What is the purpose of a PR campaign?
For architects, interior designers and product designers, public relations campaigns are one of the most important aspects of a marketing strategy. But what is the purpose of a PR campaign and what activities does it involve?
Well, PR campaigns can have a variety of goals and objectives; they can help to raise brand awareness, reach new and established target audiences, positively influence opinion, control reputation management and elevate a brand’s positioning so that it stands out from competitors. Once you’ve established your goal, you can begin to plan your PR campaign and execute the activity.
All business owners and founders should understand the importance of PR campaigns and the role they play in establishing and growing a brand.
What is a PR campaign?
A PR campaign is a series of planned and organised activities that run over a period of time to positively promote the perception of a business and communicate key messages. There are many different types of PR campaigns but most will consist of several types of activity, including both traditional and digital PR, that all support the overarching business goals and objectives.
Why run a PR campaign?
The reasons for creating a PR campaign will vary, and in many cases, there will be multiple objectives. It will depend on the business’s overarching goals and marketing strategy. In most cases, raising brand awareness will be a key goal of a PR campaign. For a new brand, you may focus on establishing the business and reaching its target audience whereas for established companies, for instance, a well-known furniture designer, plans could have the specific goal of launching and promoting a new collection. Other campaigns may focus on reaching new audiences or elevating the brand position to cement it as a leader in its field. A campaign will likely have several different activities that form part of a cohesive plan, including both traditional and digital PR.
Traditional PR
Most PR campaigns will involve several different types of traditional PR activities. Often, one goal of a such a campaign will be to reach target audiences by securing media coverage in target publications. In order to achieve this, a brand will need to write and issue a press release to journalists at key media outlets.
To maximise your chances of success, your PR plans will include media relations as a key activity. The aim will be to build and nurture long-term, meaningful relationships with journalists who write for these target publications. These will then be added to your press database so that you can pitch your brand stories to them.
Some campaigns will also involve organising an event. Again, the type of event will depend on your overarching business objectives but this could be a roundtable discussion, a trade show, a press breakfast or a customer event. Holding an event can help your brand to connect and build relationships with its target audiences, and can help your business stand out from its competitors.
Digital PR
Digital PR is a strategy that involves using online channels to raise brand awareness. These channels may include online media, social media platforms or email newsletters. Digital PR has become increasingly important to ensuring a brand’s success and all PR campaigns should include digital activity.
Most businesses will find that many of its target publications include online media outlets. This means that whilst you may undertake traditional PR activities as part of your campaign, such as issuing a press release, much of your audience will consume its media online and many online titles have high readership figures. Therefore, targeting online media should form a key part of your strategy.
The growth of social media platforms has transformed the PR industry and today, all PR campaigns would be advised to include social media activity to ensure success. Whilst your business will likely already have an overarching social media strategy, it is important to develop and implement specific social media activity as part of each individual PR campaign your business runs. For example, a new product launch requires its own social media campaign to promote the new collection to your potential customers. Social media channels can support your traditional PR efforts, including attracting the interest of journalists, but these platforms also provide additional opportunities to connect with your target audience, sharing the behind-the-scenes content and showing the human side of your business.
Newsletters are a simple and cost-effective way of communicating your company news to your customer base. Sending regular and insightful newsletters is a good way of connecting with your audience and demonstrating your industry knowledge in an authoritative, yet friendly manner. Think of it as an extension of your company blog and social media channels, but delivered directly to the inboxes of your target audience. The content of the newsletter will vary depending on the focus of the campaign, but most campaigns should include email newsletters.
A successful PR campaign will involve a combination of both traditional and digital PR initiatives, where these activities are aligned and executed cohesively. This type of campaign will yield the best results and help you to reach as wide an audience as possible and maximise leads.
If you need help developing and executing cohesive strategies for your PR that involves both traditional and digital activities, please get in touch.
