How to plan your 2023 PR Strategy

If you’re here on this website, you quite possibly understand a little about the true power of PR already. 

But while sporadic and indeed reactive PR can create great success when it comes to a brand’s communications, a well-planned PR strategy can be one of the fastest ways to grow brand recognition. 

Rather than publishing content and crossing your fingers, you then have an action plan to help you reach specific goals. 

Unfortunately, PR doesn’t happen automatically. Although people may be talking about your brand and its associated services or products, and media outlets may cover what your company is doing without you pitching, you have very limited control of what happens with this communication if you have no clear strategy. 

When you create a clear public relations strategy with set messaging and clear creative objectives, you’re taking control over how you appear to your audience and the media. You become the driver of the conversation, not just a passive participant.

PR strategies give you direction. They serve as a blueprint to what and how you want to share your company with the outside world.

Define clear goals

Effective public relations hinges on clearly defined goals. Without an objective, you have no way of knowing if your efforts are paying off.

What exactly do you want to achieve with public relations?

Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Increase brand awareness

• Grow your social media following

• Improve communication with your audience

• Getting published in a specific outlet

• Increase positive customer sentiment

• Fix a damaged reputation

Find your market

To find your PR market, think about your target audience. Where do they go to find information? What news sources, blogs, or publications do they read? Are they on social media?

When you know your target market well, they will lead you to the types of publications you need to pitch.

At Sophie Attwood Communications, we have a wide range of contacts who trust us to share the right news in a creative way - and at the right time. We can help you to define your target audience and tell stories that resonate with each sub-audience within that. 

Plan your PR with intent

Good PR takes more than going through the motions. You need to be intentional about your actions if you want to move the needle.

Every tactic you use should tie back to an objective. For example, if you are pitching one particular title, think about why you chose that title. What value can they bring to your brand? What exactly do you want to share with their audience?

Intentional PR spills over into other areas outside of PR, too. More and more, we’re seeing PR being combined with marketing. There’s a good reason for this. Just like PR, marketing is designed to influence behaviors, sentiments, and actions.

Marketing and PR need to be in alignment when it comes to generating publicity. Both sides need to understand the purpose that content and media mentions serve in your business. From there, you can better decide how to use those opportunities.