It is no hidden fact that anyone who runs a business wants their brand to be out there and be known by their target audience. Businesses care about how their brand is perceived because they want their brand to stand out amongst their competitors. Achieving this comes with a lot of hard work and financial investment. Now the question is “how do you get your brand out there”? Public Relations.
Not every entrepreneur would this understand early on, but for numerous reasons, Public Relations is essential for any brand, as its power cannot be over-emphasized. That is why most big brands go to the length of paying huge sums to be managed by PR Agencies. Asides using PR for brands, it can also be used to manage individuals like celebrities. Recently, Toke Makinwa was involved in a scandal, where her house was said to be seized, and different rumors kept circulating, regards the situation. A few days after, her management team sent out a press release to address the issue.
Public Relations is a good tool to manage brands, build an online reputation, tell your story, and to relate maximally with your audience. However, despite the fact that SMEs are faced with the challenges of real growth and face the threat of dying out quickly without proper exposure, many SMEs prefer to take the risk of not investing in Public Relations.
Therefore, to help brands understand the importance of PR, the three tips below will help elucidate the importance of using PR in brand management.
- CRISIS MANAGEMENT: Crisis in any organization is something that is inevitable, any one of which might seriously cause damage to your brand reputation. Regardless, with early planning and caution, it can be avoided, although some happen suddenly. When this happens, it is very important for a crisis situation to be addressed not long after the occurrence. This is when PR comes into play, helping you identify the root cause of the situation is, identifying potential issues, and making sure that communication stays consistent. This gives stakeholders a feeling of reassurance.
- PROMOTING BRAND VALUES: Credibility is vital in any business. Your audience needs to trust the authenticity of your brand because this determines how successful your brand would be in the long run. With the help of PR, you can be able to send positive messages and increase credibility by improving the organization’s reputation. Thereby, building trust in the mind of your audience.
- MEDIA MONITORING: Knowing what is being said about your brand is key, and if you are not regularly conducting media monitoring, you are missing an opportunity to manage the way your brand is perceived. This is one of the advantages of PR, it enables you to identify mentions of your brand, more like knowing what your customers, as well as the potential ones, have to say.