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Preparing for PR – 10 Easy steps
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4) PROPER PLANNING: With your office set and your PR representative selected, now you'll need a plan. Consider what you'd like to achieve from your PR activities then think about the publications and strategy that will help you to do that. If you want to attract more clients in the area, then local PR may be your best bet. Maybe you'd like to boost your industry profile. If so, trade PR could be just the ticket. Once you've set your objectives, work out how much time and money you can afford to commit to your campaign, set budgets and timeframes, so you know what is to be done, when it should be done by and how much it will cost.
5) DO YOUR RESEARCH: With your objectives and plan in mind, start researching the key publications identified during the planning process. Find out what features or opportunities there are and the best person to speak to for this. Be sure to research each publication very carefully before you even consider contacting the journalist. After all, if you're not prepared to take an interest in their magazine or newspaper, why should the journalist take an interest in you?
6) BUY THE BOOK: With PR, organisation is the order of the day, so buy yourself a contacts book and a diary. Or if you prefer the computer, put your electronic address book and calendar to good use. Use it to record key press contact details, to set reminders and store important dates. Having everything in one place will make life much easier, especially when the phones start ringing off the hook!
7) MAKE CONTACT EASY: Once you've organised your office and have got your contacts in order, make sure that the press can actually reach you. Set up a dedicated email address (and check it regularly) and don't forget to include your contact details (landline and mobile) on the bottom of all emails and company stationery, so reaching you anytime, anyplace, and anywhere is easy.
8) CREATE A PRESS PACK: To present your salon in the best possible light, prepare an information pack, which you can then give to the press. Depending on your business, this could include a salon profile with images, a profile and picture for key stylists and if you're promoting a particular event/new service/launch etc. be sure to add in a press release outlining the key details. As well as good quality colour hard copies of these documents, have electronic versions (e.g. jpegs, PDF, Word formats) of these documents on file too so that they are ready to be emailed across to journalists at a moment's notice.
9) BE CAMERA READY: Just like your scissors are an essential part of your kit bag, a digital camera is an indispensable tool in your PR arsenal which should accompany you to events, shoots or shows – in fact everywhere you go! As they say, a picture says a thousand words and journalists are always keen to see snaps and often love to feature them as they help bring your story to life.
10) INFORM YOUR TEAM: Whether you undertake the PR activities yourself or assign the responsibility to someone else, keep your team in the loop. Let staff know what you're doing and why you're doing it so that if a journalist calls or visits, they'll be up to speed.
So there you have it. PR is hard work and requires patience, perseverance and persistence in spades, but the rewards will be well worth it. These are just a few of the important elements involved in preparing for PR, therefore if your budget allows, it's much easier and time-effective to employ a good PR. Plus you are much more likely achieve better results than you would when going alone. However if you're up for the challenge and fancy having a go yourself, bear these tips in mind, prepare those campaigns carefully and you''ll be one step closer to PR success. 
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