Why your business needs a PR campaign
PR is crucial for any business wanting to establish an identity, build brand awareness, and educate their stakeholders, shareholders, and the wider community about product launches or new developments.
Not everyone understands what public relations is. But what all business owners should know, is the positive impact an effective PR campaign can have on their business.
And if you haven’t engaged a PR agency previously or don’t run a strategic social media campaign, it might be time to rethink your strategy.
What is a PR campaign?
A PR campaign is a series of planned media and promotional activities that work towards achieving your communication goals. A PR campaign has clear objectives and a plan, and usually runs for a fixed period of time.
No two campaigns are the same. It depends on the story, the target audience and reach, and other specific goals. Businesses usually engage a professional PR agency to successfully plan, prepare and deliver successful campaigns.
What is the purpose of a PR campaign?
There are a number of reasons businesses adopt a PR campaign, including launching a new product, supporting a fundraising campaign, or promoting a corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative. Businesses generally launch PR campaigns when they are hoping to achieve one (or more) of the following:
- Increased awareness
Get people talking about your business. The more active your brand is, the more likely people will notice, listen, and engage with your messages.
- Building brand credibility
Increase exposure through media coverage. Earned media has more credibility than paid media like advertising (and typically costs less too).
- Strengthening your reputation
Improve your trusted reputation with your stakeholders as well as the wider community. A company’s reputation is highly valuable with public image making up 63% of the value of most businesses.
What makes a good PR campaign
When it comes to creating your PR campaign, there are lots of things to consider. The team here at Adoni Media has provided their checklist for creating an effective results-driven public relations campaign.
PR campaign checklist:
- Strong key messages
- Measurable outcomes
- Media smart outreach strategy
- Integrated social media strategy
- Aligns with your business’ values
- Strong and authentic brand voice
Key messages
When creating your campaign, you must develop relevant and compelling key messages. When writing key messages, it is important to keep your audience and campaign goal in mind. The language you use will be determined by your target audience. It’s important that your messaging engages your target audience and motivates them to act, whether that be, for example, signing your petition, buying your product, or donating to your cause.
Measurable
Today, it’s easier than ever to analyse what’s working well for your brand and which areas are falling short. Using data, such as brand awareness, social media engagement, and website traffic as measurement tools for your campaign is crucial to ensure your message is reaching the right people. One of the many benefits of using a PR Agency is that communications professions are well-versed in collecting and using data efficiently to gain results.
Media smart outreach strategy
Now with a raft of different media and news outlets available, crafting tailored pitches has become the norm. The easier it is to get your message out there, the harder it is for you to be heard. Personalised pitches and messages are important for getting your story noticed and told by the right people. Avoid common pitching mistakes and use a media smart pitching strategy that gets a journalist’s attention.
Integrated social media strategy
Social media is a great way to communicate and engage directly with clients and customers and, more importantly, attract new ones. With 79% of Australians active on social media, there is no denying the enormous opportunity social media presents for businesses. By combining PR and social media, messaging is consistent across earned and owned media. This consistency increases audience understanding, awareness, and loyalty – all of which are essential in building your brand’s identity, trustworthiness, and sales.
Depending on your business, you may find engagement is more important than self-promotion on social media. Major brands are moving away from polished communication on their socials to more casual, but still crafted, conversations with their target audience. When Aldi UK was under fire from a competitor for a similarly designed cake, Aldi took to social media to interact with their customers through ‘banter’ about the situation which prompted an influx of engagement with their audience, as well as gaining media attention.
Aligns with your business values
Consumers also want to know they can interact with your brand without worrying about ethical or moral implications. Your PR strategy should showcase your brand’s values and highlight your business’ commitment to CSR to show that you can be trusted.
Strong and authentic brand voice
Authenticity is now more important than ever. It’s best to avoid any tactics that could come off as ingenuine or forced. 81% of consumers buy from brands they trust, with authenticity the second biggest factor. Ensure your PR strategy stays true to your brand’s personality and values as audiences can easily pick up on a lack of authenticity.
If your business is looking to launch a PR campaign or wants to learn more about how a PR agency can support you, contact Adoni Media today.
