A Beginner’s Guide To Building A PR Strategy

Many brands make the mistake of thinking PR is solely about getting media coverage, but successful public relations involves more than pitching journalists, writing press releases, or planning events. Before taking action, brands need to understand the intention behind their efforts and what they want their audiences to take away. What message are you trying to communicate? What do you want people to know, think, or remember about your brand?

A PR strategy gives your work direction and ensures that each opportunity supports your broader business goals.

1. Start With Your Goal

Most brands understand the importance of getting their name out there, but that doesn't mean the first step should always be pursuing press coverage. Before deciding which tactics to use, take the time to identify what your business actually needs. Are you looking to increase brand awareness, build credibility in your industry, support a product launch, reach a new audience, or generate qualified leads? Each objective may call for a different approach, which is why defining your goals early is so important.

Your goals should guide the decisions you make throughout the entire PR process, from the stories you pursue to the audiences you target and the results you measure. For example, a brand looking to establish industry credibility might prioritize expert commentary and thought leadership, while a company launching a new product may focus on media relations and relevant product coverage. When your goals are clear, your team can prioritize opportunities that serve a purpose rather than spending time on tactics that don't move the business forward.

McRae insight: PR works best when the desired business outcome comes before the tactic.

2. Know Who You’re Trying To Reach

No matter what your brand hopes to accomplish through PR, it's important to remember that your audience isn't simply a faceless group of potential customers. These are people with specific interests, needs, questions, and behaviors that influence how they discover and perceive your brand. Understanding those factors helps you determine how to communicate with them in ways that feel relevant and meaningful.

Start by considering what influences your audience's decisions, which platforms and publications they use, whose opinions they trust, and what questions they're already asking about your industry. These insights can help you identify the messages and opportunities most likely to resonate. And importantly, your audience and your media audience aren't always the same. A journalist may be the person who helps your story reach the people you actually want to reach.

Understanding both groups allows you to make more informed decisions about where your brand should show up and how it should communicate.

3. Figure Out What You Want To Be Known For

A PR strategy shouldn't focus solely on what your brand wants to promote. Public relations isn't simply another form of advertising; it's an opportunity to shape how people understand and perceive your business. Instead of asking only what you want to announce, consider a bigger question: What do we want people to associate with our brand? Maybe that's innovation, industry expertise, community involvement, a particular service, or leadership within your field.

Once you establish that positioning, use it to guide the stories you tell and the opportunities you pursue. Your media pitches, company announcements, events, executive commentary, and other communications should reinforce the qualities that make your brand distinctive. This doesn't mean repeating the same message over and over. It means finding different ways to communicate a consistent identity. When your stories connect to a recognizable message, you give audiences more opportunities to understand what your brand stands for and a stronger reason to remember it.

4. Find The Right Media Opportunities

It can be tempting to focus on the biggest publications or pursue every opportunity that comes your way. However, the value of media coverage isn't determined by audience size alone. A smaller, highly relevant publication may reach the exact people your brand wants to influence, while a large placement in an unrelated outlet may generate attention without meaningfully supporting your goals.

Start by researching where your audience gets its information and which journalists cover your industry, competitors, or areas of expertise. Consider local news outlets, trade publications, business journals, industry podcasts, and national media, depending on your objectives. Pay attention to the topics these outlets cover and the types of sources they feature. This research helps you identify opportunities where your brand can contribute something relevant rather than simply seeking visibility for its own sake. The goal isn't to be everywhere; it's to show up in the places that matter to your audience.

5. Create A PR Calendar

A successful PR strategy needs a plan for putting ideas into action. Once you've established your goals, audience, positioning, and media opportunities, a PR calendar can help organize your efforts and identify the best times to pursue them. Consider upcoming product launches, company milestones, industry events, seasonal trends, relevant awareness months, award deadlines, and other moments that could create opportunities for your brand to join a larger conversation.

Planning also gives your team time to develop story angles, prepare spokespeople, research journalists, and coordinate messaging across communications channels. However, a PR calendar shouldn't be so rigid that it prevents you from responding to unexpected opportunities. News moves quickly, and an emerging industry trend or timely news story may create a relevant opening for your brand to contribute its expertise. Your team should be able to balance proactive planning with timely responses. The result is a more organized, intentional approach that keeps your brand prepared without missing opportunities as they come.

A strong PR strategy doesn't need to be complicated. It needs to connect what your business wants to accomplish with the stories, audiences, and opportunities that can help get you there.

The best PR strategies also aren't static. As your business changes, your audience changes, and the media landscape changes, your strategy should evolve with it.

The McRae Agency has been helping brands build visibility, credibility, and meaningful connections through strategic communications for over 30 years. From public relations and media relations to marketing, social media, and strategic AI, our team helps businesses identify opportunities and develop strategies that move the needle 

Ready to take that step? Contact beth@mcraeagency.com for a complimentary brand consultation. 

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