Let PR show you how to create a winning campaign for a special celebration

You may be aware that National Wear Red Day is celebrated on Feb. 6 this year. It’s a symbol of support and a way to bring attention to women’s heart health. While you may briefly wonder why so many of your employees are wearing red on Friday, it won’t really mean anything else for your company.

Or will it?

This day serves as a reminder that it is possible for you to create special recognition for your own company and a cause that you choose. With help from PR, you can learn how to do this and how it can be beneficial to your company.

Learn the difference and let PR show you how to control both for increased profits

Would you let your accountant or HR officer run amok with no oversight or direction from you? Of course not, but that’s exactly what many companies do when it comes to their online presences.

Some believe that as long as they have search engine optimization covered, they’re fine. They use the right targeted keywords numerous times and customers will be able to find them, so that’s it. However, how consumers find you is not as important as what they see when they do. It is vital to control the information about your company on the Internet. This is called online reputation management, and having professional PR help in this area is essential.

This underutilized PR asset could give you the boost you need.

Since most businesses are acutely attuned to fast-paced digital news derivatives and television, many don’t consider that a simple editorial calendar could lead to a magazine cover story. That’s where they’re mistaken.

Editorial calendars are a tool used predominantly by a print or digital publication’s advertising department to plan out significant features, focuses, or areas of interest throughout the year. Using that guide, advertising sales teams approach businesses about purchasing ad space, since most companies will advertise in issues that focus on a topic or feature critical to their primary demographics or industries.

Toward the end of every calendar year, publications begin to post their editorial calendars. Savvy public relations veterans use these tools to map the types of stories or businesses a publication plans to cover. They can then determine appropriate editions for which to pitch their clients.

Let PR demonstrate how to encourage repeat business and maintain brand loyalty

In business, we all understand the importance of continually bringing in new customers. However, sometimes we get so caught up in this task that we forget to nurture the customers we already have.

Just like any relationship, you can’t wow them once and then believe they’ll be yours forever. With so much competition, it’s too easy for your customers to go elsewhere. Therefore, you must constantly find ways to bring the sexy back, and a PR firm can help.

Learn how investing in PR instead of Super Bowl ads can increase profitability

Apple’s “1984,” Clint Eastwood hawking Chryslers and the game MVP announcing his plans to go to Disneyworld could go down in history as some of the best Super Bowl commercials ever. And, for about 5 million dollars, your company could also grab a 30-second piece of the pie.

For those of you who would rather not spend that much money on bathroom breaks, fear not. You can save a few million and turn to PR for visibility and brand-building.

Your company is ready to take it to the next level and now you’re looking for ways to make sure others know about your company, too. Media coverage is one way to gain great exposure. We’d like to offer some tips on the best ways to share your news by earning media coverage.

After a massive data breach, a failed expansion into Canada and increasing negativity from employees, Target's recent decision to rescind the job offers of dozens of new corporate hires was the latest in a string of blunders plaguing the big-box retail store. Target recently opted to terminate 40 of its newest team members within two weeks of their expected start date – with no explanation, except that their positions were no longer available.

The Minneapolis-based, mammoth retailer should have anticipated the potential repercussions of such a decision before dismantling 40 corporate jobs without explanation. This latest flub has brought about a flurry of negative media scrutiny and speculation concerning Target’s financial performance and a potential class-action lawsuit. And worst of all, Target is sending a message that its employees (and its reputation) aren't valued.

This may be the most important list you can make for a more profitable year

Your company has a big announcement or event coming up and you want everyone to know about it, so you create a terrific press release and develop your best pitch. Now what?

Whom you send your press releases to is as important as what you send. To make sure you’re targeting the right journalists for your message, you must do your homework and generate a media list. Of course, this is easier said than done, but fortunately, PR can help.

Learn how even a small press release can mean big things for your company

The first press release was issued in 1906 by PR pioneer Ivy Lee, who convinced his client Pennsylvania Railroad to issue a statement following a deadly train accident. Since then, PR professionals have sent press releases to announce news about everything from bedbug infestations to the FIFA World Cup.

Even with all the new communications technology and the seemingly unstoppable progression of social media, the press release remains a staple of company events and initiatives, crisis management efforts and PR campaigns. When you have to reach everyone quickly and need to use more than 140 characters to give the complete picture, a press release is the way to go.

Kick off 2015 and boost your business with great PR

Before the turn of the new year, we published an earlypredictions piece on public relations. Certainly some more skeptical readers may view our predictions as more strategic in nature, so let’s reel it in a little: What are the steps that an organization should take if it’s just now considering a PR program? Using the handful of expert tips below, any business looking to advance its brand reputation or extend its product marketing can immediately initiate its own public relations program.