The need and importance of Public Relations have grown significantly over the years. And especially now, when information of all kinds is available at the click of a button, all brands and businesses need to be thoroughly aware of what PR rules does or entails.
Taking the help of a public relations firm or agency is the key to improving your perception and brand image in front of not just existing, but also potential consumers. It is still the best way to nurture relationships with important stakeholders, including your clients.
Many people think that you need the best PR firm only when things go south. However, the best way to go about leveraging PR for your business is to do it consistently over a period of time, and then see the results. You have to stay on top of your public image at all times.
Before we dive into the quintessential PR rules that you must follow in this day and age, let’s clear the basic so what PR is.
What is PR (Public Relations)?
Public Relations or PR is your golden ticket to improving your brand image. It is the art of storytelling. PR makes sure that your brand’s positive relationship with the public remains so, promotes your brand ethos, and shows your credibility.
PR will leverage media to share your story with the world. This strategic communication process builds the bridge between the business and the public, ultimately convincing them of the usefulness of whatever product or service you are selling.
Now that we know what PR is and does, let us look into the rules.
8 rules of PR Rules that every brand needs to follow –
1. Focus on ‘newsworthy’ stories
To develop a solid PR plan, it is essential to keep an eye out for what might be newsworthy. Nobody wants to know about your small achievements unless they are useful for the reader consuming the news. Stay on top of news trends, see what’s happening and then build your PR plan with the tenet of newsworthiness at the core of it. This is the first and important part of PR rules.
2. Build respectful relationships
Whether it’s a rookie reporter or a senior editor, an upcoming podcast channel or an established news program, it is important that you are equally respectable towards all kinds of media people. You represent the brand so when you are communicating to the public via any medium, you need to reflect the values of your brand.
3. Be aware of your target audience (TG)
For a PR plan to shine, it is important that you know your TG in and out. Unless you know what TG you’re communicating with, you will never be able to tell a relevant story. If you are reaching out to an audience that is not even remotely interested in your offering, they will not receive your message no matter how well you try and communicate, or how great your PR agency is at making plans. Focus on a narrow approach, instead of going all out and see the results of your hard work.
4. Be candid, not fake
To truly connect with your audience, be as candid as possible. Writing up hollow press releases that do not resonate with anyone are a sure shot way to failure. Instead, communicate from an authentic PoV, and give the readers what they want. Share real testimonials of your business, reflect truly on your brand story. Because when you are authentic, the audience will see that and respond with the same emotional vigour.
5. Master the art of SEO
In the world of digital, you cannot stay traditional. SEO is a key component of PR and hence, make sure that you know the basics of what SEO can do for your brand. Whatever you do online through PR needs to be searchable, and that is where SEO can help you and becomes the one of the important PR rules in 2021. Figure out what people are searching for, customize your messages, optimize it with the help of SEO, and you have the recipe for a communication plan that will reach exactly where you want it to reach.
6. Time everything properly
Always be prepared to release information and time it to reap the maximum benefit of your plan. Hire the best PR agency to get you to help with determining the best time to announce your news – whether it is a product launch, a leadership change, a business pivot, or anything else.
7. Cross-check all your facts
Whatever information that you disseminate vis-à-vis your PR plan needs to be thoroughly examined to avoid errors. Because once you send out information that hasn’t been verified, or worse, is completely off the mark, it will take no time for the media and your audience to turn against you. If you don’t want to lose all your hard-earned credibility, then always make sure everything is airtight.
8. Do regular PR audits
And finally, for all of the above to work well, you need to constantly do PR audits to find out whether your strategy is working, and if not, then tweak it accordingly. If you don’t do an audit, you will not know the impact of your messaging on the TG, and your efforts might actually all be futile. Do your audits every month and stay on track.
Do you have any more tips to add in the PR Rules List? Feel free to share them with us.
