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One of the many talents we have here at Trusted Media is gaining our clients press coverage in some of the nations favourite publications.

From well known national newspapers such as The Times and The Daily Mail, to established lifestyle magazines such as Cosmopolitan and Good House Keeping, as you can see below the list continues to grow.

But apart from the kudos that comes with having your name in the press, many businesses can fail to understand the importance of gaining such coverage.

Admittedly it makes you look great, but the benefits of press coverage are becoming increasingly essential to the influence your brand has on a potential buyers decision to use your service or purchase your product.

Giving you authority over your competitors and giving you that added bit of brand awareness. If you’re quoted in The Times about your product or service, the likelihood is that you’re going to look like the expert in your field and have customers contacting you because of this.

The trouble of course is that every man and his dog wants the same coverage you do, which is precisely where we come in.

We may have the contacts and resources to gain you the coverage you require, but unfortunately good PR is about building a good relationship.

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The Middle Men

We know that you’ve got enough on your plate without having to worry about the whims of journalists, so when hiring our help we act like the middle men between yourself and the journalist.

This not only saves you time, but puts our skills to work in the best way possible.

However, this doesn’t mean you can leave us to it and hope for the best.

To help us gain this ‘gold dust’ coverage, you need to be quick on your feet.

Journalists have tight deadlines that they HAVE to stick to, and delaying them even slightly will not only annoy them, but could make them re-consider ever coming to you for a quote again.

You have to ‘buy-in’ to the prospect of press coverage, because it’s not as simple as demanding it and expecting fantastic results. You have to give your all as well.

Concise information as promptly as possible is the best way to secure the coverage and impress the journalist.

You’ve got to remember that there are lots of other businesses like you wanting the same coverage, and if you can’t deliver what they want, when they want, you may as well forget about it.

Unfortunately, on the rare occasion ‘missed opportunities’ occur because clients don’t respond quickly enough to emails, or simply can’t grasp the benefits of contributing.

Be A Realist

Good, strong press coverage takes time and it isn’t a rushed job. From creating an effective press release, to making a detailed outreach approach to the specific journalists who would be interested in the story, to then waiting for the feature to be published. It may be a slow turn around but once accomplished, it can create a trickle down affect of others becoming interested in your expertise and thoughts.

If you’re committed to getting your name in the press it’s achievable with a PR strategy that we can help you with.

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Give the Full Story

As the voice of your brand speaking to journalists we need to know exactly what it is that your business offers, your company background and your brand’s philosophy.

We work very closely with our clients on a daily basis ensuring that we’re all on the same page and can discuss our clients completely to any journalists without missing out any essential details. Adopting this clear communication is important to help us generate any stories that you may not have deemed news worthy.

Our job is to build a story and use our creative skills to make your company of interest.

There’s always more than one angle to be found, but we always ask if it’s really going to be of interest to the public. If you want us to push a story that we feel won’t work, we will give our honest feedback and look at other angles that could work.

“Accuracy, Authenticity and Interest” – Ivy Lee , the inventor of the press release.

Examples of Effective Press

Of course the proof is in the pudding when it comes to press. And you’re probably wondering what a difference it really makes. With the help of a Wedding Cost Calculator that we created for a client, we secured national coverage for them which helped to increase the amount of loan applications they received.

This was a target they had set in mind when we began the campaign, so the PR strategy we implemented was focused on this goal.

And If You’re Going It Alone…

We’ve helped a variety of businesses in gaining press coverage, from the small to the corporate giants. But if you’re considering going it alone I would take on these words of wisdom when attempting your own PR outreach.

Know Where You Want to Be

Do you want press coverage for brand awareness or to encourage sales? Once you’ve answered this question you will have a better idea of where you want to be placed. As a consumer brand you may be best placed in national publications, but if you’re a B2B company you’re probably going to be better suited in a trade publication. Begin reading these publications and noting down the details of the journalists who have written about similar topics, this way your outreach will be more relevant to them.

Create One Hot Press Release

There is much debate in the PR industry as to whether a press release should be long or short. But personally I find the more information you can give, the better the story and the more impressed the journalist will be. Give them the information they need but ensure that it has plenty of meat so that they can create a feature from your press release.

The most important information should be at the top, with the less important information underneath.

You have to remember that journalists are bombarded on a daily basis with hundreds of press releases, so put the hook of the story right where they can see it so it grabs their attention. Who, What, Where, When and Why should be the skeleton of your story.

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Don’t Spam & Don’t Nag

Unfortunately, there are many agencies still out there that believe spamming a journalist’s inbox will gain them press coverage, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.

With a horribly generic email that’s been sent out to everyone and little to no information about how it’s relevant to the publication, these emails will not only be deleted, but thanks to advanced email servers your email address will be blocked from there after!

Of course, if you have taken the time to do your outreach correctly you will possibly get through to a journalist, but don’t nag them to check if they’ve received your email.

Follow it up once, but don’t be needy about it.

The brutal truth, is that securing national press coverage isn’t easy, and there is most definitely a fine art to getting it just right. Be patient and keep going.

For more information on our Digital PR services, contact our team at Trusted Media, and let’s start the ball rolling!

Dean Lynn

Dean is the Founder of Trusted Media and has over fifteen years experience of commercial business marketing. If you ever meet Dean, you'll quickly realise how honest and straight to the point he is; something his clients love about his marketing approach. When Dean's not at Trusted Media providing marketing consultancy to clients, he can be found at home with his daughter, who loves creating (breaking) things. Dean never sits still, enjoys eating food (part-time #instafoodie), and finds his happy place in the kitchen baking or in the garden.

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