The Public Relations Diet: Sure to help your company grow

The news media is constantly reminding us of how poorly the health is of the American public. While numbers vary, I have heard that between 1/4 and 1/3 of Americans are obese. If one were to develop a way to gauge PR programs regarding their level of fat, I would argue that at least 90 % of them are obese. Bloated by needless releases and wasting time and resources chasing vanity clips and not focused on what any good marketing person should be, growing the company.

Thankfully, I have come up with what I think is a good PR diet. Sadly, I compile this without having a book publisher yet so I guess I will have to win the lottery to make my first million. But seriously, there are ways to run a lean, mean and highly effective public relations program. Let me try and spell out a few of the basics here and we can build off them.

• Establish the independence of PR and the unique benefits it brings to the organization-PR does not stand for press release, nor is it a vanity project for the senior executives. It is up for the PR team, especially the managers to put a stake in the ground and defend their PR expertise and knowledge. As we all know, being a PR person is often like being the coach of a sports team. Everyone can do your job better than you. Don't be afraid to take a strong stand and tell people what they need to hear, not what they want to hear. This is by no means being rude or cruel it is being honest.
• Limit the use of news releases and banish the word press release all together-A news release is just that, the release of information of value regarding the organization to the public. It should be used rarely and when information of great value needs to be disseminated. Releasing version 2.0M does not qualify. I have found that like with any training regime, setting limits is the best way to ensure that you receive a quality product. Do not be afraid to set a quota with a bit of leeway. If you commit to 4-6 releases per quarter, or better yet, per half year, hard decisions will have to be made and the result will be better news releases.
• Be creative-Most PR people, especially agency people, seem to be like the old milk horses who go the same path because they were trained to do so and don't know any better. It is amazing to me, how many PR professionals talk about Web 2.0 and how skilled they will be in those areas, yet 90% of their time will be spent writing releases and pitching media that will help them, not you! Look for ways to be creative, heck contact editors and ask them if they have any holes coming up that maybe filled nicely by some of the bylined articles you already have in the bullpen ready to go. That works out exceptionally well!
• Find time to meet with editors-Times are tough now and budgets are the tightest they have been in years. But there is a great opportunity to build exceptionally strong relationships with key editors by face-to-face meetings held at conferences or other events. By doing this you become more than an anonymous voice on the phone but a smiling face and a good shared laugh.

The Public Relations Diet will serve the true purpose of PR. It will not give you vanity hits, nor make your CEO a rock star, rather it will help you to do what all marketing and communications people should do. Build up brand recognition, which will ultimately result in greater revenue!