You may expect your life to magically change after a guest blog post or a few minutes on local TV news. Wrong!
Public relations efforts can help build awareness of and credibility for your brand, yourself, your product, or service. PR can help your SEO rankings and, when people look for your company name or your name, they may find a third party mention rather than just what you’ve written about yourself.
However those eyeballs don’t necessarily translate into sales. After the ego rush, you might feel a wave of what I call “post-PR depression.” Your colleagues, friends, and family may all congratulate you within the first 24 hours. But then what? Here are some great ways to get more mileage from your mentions.
- Add them to your website (perhaps even through a pop-up), your social media sites, and (in the case of TV) your own YouTube, Vimeo, or Wistia channel. If you work with a professional PR firm or freelancer, encourage them to post on their sites as well.
- When you post on social media, tag the media outlet and the people who helped you prepare for your media mention. Gratitude is always good.
- Share on Google Plus. It sometimes boosts your search rankings.
- Start a separate Pinterest and/or Instagram board of all your “clips.” Not only will that increase your visibility, you’ll be able to refer to all your press all in one place. (I also recommend using Dropbox or Google Docs to archive media mentions)
- Use an app like WiseStamp (tailored to small businesses) or Sigstr (for enterprise-level companies) to add your media mentions to your e-mail signature.
- Be sure to include the mention in your company’s regular e-newsletter or send out a separate e-blast.
Rather than just re-posting your clips, offer readers/viewers a little something extra — a tip you didn’t mention in the article, a special deal as a thank-you for viewing your link.
Remember, building a portfolio of media mentions takes time and patience. But, above all, you need to have something newsworthy or helpful to share. Regardless of whether you’re dealing with conventional or digital media, your insights need to be unique to break through the media clutter.