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How to Generate Good Press: The Power of Public Relations (PR)

Meredith — Wed, 15 Nov 2023 17:52:45 +0000

Generating Good Press: The Power of Public Relations (PR) for Your Company

In today’s fast-paced, yet environmentally-conscious world, building and maintaining a positive, earth-friendly image for your company is crucial. Did you know that with public relations (PR) tools, you can shape the public perception and brand identity of your company? Therefore, if you want to get featured in the New York Times Climate section, the Washington Post, Forbes, or Tech Crunch, this blog can help! How about a TV spot with a journalist reporting live from your lab at Scripps Oceanography or SDSU? Yes, we can teach you how to make it happen!

This blog is suitable for both B2B and B2C companies that are crafting solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems such as climate change, food shortages, waste disposal, and pollution. In addition, we’ve designed these DIY tips for companies that do not have the budget to hire a PR agency.

In this blog, we will teach you how to draft strategic communications and effectively tell your story to connect with your target audience, foster trust, and get in the press! You will also learn:

What public relations (PR) is
Some newsworthy ideas you can use
The art of crafting a press release
How to distribute your press release

So, if you’re here to boost your green tech or clean tech company, or simply your brand identity and online presence, let’s go!

What is Public Relations?

Public Relations, often referred to as PR, is the practice of managing and enhancing an organization’s reputation and relationships with its various stakeholders. These might include:

Customers
Vendors
Partners or Investors
Employees
General Public

PR professionals or PR agencies use strategic communication techniques to shape public perception, create a positive image, and ultimately drive business success. Before we dive too deep, did you know Top Rope Media provides budget-friendly public relations services for our clients? Click here to learn how we can help you with writing a release, distribution, and how to get sponsored posts or articles!

Telling Your Story: How Great Branding Builds a Compelling Case

We understand the challenges many startups face when launching new technologies, an earth-friendly product, or service. You need to have a viable offering, demonstrate what problem it is solving, develop social proof, and continue to seek out funding and investors…all on a bootstrapped budget! So besides the usual recommendations a startup is given, like defining your goals and objectives and knowing your audience, you need branding that visually tells your unique and moving story.

Therefore, if you are getting stuck on the branding side of things: naming, taglines, fonts, colors, what content to include on your website, or you need help building a simple website that better tells your brand story, start there. Here are a few blogs that can help:

Compliment Your Brand Messaging with a Public Relations (PR) Strategy

Your PR strategy should complement your branding. Once you have woven that feel-good story throughout your website you can then use public relations to help you further build a compelling case. Which newsworthy stories could you share about your clean tech or environmentally-friendly service or product? Here are a few examples:

Milestones in product development
Big funding announcements
Collaborations with other green tech companies
New investors or BoD members
How you are combating problems such as access to clean energy and reducing our dependence on fossil fuels

Public Relations Strategies

Now that you have an idea of what brand stories you can tell, line up ways in which you will push out those stories. These could be a combination of the following:

Press release writing and distribution (which we will review next!)
Sponsored posts or articles
Traditional media buys from TV, radio, newspapers, or magazines
New media- social, podcasts, blogs
Press conferences and events

Public Relations Example in Cleantech

As an example, we’ve been working with the team at VECKTA to help them better explain how their software is helping companies reduce energy costs, transition to renewable energy, reduce carbon emissions, and reach sustainability goals. We demonstrate social proof on channels like Twitter (X) or LinkedIn, develop case studies, write blogs and white papers, and create and distribute VECKTA’s press releases.

VECKTA’s onsite energy marketplace and software platform helps clients reduce energy costs and reach their sustainability goals.

Press Release Creation + Distribution

Press releases are essential for communicating news and updates about your company to the media and the public. A well-crafted press release that showcases how you are providing solutions to tackle the world’s most challenging problems can generate media coverage and drive traffic to your website. Or an interested journalist to your lab!

In this section, we’ll walk you through how to write and distribute your press release to garner not only the attention of the public but also journalists and potential investors!

