PR reputation — Blog for Surrey-based Communications Agency

It's been a while since I sat in a newsroom of any description. It's not that I don't still write and submit articles, I do that all the time - it's just that since I moved across into PR - I've been able to be more creative in telling the stories of those brands and entrepreneurs that I work with.

So on Friday, I thought it would be a good idea to go along to a workshop to find out the current do's and don'ts in the Journalistic world.

And it turns out, they're much the same as they always were - but with one or two additions.

How To Turn a Disaster Into Something Special...

Running your own business can be a real rollercoaster ride. One minute things are going swimmingly, and the next you're served a curve ball, that if you let it, can really set you back.

Take my first ever PR stunt for instance. There I was, six weeks into my new job at a creative PR agency, on a train to Blackpool. The idea was to have a large-scale sand drawing of a Monsters Inc. character on the beach with the infamous tower in the background. I'd spent 13 years working as a Journalist, so had no clue how to make everything piece together. You could say I was well and truly out of my depth….

I wrote a book but was scared to PR myself...

I remember standing in my kitchen looking out of the window. It was October 2016 and I had butterflies. In short, I was scared.

I'd made the decision to self-publish my first children's picture book and I felt clueless about how to let people know what I'd created.

All of those 'what if' questions were whirling around my head. What if no one liked it, what if it didn't sell, but more importantly what if I couldn't find a publicist to help me with PR?

Feel The Fear And Do It Anyway...

I remember when it came to bringing out my first children’s book. I searched high and low for a PR expert who could help me get more visible, and make those all-important parents aware of my story and the messages it contained.

I reasoned, that even though I had several years PR experience under my belt, I’d never publicised a book before and so surely it was better to work with those who had.

Building Your PR Reputation...

If you’re just starting to secure some PR for you and your business the likelihood is that you will need to start small before you land some bigger coverage.

I often suggest for those at the start of their journey to aim for lesser known titles and then build up your body of work until you’re able to secure larger, national publications.