As you know, I like to spill the tea when it comes to telling the truth about PR, because there are waaaay too many people spreading mis-information in the Wild West of Social Media
If there’s just one thing you can guarantee to get out of me, it’s the truth 😜
This blog has been inspired by two posts I’ve seen on social media recently. The first one was a business coach stating that she’d never pay for media coverage (as if paying for media coverage was below her), and the second was from a PR freelancer in a group I’m in, who seemingly believed that paid media isn’t PR.
🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔
In both of these cases I realised that not enough people know about the PESO Model (even those working in comms!), which blows my mind, because the PESO Model should underpin your PR and Marketing Strategy if you have teams in-house, or if you’re investing in external agency support.
If the PESO Model is completely new to you (or you just need to refresh your memory) then grab a piece of paper and a pen as I’m about to fill you in….
PESO is an acronym for four key words:
1. Paid Media
2. Earned Media
3. Shared Media
4. Owned Media
Each of these tactics play a key role in how your brand communicates externally, and they’re all key tactics should be used together to enhance your brand presence and raise your profile, rather than focussing on each tactic in silo.
Now that you know what PESO stands for, let’s dive into each of the tactics individually
PAID MEDIA
As the name suggests, this refers to media placements that you pay for. It includes tactics such as traditional online and offline advertising, SEO, PPC and sponsored content.
It also includes affiliate marketing and influencer marketing as you’re paying for sponsored content, and also covers the cost of becoming a paid contributor (think Entrepreneur Leadership Network or Forbes Council)
*** As a side note, having a regular column is akin to advertising, as you’re essentially promoting your products, services and expertise, but it’s designed to look like editorial content rather than an advert.
(Once upon a time advertorials existed, but these seem to have been phased out in many media outlets)
Paid editorial placements, such as paying to be a contributor, give you the opportunity to focus on the message that you want to convey to an audience. You get to control the narrative, which you can’t do to the same level with earned media.
However, it may actually undermine your credibility as you’ve paid for the space, not earned it because of your expertise.
EARNED MEDIA
Often seen as the Holy Grail of PR, earned media is what gives you the most credibility as it’s infinitely harder to earn media coverage than it is to pay for it.
When I first started in the PR industry there was a belief that earned media coverage was 3x more valuable than paid media, hence why it was so important for brands to invest in PR alongside paid media tactics.
Where an advert delivers a metaphorical slap in the face and grabs the attention of customers, earned media allows brands to take customers on a journey.
Earned media allows brands to share stories, demonstrate their products and their expertise and create the know-like-trust factor that customers need before they purchase.
Unlike paid media, earned media is unpredictable. It involves risk as there’s no guarantee that a journalist, producer or podcast host will accept your pitch and choose you to be featured. Even if they do, there’s still no guarantee that your ideal customers will take further action (visit your website, follow on social media etc)
This is why you need to persist with PR and publicity for at least 12 months as it gains traction and builds momentum over time. Securing one or two pieces is great for your ego, but it won’t meet your expectations in terms of what it does for your business.
It’s like going to the gym once and expecting to lose 14lbs. It take slow, consistent effort over time before the results start shoiwng.
More, more, more…..
When I first started working in the PR industry in 2004, it was believed that customers needed to see three pieces of your content before taking action. Apparently that has now increased to 27 pieces of content 😱 (these figures haven’t been verified btw so it could be utter BS)
It’s definitely higher now than it used to be as there are more platforms and channels producing content, but 27 times seems a bit far fetched!
Risk vs Rewards
Earned media can often feel risky, but trust me when I say that the rewards far outweigh any uncertainty around its effectiveness, especially if you’re focussing on increasing brand awareness, boosting credibility and being seen as a leader in your industry – you just need to exercise some patience and learn to trust the process.
(If you’d like to find out more about how earned media can drive the growth of your business, why not book a free Growth Audit with me here)
Earned media doesn’t always have to include media outlets (hurrah! 🙌), it can be any comms channel or platform that allows you to share content for free, that you’ve earned
SHARED MEDIA
Shared media is basically another name for any content that you own and share with your audience, such as social media posts, newsletters and blogs.
Often considered the easiest part of the PESO Model, shared media gives you a chance to really build the know-like-trust factor with the people who have already chosen to be in your audience.
