This guide breaks down how to write a clear, credible, and effective PR statement—complete with real examples and expert tips.

TL;DR:

• Learn how to structure a professional PR statement in 5 key parts
• Understand when and why to issue one—crisis, campaign, or company news
• Discover tone strategies that build trust and avoid backlash
• See good vs. bad PR statement examples from Shopify and BrewDog
• Get practical tips on tailoring messages to media, customers, and stakeholders
• Explore how tools like Prowly help monitor sentiment and manage communications

What is a public relations statement?

A public relations (PR) statement is an official message from a company designed to shape public perception. Typically written by a media relations or communications team, it's used in response to crises, product launches, or news events involving the brand.

So, why write a PR statement? Here are some common scenarios:

• To generate media buzz around a new product launch
• To reinforce a positive reputation after an ESG or DEI campaign
• To address negative press and clarify your company’s position

Whether proactive or reactive, a well-crafted PR statement can build trust, redirect narratives, and ensure your voice is heard first.

How to write a public relations statement?

A strong PR statement can make or break public relations and crisis communications for your brand. Whether it's an official statement from government officials, or a few sentences to reduce negative publicity, it needs to follow a structure that prioritizes transparency, empathy, responsibility and direction.

Here are five essential elements every effective PR statement should include—plus ways to support each stage with smart planning, cross-functional alignment, and the right tools.

5 key building blocks of a PR statement

#1 Acknowledge the situation

Start by clearly stating what happened, when it occurred, and—if relevant—where. This shows transparency and sets the stage for the rest of the message.

Example: “On Sunday, January 12, one of our representatives made false claims about our organization and its employees.”

🛠️ Many PR teams begin this step inside a press release creator with real-time editing support—like Prowly’s AI Assistant, which helps structure key messages and maintain tone consistency while drafting.

#2 Explain the impact

Address who was affected and express empathy. A human tone goes a long way in showing your brand takes the matter seriously.

Example: “We understand this outage caused delayed and canceled flights, disrupting many travelers’ plans.”

🛠️ Empathy also comes from listening. Media monitoring tools like Prowly’s help teams surface early reactions and keyword sentiment across channels, making it easier to reflect real concerns in your messaging.

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#3 Own the responsibility

Avoid deflecting blame. Instead, be direct about what went wrong and your company’s role in it.

Example: “We recognize that our actions didn’t align with the values we stand for.”

🛠️ Tracking media responses to your messaging helps teams understand whether the tone of accountability is resonating—or needs recalibration.

#4 Outline your response

Let your audience know what steps you're taking to fix the issue. Even if the situation is ongoing, communicate the direction you're moving in.

Example: “We’re issuing full refunds to everyone affected and reviewing our response process to prevent future incidents.”

🛠️ Once your response is outlined, you’ll likely need to communicate it to multiple groups—media, partners, or customers. Prowly users can distribute statements through branded newsrooms or targeted journalist emails, keeping the message aligned across channels.

#5 Commit to change

Wrap up with a clear statement of what will be done long-term. This helps restore trust and signals accountability.

Example: “We’re implementing new safety protocols company-wide and will report back on progress.”

🛠️ This step isn’t just about saying the right thing—it’s about proving it. Reporting tools like Prowly’s let you track and visualize earned media coverage over time, so you can demonstrate how public sentiment shifts as changes roll out.

BUILD TRUST WITH BETTER PR TOOLS

Additional tips for strong PR messaging

👉 Tailor your format

Different audiences consume information differently. Consider creating:

• A headline summary for social or media alerts
• An executive summary for internal or investor updates
• A full-length version for press releases or newsroom use

👉 Know your audience

Customize your statement based on who's reading:

• Customers want to know if their service or product will be impacted
• Employees need reassurance and transparency
• Investors look for signs of stability and future-proof planning

👉 Use media monitoring to stay ahead

Once your PR statement is live, the job isn't over. Use a media monitoring tool like Prowly to track how the message is being received across social media, online news, and even broadcast and print. This helps you adapt quickly, manage sentiment, and stay in control of the narrative.

👉 Align internally before publishing

Make sure your marketing, legal, and leadership teams are on the same page before anything goes public. The faster your internal alignment, the quicker—and safer—you can respond.

👉 Enhance with visuals

Infographics, video messages from your CEO, or a visual timeline of events can help clarify complex updates and build connection with your audience.

