PR primer
Low Cost Personal Marketing
Implementing a basic public relations program can really benefit your business.

BY BOB WARD

Getting the Word Out
Cultivate the Media
Five No-Cost/Low-Cost Publicity Ideas
More Resources

If you want to do more personal marketing, but aren’t sure that you can afford to spend the money, I have just two words for you, “public relations.” While direct mail and newspaper ads are great personal marketing techniques, they can also be very expensive. In contrast, public relations is a no-cost/low-cost personal marketing option that can get bring you a substantial increase in your business profile—and your profits.

If the money part sounds good, but the idea of promoting yourself to the media intimidates you, let me share a little secret not many people know. The media–newspapers, radio, television, and magazines--are always searching for stories to fill their voracious editorial needs. If you can offer news or provide expert advice on a subject that interests a reporter, getting public relations is easy.

Creating news doesn’t have to be as difficult. If you can do the following then you have news.

• Solve a problem— action required if you’re facing difficulty making your home loan repayments, buying before you sell, considering Rover and Puss when you’re selling your home
  
• Create an opportunity—taking advantage of a property tax situation.
  
• Identify a trend—houses in our town are getting larger. Journalists love trends, especially those that affect a lot of people in their audience
  
• Help the community—create scholarship for disadvantaged children, conduct house art competition for local children, highlight community activities on your Web site
  
  You may feel that you’re expert enough to put yourself in front of the public, but many of the things you’ve learned in your real estate career are valuable new insights to the average consumer. For example, as a real estate professional you probably could provide tips on
  
  · “8 Mistakes for First Homebuyers Should Avoid”
  
  · “Advice from an Insider on Buying a Vacation Home”
  
  · “How to Locate a Good Investment Property”
  
  · “10 Commandments for Property Selection”
  
  These sorts of stories will almost certainly appeal to at least some reporters. And because they are likely to be of interest next year as well, you can update them annually, and resubmit them to reports. Two stories for the price of one and a quarter.
  
  Getting the Word Out
  
  Once you’ve decided on your first “expert” topic, your next challenge is to get the word out to the media through a press release. Public relations experts have a different opinion on the form and content of press releases such as the desirable length of a press release, the frequency with which they are sent or whether they are sent to 1 journalist exclusively or to a wide distribution list.
  
  However, there are several constants. Press releases should be based on the 5 Ws:
  
  · Who (does the event concern? What segment of the readership are you addressing?)
  
  · What (is the main point of the story? To help consumers make money, help owners protect their home from leaks, etc.)
  
  · When (will the event take place? Or if the story is tied to a season or a current trend, how long will the conditions that make the story current last?)
  
  · Where (will the event take place? Or what area, segment of the readership does the trend affect?)
  
  · Why (should readers care? What is the benefit to them from reading the story?)
  
  Be a double-spaced, preferably on a single page.
  
  Be addressed to a particular journalist
  
  Include a snappy headline to attract the journalist’s attention.
  
  Include your contact information, including name, title, company name, and telephone numbers for both your office and your home or cell. Journalists often work on tight deadlines, and they can’t reach you, they’ll just move on.
  
  It’s prudent to contact journalists before you send a press release to establish whether they prefer to receive press releases by mail, fax, or e-mail and if they prefer e-mail whether or not they will accept attachments. Because of the prevalence of e-mail sourced computer viruses, it’s possible that an e-mail attachment will be vetoed.
  
  Follow up the release with a phone call to express your willingness to supply more information if needed. But don’t make the mistake of calling more than once a week or just making a nuisance of yourself by calling too frequently. Harassing a journalist to publish your story will only make you unpopular.
  
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  Cultivate the Media
  Just as important as developing a good story is finding the journalists who are interested in that story. Taking the time to research media sources will pay off in a greater acceptance of your topic ideas.
  
  Begin by developing a media database of all the media outlets—radio, television, newspapers, etc.--in your area. Be sure that you have a specific name at each outlet to receive your press release. A press release sent to “real estate editor”, is almost sure to be ignored. If this seems too time consuming, you could consider hiring a public relations professional to supply a local media list.
  
  Studying your media targets is a top idea. Carefully read, listen, and watch media outlets in your area to determine the type of stories each journalist and presenter has prepared. Make notes in your media database of the topics and approaches to stories each journalist typically uses. For example, perhaps some reporters favor human-interest stories, such as charity events or helping out a homeowner in need. Others may want a more investment or business angle to a story. When sending out your press release, be sure that you target the story only to those reporters who are likely to find it interesting. Remember, in PR, as in much of marketing, a targeted effort is more effective than a broad-based one.
  
  You should also take the time to get to know local journalists. When they receive your press releases, they will not be asking themselves, “Who is this from?” but will rather associate it with the recent meeting they had with you.
  
  Techniques that you could use to achieve this objective are:-
  
• Ask the journalist to share a coffee or lunch with you and get to know him or her personally. You can easily demonstrate your background and expertise in this friendly environment
  
• Send the real estate journalists a personal note volunteering yourself for future interviews on real estate related issues
  
• Determine the best time of day to contact journalists or radio and television presenters or producers. It’s prudent not to contact at a time that is critical to them regarding their deadlines
  
  When an article in which you feature is either published or goes to air either ring or write a note just to say “thanks”
  
  If you’re successful, you will achieve the public relations ultimate goal-- journalists and producers contacting you directly for your comments on a particular issue.
  
  Finally, remember that patience is the name of the public relations game. It’s an activity in which there are no overnight successes. But persevere and things will begin to fit into place. Whether you “do it yourself” or engage the services of a public relations consultant, adopting a public relations strategy should achieve your desired objective of increased recognition and enhanced image. Soon you’ll find that your name recognition has grown—and your business along with it.
  
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  Five No-Cost/Low-Cost Publicity Ideas
  
  Public relations doesn't have to be expensive to be effective.
  
  Offer your company's conference room for club meetings to local civic and charitable groups.
  Let groups promoting events place posters in your front window and hand out flyers at open houses.
  
  Offer your office as a polling place or as a spot for voter registration.
  
  Write a letter to the local newspaper editor on a topic of community interest.
  
  Offer an unpaid internship to high school or community college students to learn more about real estate.
  
  Portions adapted from Real Estate Office Management, 3rd edition, Real Estate Brokerage Managers Council, Real Estate Education Company, 1996.
  
  To learn more, visit the sales meeting tool kit and learn more about using public relations for personal marketing.
  ______________________________________
  Bob Ward is an Australian training and public relations consultant and a speaker who specializes in self-promotion and real estate-related subjects. He is a qualified accountant and licensed real estate salesperson with both radio and television experience. You can contact him at lot109@iprimus.com.au
  
  More Resources
  
  Build Your Local Media Profile , “Selling,” Ralph Roberts, December 1998
  
  The Sharper Marketer , “Best Practices,” Robert Freedman, January 2000
  
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