In today’s media-saturated culture, Public Relations (PR) plays a crucial role in any successful businesses marketing strategy.

PR is the science of promoting a company across a variety of media, where image and customer opinion mean everything, especially in the influential print and online media. The company who wins the media race, will win the ultimate goal – the confidence of the customer.

PR professionals work by facilitating relationships with relevant industry media to position companies in their market sector and at the forefront of customers’ minds.

At GPM, PR is used as part of a structured marketing plan that employs many years experience and targeted communications, to achieve desired objectives, and in some cases, gain unpaid for publicity from newspaper, magazine or website articles.

A basic definition of PR is to ‘Shape and maintain the image of a company and their products in the eyes of their current and potential customers’. These people are anyone who has or will form an opinion or have contact with the company or its products. Successful PR requires a deep understanding of the client’s business. PR professionals must know how to effectively address trade & end-user needs, through highlighting the unique selling points, benefits and applications of any product. To condense this would be to describe PR as ‘Using the news or trade press to carry positive messaging about a company or its products,’ and over time, cultivate a good working relationship with press representatives and therefore their readership, i.e. customers.

All successful releases are written as a compelling news story. The goal is to fulfill an editor’s requirement for news, while enhancing the client’s image in the eye of the public/trade/end-user.

GPM spends a lot of time cultivating relationships with editors and other members of the mass media. A magazine or website editor is much more likely to read a press release that’s fresh, timely and accompanied with good quality images, from a recognisable source – than just a few lines emailed from an unknown person or business.

Editors are bombarded with hundreds of stories every week, so getting to the top of the pile with a chance of getting printed in a magazine or website takes the skill and experience of a professional PR specialist.

GPM identifies, writes and releases copy targeted to address an editor’s field of expertise. Press releases should read like stories, not just bullet points extolling a product’s virtues – there must be something newsworthy about the release, or it will be ignored.

Editors don’t need press releases from their PR contacts to maintain a magazine or website – but it can make the task of sustaining content much simpler. A well-written press release with a news element can translate directly into a story – especially when the release comes from a trusted source.

Once written, quality press releases can be used to fulfill other content too, with very little adjustment – extending their shelf-life and providing economies of scale that greatly raises the initial ROI. Other areas where the PR content could be used includes a company’s website, targeted eNews campaigns and brochure content.

This is why well-written press release material is the foundation of a successful marketing strategy for any company – no matter what their product or area of business.

To find out more about maximising your brand and ROI with PR content – contact GPM today. We’ll be happy to discuss any promotional PR or Marketing requirement you may have.