When it comes to public relations, I’ve heard just about every excuse you’ve got for why you aren’t actively seeking publicity.

Unless, of course, you are – in which case Congratulations! You’re part of an elite minority who is taking positive action that will eventually result in increased sales.

You might be thinking of using the excuse “I’ve got no money for PR”

That one doesn’t wash with me. There is no reason that PR has to cost you more than a couple of hours of time each month.

Sure, if you have the available funds then it’s certainly worth the price to have someone else to put your business in the spotlight with an interesting angle or slant, but it’s not necessary. You don’t need a professional to get started. Thousands of businesses have started their PR with the help of online guides and library books.

All you need is a story and I’m willing to bet your story will do just fine. There are plenty of resources to put together a press release that will get you backlinks at the very least and genuine media attention at best.

Of course, you may try the “I’m to small for PR” excuse.

There’s no such thing. Unless you are at a full workload capacity with no plan in place to scale your business forward, being small is no reason to hesitate. You can be operating out of a tiny corner of your kitchen and still send out a press release. The size of your business doesn’t matter, the size of your story does.

Of course, the next excuse is almost invariably “I don’t have anything going on that is newsworthy.”

That’s almost a valid concern. But not quite.

While you certainly don’t want to send out a release that doesn’t deliver genuine news that is likely to be of interest, unless you have no unique selling proposition (in which case you should be on a full-blown mission to discover and define it) – you have news that will be of interest.

I’ve yet to meet a business that doesn’t. Even without a solid, stated USP – there’s likely a newsworthy angle to tap into.

Now admittedly, I’ve had a diverse range of experience in finding newsworthy nuggets. But while my friends might like to pull out this talent and put it on display as some sort of party trick, it’s really not that unique or difficult to accomplish. You’ve just got to allow yourself to step away from your projects and take a look at your business from a different perspective. There’s no magic here – just a little time with your thinking cap on and you’re bound to turn up several ideas that can be used to promote your business.

Here’s three quick sources you can tap into if you’re stuck:

1. National Trends – The media loves when they can take a national story and add a local twist. So when a story comes along about your industry or business, you’re in prime position to grab the publicity.
2. Holidays and Observations – Each and every day of each and every month of the year, someone is celebrating something. Whether it’s “Talk Like a Pirate Day” or Mother’s Day is around the corner – there’s bound to be more than one occasion that you can adapt to your business. Riding on coattails is a good thing in Public Relations.
3. Look to your heart – You likely have a few pet interests beyond your business that can lead to press coverage. Whether it’s a charity drive fundraiser or a hobby group, stepping up to the plate and seeking publicity can pay off for both you and the organization you represent.

Still stumped?

Leave a comment and a brief description of your business (or send PK Marketing Solutions an email with the information) and I’ll give you at least one option to get you started.

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