10 tips on how to make your business story newsworthy

It’s not about you – it’s about them!  Ask yourself - what impact will your news have on the readers, listeners, viewers, the community at large?

Contextualise - tap into a wider trend.  What’s the macro view? What trends are taking place in your industry sector? Or, create your own news – surveys are excellent.

Comparisons are good - What’s going on in other markets e.g. EU, US, UK, Emerging?

Celebrity Endorsements - They work!  But make sure celebrity’s brand image matches your brand values

Customer Testimonials -High profile clients – use testimonials in press releases, on website, on social media, blogs

Every press release should have 5x W’s and 1x H in the first two paragraphs – Who, What, Where, When, Why and How? 

    
Key Opinion Leader
An independent KOL adds credibility e.g. nutritionist for food industry

Imagery
A good photo or video can get you coverage even if story is not strong

Reactive Media Relations
If story breaks in the media that is relevant to your industry – be prepared to comment – quickly.  Position yourself as industry expert. Have your ‘boiler plate’ written. Use Google alerts to keep track of news relevant to your industry – and of your competitors!

Writing Style Tips
- Keep it short - particularly for online and broadcast media
- Write in the 3^rd Person - “You” or “I” should only be used in quotations

 - Make sure the tone is relevant to type of media you are targeting
- Include your contact details - mobile number, email address & date of issue

Photo: New York Times newsroom, 1942

www.diyPR.ie 

5 tools to fire up your blog, why watches are all set to the same time & mistakes business leaders make

5 tips to fire up your blog

There’s actually only 5 tips in this article from PR Daily – 5 suggestions on how to fire up your blog.  These include a couple of tools you can use to generate ideas for the blog, one which generates a title for your blog and even one that generates the content.  I haven’t tried any of these yet but tempted ……!

http://bit.ly/1WnWLQR

Why watches are all set to the same time in ads!

Have you always wondered why watches are all set to the same time in ads?  No, me neither!  In fact, I never noticed – but as this article says, that means the advertisers are doing their job properly!  Apparently all watches are set at 10.10 – this frames the brand name and logo and gives the watch a ‘smiley’ face!  I just had to include this essential fact in my blog!

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/watch-watches-time-adverts-same-10-10-a6948421.html

Mistakes Business Leaders commonly make

Ireland’s leading executives were asked about the mistakes they commonly see business people repeating – these include:

·       Creating a Yes man culture;

·       Not thinking strategicially;

·       Ignoring technology;

·       Trying to do it all;

·       Working in, not on, the business and

·       Not listening.

Worth a read….

https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/common-pitfalls-top-business-leaders-sure-avoid-101328585--finance.html

www.grainnebyrnePR.ie