The Public Relations Blog

Let PR show you how to get a reporter’s attention and keep it

Media coverage is an ideal way to educate people about your product, inform them about your events, highlight your company or feature your CEO as a thought leader in your industry. As a result, every business wants to know the secrets for obtaining more media coverage.

While there is no one-size-fits-every-company answer, there are media relations practices and habits you can adopt to increase your chances of coverage success. With help from PR, you can get the media coverage your company needs and deserves.

Get more exposure using media relations

Marketing and advertising are powerful tools for any corporation, allowing business leaders to spread the word about valuable products and services to a broad audience. Without a public relations firm providing media relations, though, these marketing efforts may fall flat.

Media relations is an integral part of any business, allowing professionals to distribute company news and product updates through traditional news outlets and popular social media channels. Because of their role in the marketplace, these outlets are regarded as credible sources of information, earning the trust of consumers.

Too often, corporations set out on ambitious new projects or marketing campaigns without taking time to consider media relations.

That may be because the task of spreading the word through traditional publishing channels and media outlets takes too much time, and the performance of each media hit is hard to measure. What many business leaders don't realize is that this arm of communications is vital to long-term success.

Learn how to use media relations trends to your company’s advantage

Staying aware of and understanding trends allows you to know what’s going on in a particular field and be proactive about the ways they may affect your business. One area that affects all businesses is media relations.

Earned media is an effective method of reaching a wide audience and delivering your messages, but you must first know how to get journalists’ attention.

One of the best ways to tell large audiences about your business is to secure coverage in one of the major business publications: Forbes, Fortune, Fast Company, Money, Businessweek, Harvard Business Review, and Inc. These business media giants provide high-quality coverage of top business news, including successful business and leadership strategies and innovations in technology.

Fortune magazine is a great source of knowledge for entrepreneurs because it covers the entire field of business, including the people, trends, companies and ideas of today’s top businesses. Fortune columns include features on the marketplace, career trends, U.S. politics and European business news. Readers look forward to the magazine’s annually updated lists such as “40 Richest Under 40,” “Most Powerful Women” and the “Fortune 500” ranking.

Fortune magazine covers trends in today's top business world and news affecting business people. Each issue includes a section that provides readers with a first look at changing industries and articles devoted to the people behind major companies. An average Fortune magazine reader is a top business entrepreneur or CEO. Publishers prefer pitches that lead them to the big companies and big names behind these companies.

Inc. is a major business magazine guiding CEOs and owners of small- to mid-sized companies toward success. It delivers real solutions for today’s innovative company builders and provides hands-on resources covering market-tested finances, sales, marketing and technology. Each issue offers real-life examples of strategies, case studies and successes and failures to show its readers new ways their businesses can improve and grow. Large and small organizations turn to Inc. to make sense of the ever-changing business world. An appearance in Inc. is a great opportunity for publicity, networking and finding new business avenues.

Entrepreneur magazine is the No. 1 resource for current and aspiring entrepreneurs. It provides tips for readers to effectively start and expand their businesses. Entrepreneur’s topics include advice on new software products, CEO profiles, trends in money and how to grow a business. Getting an article published in Entrepreneur could be a major publicity boost for your business.

If you are a startup or a tech company, your best bet for gaining positive publicity is to get yourself featured in Fast Company magazine, the publication of choice for those in the tech business. Fast Company covers the following areas: design, technology and sustainability.

Fast Company maintains a strong focus on evolution of business and the most creative industry thought-leaders and strives to bring change into the marketplace.

Fast Company magazine has a unique editorial focus on innovations in technology, leadership, and design. The target audience is entrepreneurs in the tech business. Frame your pitch as a story with a strong focus on lessons learned during your journey to completing your project, including your mistakes, frustrations, turning points, eureka moments and inspirations. Your story is your documented experience that you are happily sharing with others in the field, helping them to succeed.

Money magazine is the nation’s largest personal finance magazine. It helps readers take charge of their finances by providing trusted advice about how to spend, earn, manage and invest money. It provides in-depth coverage of stocks, mutual funds, the markets and the economy.

Money magazine is for anyone interested in managing finances wisely. The magazine covers a very broad spectrum of topics involving money for a large audience of anyone looking for information about money management: everything starting from articles helping investors maximizes their investments to information written to help with personal finances (taxes, credit cards and savings). Write your pitch so it would help your readers make better decisions about their money. Include personal examples in your pitch, so that  they can relate. Include facts and links into your pitch, proving that your information is accurate. A catchy title for your pitch is essential.