Seven easy tips to keep your PR ticking over during the summer break

While the UK isn’t quite on a par with France and it’s August shutdown – when workers leave the cities and head for the coast for the entire month – taking a break over summer is non-negotiable for most of us.

The benefits of a period of rest and recuperation for our mental health and, physical wellbeing can’t be underestimated. I think the British statesman, John Lubbock hit the nail on the head when he said;

“Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer’s day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.’

As the summer holiday season gets underway, many PR and marketing teams will be operating on a reduced capacity and will need to work smarter not harder to secure media coverage and produce relevant content.

Keeping your law firm, its brand and its lawyers front of mind over this quiet period is a must and there are some tried and tested methods which should ensure some easy PR wins.

Remember, that the simplest ideas are often the most effective so don’t be afraid to score some easy points – and this applies throughout the year, not just during the summer.

Here are my top seven tips for securing media coverage and exposure for your firm without too much sweat!

Press releases on firm news : be sure to issue press releases to the legal press and all relevant sector titles on firm news. For example, on key deals, pro bono initiatives and when there are any personnel changes or developments. Remember that 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.
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.
Any ESG matters that the firm is involved with make a good news story. But, don’t try and pitch anything too flimsy! 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!
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 on news stories which have a legal angle? 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?
Use Google News and other online alerts to keep yourself fully up to date on stories which might offer a good “hook”. You can set up a keyword for anything you want to track and Google will automatically send you an email whenever it’s mentioned. 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.
Repurpose historic posts – probably the easiest point to action when capacity is low is to review historic blogs and see if any themes could be hooked to current news stories and pitched to the media or simply updated and posted on social media and on your website.
Use a scheduler like Buffer and/or LinkedIn’s own scheduler tool to ensure that new or revamped content continues to be posted regularly and consistently on social media. This link will take you to instructions on how to use LinkedIn’s scheduler tool which is new to the platform. Scheduling posts in advance will free up valuable time enabling your comms team to focus efforts elsewhere.

Seven easy tips to keep your PR ticking over during the summer break

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