Five P’s of PR Success

Five P’s of PR Success

I love using the mantra “prior planning prevents poor performance.” It applies to so much in my everyday life, but especially rings true as we get into a new year of marketing and PR campaigns. As we look ahead to the New Year, we reflect on how we did in 2016 and look for opportunities for improvement and growth.

That said, I’ve compiled 5 P’s to make 2017 a successful year of PR campaigns for your business:

  1. Plan ahead: Schedule a planning meeting (if your PR representative hasn’t already done so) to discuss successes and opportunities from the prior year, as well as to set goals for the upcoming year.
  2. Produce a timeline: Based on what you discuss in your planning meeting, you will be able to outline events and initiatives for the upcoming year. Knowing what you need to do in advance, create a calendar or timeline where everyone can easily reference what is coming up and stay on the same page.
  3. Plug away: Stay on task by sticking to your timeline (of course there will always be the occasional fire drill), but use your calendar to prepare well in advance for any upcoming initiatives. Preparation may include identifying your key audiences, approving a press release, etc.
  4. Present results: Anytime you work with a PR firm on an event, news distribution or campaign, they should always present results. Measuring success is how you set benchmarks, find out if you reach or exceeded your goals or if there is room for improvement.
  5. Prepare together: Never plan alone! This limits your access to success and ideas. Always consult your PR professional to discuss upcoming initiatives in order to produce strategic and strong results

Another cliché I often use is “the days are long, but the years are short.” So, get your 2017 planning done now, because before you know it, you will be planning for 2018.