What does a marketing communications / PR firm do?

A marketing and PR firm helps you define and refine your brand presentation to align with your company DNA and position in the marketplace. We work with you to ensure that your marketing aligns with and supports your business goals.

From there, we help you refine your key messages and presentation of them so that they help increase awareness, pull your ideal customers to you and support every aspect of your brand.

We design marketing materials such as flyers, brochures, social media messaging materials, blog content, website content). We also recommend appropriate channels in which to communicate. These channels can be Owned (your website, your social media channels and blog); Earned (media mentions, earned media, shared and comments on posts on social and on your website); Paid (paid social media advertising, print advertising, digital advertising such as pay per click, etc.) 

When should I work with a marketing communications / PR firm?

You should work with a marketing communications and PR firm when your efforts to market your company, services and present yourself to the world are not achieving the goals you expect. 

If your business is growing and your time is limited or you know that your marketing is not hitting the mark, it’s time to consult a professional. 

If you feel you do not know what to do to market your company, you may wish to consider working with a marketing consultant. 

Many entrepreneurs can work on their own to promote their businesses. In fact, many entrepreneurs enjoy the challenges of marketing their services. However, even these very involved individuals may need some mentoring and support to be certain their marketing goals align with their wishes. In such cases, a professional may be the perfect individual to guide you, allowing you to do the actual implementation.

What are the best ways to increase awareness of my business?

There is no one best way to increase awareness of your business. Methods used to promote it are determined based on your customers and their needs. 

When working with a professional to figure out the best ways to market your business, you can expect to answer a lot of questions to help us understand your product, services and when and how people need and use them. Only after we have these insights can we properly provide guidance.

Amanda Milligan of Fractl, authored a blog post for MOZ on the topic of marketing tactics and wrote,

“It’s critical to analyze the attitudes and behaviors of your current and potential clients/customers in order to best communicate with them in the methods they prefer.”

Fractl’s survey, which is cited in her article, notes that for most business leaders, being found in search results is critical to success.

She also noted that very few tactics die out. We’re always hearing about the end of some (formerly highly utilized) ad type which is at risk for imminent death. The truth is that there are fads and phases in advertising, marketing and PR. 

Today’s influencers are yesterday’s local celebs. Instagram TV is today’s version of local access TV. 

However, with this being true, there are some ways of getting out in front of your potential customers that are better received than others. One of these which showed up as better liked is blogging.

We also learned from the Fractl survey that most people who seek new products or services utilize the Internet to find or identify what they need.

Given these findings, making certain that your company ranks well and shows up is critical. In order to make this happen, a carefully crafted content plan and tactical strategy is required as is ongoing commitment to publicizing your existing content.

If you need assistance identifying your potential customers, or how to gain awareness or increase your potential customers, get a complimentary marketing analysis. We would be pleased to offer you an initial conversation at no cost.

Photo by You X Ventures on Unsplash