Add these easy tasks to your daily "to do" list, and you'll greatly improve your chances of PR success.
Successful media coverage isn’t usually something that just happens. It takes significant time, energy, and effort to plan and execute a publicity campaign that works.
But, there are a few things you can do daily – quickly and easily – to help in your broader publicity efforts. These tasks generally fall into the category of ‘staying informed’, which is a key aspect of effective communications.
The five things you should do daily for successful PR are:
1. Read the news, especially within your own industry.
This one is absolutely essential. If you don’t read the news – and, particularly, your industry news – you’ll miss out on valuable media opportunities.
Keep a list – or a Bookmarks folder in your internet browser – of outlets to check throughout the day for important news updates. Be ready and available to offer yourself to reporters to comment on breaking news that ties into your company or your area of expertise.
Reading the news regularly can also give you fresh insights into what reporters are covering. What areas of your industry are they most interested in? What news stories are getting the most traction? What angles have been covered ad-nauseum – and what angles haven’t been covered enough?
2. Scroll Twitter.
Use Twitter as an additional news source – and, as a place to keep an eye on what your target reporters and outlets are talking about.
When it feels natural and authentic, engage with reporters or outlets on Twitter by retweeting or commenting on one of their Tweets. This can be a gentle way of initiating a relationship that could, at some point, help to generate media coverage.
3. Search Google for reporters covering your space.
Spending just five minutes each day Google searching for specific terms related to your industry can help you identify new reporters covering your space.
Keep a list of terms to search to help make this task go quickly. Adjust your Google settings to produce new results within the past week.
4. Brainstorm a new story angle.
The more often you brainstorm new story pitch angles, the easier it will become and the better you’ll get at it.
Try coming up with one new pitch angle a day – even if the resulting ideas aren’t all ones you’ll actually use. The idea is to get into the habit of thinking more like a reporter, thinking about potential story lines tied to your company.
Keep a running list of story angles, and reference it each time you do a new round of outreach to reporters. You never know when an idea you’ve had in the past might suddenly become very relevant to a specific contact.
5. Pitch the media.
Even if you’re targeting just a couple reporters a day, aim to reach out to the media Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Don’t pitch the same contacts every day, of course, but do conduct active outreach regularly.
If you’re interested in help with your media outreach efforts, please reach out to us anytime at info@418communications.com. We’d love to work with you!
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