With the summer holiday season in full swing, many marketing teams will be operating on a reduced capacity so quick ways to secure media coverage, thereby helping to keep your firm’s services front of mind, is the order of the day. Sometimes the simplest ideas are the most effective so don’t be afraid to score some easy PR wins by focusing on a few tried and tested methods – this applies throughout the year, not just during the summer.
Below are my top five ideas for securing media coverage for your firm without too much sweat!
1. Promotions and hires: be sure to issue press releases to the legal and/or accountancy press and all relevant sector titles when there are any personnel changes or developments. Press releases on promotions and key hires are more likely to lead to media coverage if you include a high-resolution headshot so be sure to do this.
2. Charity events and pro bono events will often be picked up by diary columns in legal and accountancy titles (and local newspapers if the firm has a regional presence). These also make good topics for social media channels such as Instagram and Linkedin and help to “humanise” the firm.
3. Any ESG and CSR matters that the firm is involved with make a good news story item. However, a word of caution, don’t try and pitch anything too flimsy, only a press release about issues that are genuine and/or impressive will lead to media coverage! ESG stories might include how your firm has changed its suppliers to become greener or is embarking on the B Corp journey. Announcing that your firm has introduced a working from home policy to reduce carbon emissions might not make the grade given that the majority of professionals are now wfh to some extent!
4. Third party commentary: even if there are no big cases or client wins going on at your firm, can your lawyers offer comment to journalists on legal developments elsewhere? All professionals have to keep abreast of developments in their field so this is unlikely to involve much extra work. For example, is there any significant new legislation or regulation coming into force, is newsworthy litigation being run by another firm or, is there a topical “hook” on which your lawyers or accountants can offer insight from their own practice? Think about sporting events or other occasions coming up such as holidays. Can you hook onto a celebrity or royal story and offer a point of view from a legal perspective? Use Google News alerts to keep yourself fully up to date. You can set up a keyword for anything you want to track and Google will automatically send you an email whenever it’s mentioned. But, not only will it keep you updated on news stories, you will also see the names of the journalists and outlets covering them which could be particularly useful. Following specific journalists on social media and “liking” their posts can help initiate contact.
5. Do a survey: It’s very easy to ask your clients or colleagues what they think using an online tool such as Survey Monkey. Once you have some raw data you can easily put together a press release on your findings. The real value add – which could be offered to journalists – is commentary on the trends discovered and what this suggests for the future.
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Need some help with PR? Feel free to drop me an email to arrange a 30 minute complimentary call or take a look at some of the packages I offer law firms, accountancy practices and other b2b businesses.