A good PR campaign is often crucial to the success of your business or personal brand. The rewards that you can get from free media exposure, by positioning yourself as an expert in your field, far outweighs the rewards of a paid advertisement.
Challenging financial times require that you be able to re-invent yourself, grow and ensure that you remain relevant. This can be quite challenging, especially when you are not sure where to start, do not necessarily have the benefit of being a celebrity, or have a particular look or product that basically sells itself.
Not being a celebrity doesn’t have to be a problem though. There are a number of ways in which you can get great publicity that can assist with growing your personal brand or your business. An extra benefit is that this may lead to more publicity and to you being recognised as an expert in your field.
Anyone can do it, provided that they are doing it right. Another benefit is the fact that the media is always looking for news. You have to ensure that you or your business is that news. You have to stand out.
What are you passionate about? What do you already know? How could you package what you know and have, to get great media attention, grow your personal brand or business and position yourself as an expert?
What You Can Do to Get Fantastic Publicity
1. Write a regular column for a reputable publication
If you could convince a reputable publication that they require your services, you are a real star. Identify your publication of choice. See whether there is a gap that you could fill. Once you have identified this gap, you have to convince them that you are it and that they require your expertise. When approaching your media platform of choice, make sure that you focus on the value that you could add to their readers, viewers or listeners. You have to be able to answer this question: “How will they benefit by being exposed to my message?”
2. Write a book
Has anybody ever told you that you have a book inside of you? Everybody has a story, is an expert in some way or another and can write a book. A book is one of the best ways to assist with positioning yourself as an expert. If your book is interesting enough and appeals to many people, there is a great chance that the media will be interested in telling people about it.
Should you self-publish or go the national publishing route? This is a very important point to consider. With both options, there are advantages and disadvantages. When you plan properly, you can choose the option that would be most beneficial to you.
3. Be a regular expert on radio or television
When you write a good book, something that is of interest to the general public, there are various options to ensure that you share your message on a regular basis on your platform of choice. Build your confidence and enquire about such possibilities, even while you are still writing your book. There are many opportunities out there, but they are reserved for those individuals and businesses who can see the bigger picture. In a competitive market, you want to be that person who gets to share their message on their platform of choice.
4. Contribute your expert opinion to magazine or newspaper articles
When you are recognised as an expert in your field, journalists may approach you to contribute your expert opinion to articles or stories that they are working on. Your opinion. When this happens, it is quite a compliment. When you do well and deal with the particular journalist in a respectful manner, they will tell a colleague or journalist at a different publication. Then you can say “hello” to more wonderful opportunities to contribute your expertise.
5. Register your passion as a Non Profit Organisation
What causes are you passionate about? Ever thought of registering your passion as an Non Profit Organisation? Causes that are interesting or seen as worthy tend to draw automatic media attention. If you have overcome a challenge and want to assist others, you may want to consider registering this as a Non Profit Organisation. The media is always interested in interviewing founders or representatives of Non Profit Organisations.
6. Have a reputable publication tell your inspirational life- or business story
Regardless of who you are, you have a wonderful life or business story. Whether it is one of success, a great life or about overcoming adversity, the media might be interested in telling your story, provided that you package it in the right manner. One of the most important things to remember when packaging your story, is to ensure that readers, viewers or listeners will benefit by being exposed to your story.
7. Write online articles
Writing online articles is a wonderful way in which you could share your knowledge and position yourself as an expert. If your articles are good enough, they could lead to more opportunities where you are recognised as the expert on the particular subject matter. This might lead to fantastic exposure on various media platforms. When writing an article, you should focus on what you could teach the reader. You have to write as an expert. The reader is mostly interested in what you could teach them or how what you are writing about, could resolve their problem. With this in mind, you will do well.
8. Write a blog
A successful blog has led to wonderful media exposure for many and provides a great platform to share your expertise. Such experts made it work by focusing on a specific theme, for example: business, child care, food, to mention a few. You have to plan properly by also identifying your audience beforehand. The most important factor, is traffic. This include recurring visits and visitors sharing your blog posts. Successful blogs are those that make money for the author.
9. Write a Press Release
Press releases are a great way in which to get your company or your personal brand publicised. Journalists and editors love press releases. You can keep it that way. How? Make sure that your press release is short, to the point, neatly typed and without spelling errors. The editor might decide to publish your press release just the way you wrote it, with all the information that is important to you.
With the above options in mind, it is important that you stop believing the lie that “all publicity is good publicity.” Surely you heard someone say this at some stage. As an ordinary person or entrepreneur, you shouldn’t believe this lie. You want great publicity, so why settle for second best? Make sure that where you want to go or take your brand is in line with what you do.
