„Next to doing the right thing, the most important thing is to let people know you are doing the right thing.” – John D. Rockefeller
What does public relations mean?
The profession or practice of creating and maintaining goodwill of an organization’s various publics (customers, employees, investors, suppliers, etc.), usually through publicity and other nonpaid forms of communication. These efforts may also include support of arts, charitable causes, education, sporting events, and other civic engagements.
Public relations is the art of managing how information about an individual or company is disseminated to the public. PR is essential to any company’s success, especially when shares in the company are publicly traded and the value of a share depends on the public’s confidence in a company or brand. In addition to handling media requests, information queries and shareholder concerns, PR personnel are frequently responsible for crafting and maintaining the corporation’s image. Occasionally, PR professionals also engage in negative PR, or willful attempts to discredit a rival brand or company, although such practices are not in keeping with the industry’s code of ethics according to Investopedia.
Having said that, you can ask yourself how can you increase your chances of growing your business through PR?
At the beginning, a business may have difficulty playing a role on the market, given the competition, which is why you must invest in your company’s brand. Use the branding as a primary tool to increase your business. According to Business Dictionary, branding is the process involved in creating a unique name and image for a product in the consumers’ mind, mainly through advertising campaigns with a consistent theme. Branding aims to establish a significant and differentiated presence in the market that attracts and retains loyal customers.
You can have excellent services but without promoting them, attracting customers can be extremely difficult.
People usually are impressed by how you deliver your service or product, you can start by storytelling about your brand, the story behind your service/product, how your brand came to be, thus create trust and loyalty from your customers, plus you will help them see the full picture of your business. It is also a way through which you can develop a relationship with the client, a relationship that can bring you countless benefits.
Furthermore, gather feedback. What do your clients think about you? What made your services be their choice? What convinced them that your company should be their first choice?
Feedback can help you strengthen your company’s image and at the same time it can attract potential customers. So don’t forget to follow up with your clients through email, phone or even surveys. Your customers’ opinions matter, take them constructively in order to improve the quality of your services.
Promote your services by creating a regular newsletter and use social media power to your advantage. There are so many websites that can be used as marketing tools. Social media websites like Twitter and Facebook, Linkedin, Pinterest, and YouTube all are economical methods of networking and advertising your company. For more visibility create your own website.
Bear in mind that „It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.” – Warren Buffet