The Case For PR - Creating Credibility

This is the third installment of our "Case for PR" series. We've put together a series of topics to examine the various ways in which a public relations strategy can help a firm grow.

Our series covers the following topics. Stay tuned in the months to come to see the remaining installments.

How important is trust to investors? Some would say it’s the most important quality. When your firm and brand are unfamiliar, building trust can be a steep slope and may take a lot of time. One key way to accelerate the process is by deploying a media strategy. By using traditional print and broadcast media, you enhance awareness of your brand.

How?

Position your executives as thought leaders - a fancy way of saying expert - on timely and important topics that drive the markets up and down. By having a voice in the media, your viewpoint is shared along with the basics: your name, your title and firm or product name. This is branding via creating awareness.

Once the interview is over it doesn’t have to end there. Consider obtaining reprint rights to your media mentions.

After obtaining a quote or video/audio clip from a broadcast interview, you can then leverage the clip by sharing it with current and potential clients, listing it on your site and social media platforms.

You can send an email to your database linking to the press piece or share it to your blog. Essentially, digital marketing strategies use the clip as a marketing piece in support of your messaging, brand and suite of marketing strategies. A good media interview can be “the gift that keeps on giving.”

Third party endorsement factor

Your traditional marketing pieces can tell the world who you are and what you stand for. Depending on budgetary resources, you can shout all of this to the world (i.e. your vital client categories) sharing materials across various platforms. Even then, your message might not resonate or seem too promotional. Just because YOU think you’re great – does that mean you really are?

When you share press coverage, there’s an implied credibility factor that comes from a perceived endorsement via the press. Why would your expertise be sought if it’s not valuable? Clearly, you must be knowledgeable or why would they be seeking your thoughts and input?

Example

If you’re an expert in small caps, it’s important to have a voice in the narrative that supports allocating assets to small caps. Your thought leadership should not only make the case overall for an allocation to the category, but then to your specific and unique approach.

Over time, as you’re quoted and featured in small-cap investing stories, investors come to associate you with the category and when the time comes to seek an associated product, the aim is for your firm to be top of mind. Thanks to your media coverage, you’re likely now viewed as a thought leader in the small-cap category.

The other side

It’s implied that to have credibility, you need to truly be an expert on the subject matter and be armed with ample facts, anecdotes, experiences, research and analysis to convey an informed point of view. Having a compelling investment performance track record bolsters credibility too.  

You must also communicate in a clear and effective way, both verbally and sometimes even more importantly, nonverbally. Be mindful of eye contact, fidgeting, posture, speed of response and fillers such as like, um, ah and so forth. These are especially important in on-camera interview scenarios. Often, the interviewee isn’t aware of how these nonverbal cues are perceived. Without even realizing it you may be undermining your own credibility.

Media training with on-camera exercises and playback for review and critique can help mitigate potential issues that might impact credibility.  

Takeaway

Generating good press is a process. I repeat, generating good press is a process. It does not happen overnight. A commitment must be made and then you must have patience as it’s implemented one interview, one quote, one 30 second broadcast snip at a time. Credibility is generated over time with the implication that trust and eventually investor engagement is enhanced by using this powerful tool. 

Ready to kick off that PR program? Let's talk!