Originally written by Simran Ghata-Aura on Small Business
It’s almost October – a month associated with leafy trails and spooky surprises. If you’re struggling for seasonal press release inspiration, here are five ideas to stir the pot (or cauldron).
Halloween

Boo! Halloween will be popular for businesses and retailers during October.
This is a great month for you to get creative with the creepy, eerie, horror theme. Clothing, decor, music and food will be on people’s minds and whether you want to go strong or subtle, there are many ways to get involved.
Journalists working on product-based articles will want to hear about special offers and promotions you have for Halloween. If you’re a food or clothing brand – or perhaps you’re hosting a fancy-dress themed event – let your audience know.
Autumn

It’s autumn, so the nights are getting longer, the weather is getting chillier and there’s pumpkin spice in just about everything.
Have you got anything seasonally-appropriate for the autumn? Make sure to let your audience know if you have made any seasonal changes or additions to your range such as new food, drinks, clothing collections or even the addition of some autumn decor in your retail space.
Sober October

It’s Sober October this month so many people

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Originally written by Simran Ghata-Aura on Small Business
With the start of the new school term, there are many different PR avenues for you to venture down.
Here are five key press release ideas to help with your marketing strategy.
School clothing, accessories and products
Parents will be replenishing their children’s school stock in preparation for the new school term. Now is a great time to get your brand name out to parents who have left their shopping until later.
Have you recently released a new collection of school backpacks or have any two-for-one promotions on school sportswear? Do you have a stationery business? Make sure you mention any new launches, releases and promotions in a press release. Ask the titles that you’re targeting if they’re doing any product round-ups.
Healthy school lunches
Dietary health for children in a growing concern. One of the key challenges is making healthy food interesting, exciting and tasty so that children can maintain a nutritious diet.
This could present an opportunity if your business advocates healthy school lunches. You could promote a new kitchen gadget to make fruit and veg more interesting in packed lunches or launch healthy snacks for parents to give their children.
What’s more, the number of vegan and vegetarians

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Originally written by Alison Shadrack on Small Business
Your press pack, or media kit, is essential in getting your small business noticed.
Without it, you could miss out on some brilliant media opportunities which will lead to more and more opportunities for building your expert status and professional reputation.
Don’t wait until a media representative contacts you – instead, put your press pack together now so it’s immediately available when needed.
Journalists work to tight deadlines and the speed with which you respond to requests will often determine how much, and what type of, coverage your business receives.
What is a press pack/media kit?
It’s a compilation of information and evidence that gives journalists everything they’ll need to not only verify your expert status, but to use as support for their story.
What should I include in my press pack?
Here’s what I suggest you prepare before you submit your first press release.
Company profile document
This should be ideally one page but no more than two. Make sure that it’s formal in tone, factual, succinct and includes the following:

Positioning statement (what makes your business unique from its competitors, and how it fits into the market)
Mission statement (a short declaration that includes the purpose of the company, whom it serves,

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Originally written by Owen Gough on Small Business
Think of your company’s name and reputation as an elite athlete. It has to be in constant training to stay in the media. You can’t just pitch up once a year at the racetrack and expect to win the race. Your competitors who have been out there in all weathers, missing nights out with friends so they could pound the treadmill, will take the glory.
Just like muscle, reputation builds and strengthens over time. You have to do the hours to earn the right to be written about in the press. And that takes planning. This is a simple guide to making a small business PR plan that will get you media attention. But a word of caution. A gym membership does not guarantee the body beautiful. You have to turn up day in day out to achieve your goals.
The goal
Know where you are going. Aim to agree a clear statement of the objectives for your PR plan. Use these questions to help you identify your objectives:

Why are you communicating?
What are you hoping to achieve?
What do you want people to do as a result of your PR?
Do you want people to:
know your name?
know what

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When running a new start-up or small business, you may often feel like the odds are stacked against you as you try to take on bigger, established Goliaths and break into new markets. However, it should help to remember that David won his duel with Goliath because he used the right weapon. For a small
The post PR and communications: how David can take on Goliath with the right message appeared first on Small Business.

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