Now is the time to start thinking about your 2020 marketing strategy
When it comes to b2b marketing, many businesses will focus on a number of important areas such as social media, advertising and trade shows, however one element that is equally, if not more, important, but may be overlooked is PR.
Public Relations is a critical part of any marketing strategy and the return on investment far outweighs that of advertising. Here’s why:
More noticeable
The average person is regularly subjected to adverts on a daily basis whether that’s through broadcast, print or online. For example, on a 60 minute drive to work and when tuned into a commercial radio station, the driver spends at least 20 minutes of the journey listening to adverts. Chances are by the time it gets to the third advert they won’t be taking much notice, or may have switched channels. This is often the same for print and online where adverts can easily blur into the background when positioned alongside articles that the reader is interested in.
If the message you wanted to get across to the reader was in the article however, they would be likely to pay more attention. That’s where PR comes in. A reputable agency with knowledge of your business and target audience will be able to draft quality, organic content that gets the message across in a way that is valuable to your potential customers. A thought leadership article or feature that explores the latest trends in the market, for example, will attract more readers and can often showcase your company as the ‘go to’ business for industry advice.
Cost effective
Whether it’s online, in print or broadcast, placing an advert can also be expensive. There are cost effective advertising options available, however the chances are the cheaper the advert the smaller the space or audience. Paying a one-off fee to reach a reader or listener on one occasion is pretty much like showing someone your business card but not actually giving it to them to keep.
With PR you pay a monthly fee that can often be agreed to suit your budget and in return you should receive service that will result in your company featuring in trade, regional, online and print media multiple times per month. If a customer uses multiple platforms for their industry news and sees your business regularly appearing across some, if not all of them, they will begin to take notice, start to recognise the brand and will be more likely to think of you when they require your services.
Longevity
It’s simple, when you pay to place an advert it appears for the length of time you have budgeted for and then it’s gone. With PR that certainly isn’t the case.
The main aim of public relations is to raise awareness of your business and services and the best way to do this is by securing coverage, whether it’s a general news story such as updates within the business, appointments or even an internal fundraiser for a local charity. Coverage can also be secured through trade features, blogs, case studies and stories about new contracts. Once a story about your business appears though, it is there to stay – whether that’s in print or online.
If it’s in print, a hard copy of the magazine or newspaper will be around on desks, in reception areas, even sat in waiting rooms and anyone flicking through it will see your news. Online is even better! If a news story appears on the internet it will be there until it is physically deleted. If someone searches a keyword included within the article it will appear within the search results. Google also likes quality copy, so a well written article is more likely to appear higher on the search engine. So, when appointing a PR Agency, be sure to choose one that understands your business and has experience in writing for your sector.
Here at Dragonfly PR, our team has years of experience in creating bespoke b2b public relations strategies and drafting articles that are guaranteed to build brand awareness of your business and regularly achieve coverage. With a background in writing high quality content for white papers, articles and thought leadership pieces, we are one of the leading professional PR agencies in Yorkshire.
Based in Sheffield, Dragonfly PR specialises in event management, PR and content marketing for b2b, particularly construction, manufacturing and food companies.
For more information or to speak to us about how to make the most out of a Public Relations campaign, email hello@dragonflypr.co.uk or call 0114 3495345.
For a free, no-obligation discussion with one of our PR & digital marketing team, please email hello@dragonflypr.co.uk or call 0114 349 5341.