Written by: Laura Perkes
Many business owners are looking to become an authority in their industry. And rightly so, it’s a huge accolade that positions you above your competitors, giving you the edge when it comes to sharing your message, being positioned as a credible expert and speeding up the know-like-trust factor with your ideal customers and clients.
But when everyone else seems to be doing the same thing, how do you stand out?
The answer you’re looking for lies within Public Relations, or the art of being seen in the media. Public Relations is often seen as an outdated modality that’s been pushed to one side by social media, when in fact, the opposite is true.
The very nature of PR allows brands and business owners to communicate their key messages to their ideal customers and clients. PR allows you to build your credibility and share your values, your mission and your ethos, to attract your tribe into your business. Public Relations is the ultimate tool for driving traffic into your business, whether that’s to your website or your social media channels.
Let’s face it, the business landscape has evolved exponentially in recent years, increasing your competitors and creating lots of noise. This makes it even harder for you to stand out and get noticed.
Social media is an incredible tool, but it’s not the only one in the toolbox. It’s not the only way to drive traffic into your business. In fact, the whole essence of social media is to be sociable. It’s to involve your followers and fans in the growth of your business and to help you strengthen your brand voice, as well as the development of future products and services. But when there are billions of people promoting their business on social media, how do you obtain the share of voice that you deserve?
One again, that’s where Public Relations comes into play, as it allows you to be seen as a trusted voice and as a person of influence. Over time, you’ll naturally become an authority in your industry.
But it’s not just about being seen in the media
It’s about being seen in the media outlets that are consumed by your ideal clients and customers. It’s about being seen in the media outlets that align with your mission and values. It’s about building trust and credibility with journalists who have the power to catapult your business to the next level.
As technology evolves, ‘the media’ now extends further than the traditional media channels that we think of when we hear people talk about ‘the media’. When I first started in the PR industry in 2004 we only had access to print media, TV and radio. Fast-forward to 2022 and we now have access to digital and online publications and TV channels, podcasts, YouTube and of course, social media, along with traditional media outlets.
Opportunities to be featured in the press are plentiful, but with so many different outlets to choose from, how do you know which ones will help you? How do you then know how to stand out from the crowd?
To answer these questions, I’ve provided my top tips on how you can position yourself as an authority in your industry
Tip No.1 Decide what you want to be known for
This may sound ridiculously obvious, but you need to make sure that your ideal customers and clients know exactly who you are and what you do. This means that your message needs to remain consistent throughout. If you’re a financial advisor, for example, you want to make sure that everything you do in the media refers back to your expertise in the finance industry. You don’t want to be seen sharing financial tips in an online article, but then you’re interviewed as a mortgage broker on a podcast. That’s going to confuse your audience and a confused buyer never buys.
Choose what you want to be known for, stick in your lane and focus only on gaining a reputation for that one thing. Once people get to know you, you can start to talk about topics related to personal finance, or financial advice as your tribe will already know that they can trust you.
Tip No.2 Stay focussed
There are many ways for you to be featured in the press. Journalists are always looking for people to be interviewed, or share their personal stories, but they’re also always looking to raise the profile of experts, by sharing tips and advice, or offering expert quotes in articles and features. If you’re looking to become an authority in your industry, there’s no point offering advice on how to find cheap flights if that’s not what your business does.
Too many business owners fall into the trap of believing that having their name in the press is a PR win. It’s not. Unless there’s a direct link between you and your business, having your name in an article isn’t going to raise your profile or entice people to visit your website. You’ve simply helped a journalist finish an article on time.
Tip No.3 Find out what content your ideal customers and clients are consuming
Not sure what your ideal customers and clients are reading, watching or listening to? Ask them! This is the perfect opportunity to bring social media into your PR efforts. Take advantage of polls on LinkedIn, Facebook and in Facebook Groups. Encourage interaction in your Instagram and Facebook Stories, or even on TikTok. Not only will you be obtaining vital information that will help you to stay focussed on the media outlets that matter, you’ll also be making your followers and fans feel like they’re part of something bigger.
Once you know what they’re consuming, you can then start to research each outlet to see where you fit in, and to see what topics their audience loves. From here, you can then create and pitch ideas that you already know they’ll be interested in.
If you’re serious about becoming an authority in your industry then you need to be making connections and building relationships with those who can make it happen. If you want to be interviewed on a podcast, email the host and put yourself forward. Explain what you can offer to their audience and why it will matter to them. To earn your stripes as an authority figure you need to focus on a media outlet's audience first. PR is never, ever about you. It’s always about the end user and what you can do for them.
About the author:
Laura Perkes is a PR Strategist, Brand Storyteller and the Founder of PR with Perkes. She’s also the author of the best-selling book ‘How To Get PR’. As an authority in the PR industry, Laura offers a bespoke PR Concierge Service to brands who want to do things differently. She also teaches entrepreneurs and business owners how to secure their own PR, inside The PR Portal
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