You get to involve them in key decision making, asking them questions using polls, as well as giving them a sneak peek into new product development or launches.
Social media has been a gamechanger when it comes to getting real-time feedback from your audience, but you shouldn’t rely on social media to do all the heavy lifting for you, as you’re always fighting an algorithm that you’ll never win.
Plus, most of your social media posts will only ever be seen by 1-2% of your audience 😱 which is why it’s so important to focus on the wider PESO Model, so that your social media followers are also seeing your content via other channels and platforms.
Earned Media (PR) is like receiving an invitation to attend a party. It tells you everything you need to know about the event, when it is and how to get there whereas Shared Media (Social Media) is the experience people have once they’re at the party and what they’re telling their mates about it.
PR drives potential customers into your business whereas marketing nurutres them until they become customers or superfans.
OWNED MEDIA
As the name suggests, owned media is a form of content that you ‘own’:
✅ every blog that you write
✅ every newsletter you publish
✅ every post you share on social media.
If you have your own podcast or YouTube channel then this is also owned media.
With owned media, you choose what you share, the channels you use to share it and who you share it with.
Owned media gives you the opportunity to say what you want in your content, without having to adhere to advertising guidelines or the narrative of the media. Essentially, you don’t have to fit yourself into someone else’s framework.
An advantage to owned media is that it leaves a digital footprint. A Blog on your website stays live for as long as you want it to. A podcast stays on itunes or Spotify and videos stay on YouTube. They also make you easily searchable on Google.
Owned media is also cost effective because you’re not having to invest additional money in sharing your content to your audience. Owned media can feel harder to build because it requires an audience to share it with, which is why it works incredibly well alongside paid media, earned media and shared media.
WHY YOU SHOULD USE THE PESO MODEL IN YOUR BUSINESS
As you can see, the PESO Model is a powerful tool you can use to grow your business, whatever stage you’re at. How much time you choose to spend on each area will be determined by two key factors:
1. Resources
2. Budget
Starting out
If you’re a soloprenuer then you’re potentially tight on budget but have more time to invest. If this is the case then you need to focus on the areas that are going to deliver the most value and impact.
Earned media may feel like a lengthy process with very few guarantees, but media outlets have an engaged audience that can span anything from 20,000 readers to 25 million readers.
Imagine if 1% of their audience came into your audience? How much easier will audience growth feel then?
By focussing on PR and Earned Media, you’re driving more people into your audience, which will increase your website traffic as well as social media followers.
Paid Media will then amplify the results of your Earned Media, as you already know who you’re targeting and what message you’re delivering to them.
This removes a lot of the testing and tweaking involved in paid advertising, and saves you from paying for the privilege!
Once your audience grows, you’ll get a bigger ROI on your Shared Media and Owned Media as you’ll have a much larger audience of people who have bought into the mission, vision and ethos of your brand.
These people are more likely to interact with and share your content organically, which further boosts your brand presence and market share.
Scaling
If your brand is scaling, it may be that you’re already investing money and resources on paid media and shared media, but have plateaued because you’re not driving enough traffic into the top of your funnel.
If that’s the case then bringing Earned Media into the mix will do a lot of that heavy lifting for you. If you haven’t got the resources or expertise in-house, then this is where an external PR Agency will deliver the most bang for your buck (click here to see how I can support you as you scale)
Soaring
If you’re already an established brand that’s investing in Paid Media, Earned Media and Shared Media, then now would be a great time to start looking at launching a podcast or YouTube channel to sustain your reputation and add even more value to existing customers, while attracting new ones.
I see so many businesses invest in podcasts and YouTube channels as a way to grow their audience or monetise their content, but unless you already have a huge audience, you’re basically launching a new service from scratch, in the hope that your existing audience will transfer over to a different comms channel.
Don’t do it!
Look at the PESO Model before launching anything new and see what tweaks you can make easily that will actually drive the growth of your business forwards.
Also consider investing in a Comms Audit so that your current comms tactics can be reviewed and analysed. There will be natural gaps in your current strategy that can then be filled with the right tactic, rather than assuming that a podcast or YouTube is right for you.
A Comms Audit will help you save time and money and will also help streamline your current comms tactics and improve performance.
To find out more about a Comms Audit and the impact it will have on your brand, you can schedule a consultation call with me here
