Today’s guest post is from Julianne Smith, owner of The Garter Girl by Julianne Smith. Before designing stylish wedding garters, Julianne was a communications strategist and spokeswoman on Capitol Hill and in the U.S. executive branch. Over the past year, Julianne has used her PR skills to earn attention on the Today Show, WE tv, Daily Candy, Martha Stewart, Brides.com, several magazines and many of the top wedding blogs.
DIY PR For Your Small Business
By: Julianne Smith | www.juliannesmith.com
When you run a small business, it seems that everything is a do-it-yourself effort. You are the accountant, the salesperson, the shipping department, the marketing executive, and oh yeah, you are the one actually doing your craft! I get it. I’m in this boat right now with my stylish wedding garter company. I’m trying to keep costs low and test the waters with different strategies to build my business.
Here are some tips for getting your PR machine started. A how-to guide for DIY PR, if you will. Keep in mind, this list isn’t all of puzzle the pieces, just some things to think about before you jump in…
What do you want?
Before you do anything, put some effort into defining what it is that you want. Saying that you want more clients or that you want to be in a magazine isn’t enough. Be more specific. And, be honest. What end goal will being in that magazine bring you? Do you want to be known as an expert in your field? Do you want credibility in the industry? Defining what you want will help you to be productive. Working on PR is another thing to add to your to-do list. So, if you aren’t calculated with your moves, it will be a lot of wasted effort. PR does take time. And, it takes time away from working on your craft.
What specific things or PR “hits” will get you to your goal? If you are a photographer, is it having your photos published? If so, which publication? Do you want your products featured on a TV show? Do you want to be on the best-of list in your area? Spend some time looking through magazines, blogs and other media outlets and start thinking about where you and your product would fit in. Define what your dream PR achievement would be. Once you know what you want and what it will take to get there, you can go after it more efficiently.
Organize Yourself
Every small business should have a few short sentences, buzz phrases and answers to questions about their company. You should have a sample “pitch” drafted up. So, when the time comes to make your move, you are all set. You should be using your phrases in everything that you do, including Facebook, your website and when you talk to clients. If you have products, gather the 10 best pictures of your work and get them ready to be E-mailed. This way, when an editor asks you for examples if you work, you can quickly respond.
Be Realistic
In my opinion, small business (especially in the wedding industry) really only need about two to three major media hits per year to be relevant. If you keep your goals realistic and know that you have 12 whole months to make two or three things happen, it is less overwhelming.
Practice
Start out small and get yourself some practice. Does a friend in the industry have a blog they could interview you on? You need to know what it takes to engage in PR and how much time it will take. Also, this will help you to gather your thoughts, answers and buzz phrases. Practice can only help. Besides, with the power of Internet search engines, no press hit is too small.
More more PR tips, also check out Juli’s Ten Tips to Earn More Attention For Your Company.