Your PR checklist for 2024

The start of the new year is the perfect time to revisit your communications plan so you can make 2024 your most successful year yet!

Here are our must-haves for a successful and effective communications plan in 2024:

Press releases

The PR in your PR checklist! A well-written press release details all aspects of your story, providing your audience with clear and concise information on who you are, your positive news and why it matters. Regular press releases can increase brand recognition, making your business more memorable and this form of content can be repurposed into additional forms of media such as blogs and social media posts.

Blogs

Less formal and more frequent than press releases, blogs are a great way to keep your website’s audience up to date with your latest news and insights. You can show your audience your expertise in your field, building trust in your services and reputation and prompt people to start conversations about specific topics. Our top tip? Always include a call to action.

Blogs can also be SEO optimised by using specific keywords and phrases to generate traffic to your website.

Social media

Easy, affordable and accessible, social media can get your business in front of your audience every day for little to no price. By using this form of content strategically, you can increase your brand awareness with regular, engaging posts, drive more clicks to your website and build relationships with your audience. Social media welcomes open communication with your audience, as they can comment, respond or directly message your business. When posting your content or replying to your audience, make sure you follow your brand guidelines in terms of tone, appropriate language and business messaging.

Social media platforms come with access to analytics so be sure to check these to assess what content is working and what isn’t. This will result in a curated and effective social media plan.

Emails and newsletters

This is a more direct way to connect with your existing audience who already have an interest in your business, products and services. With programmes dedicated to email and newsletter distribution, you can create customised and branded templates for your email campaigns. By regularly keeping your audience updated on your news and offers, this form of content can strengthen your relationships, building familiarity and reliability in your customers’ inboxes. Don’t forget to regularly remind your audience to check out your website to generate more online footfall.

Design

A good starting point when it comes to design is agreeing and implementing your brand guidelines. Having distinct and clear brand guidelines will help you create consistent brand designs and messaging, stand out from your competitors and be memorable to your audience.

Brand guidelines establish the unique identity of your business and outline everything from typography to colour palettes. It’s just as important for established businesses as it is for those starting out. When finalised, these rules can translate across any format and you will have a consistent brand image across your website, emails and newsletters, social media posts and other marketing materials.

Video

Video is a creative way to tell your story through visuals and sound. Start by choosing the best type of video for your business and the message you want to convey. Training videos can present educational content in an engaging way, while Q&A videos are a quick and easy way to build trust and communication between your business and audience.

Like blogs, video will get people talking about your business and like design, it can utilised and optimised for multiple platforms including social media, your website, blog posts and e-newsletters.

Proofreading

Proofreading of your content is vital to ensure that no information could be misconstrued. Protect the credibility of your business by presenting clear and understandable content with no sloppy errors or simple, avoidable mistakes!

Crisis communications

A well-earned reputation can melt away in an instant. Don’t waste your business’ hard work with small slip ups. Ensure that your business has a clear crisis communications plan in place in case of an emergency and always check over any public facing content you are producing to try and catch any potential issues. The key members of your team should be aware and clued up on your action plans.

Are you ready for 2024? Our team can help you manage all of the elements of your PR checklist to boost your business this year. Get in touch to find out more.