Writing a Press Release

Here are the key elements of an effective press release:

Headline: Concise and attention-grabbing. Summarize the main news or announcement.
Opening Paragraph: Provide the most important details, and answer the who, what, where, when, and why.
Body: Expand on the key information. Provide context, quotes from your CEO or project leaders, and relevant stats.
Boilerplate: Include a brief company description at the end of the press release.
Contact Information: Include contact details for a media spokesperson or PR representative for follow-up inquiries.
Release Date: Specify when the press release should be published or distributed.
Multimedia: If applicable, include high-quality images, videos, or links to additional resources that enhance the story.

How to Share a Press Release

Sharing your press releases effectively is crucial to ensure they reach your intended audience. Here’s how to do it:

Use a PR Distribution Service: PR Newswire, BusinessWire, or eReleases to reach a broad audience of journalists and bloggers.
Send Directly to Media Contacts: If you have established media contacts, send your press release directly to them via email with a personalized message.
Post on Your Website: Publish the press release on your company’s website in a dedicated news section or blog.
Share on Social Media: Promote the press release on your social media channels to reach your followers and encourage sharing.
Email Newsletter: Include the press release in your email newsletter to inform your subscribers and encourage them to visit your website for more details.

At Top Rope Media, we have a membership with PRNewswire/Cision. Therefore, we are able to offer clients a budget-friendly way to distribute press releases to their specific niche and garner media attention. In addition, we can also help you place sponsored posts or featured articles in major publications. Click here to learn more!

Well-designed press releases can help your company gain attention within your niche. Besides print or web articles, they can also encourage journalists to visit your event or lab to get an inside scoop!

Final Thoughts on Public Relations

PR encompasses various tactics to reach and engage your target audience. However, it should not be the only marketing tactic you use. Here are some additional marketing strategies to consider:

Website Content Creation: Create high-quality content, such as blog posts, articles, and infographics.
Social Media: Maintain an active presence on social media platforms to interact with your audience, share updates, and promote your brand.
Partner Marketing: Collaborate with industry experts, partners, or BoD members to broaden your reach and gain credibility within your niche.
Thought Leadership: Showcase your company’s leaders by participating in industry events, speaking engagements, and contributing articles to relevant publications.

Public Relations is an indispensable tool for building and maintaining a positive image for your greentech, cleantech, or earth-friendly company. By following the steps to achieve great PR, mastering the art of press release writing, implementing various PR tactics, and connecting with journalists in your field, you can successfully promote your brand.

Click here to learn more about how Top Rope Media can help you with your PR needs. Or jump to one of our latest DIY marketing blogs:

Thanks for reading!

Meredith McConvill, Top Rope Media

The post How to Generate Good Press: The Power of Public Relations (PR) appeared first on Top Rope Media.

STARTING A BUSINESS: From Side Hustle to Full-Time

Faria Design — Tue, 03 May 2022 06:45:01 +0000

Starting a Business: How to Turn Your Side Hustle Into a Full-Time Gig

Those classic Frank Sinatra lyrics, “If I can make it there, I’ll make it anywhere,” are always on my mind when I start something, or someplace, new. Born and raised in Staten Island, New York, ‘making it’ to me as a young woman meant:

Having an Upper East Side apartment in Manhattan
A city job that required a leather briefcase (when it was still cool to carry one)
Scoring a good table for brunch on a Sunday at Bubby’s
Getting in my 6-mile evening run around Central Park
Paying all my own bills!

Maybe I watched too much Sex and the City. But, I remember the first time I felt like I had truly ‘made it.’

Starting a Business: In the Trenches

It was July 1999, and I had successfully achieved all of the items listed above. Yet my career was still on a low simmer.

I was standing in front of my office fax machine at New York City Parks & Recreation (well before Leslie Knope made working at Parks & Rec a cool place to be). Our team was reviewing the final plans for ‘Moon Day in Central Park’, an event to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the landing on the moon.

At this time, I managed partnerships, fundraising, and events with NYC Parks & Recreation. Yet this was my first big production in Central Park.

I had pitched a lot of brands to sponsor the event. In addition to generating sponsorships, I was also in charge of public relations. I pitched several newspapers and magazines each day to get the word out. Keep in mind that this was 1999, long before the internet and social media had taken hold!

It was at this time, still standing at that fax machine, that I got the call. Moon Day would be featured in the New York Times and a quote from me would be included.

