Business mentor: Get your company out there through PR, networking

Q. I have decided to take on extra staff to grow my business this year, but will need to put more business through to offset the costs. How can I increase my company's profile without forking out more money on advertising?

A. Claire Fouhy, public relations, events and sponsorship consultant, replies:

I would recommend investigating public relations and networking activities and, if you seek out what is going on locally, you may well uncover some cost- effective opportunities.

Don't underestimate networking events as a useful way to kickstart new business relationships.

Chambers of Commerce and Rotary Clubs run events well attended by those in the business community. There is a joining fee, but you will get the opportunity to use their business network whether you are doing business in Nelson or Nevada.

Their regular newsletters and functions are good ways to build local contacts.

You can also contact your local economic development agency to find out if it has a local business excellence award. Find out when the submissions close and when the prize-giving dinner is scheduled.

Enterprise Manukau, for example, runs one of the largest of these events, hosting on average 750 guests at its Business Excellence Awards.

Last year's winner of the Small Business category, United Campervans, has enjoyed a greater local profile and increased marketing success overseas from winning the award.

Operations manager Karol Brooks says the company put the award details on its letterhead and this has made selling the company's services to its European markets easier.

The discipline required to work through the submission process was used as an opportunity to tighten up systems and procedures, impacting on the overall effectiveness of the business.

When it comes to public relations, it may sound obvious, but read regularly the publication you would like to appear in and make a note of who is writing business- oriented stories or lifestyle articles which refer to products and services.

Most stories cover what, who, when, why and how and you will need to cover these bases, but the real key is how these elements are told.

You will note that most articles include some form of announcement or achievement, third-party endorsement and often a photo.

These are the elements that give the story colour, relevance and a human touch.

Once you have thought about how you are going to tell your story and the best person to approach at your target publication, you will likely have better success when you try to pitch it in.

You will note a large amount of milestone-style coverage of contract wins (eg, local firm wins national contract), customer thresholds (eg, 11,000 people log on in 15 minutes) and appointment announcements in business press.

Use what you see in print as a benchmark of the types of things that might be acceptable to journalists, then work up a variant.

Most small-business owners assume there is nothing newsworthy about their business and that they have no angles, but consider your site, the length of time you have been operating, the make-up of your business partnerships, how your customers use your products, the number sold or editions launched as potential story angles.

MediaSearch, one of New Zealand's largest media clippings services, regularly searches more than 400 publications for its clients' coverage, including quarterly, monthly and weekly publications ranging from regional dailies and community newspapers to specialist publications such as Performance Cars, Pig Hunter and Aviation News.

You can choose to contract a public relations firm or consultant to develop a strategy to support your business objectives, outline the target groups and publications, implement it and report back to you on the success of the programme. The Public Relations Institute has a comprehensive listing of firms that you can search on its website.

* Email Claire Fouhy or call 021-408-999 or email:

* Email us your small business question

Answers courtesy of Spring - A State of Mind for Business.

Public Relations Institute

NZ Chambers Of Commerce Directory

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