In public relations, creating a PR statement is just a piece of the puzzle.

For public relations professionals, it means they need to communicate in a way that aligns with what the company believes it, while at the same time protecting its reputation and strengthening relationships with journalists, the media, and the public.

There is no resolution without building trust

Your public relations statement might check all the technical boxes—but does it genuinely build trust?

A defensive or overly polished tone can backfire. Audiences are quick to sense when a message feels performative or insincere. True accountability and transparency are the foundation of trust, especially during a crisis or high-stakes announcement.

Trust signals that strengthen PR statements

To make your message more credible and trustworthy, include these critical elements:

• Be specific: Use concrete timelines, name the individuals or departments responsible, and clearly state what actions have been taken.
• Create follow-up mechanisms: Keep your audience informed over time—not just in the moment. This could mean posting updates, issuing secondary statements, or using a newsroom.
• Understand your audience: Speak directly to the concerns of your stakeholders—customers, employees, investors—not just what you think they need to hear.
• Maintain tone consistency: Your statement should align with your brand’s voice, previous communications, and core values. Sudden shifts can feel disingenuous.

Brands that are transparent and credible follow up on the state of things. For example, when a company isn't clear on ethical practices and receives backlash for a questionable product launch, your company needs to prove they will take actions that will increase customer satisfaction and strengthen broken relationships.

What if a PR statement becomes the story itself?

Even if our public relations statement is written according to all the rules and with the best intentions, sometimes the media can misconstrue it anyway. Sometimes, the best public relations specialists can't predict what will go wrong (or right).

Here are some contrasting examples of public relations statements that journalists picked up and made into headlines:

Good PR statement: Shopify CEO’s layoff message

In 2022, Shopify announced they were laying off around 10% of their employees. However, instead of creating a PR statement full of jargon rarely anyone understands, Tobi Lutke, the CEO, released a company-wide message that was received as raw, full of reflection, and something that doesn't happen often in the tech industry: humanity.

Instead of sugar-coating and spilling out a bunch of words that wouldn't make anyone feel better in that situation, he explained (or the PR professionals on his team did) that they miscalculated the acceleration of e-commerce growth during the times of the pandemic.

He took full responsibility for what happened, showing honesty and humility. The communication was direct and easy to understand without reading in between the lines.

“Ultimately, placing this bet was my call to make and I got this wrong,” he wrote.

Plenty of public relations specialists have analyzed it and examined it since, highlighting that it was the greatest response in crisis communications in many, many years. Additionally, the company received less backlash than other tech layoffs have seen in social media (which is always a win).

Bad PR statement: BrewDog’s apology after toxic workplace claims

Contrast that with BrewDog, which faced intense criticism in 2021 after more than 60 former employees published an open letter accusing the company of fostering a culture of fear, pressure, and exploitation.

In response, CEO James Watt issued a public apology...

But the tone fell flat. It was too vague, too sanitized, and lacked any real accountability. The statement didn’t address the specific allegations raised. Nor did it outline steps the company would take to improve working conditions or repair internal culture.

Critics quickly pointed out that the apology felt more like damage control than genuine reflection. The lack of a forward-looking plan—and the absence of emotional acknowledgment—only intensified the backlash.

Conclusion – writing for the moment and the memory

A great PR statement shows customers how your organization handles pressure, public scrutiny, and shows accountability.

In crisis communications, the language you choose shapes perception and helps build a favorable public image that can outlast the headlines which are damaging to your company.

When writing a PR statement, PR professionals need to conduct thorough research to craft the type of communication that respects the urgency of the situation and the long-term well-being of their audience. It's a tough balancing act, and this type of communication is certainly difficult to write.

It doesn't matter if your company is addressing journalists, employees, customers, or simply keeping stakeholders informed — a well-crafted reactive PR statement or a proactive holding statement can make or break the business you're doing public relations for.

The post Crafting the Perfect Public Relations Statement: A Guide for Success appeared first on Prowly.

Misaligned perceptions can lead to lost customers, a rusted reputation, and lower trust.

The stakes are high and the challenge is real. One missed step can lead to a negative overall brand perception.

But by employing PR-centric strategies to measure and manage brand perception, you can steer your brand toward positive associations and lasting loyalty.

