In my work as business journalist, I often get calls from people who have started a business and need to attract paying customers fast. “We need to do some PR,” they say.
Most businesses have overheads: rent or loans, electricity, phone and internet, vehicle costs and more. These costs need to be paid irrespective of whether any customer sales are bringing in money. Most forms of promotion take time to deliver results, so starting to think about PR when a business or product has been launched is too late to deliver immediate sales.
PR is best planned much earlier. When it is part of the business plan plotting the launch, a PR campaign can be based on the business data and objectives set out in the plan. These will help to answer questions such as: Who is the target audience? What do they like? What need will drive customers to purchase?
Incorporating PR into planning embeds it in everyday business processes rather than leaving it as an afterthought. This makes it a habit so that ideas and actions for PR are generated naturally and not as a separate, time-consuming chore. Targeting, scheduling, delivery and measurement can all be worked out logically and not left to last-minute guesswork.
When the time is right, the activities planned can be put into action fast. The business will also be more prepared to take advantage of PR opportunities that arise without warning.
If a business is a forest, PR should be one of the varieties of tree planted at the beginning. From a distance it might not stand out on its own, but it will take root and add to the impact of the whole.
Completely agree with you ! One of the services my company offers to client is PR and we advise them that they need to be thinking about this a minimum of 3 months before their initial launch campaign.
Stopping by from the UBC FB page 🙂
Yes, you can never start too early.
From a distance it might not stand out on its own, but it will take root and add to the impact of the whole……I LOVE THAT. That is a true statement about so many of the things in our lives that don’t look significant on their own but are an essential part of the whole. Well written about PR and oh so true.
Thanks very much, Peggy. I’m glad you found it resonated with you.
The trees in a business forest analogy really works. There are many parts of business that you need to plan in advance but PR really requires an advanced strategy so that everything is in place and you can hit the ground running when it comes to launch day.
Thank you, Chris.