Small Business Benefits from Public Relations
Small Business Benefits from Public Relations
Consultant Offers Tips for Success
Opelika, Alabama, March 11, 2008 — Fortune 500 companies, leading industries, organizations and personalities around the world utilize public and media relations on a daily basis – ensuring that their “brand” is positively represented in the minds of consumers, but what about the small business owner?
Each of the more than 5.5 million small businesses in the United States can also increase sales, build awareness and generate new business by effectively utilizing public relations.
Bob Bartels, President of b2 ideas, a leading Alabama-based PR firm, offers several suggestions for the small business owner seeking to gain publicity about their business, along with its products and services.
Planning – Understand your objectives and how you wish to go about meeting these. In addition to running your business, can you manage the PR process within your company, or should you outsource these responsibilities to a professional? “Keep in-mind that as a small business owner, you don’t need an entire public relations firm to assist you, and hiring a consultant on project basis may suit your needs better,” says Bartels.
Resources – PR professionals keep tabs on the best channels to distribute information about your company’s “happenings” by monitoring editorial calendars and maintaining strong relationships with journalists. They are also able to determine the most newsworthy aspects of your organization – finding where consumers seek information about your products or services.
Small Business PR from a Pirate
Integration – The first question a good PR professional will ask is, “How will these PR efforts be integrated within your existing marketing and/or sales plan?” says Bartels. A PR professional will assist you in the integration of your efforts, with regards to your messages, objectives, advertising and budgets.
Reaching Customers – PR can help you maintain a strong local presence, but understand that the main storefront of many small businesses is now its Internet presence. Savvy PR professionals will utilize this, maximizing your online presence though the distribution of press materials electronically.
Measuring Success – Like sales, public relations can be measured, often based the value of the publicity in advertising equivalency. However, your PR plan should be measured based on the messages it is putting into the marketplace – defining your business, and differentiating it from your competition.
Budget – PR professionals only succeed by helping their clients succeed. Depending on the depth of your PR efforts, a PR professional will do his or her best to assist you, but you’ll need to have realistic expectations, based on your budget. Having someone assist you, even on a minimum level of writing and distributing press releases and “pitching” story ideas, should be considered as an investment toward new business and continued growth, rather than a one-time expense to immediately boost revenue.
b2 ideas (www.b2ideas.com) specializes in integrated public/media relations plans, and has experience doing so on local, regional and national levels. The company hosts a full-range of capabilities, including strategic counseling, public and media relations’ support, and design services.