Written by Some people don’t love it, but all of the forms of marketing we promote most at Karma PR involve earning the publicity you receive.
That’s the whole point though. Modern consumers see through traditional marketing campaigns, so they recognize when your business isn’t offering them any real value. That also means they’ll notice when a company steps out of the mold and focuses their efforts and advertising on things that their customers actually want to know and see.
And the bigger the effort, the bigger the reward. You think local news stations aren’t desperately looking for a good fluff story in such turbulent times? Spending $500 on a charitable effort in your community can easily land you on the morning news, getting you more attentive and trusting eyes for less than it would have cost you to actually purchase the advertising slot. 92% of customers say they trust earned media (Source: Paulson PR). That trust translates into brand loyalty that can’t be bought.
Another great thing about Earned Media is that you can do it with or without us. Simply do something meaningful in your community and contact the local news tip-line or send a press release to the newspaper. The rest should take care of itself. But if you want to be assured that your efforts get as much attention as possible, and maybe even hear a few potential ideas that we think would impact your audience in a meaningful way, then we’re always here to help.
Types of Earned Media
Local News
News outlets are constantly looking for noteworthy stories. Hosting an event or doing something in your community is an easy way to get free advertising in newspapers, magazines, TV/radio news segments, and their online contemporaries.
Reviews/Word of Mouth
The internet has provided everyone a space to voice their opinions, so you better hope you’re leaving a good impression. Good online reviews and word of mouth can be one of the most powerful tools at your disposal, but also the hardest to earn.
Partner Shoutouts
This is not influencer marketing. Here, you cultivate a symbiotic relationship with like-minded businesses in your community with the intention of collaborating or supporting each other up down the road. These types of partnerships can be very beneficial, serving as a shortcut to the trust of a new audience.
Organic Traffic
When you create content that people find valuable, your site’s ranking will continually improve in search engine results and your social media channels will gain followers. Both imply legitimacy and act as a vote of trust.
To learn more about how much strategy can go into your charitable giving, and what that can mean for your bottom line, visit our Strategic Philanthropy page.
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