Prowly can help you do just that. Start monitoring your brand perception right away—or keep reading.

Brand perception measurement: the basics

Brand perception refers to what the public thinks and feels about your brand, regardless of the messages you put out. It’s created by customer experiences, word-of-mouth, media coverage, and countless other factors beyond your direct control.

We are living in the age of social media, 24/7 news cycles, and online reviews. So brand perception has never been more significant or fragile.

A single post or negative review can go viral and influence how millions view your brand in a flash. This is where PR teams play a crucial role. They are cast as the lead of shaping, measuring, and maintaining brand perception.

By monitoring public sentiment, tailoring strategic messaging, and managing crises effectively, PR professionals ensure that positive brand perception not only enters the room but stays for the long haul. And to do that, the right tools make all the difference.

What is brand perception (and how is it different from brand identity)?

The brand perception meaning reflects the public’s collective opinion and emotional response to a brand. It is shaped by experiences and interactions. It can be influenced by media and reviews.

Unlike brand identity, which reflects how a company defines itself, brand perception is entirely owned by the audience. Trust and reputation hinge on this perception, as it directly impacts consumer sentiment and media coverage.

Moreover, a positive public image boosts investor and partner confidence, making collaborations and financial backing more accessible. Perhaps most critically, strong brand perception fosters resilience during crises, helping brands maintain loyalty and recover faster.

So what is brand perception?
In essence, while brand identity is what you say about yourself, the brand perception definition centers on what others believe about you. And that makes a difference.

Changing brand perception–examples

#1 United Airlines

United Airlines faced a severe backlash after the 2017 incident where a passenger was forcibly removed from an overbooked flight. The video went viral and sparked outrage.

About 67% of surveyed frequent travelers reported a negative perception of the airline afterward.

This incident highlighted how poor customer treatment and inadequate crisis management can erode trust, damage reputation, and influence consumer sentiment for years. A negative brand perception example in a nutshell.

💡 For more real-world insights into how brands navigate crises, explore these 16 PR crisis management examples to learn what worked (and what didn't).​

#2 Patagonia

On the other end of things, Patagonia has built a strong, positive brand perception.

How? By aligning its identity with environmental activism and ethical practices. This one is known for its initiatives, like profit donations to environmental causes and sustainable production promotion.

Patagonia has fostered trust and loyalty among consumers who value social responsibility. This brand perception regularly strengthens customer relationships. And thus position the brand as resilient during market challenges or crises.

What influences brand perception?

To measure brand perception, you need to get your hands on the metrics first. So which ones should you consider while doing your brand perception research?

Media coverage

Positive or negative press can significantly influence a brand's perception.

Social media commentary

Real-time feedback and trends on platforms like Twitter (X) and Instagram can amplify or challenge a brand's image and raise some brand perception questions. Brand perception studies show that Gen Z prefers to do their consumer research on IG, while Boomers stick with Google.

Customer experience

Interactions with your customers can be the foundation of your brand. You should deliver consistent and high-quality communication.

Influencers and media mentions

Support from trusted figures can lend credibility and visibility to a brand. This works both ways though, unreliable influencers mentioning your brand may downgrade your brand perception metrics.

Word of mouth and reviews

Peer recommendations and online reviews often hold more sway than traditional advertising.

How PR teams can shape brand perception with Prowly

Prowly gives PR teams the tools they need to take control of how people see their brand. Here’s how:

#1 Use earned media to tell you the right story

When it comes to brand perception, a coherent storyline is crucial. You need to present it across various channels.

Prowly helps you stay on top of media coverage and brand mentions both offline and online. You can analyze sentiment and track how your brand is being talked about.

Making it easier to shape positive, strategic stories that reflect your brand in the best light.

#2 Share clear messages via press releases

Press releases give you a great force to tailor the perception of your company.

With Prowly’s built-in press release creator and distribution tools, you can craft professional messages and send them directly to the right media contacts.

No matter if you're launching a new product or handling a PR crisis. Your messaging stays clear, consistent, and on-brand. What is more, it reaches the right people at the right time.

#3 Contact the right media people

Staying on the press release and media a topic.

Prowly makes it easy to manage and organize your media contacts. You can use targeted outreach to find journalists and influencers related to your niche.

The ones who will be most likely to be interested in your story and help you shape the image of your brand.

