Is getting some press coverage something you’d love to achieve for your pet business?
You might see other people in the industry getting brilliant media coverage and wonder ‘how do they do it?’
Well, the good news is you don’t need a huge budget and a fancy PR company to appear in the media and make sure your business is seen.
In this podcast episode I’m sharing five simple steps you can follow to if you’d like to Get Your Pet Business in the Press.
There’s also a PDF you can download here that takes you through each step, with space for notes and ideas and additional resources.
You can listen in on the player link below or carry on reading as a blog post.
Step One: Who do you want to reach?
When you’re looking to get publicity for your pet business, it’s really important to think about the audience you want to reach.
If you’re a dog walker, groomer, pet sitter or cat behaviourist people who are living in the local area where you operate need to know about your services.
As an online business, you might want to reach people on a wider scale – it could even be global?
Maybe you make breed specific products, like one of my clients, Michelle Burgess from Scruffy Little Terrier.
She has an accessory and lifestyle brand for terrier owners, so it’s vital she’s known by people who have terriers.
So who do you want to reach?
Step Two: Where do you want to be featured?
You know who you want to reach so the next step is how to reach them.
Who are they tuned into? What are they reading? What do they listen to? Who do they follow? Are there any social media influencers they admire?
Let’s say you’re a trainer and you specialise in working with Dachshunds.
Is there a podcast or blog for Dachshund owners?
If so, this is the perfect place for you to reach your ideal client.
Maybe your research has revealed your ideal client reads Woman and Home magazine.
This is where you would aim to be featured.
If you’re a local service provider, go to the media outlets that cover your area, so newspapers, magazines, websites, radio and TV.
Learn more: How to find places to pitch stories to for your local service business
Step Three: What’s your story?
If you go to the journalist and say ‘write about my business’ they’ll tell you to take out an advert.
It’s vital to be creative and think of something around your pet business that people will find interesting and craft a newsworthy story.
You might be thinking, ‘I don’t have a story, how on earth do I do that?’
So here are a few ideas…
Did you have a lightbulb moment that led to you starting your pet business?
Is there something in the news you can relate to? A rise in naughty puppies? A report on increased spending on pets?
Do you own or have you worked with an inspiring animal?
Maybe you left your former career to work with animals?
Are you involved in supporting a charity or community project?
You might think that you don’t have a story because your life is ‘normal’ to you but I promise you will have something interesting to say!
Step Four: Find the right person to pitch to
Great, so we’ve worked out who we want to reach, we’ve chosen the places where their eyes and ears are, and we’ve figured out the story we want to tell.
So who do we send it to?
It’s really important that you find the journalist working on the publication who’s going to be interested in what you’ve got to say.
If you go on the website and find an e mail like editor@ or news@, chances are it’s not monitored and your message will vanish into the ether.
Take some time to research and find the right person you want to approach and if you’re stuck, call the news desk and ask.
Another tip is to find a writer who covers your ‘patch’ which could be a village or suburb.
This is exactly what Karen Boyce, owner of Beastly Thoughts Professional dog services, did when contacting her local magazine in Wrexham.
She landed a regular monthly column – meaning she can attract new clients for her training services and pet shop.
Once you’ve established a relationship with these reporters, you can work on becoming their go-to person like Karen has.
Step five: Writing your pitch
This is really simple, please don’t overthink it!
All you need to do is give a brief summary of what your story is about.
Here are some prompts for you to follow.
• Start with a friendly introduction, keep it short and simple
• Your pitch should be no longer than 150 to 200 words
• Include your phone number because the journalist may need to chat
• Be prepared – often you get a call straight away. This can sometimes throw you off guard, so do your preparation.
You can download my Five Steps to Get Your Pet Business in the Press eBook that takes you through each step and has additional resources.
Click here to get your copy.
Want to work on this?
It’s the place to be if you want to get your pet business noticed and be around like minded pet professionals.
Learn more and join for just £30 a month here: https://publicityforpetbusinesses.mykajabi.com/pets-get-visible
Links mentioned in this episode
Read How to prepare for an interview in ten simple steps
Is my Pets Get Visible membership right for you?
Keep in touch in the Publicity for Pet Businesses Facebook community
