Online PR Best Practices Archives

Top 6 Online PR Best Practices for Small Businesses

September 28, 2022

We currently live in a world where for a small business to thrive and grow, its reputation must be stellar hence the main reason for creative public relations practices. Since almost all aspects of our lives are online, having traditional public relations isn’t enough; you must also invest in online public relations. Online public relations mainly entail portraying your business in a favorable image online. Over time companies that have engaged in online public relations have seen an increase in their customer base and profit; if you are interested in joining this revolution, read on since this post will give you the top 6 best online PR practices for a small business.

1. Create An Online Media Kit

What’s a media kit, you ask? A media kit is a simple package of information about your business. The information stored in a media kit may be in video and image format or a document. A media kit can be an effective digital marketing tool since it acts as your business’s online PR ambassador 24/7.

The media kit is mainly created for the press or researchers looking for information about your business or sector. Since you are responsible for creating your business media kit, you should ensure that you paint the business in a positive light. Also, ensure that your media kit is stored online where anyone seeking information about your business can find it.

2. Engage in social media And Build Relationships with Influencers

As things currently stand, social media is the most efficient and reliable marketing tool. Social media can also be used as a digital PR tool since it enables you to engage with your clients directly. Remember, social media also acts as a record keeper; any interaction is recorded.

To boost your PR, always ensure all your social media interactions are positive, especially due to the rise of cancel culture. At times your social media following may not be enough hence the need for influencers.

Influencers are social media content creators with large followings. By building relationships and engaging with the influencers, you’ll have a ready online PR team to help create positive awareness about the business.

3. Blogging

Online blogs are a very dependable digital PR tool since, if we are being honest, most of us get information about businesses and different products and services by reading online blogs. So why not write a blog about your business so that you can positively build its reputation?

Remember, one way to make your business blog reputable is by ensuring consistency of information and using reputable sources. You can also hire renowned blog writers or blogs to help you since they have the experience and expertise to write positive blogs that can lead to good PR for your business.

4. Online Press Release

One of the quickest ways to get information about a business to consumers is through online press releases. A press release is always a short announcement written and sent to local news sources, who then release it to the public.

Since most news outlets are constantly seeking new materials for their online platforms, you can use a press release to create positive awareness about your business. The press release can contain details about how you came up with your business idea, services offered, charities or events you are organizing, and the launch of a new product or service. Remember to ensure that the press release is positive before sending it out.

5. Use PR Tracking and Monitoring Tools

In this world where digital marketing rules, there are various PR tracking and monitoring tools that you can use to track how effectively your PR campaign is going and what is being said about your business. These diagnostic tools notify you whenever a keyword of your choice is mentioned online.

A good example of such a tool is Google alerts which notifies you whenever your brand name is mentioned. Such tools are very effective in maintaining positive PR since they allow you the opportunity to counter and respond to negative perceptions about your business.

6. Use Publicity Creating Services

There are multiple publicity-creating services that can be the perfect digital PR tool. These services include HARO, PRWeb, Muck Ruck, and many more. These services help you get free publicity by linking you with reporters, researchers, journalists, and bloggers seeking sources with your expertise.

Imagine the free publicity that your business will get if you are listed as an expert on an article, blog, or news piece. Remember to ensure that you only provide your expertise in a field you are familiar with.
There is a saying that states there is nothing like bad PR; that may be true, but why risk it? So always ensure that everything about your business is honest and true since PR is about promoting and shaping peoples’ perceptions about your business. If you want to learn more about how to best implement your digital PR for your business, click here.