Dan Hollings, the man behind the remarkable internet marketing campaign for the smash hit movie THE SECRET.
Do it Yourself
PR is a crucial component of any successful marketing campaign. There are very few successful companies, authors, and speakers who haven't become successful by promoting themselves through PR. If you don't have the budget to hire a publicist, or if you're just set on doing it yourself, you really need to evaluate your resources so you can maximize your effectiveness.
If you're going to do your own PR effectively, there are some things you need to know. It's not hard. There's an art and a skill to it, but anyone can do it. However, you have to be honest with yourself. Evaluate your strengths and weaknesses objectively. The best campaigns are a combination of using strong skill sets and hiring out the things you are not good at. Combining these can be as effective as hiring a publicist to do everything—and it can be considerably cheaper. Below are the key ingredients to a great PR campaign. As you look over these, keep in mind your strengths and weaknesses and how well you can create each of these ingredients yourself. If you need help with any of these, I have listed resources that I recommend.
Branding & Messaging:
This is one of the most crucial ingredients of a PR campaign. You must be able to tell the media what you do in a single, memorable sentence. If you can't, your message will crumble. If you're not 100% sure you've got this step down, invest some time in developing your brand before you move on.
Without these, the media will pass you by. You've got to be able to provide strong background information for any story the media is working on when covering you. No press materials= no coverage for you!
It's not just writing skills that produce attention-grabbing pitches, although that's necessary too—it's creativity that wins the day here. Without creative and catchy pitches, your campaign will go flat. Invest time in getting it right, or hire someone who can.
Skills required:
Writing and grammar, creativity, copy crafting (distinct from writing)
You've got to know how to contact the media—and who to contact within a particular venue. Otherwise, it's lots of unopened emails or misdirected phone calls for you. Whether you do this yourself or hire a publicist, there's one thing that is most important: make sure you can contact the media venues you want to cover you.
Once you've contacted the media and you've gotten their attention, you've got to keep it long enough to get your interview scheduled. To do that, you've got to give them exactly what they want, when they want it.
Skills required:
Listening, quick response time, relationship building
Being a great interview isn't a natural talent for most—it's learned. You must be able to clearly sound bite yourself and deliver your brand and message in a way that's succinct, clear, and memorable. It takes skill and practice. Even the most experienced experts practice over and over again to make sure they deliver impeccable interviews on camera and in studio. If you're not sure you can deliver the goods under pressure, you will not want to skip (or skimp) on this crucial step.
Skills required:
Speaking, thinking quickly, remaining calm, being present to how others receive you
