Yes, you might have to share the headlines with one of your rivals, but by positioning yourself as a collaborative force, you’ll better position your business to be seen by the right types of readers. As such, you’ll begin to establish your brand as a go-to source of industry insight.
5. Curate local content
Journalists in Africa are starved of local statistics, having to rely heavily on facts & figures from abroad to substantiate their stories. As such, local research findings are highly sought after by media outlets. By supplying your own stats, you’ll be able to get positive press coverage. It will also help to establish you as a credible, well-respected industry leader.
6. Use the news in your favour
By keeping close tabs on current events and providing stories in line with a topic currently occupying the news agenda, you’ll be in a great position to score some high impact wins.
For instance, if the is Olympics is around the corner or happening presently, and you just so happen to be a security company, you can give safety tips to those attending. There you’ve got the perfect angle to hook your story on.
Secure your press coverage
Scoring press coverage is a major win for any business. And, as you can see from the tips above, you can do it on your own if your budget is tight! However, if you’re interested in finding world-class assistance with landing press coverage, contact Red Ribbon today.