The Public Relations Blog

How does your company use and benefit from earned media

Earned media is organic news coverage your company receives. It’s not paid for like advertising. People often confuse earned media with paid media even though they have two very different meanings. 

The main difference is price. Earned media is not bought; it’s the outcome of having a product or service that other people want to talk about. Paid media, such as advertising, is promoted because you paid someone or a company to do that for you. 

Social media mentions, media coverage, and reviews on your product or service are all examples of earned media used in public relations. Earned media happens naturally, and it’s a result of good PR. 

A great proposal starts with a great RFP

Public relations is critical to the success of a company. Your company’s unique needs are important, and finding a partner provider who can solve your problems is critical. A strong, clear request for proposals is the best way to help providers propose creative, relevant, and cost effective business solutions for you.

The PR Council offers a free RFP guide to help your company build an RFP that brings you proposals. These proposals work to solve your business challenges, not create more problems and a complicated process. We think it’s a good resource, and we wanted to share it with you here. Before you submit a Request for Proposals, make sure you're working with a proper PR agency. 

Use these questions to see if you’re working with an ad agency in disguise

You’ve recently started working with a PR agency. Everything looks good; they know what you want and the price is right. However, something seems…off about them now that you’ve established a business relationship. You can’t put your finger on it. They just don’t seem to be the PR firm you were expecting. In fact, they seem to be more of an ad agency. But how can you prove it?

It's hard for corporate communications and marketing professionals to be creative

Creativity would be easy if we had unlimited time, budgets, and resources. And since we don't, it can be hard for corporate communications and marketing professionals to be creative. 

We are expected to deliver unique and powerful ideas on the regular for our leadership team, clients, and customers. Sometimes inspiration comes from strange places. Since 2016, in an intentional effort to improve my creativity each day, I've been challenging myself to try new things, do things differently, and take more risks. It's now part of my daily DNA and my personal drive.

Although only a few words, correct quote attribution gives your story more clarity and credibility

So much of PR relies on effective communication, including quoting your executives, citing experts in the field, and crafting news releases. Getting the correct quote is only half the battle. Once you know what you want to include, you must ensure the attribution is accurate. Without proper attribution, you can lose your audience’s trust.

Quote attribution can be tricky as each quote scenario adheres to unique rules. At Axia Public Relations, we follow the Associated Press Stylebook’s quote attribution policies. However, be sure to check your own organization’s copy editing stylebook on quote attribution, as some organizations have different guidelines. 

Ensure external communications appeal to media with copy editing

As a public relations firm, we believe it’s important to provide you with a white-glove experience. One of the ways we do that is by offering comprehensive PR solutions and value-added services at no additional cost. One of those services is copy editing all content and documents that we share with the media, post on a newswire, or otherwise submit on your company’s behalf. 

The digital age has changed marketing. Old-school tactics, like cold calling and direct mailing, are no longer effective as a means of increasing sales. Consumers have more control over what advertising they encounter, and most mass marketing campaigns are an exercise in futility. To grow leads and sales, you must attract prospective customers through thoughtful, insightful, informative, and entertaining content. In other words, you need a winning inbound marketing strategy.

In the world of public relations, things are always changing. New trends pop up and disappear every day. Information is constantly shared and as a PR professional, it's imperative to stay aware, act swiftly, and formulate subsequent steps wisely. In an industry that never sleeps, here are five tools every PR practitioner should use to stay ahead. 

Use these two questions to guide your content-making process

In public relations, content of all kinds is important. Whether it’s videos, written content, or any other kind of information people can consume, content is one of the biggest drivers for public relations. Content helps you stand out from your rivals.

However, you need to be making the right kinds of content to further your public relations goals. Simply making anything isn’t enough. Use the two questions below to see if your content is actually helping your public relations plans.

Do advertising firms have the focus on PR you need?

A while ago, I was talking with a public relations agent working in an advertising agency. During our conversation, she discussed her experiences, which stuck out to me.