Press is good; surround-sound marketing and branding is better
“A big media placement is nice. But it’s not going to move the needle on its own,” says James Davis, who puts clients in everything from local radio to USA TODAY. He used to manage crisis communications for the Secretary of Defense; now, he runs a company that specializes in creating valuable connections across industries and in the press.
As Davis puts it, you can’t squeeze all the juice out of your media lemon without having a great marketing strategy.
A single Washington Post article, CNBC appearance or NPR hit is like getting a big contract — it looks and feels good, and it will help. However, it’s just a blip in the life cycle of your business without a supporting strategy and marketing infrastructure.
Done right, press and marketing create far more value together than they can separately. You and your competition likely share many of the same marketing and branding tactics — personal and company LinkedIn accounts, quality websites, and e-mail lists. However, many companies don’t see value in media coverage, so they don’t invest in it. This gives you an opportunity to stand out with prospects and create more leads.
While the competition uses hashtags in short social media posts, you can share deep insights in trusted media. Their social media content will be about them — a clear sales pitch. Yours will lead to your media coverage — a lighter touch that pays long-term trust dividends and may earn more engagement.
For most complex sales, press coverage won’t be the deciding factor for a prospect becoming a client. But it’s one of the many touchpoints that can earn trust before, during and after negotiations.
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