It’s a common question, should we run an ad or invest in public relations (PR)? Well, what about doing both?
Numerous studies show PR and sales work hand-in-hand and yield better results that way. According to this article in Entrepreneur magazine, PR can help bring awareness to a topic before sales ever get involved. This helps the sales force earn more business because people have the general knowledge of the topic thanks to the PR campaign.
Red Shoes Inc. has used this tactic in the past, and it has played well for our clients. Here are a few case studies. We have removed the client names for their privacy.
- A public transportation company launched a new app. They needed to build awareness of the app to get riders to download and use it. Avoiding the high cost of running ads about this new service, they ran a PR campaign. Through numerous media stories that were strictly editorial coverage (i.e. free), the app received a ton of downloads and attention, proving the effectiveness of a PR campaign and working with the media.
- An non-profit was launching the largest campaign of its existence. They ran very few ads but did a lot of PR. When the sales reps approached businesses in the community looking to have their financial backing on this project, the companies were more than willing to donate because they had heard about the initiative on the news and wanted to be a part of history.
It’s important to remember that today’s media outlets don’t publish their stories to just broadcast news or print; their stories run online and on social platforms, exponentially extending their reach.
Above all, PR is for building brand recognition and awareness by getting stories for a company published in national and local news outlets to enhance their credibility.
If you’re looking to build your brand awareness or want help in PR or marketing, call Red Shoes at (920) 574-3253.
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