How PR in smaller media outlets can pave the way to Tier 1 media coverage

by SF Agency
March 24, 2023

You saw your competitor get that amazing piece in VentureBeat, right? Great PR with a quote and everything, data helping the journalist explain the impact and the larger context?

And you really, really want a media hit like that with your own PR efforts. Like, yesterday.

There’s nothing wrong with stretch goals. In fact, we encourage them. However, most companies that set out to do ambitious PR quickly march into the pitfall of wanting to go from zero to The New York Times or TechCrunch without a realistic plan on how to get to the top-of-mind of those journalists.

At its worst, a company can hire an in-house PR person or an agency, expecting stellar results within a month or two. But in most cases, that’s just not how it goes. Unless you are lucky enough to genuinely make a scientific breakthrough that changes the world overnight, it’ll take a few steps to get there.

You can roll up your sleeves without big news or announcements

No new funding lined up immediately? No cool appointments, breakthroughs or product launches? That’s not the end of your PR life. Some research into media outlets covering topics that are also relevant for your company should help you find op-ed and guest article spots quite easily.

The advantage of this kind of non-urgent content is that you don’t have to have a big, perfect story to share with your target audiences. Don’t wait until you are Apple or Uber to say something.

It’s enough to have an opinion that challenges the status quo, offers a new perspective or explores solutions to shared problems – like employee satisfaction and leadership training, the uncertain startup funding environment, or perhaps the future of sustainable food production.

Write all content as if you were writing for your dream media outlet

Found a guest article spot? Got a topic you want to highlight? Great! Make sure you follow the media outlet’s editorial guidelines for guest pieces. These can usually be easily found on the website or there is an editor you can reach out to.

Even if the media outlet you’ve discovered is a bit on the smaller side, don’t treat it like a marketing platform! Respect its audience and the editors in the same way you would if you were writing an opinion piece for WIRED.

When you provide content that the editor is happy to have on the media outlet’s website, you can bet they will give it a nice spot on the website’s front page and share it on social media. They may even tag your company.

And guess what – you can never know who might be reading that piece. We have a recent experience of submitting a guest article on behalf of our client. That carefully crafted piece of content led to an interview with a large media outlet and the company’s spokesperson being invited to a high-profile trade event as a speaker.

Now the people that company wants to reach know their name and what they do. So if you’ve got something to say, say it! There’s no better time than today to start.