How to measure brand perception

Now, let's break down some ways of measuring brand perception:

👉 Social listening - by following raw, unfiltered people's opinions you gain an honest point of view of your brand.

👉 Media analysis - by pursuing brand perception analysis, you can get an overview of how your brand is presented across the media.

👉 Surveys and polls - brand perception survey questions shouldn't be biased. It should give room for the recipients to share their honest opinions.

👉 Reviews - people want to share their opinions about you, analyze them and learn.

👉 Feedback - here you may have a chance too dig deeper with follow-up questions to learn the core of their opinions.

Brand perception in action: real-life examples

👍 Positive example - Nike and Colin Kaepernick Campaign

👀 Brand perception

Bold, socially aware, aligned with youth and activism.

What happened?

Nike launched a controversial ad campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick (former NFL quarterback). He is known for kneeling during the national anthem to protest racial injustice. The ad included the tagline:

“Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything.”

Why it worked

➕ Nike aligned itself with a cause that resonated deeply with its core demographic: young, diverse, socially conscious consumers.
➕ Despite initial backlash (boycotts and the burning of Nike gear), the move strengthened Nike’s brand loyalty among its key audiences.
➕ It showed conviction and brand bravery, which consumers increasingly value.

Nike is still famous for its "Just do it" tagline and all of their actions resonate with it.

👎 Negative example - Pepsi ft. Kendall Jenner ad

👀 Brand perception

Tone-deaf, opportunistic, out-of-touch.

What happened?

Pepsi released an ad with Kendall Jenner as the main character in which she resolves a protest by handing a police officer a can of Pepsi. It was widely criticized for trivializing social justice movements like Black Lives Matter.

Why it failed

➖ First, it misused symbolism from real protests.
➖ Moreover, it was perceived as exploitative and performative.|
➖ And the cherry on top - it lacked authenticity or a real connection to the cause.

There was no backstory. No cause. Just Pepsi.

Neutral turning to positive example - LEGO & brand suitability

👀 Brand perception and the challenge

LEGO had a neutral-to-positive brand perception for decades. But let's be honest, not necessarily associated with social responsibility or environmental leadership. Especially as a manufacturer of plastic toys.

Turning point

Around 2015, LEGO made a commitment to public sustainability.

• Pledging to invest $400 million over three years in sustainability efforts
• Began developing plant-based plastics made from sugarcane
• Switched to recyclable paper bags inside boxes
• Partnered with organizations like the WWF to reduce its carbon footprint

Why it worked

➕ LEGO didn’t make empty promises—it backed them with long-term R&D investments
➕ It remained transparent about challenges in making durable, kid-safe sustainable bricks

Stayed true to its core values (creativity, quality) while adapting to new expectations

How to improve brand perception (a PR-tailored checklist)

Improving brand perception starts with ensuring message consistency across all touchpoints. Your brand voice, values, and visuals should be aligned across every channel, from social media to customer service.

A strong PR strategy also requires proactively managing media relations.

Start building trust and maintaining open communication with journalists. You must monitor and respond to feedback in real time. This is how you show consumers they’re listening and you want to make things better for them.

A powerful way to shift perception is to use storytelling. You can do it both via owned media (blogs and newsletters) and earned media (press coverage and influencer mentions).

Lastly, run reputation-focused PR campaigns that reinforce your brand’s purpose and values.

💡 Pro Tip: Prowly supports this by helping to create consistent, on-brand press releases, and manage journalist relationships within a centralized CRM. It helps you also monitor real-time media sentiment to stay on top of reputation risks and opportunities.

Common mistakes that hurt brand perception

Even strong brands can damage their reputation by falling into avoidable traps. Some of the most common mistakes include:

• Being overly reactive or defensive – responding quickly is crucial but keep your emotions in line. Answering criticism with aggression or denial often escalates the issue instead of resolving it. Be open and calm.
• Not listening to audience sentiment – ignoring public feedback, especially on social media, can make a brand seem unbothered. It also may give your audience a sense of you being out of touch or indifferent.
• Messaging inconsistency – when a brand’s values or tone vary across platforms, it creates confusion and undermines trust. Being consistent shows you to be truthful and honest.
• PR silence during controversy – crises are part of a brand's life cycle. Failing to address them or being too reckless with them translates to a lack of accountability. Allowing negative narratives to take control.

