September 7, 2016
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According to an article by Jason Nazar, a contributor to Forbes, approximately 543,000 new businesses get started each month. With an ever-growing number of businesses vying for the attention of the marketplace it can be challenging to be heard. Below are three PR strategies that small businesses should be using with the help of their PR firm to get their communication strategy rolled out via media channels and stand out from the crowd.

1. Give them the numbers: Having statistics to back your pitches to media outlets and journalists can be powerful. Business statistics such as annual revenue, measurable impact on customers and clients, funding numbers, and growth stats (e.g. annual growth, etc.) help tell your story and make a compelling case for your newsworthiness.
2. Leverage Social Networks: Want free press with minimal effort? Leverage all of your online social media networks to get your message out. A good first step for new businesses is to ask employees, family, and friends for their assistance in spreading your message by sharing your posts. It’s also a good idea to integrate sharing of company social posts by your employees into your company culture.Many small businesses also opt to run paid ads and sponsored posts. This can be a very effective way to reach a wide audience at a very affordable rate in a highly targeted fashion. The chart below from Google Trends shows an increasing interest for the phrase “social media advertising.”
3. Aim High and Be Specific: Rather than using a public relations shotgun
   approach in which you blast your press release out to as many journalists and news outlets as you can, consider creating a more specific segment in which you target high-value journalists with a more relationship oriented personal pitch. This list of journalists and influencers should include those who are specifically interested in your industry or cover topics that relate to something happening in your company. Your PR firm will likely have access to media databases like Cision, Vocus, or Gorkana to help with this.

These tips lend themselves well to new businesses. A good PR firm can help you determine the best approach and spend of your time and resources to reach your audience.