Spring Fling Series: Amanda Vaisigano, Publicity Studio
INTRODUCING
Amanda Vaisigano –
Publicity Studio
Amanda is a connector and storyteller with a passion for solving problems and creating opportunities.
A digital native, Amanda develops candid and engaging communications that help build brands - while reaching the right audiences in the right way to achieve business results.
For more than a decade, she has been growing businesses, brands and reputations through strategic PR, communications, and marketing. She left the corporate world behind to start Publicity Studio, a creative media outreach and PR education consultancy, providing strategic, transparent, and practical communications solutions to today’s Kiwi businesses.
Amanda has developed and innovative model to help make PR accessible to small businesses, including her Kiwi PR Academy and Publicity Pro Programme that supports and teaches business owners to DIY PR.
CONNECT WITH AMANDA
Website: publicitystudio.co.nz
Instagram: @publicity_studio
Public relations is the rarely discussed and rather curious beast that is often the force behind brands that suddenly skyrocket in growth. It’s a hidden lever that creates visibility and makes an unknown name, a familiar and trusted brand.
But what exactly is PR? Ask 100 different PR professionals and you’re likely to get 100 different answers – but the sentiment is always the same. I look at PR as a strategic communications function which builds and maintains reputation, brand awareness, connection and understanding between a brand and its audience.
There are a multitude of ways this can be done- there is no cookie cutter approach as each business - and their objectives are unique. What may be considered the holy grail of all PR tactics however is ‘earned media coverage’, that is, having the media tell your story and talk about your business for no cost at all (PR is not advertising/paid media).
Although approaching the media and sharing your story can look confusing and feel daunting - it's a craft that any business owner with a story to tell can wrap their head around. Which is great news for small Kiwi businesses, because what some may lack in financial resource, they invest in time, grit and persistence.
Here are some PR tips — that don’t require big business budgets — to help you tell your story and build your brand by securing media coverage.
UNDERSTAND THE LAY OF THE LAND
Generating value from your PR efforts means understanding how the New Zealand media landscape works and the current changes taking place.
It’s important you have a good grasp of how busy journalists, editors, producers and publishers are and study up on lead times and pitch timeframes to ensure you’re reaching out with timely information.
Once you have a clear insight into who the outlet your pitching to is owned by, what their deadlines are, the large workloads they tackle daily, and the limited budgets they do so on you have context about how to navigate the landscape.
It’s important to have compassion and understand the nuances of the media realm including etiquette, respect and relationship building. At its core, it’s simply about being a good person.BUILD RELATIONSHIPS AND NETWORKS
Relationship building is the cornerstone of public relations. Like any great relationship, the foundation of success is trust. It takes a good dose of time, genuine engagement and thoughtful content to develop this trust.
PR should be a value exchange with the media outlets you want to work with. You’re giving them something they want that is going to serve their audiences, and in exchange they are giving you the attention of their listeners. So, find people that you can connect to and create mutually beneficial relationships with.
Start by spending plenty of time up front researching relevant media outlets and getting to know the journalists and writers personally.
Conduct an online search for news in your industry and create a list of journalists who write the stories that you come across. Learn all you can about these journalists — follow them on Twitter and start thoughtful engagement, set up a Google Alert for the names and read the stories that pop up. If you’re able to, comment on stories demonstrating your expertise and proving your credibility.
As your network takes shape, you’ll begin to discover what each media outlet is likely to publish according to their individual agendas and the context they operate in.PITCH PERFECT
The media exists to inform, educate and entertain its audiences. So, when it comes to contemplating your pitch consider whether you actually have a genuine story to tell. And if you don’t, then it might be worth exploring how you can bake a story into the DNA of your business.
The DNA of a really good pitch includes tons of research, understanding the audience of the outlet you’re pitching to and being really clever in drawing a link to your business or brand.
Having a fine understanding of the broader political landscape, key dates of any relevance and solid imagery are all added extras likely to help your pitch get over the line.
Your pitch should essentially form a bridge between the publication’s needs and your needs, giving clear hints regarding what angle could easily be taken to generate a story that their readers will love and that also tells your story.
More than a news hook or clear messaging however, brands will be driven by consumer demand to be better. There will no longer be excuses for businesses that haven’t considered diversity, social impact and the environment in their business and communications strategies.KEEP IT INTIMATE
The days of spraying out cookie-cutter media releases to every possible journalist are long gone and this sort of behaviour may even see business owners being ignored entirely by some publications.
The best PR approaches will focus on relationships and playing the long game. Creating mutually beneficial relationships will establish a rich value exchange with media outlets long into the future.
It’s important that business owners understand the placement and agenda of the outlets they approach and ensure that they’re the right fit before hitting send.
You might like to select which ones based on shared business values, their key audience demographic, the numbers they’re likely to receive on the stories they publish or the quality of the relationship you have with a journalist.BE DETERMINED
As the saying goes, if at first you don’t succeed, try and try again. And then try again. And again.
Remember, media schedules change — new stories pop up and editors cut stories at the last minute. You won’t get responses to every pitch you send out — even those that were seemingly a perfect fit.
Don’t let this get to you. Continue sending out those pitches, thinking of new angles and going back to editors with alternative ideas, offering different opinions, experts, data or products.
If your story lands flat — don’t be afraid to ask for critical feedback so that you can polish it up for the next time around.
Although everything is changing and nothing is certain right now, PR will continue to transform in ways that can be both intimidating and hopeful, and those willing to embrace and adapt to the new media and consumer landscape will enjoy the benefits of being awake to fresh new opportunities.
