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6 Ways to Build Strong PR for Your Brand

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Here are the keys to building a solid personal brand through PR. This will teach you what you need to know for thought leaders and subject matter experts.

Define your brand

Eventually, you may become so popular that every publication, news show, or podcast will want to share your thoughts with their audience. However, it does not start that way. If you want to build your brand using PR, the best plan is to move from a crawl to a walk and then to a run. Start small, build your reputation slowly, and then move on to more significant opportunities. You must define your brand and focus your efforts on doing this well.

Start defining your brand by highlighting your expert niches. For instance, are you a social media expert? A cryptocurrency expert? A sustainability expert? Build your brand around it, identify the outlets that focus on those topics, and pitch yourself to them.

Breaking into top-tier publications that focus on broad issues like leadership, business development, or technology is challenging, especially if you are not getting professional help. Gaining traction with smaller, more specialised outlets is a better start.

Start creating content

Once you have established your niche, move on to confirm your voice by creating content. Fill a portfolio with blog posts and LinkedIn posts that reveal what you know and the unique way that you communicate. Establish a goal of submitting one guest blog post each week to relevant industry outlets. If you like to talk, host your podcast. If you want to write, write an eBook.

Being active on social media channels is essential to establishing your voice, but you do not want to stop there. Having longer pieces of content will better promote your brand and give media outlets a sense of what it would be like to have you contribute.

Engage in public speaking

If you suffer from a fear of public speaking, start taking steps to overcome it. Public speaking is a great PR tactic. Whether it means being a speaker on podcasts or at local business gatherings, academic events, or industry conferences, public speaking promotes your brand. It helps you to connect with potential clients. In addition, the event at which you appear may be covered by the media, which means free, organic press coverage for you and your brand.

Invest in quality photography

Imagery in branding has never been more critical. Every social platform is a visual platform. Every media outlet features photos in its articles. If you want to stand out in these places, providing stand-out photography is essential. If your field is photography, take your pictures. If not, hire a professional. Even if you are developing your brand on a budget, this will be money well spent.

Go after a business award

It is never wrong to have “award-winning” appear in your bio — achieving awards in specific fields is easier than you think. Various organisations sponsor awards regularly, including publications, professional societies, and local business groups. Sometimes, winning the award is as easy as getting the most votes, which you can do by leveraging your social media followers. Googling “small business awards” will point you in the right direction.

Make friends with the media

Your ultimate PR goal is getting your brand covered by media outlets. This means that, eventually, you will need to gain a journalist’s or editor’s support. The better your relationship with them, the easier this will be to accomplish.

Once you have targeted some relevant media outlets to your brand, identify who writes for them. Find them on social media, follow them, comment on their posts, and make just enough noise to get noticed but stop short of being annoying. This work will pay off when you start pitching yourself to the media and differentiate your brand from the others that make their way into the outlet’s inbox.