7 PR mistakes that small businesses should avoid.

Generating free publicity can be straightforward and when done properly it can be very powerful. Here are 7 common PR mistakes that many small businesses make, and that you can avoid.

1. Confusing PR with marketing.

Editors are only interested in relevant stories that are of interest to their readers. They are not interested in self promotion, what is interesting to you, your staff, your suppliers and perhaps your customers may not be interesting to a wider audience. 

2. Having unrealistic expectations.
Thinking that every press release should make the national newspapers and gain television coverage. 

3. Not playing the long game.
Thinking PR will give instant results is a common misconception. The success of every piece of PR produced is dependent on many variable and uncontrollable factors. Articles can be ‘pulled’ minutes before publication, should a breaking news story come to light. 

4. Not monitoring and evaluating.
If you are investing time, effort and money into PR then you need to measure your return. If you don’t set-up a process to monitor your coverage then it can be virtually impossible to measure a return on investment. If you don’t wish to use a press a cuttings agency you can set-up Google Alerts and set up RSS feeds from the news sites you target.

5. Not targeting the relevant journalists and publications.
You need to understand what type of stories each publication is interested and then only target the relevant publications by contacting the right journalist.

6. Not integrating PR with other media.
PR should be tailored for use in other medias such as blogs, social media and on occasion advertising. Communicating the same message tailored to suit the relevant media will provide a significantly higher return.

7. Not having a PR plan and schedule.
I’ve saved the biggest and perhaps most common mistake until last. Planning what will make a newsworthy story will ensure you know what to say and when. Being prepared to react to up and coming events, announcements and achievements means you will be less likely to miss a PR opportunity and be more likely to gain coverage.

If you would like further information you can get in contact.  I am an established marketing consultant providing marketing services for small businesses in and around Sutton Coldfield.