PR is a critical component in the marketing and communications program of today’s software and technology companies. It is the means through which companies stay in touch with news publications and the editors behind them.

Here’s what building a PR program entails:

• Identify the leading technology and business news sources in your industry.

• Keep abreast of editorial calendars. If you see that a publication is covering a particular industry and you happen to have a customer in that industry, reach out to that editor immediately and try to make a connection.

• Build relationships with editors. Try to create an ongoing dialogue with them through email or social media. Discuss story ideas. Offer them access to company executives, subject matter experts, customers, and partners.

• Comment on articles that editors have written. Let them know that you have been reading what they are writing.

• Go where the editors go. There’s no substitute for establishing a face to face relationship with some editors. Follow which trade shows and events they attend. Have coffee, a meal, or a brief conversation with them. Invest in a lasting business relationship with them and it may pay huge dividends down the road.

• Invite editors to your corporate events. Exhibiting at a trade show? Invite the editor to drop by your booth. Holding a seminar or webcast? Make sure editors know about it. And be sure to offer them links to the event recording after the fact. You never know. If the editor happens to be in the area or is on a tour of their own, perhaps they’ll stop by.

• Build a PR team to keep your company in the thick of things. Most companies use a hybrid model – they hire a Director of PR to manage a global network of PR agencies and freelancers. It’s imperative that these resources meet and talk on a regular basis. They are the ones projecting your company’s image around the world, so their messaging must be consistent. They are also in a position to collect information from the field i.e. conduct video interviews with members of the management team, subject matter experts in their geography, customers, and partners. Your PR assets should be constantly adding to your respository of video content. This video can prove invaluable and be used in a number of ways such as talking heads on the company’s website as the basis for magazine articles, and as video snippets to be shared via social media channels.

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Left: Click on the article to view it online at CMSWire
Above: This video interview developed for and embedded into the CMSWire article.