It was a small piece, but I was giddy. It was happening.

Gaining Confidence in Your Small Successes

The event turned out to be a big success for our team! From Neil deGrasse Tyson to the CBS broadcast of the lunar landing. In addition, a perfectly timed spot with Park’s Commissioner Henry Stern and Buzz Aldrin riding across Sheep’s Meadow in Omega’s Lunar Rover was the icing on the cake!

The day would not have been possible without generous contributions from CBS, Omega, and from Target. At the time if you can believe it, Target was a small, relatively unknown company. They would not open their first store in Manhattan for another decade!

Therefore, I was thrilled when Target said yes to my pitch for the title sponsorship of Moon Day and I’m happy that Target’s relationship with NYC Parks & Rec continues to this day!

Starting Up: Branching Out to Freelance Work

After Moon Day, my talent for coordinating logistics and raising awareness continued to grow. I began freelancing. And my experience in marketing and events for outdoor organizations, and landing good PR for high-profile clients, was on the rise. I took on the following events:

NHL All-Star Weekend
Lake Placid Film Festival
Dinner in Central Park with Isabella Rossellini (did you know she’s a big-time bird watcher??)
UC San Diego Women’s Conference

However, my favorite freelance position was working as part of NBC’s Operations Team for 3 Olympic Games: 2002 Salt Lake City, 2004 Athens, and 2006 in Torino!

Creating a Home Base for Your Small Business

I traveled from New York to LA. Sydney to Athens. London to Milan. To really start my business, I needed a new place to call home, and to keep track of my growing collection of outdoor and adventure gear!

I also needed to be closer to the outdoor and lifestyle brands I wanted to work with.

San Diego became that place in 2004, and although a far cry from New York’s Central Park, the incredible people, the never-ending sunshine, and the easy access to the great outdoors are hard to beat!

Even with a home base, the journey of turning your side hustle into a full-time business is ever-changing. This idea of starting up Top Rope Media came about in 2015 when I still had a full-time job. Then it simmered along into 2016. Finally, in June 2016, I left my full-time job at UC San Diego to start my business and grow Top Rope Media.

Starting a Business: Do What You Love

Now here we are in 2024, and from starting a business to scaling it up, I continue to remain focused on doing what I love. I still enjoy meeting new people in the outdoor industry. Learning about their marketing woes, and thinking, hey, I can fix that!

It’s still exciting to build relationships between big brands and small non-profits. To grow memberships by helping people become better connected to a cause they love.

I even took some time to write a book with my 91-year-old dad last year! You can learn more about it and pick up a copy here!

Although the days of standing in front of my trusty fax machine and sending out personalized press releases and proposals are long gone, I still personalize my messages and send out monthly communications. However, I now use a more rapid-fire method of digital marketing!

Starting Up: Building Brand Loyalty

As a strong, competitive woman, I am focused on getting to the finish line and often forget to enjoy the journey. It is important it is to keep people connected with your journey, your triumphs and setbacks.

Building your brand and building brand loyalty means staying in touch with those who have helped you get to where you are. Staying connected with your audience, ambassadors, and brand champions.

You can’t just keep selling and pushing your widgets. You need to give your audience valuable content that they can use. That’s why we write monthly blogs with marketing tips. In addition, we share curated content from industry leaders or unique stories we think our readers might like.

As an example, we provide step-by-step instructions for do-it-yourselfers to tackle the following:

Other ways to keep your fans engaged? Fill them in on the latest successes for your company. Ask for referrals! You will always get better clients from a referral than you ever will by running an ad!

Final Thoughts: Enjoy the Journey

Reflecting on what you’ve accomplished gives you the opportunity to enjoy the journey again. It’s similar to that feeling you get when you climb a mountain.

The sweaty palms, the adrenaline rush. That whipper you take as you fall from exhaustion, or from a misplaced hand or foot.

Then a second after the fall, there’s the catch by your belay partner holding the other end of the rope. You’re safe. Yet instead of calling it quits, and being lowered to the ground, you steady yourself. You raise your head and continue on your journey. You start fresh.

– Meredith C. McConvill, Top Rope Media

The post STARTING A BUSINESS: From Side Hustle to Full-Time appeared first on Top Rope Media.