Genevieve Thiers is founder and CEO of Sittercity. Sittercity connects parents with caregivers in their area. Thiers earned a spot on Crain's coveted 40 Under 40 List in 2006 and was recognized by President Bush as the SBA's Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 2006. In addition to these impressive credentials, knowist thinks of Thiers as a master in Public Relations.
Knowist: What does it take to become a PR expert?
Thiers: It definitely takes creativity, careful strategies and an acute awareness of the brand.
As far as the creative aspect goes, you need unique pitch angles and interesting story ideas, otherwise no one will want to write about you or feature you on-air. You must give them something that has substance, something carefully thought through.
Strategy-wise, you must be able to network and foster relationships with producers/editors/other PR professionals. It's important to think about everything from that person's perspective. What does their audience want to see? What have they recently reported on (so you can determine what to stay away from to avoid redundancy)? It's not just all about you and what kind of coverage you can get. You also have to follow up with these people, be flexible and accommodating (sometimes they'll want an interview at the last minute!), and remain committed to keeping in touch. Meet for drinks, meet for lunch and put in that valuable face time so you can get to know them and their needs.
For brand awareness, you have to be well aware of what image you want to portray. Sittercity, for example, is a trust-based business. It is absolutely essential that we let people see how trustworthy and safe we are. At the same time, we work in child care, so having fun is also a part of our brand. Whenever I go on interviews, I know I am representing our brand, so I make sure that everything from my tone to my outfit reflects the image we want to portray: safe, trustworthy, fun and approachable.
You also have to understand that PR encompasses so much more than just media appearances. It's also about going on speaking engagements, entering award submissions and other similar things that help generate awareness of your organization.
Knowist: I've heard the theory that a thoughtful social media approach is more valuable than PR. What's your thoughts on that?
Theirs: Both are extremely important. I don't believe in getting into a discussion of what's more valuable because what exactly determines "value" anyway? With PR, you can easily see how many hits you get, how many impressions those hits earn and other quantifiable things. With social media, it's different. Measurement is harder and results may not come as quickly. Being on Twitter has done wonders for Sittercity in helping us connect with current and potential members, and further understand their needs; we know that, but we haven't quite "measured" the value of it.
For me and for Sittercity, an integrated approach offers the most value!
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