Posted: 28th November 2016
Recently my husband has picked up his trumpet, after years of neglect, and started to play. It was a surprise to me that he could not only play but that in fact he’s rather good. He had been hiding his talent under a bushel (or rather in a box in the loft!).
And it got me thinking. Why, as a nation, are we so bad at ‘blowing our own trumpet’? Is it the fear of looking arrogant that keeps us from celebrating our successes, however big or small? But when your organisation ‘blows its own trumpet’ and invests in PR, it is an opportunity to tell everyone proudly about your achievements and successes.
In my latest blog I look at how investing in PR keeps people talking about businesses and organisations. And how it can help establish and reinforce brand, increase awareness and strengthen a business’s key messaging. PR offers a cost effective way to achieve media coverage without costly purchased advertising. With over 20 years talking to and providing journalists with interesting, quality stories I’ve secured many more editorial column inches than an advert could ever have done. PR is just one part of your marketing mix so next time you feel a little bit awkward about ‘blowing your own trumpet’ remember that by getting the word out about your business, charity or organisations you could be reaching new customers or donors. If you would like to explore how PR could help your business, then just get in touch. I’d love to hear how you’d like to ‘blow your own trumpet’!
Good PR also enables you to build relationships with journalists, whether on a local level or those key to your industry sector. By providing them with interesting, quality stories; giving them great content they will be confident in coming back to you for comment and reactions to breaking stories.
What the public and journalists want is a good story. You may be launching a new product or making a major announcement but it’s not enough to lay out the facts – although press releases should never contain a flurry of subjective or gushing phrases – you need to say how or why your organisation is going to make a difference.
Why does PR differ from marketing or advertising? Some would say its because it’s free, but that’s not strictly true. Cheaper than advertising, PR offers a cost effective way to achieve media coverage. It can often give your business more editorial column inches than an advert could ever have done. Achieving targeted coverage in the media key to your sector, whether traditional printed or broadcast or in digital formats, can give your story more credibility.
