How To Get Free Press Coverage For Your Startup
With the number of pitches and stories journalists are overloaded with on a daily basis, getting the right media coverage for start-up doesn’t have to be expensive or a pain in the neck. There are unique ways you can get free media coverage for your start-up.
Research shows that “14% of startups fail due to poor marketing”. Nothing should stop you from giving your product/service the right visibility it needs, not even funding.
Credit: Giphy.com
First, you need to build a great product or come up with a great service idea and then identify who your target audience is. Know where to find them and the kind of things that appeal to them.
Forbes did an article on how a Malaysian start-up, iprice Group got free press for their company. According to them, they started out by listing top media outlets in their region and setting a goal, building relationships with media personalities on different platforms, creating great content, perfecting their media pitch, and they thanking the media houses on social media.
You too can get free press coverage like iprice Group; the company got over 200 pieces of free media coverage in 9 months.
Here are some ways to get free press coverage for your start-up:
Community Forums: Take advantage of community forums that blogs and journalists may likely look at and visit often. You can take advantage of forums like Github, Product Hunt to get the press in your industry to notice the fantastic work your start-up is doing.
Genuinely reach out to them: One of the ways free press coverage is by genuinely reaching out to the media and building a long-term relationship with them. Also, before you reach out, make sure you study them and know exactly the kind of content they like so you can offer them content in that area. Offer your product samples and exciting things going on in your start-up, avoid sending generic emails, and don’t forget to follow-up.
Take advantage of social media: Social media has a way of connecting you with different types of people no matter their status or wherever they are in the industry. Research journalists and writers in your industry and follow them on social media. Gradually build relationships with them and get them to notice you; like their posts, comment on their posts, share their content, etc. After building a relationship with them online then you can contact them about covering your start-up.
Submit your articles in press websites: There are websites where you can submit your articles, and it can get picked up by the press and published if it fits what they are looking for. Here are some of the websites: prnewswire.com, prweb.com, marketwire.com, contentdig.com, pressreleasepoint.com, etc. By doing this, you have to make sure what you are submitting on these websites is interesting enough, and the media would love to publish it.
Research: Sometimes, lack of information can be a huge problem. You should identify the list of media houses that publish news and articles in your industry. Then go ahead to find out how they give coverage to start-ups like you. A simple website search can even help you clarify this. Some media houses give you the opportunity to submit your stories on their websites; some give you the chance to contact them on why they should interview you, some even give you an email address where you can send stories or news articles to and if it meets their standard; they would publish them.
Do you intend to get free media coverage for your start-up? Then you can try some of the methods suggested above.
