Utilize these strategies to secure wide-reaching media coverage and build credibility, boost visibility, and attract new clients.
As a marketing director for a design-build firm in a top 10 U.S. metro area, I’ve experienced the powerful role earned media can play in providing opportunities to increase industry exposure. Unlike paid advertisements, earned media is the publicity a brand organically receives from third-party sources without paying a fee. This form of media can serve as a testament to the firm’s reputation, quality of work, and industry relevance. In recent years, we’ve secured wide-reaching earned media coverage by implementing select strategies.
Here’s how we did it, and how your firm’s marketing team can too:
- Market research. The first step is to develop an extensive list of potential earned media sources that are aligned with your firm’s work. It’s important to include a full array of opportunities such as national publications, social media channels, awards, television, and local publications and news sources.
- Prioritize high-ranking search engine optimization opportunities. I would recommend initially focusing on publications that rank well on the first page of search engine results pages (SERPs); for relevant, high-value keyword searches like “[city name] architecture firms.” Through easily accessible software options, your marketing team can analyze keyword data such as national and local monthly search volumes and estimated cost-per-click for the top of the page of the SERPs. The data will help your team determine which keywords provide the most potential opportunity, as well as commercial value. For example, the higher the estimated cost-per-click equates to a higher value keyword search as it has a commercial or transactional intent. By securing placements on these pages, three impactful benefits are achieved:
- Visibility. Your firm gains greater online visibility for high-value keyword searches, attracting potential clients who are actively searching for the services you offer.
- Consistent lead generation. Currently, more than 80 percent of our firm’s potential client inquiries are from online searches. By securing strong brand positioning among relevant search results, your firm can build digital reach that can over time become a steady source of new leads over extended periods.
- Backlinks. High-authority sites linking back to your firm’s website can significantly improve its visibility and performance on high-value SERPs. Link building is arguably the most important component of ranking well. Gaining backlinks or links back to your site from other relevant and trusted sites sends signals to search engines that the linked website content is valuable, credible, and useful. Interestingly, backlinks formed the foundation of Google’s original algorithm published in 1998, known as “PageRank.”
- Direct outreach to decision-makers, editors, and journalists. All earned media we have secured started with cold outreach, whether through a call or email.
- Identify key contacts. Locate the names of editors and journalists who author relevant articles. While these contacts are not always openly displayed, a variety of software platforms assist in locating direct contacts, such as a professional email address.
- Craft a compelling pitch. To craft an effective pitch, start with an engaging subject line. Make sure the content is highly relevant to the targeted audience. Remember that less is more, so keep the email body succinct. Highlight the most noteworthy points of interest and perceived connections to the audience in the first few lines, ensuring the message is customized rather than generic. Finally, close with a question to elicit a response.
- Go directly to the top. We have experienced success in securing earned media is considerably higher when contacting high-level editors and journalists directly, rather than through general inquiry channels. For example, through an email to an editor-in-chief, we secured an eight-page feature spread in an industry-relevant national publication that prints more than 1 million copies of each issue.
- Leverage social media. Social media platforms like LinkedIn have massive audience reach potential in your target markets. Sending direct messages on platforms can be an effective way to connect with decision-makers at scale.
- Local opportunities. Don’t overlook local earned media opportunities. Local television segments, podcasts, and publications can be valuable platforms to showcase your firm’s work and services. Depending on your firm’s location, these “local” channels could reach millions of people who reside in your firm’s target markets.
- Consistency wins. Consistency is key to securing continued earned media coverage that can strengthen your firm’s presence in the industry. By maintaining regular and strategic outreach efforts, your firm’s marketing team can develop connections with decision-makers, editors, and other gatekeepers, creating accelerated pathways to publication and unlocking the doors to industry-relevant connections and opportunities.
Justin Stephenson is the marketing director at 180 Degrees Design + Build. He specializes in implementing growth strategies through strategic search engine optimization, paid advertising, earned media, and business development. Contact him at jstephenson@180degreesinc.com.