💡 Tip: Explore this article to learn more about how reactive PR compares to proactive PR—and how to put it into action. And if you want to make your PR strategy truly robust, read these articles to learn how to manage your brand reputation and protect its reputation.

Brand perception - to sum up

So what is brand perception? How to measure and manage it?

The above article may help you create a strategy to navigate all of these aspects. As well as a good tool.

Prowly offers PR professionals everything you may need to monitor media coverage, craft consistent messaging, and engage with the right media contacts.

The post Brand Perception: A PR-Centric Guide to Manage Public Opinion appeared first on Prowly.

Just like Taylor Swift flipped the script with her Reputation album — and taught us all how to shake it off — she turned criticism into credibility and fans into fierce advocates. Brands can do the same.

In this article, we’ll explore how to build a reputation that shines — even when facing bad reviews or growing public scrutiny. Because in today’s world, a strong reputation doesn’t just protect your brand — it can turn you into a star.

Psst! These days, you can’t manage your reputation without keeping an eye on key media mentions. Let Prowly handle that for you — so you can stay focused on the creative work that matters.

Reputation marketing: what is it? Definition

First things first. What is reputation marketing?

Most brands only focus on their reputation when damage control is called for. But it's not only about what happened. It’s about what they remember.

👉 TL;DR: Reputation marketing ensures that your best qualities shine through, shaping a lasting, positive impression. It combines elements of branding, public relations, and digital marketing to ensure that when people think of your business, they associate it with quality, reliability, and positive experiences.

By proactively shaping your reputation, you influence what potential customers see, hear, and ultimately remember about your brand.

So you should plan your reputation marketing strategy in advance. Do not simply go with the flow on this.

Reputation marketing vs. reputation management: a difference that matters

What is the difference between reputation marketing and reputation management?

While both reputation marketing and reputation management focus on a brand’s public perception, they have different approaches and goals.

Reputation management

Focuses on monitoring and responding to online reviews, social media comments, and public perception.

Reputation management is primarily reactive. It deals with crises, negative feedback, and damage control. Moreover, it involves strategies such as review response, the handling of PR crises, and improving customer service.

🎯 The goal: Fix and maintain a brand’s image. The key is to keep the positive online reputation you've already achieved.

Reputation marketing

Reputation marketing focuses on amplifying positive brand perception through marketing strategies.

It is primarily proactive, using customer reviews, testimonials, and brand storytelling to build trust.

Reputation marketing involves strategies like showcasing 5-star reviews, influencer partnerships, and customer success stories. This one is about being real.

🎯 The goal: Enhance and leverage a strong reputation to attract new customers. One of the benefits of reputation marketing is a reliable community and strong bonds with customers.

💡 Tip: Explore this article to learn more about how reactive PR compares to proactive PR—and how to put it into action.

Benefits of reputation marketing for your company

If your brand operates in a high-scrutiny industry (like finance, healthcare, or large corporations), strong reputation management is essential.

If trust directly impacts sales (as in e-commerce, SaaS, or personal brands), reputation marketing should be a priority.

For most businesses, the best approach is a balanced mix of both.

Protecting your reputation (for high-risk industries)

Think of this as your brand's safety-net. If you're in finance, healthcare, or running a big company, you need to be extra careful and manage your brand reputation with caution.

#1 Keep your fingers on the pulse of what people are saying

• Set up alerts (like with Google Alerts) to see what's being said about you online.
• Use tools that listen to social media to catch feedback quickly.

#2 Be prepared

• Have a plan for when things go wrong (like data leaks or rule violations).
• Train your team to be honest and open when talking about problems.

#3 Create a strong bond

• Talk openly with your customers, investors, or with anyone who matters to your business.
• Good relationships make big changes, like mergers, go smoother.

#4 Effective reputation marketing strategy means owning up to your mistakes

• Fix problems quickly.
• Admit when you're wrong.
• Try to solve issues privately to keep your positive reputation.

💡 Tip: If you want to make your PR strategy truly robust, read these articles to learn how to manage your brand reputation and protect its reputation.

Using your good reputation to sell more (for online businesses & personal brands)

This is about turning your positive reputation into sales and loyal customers. Your reputation marketing efforts should bring tangible profits.

#1 Make the most of reviews

• Make it easy for people to leave reviews (like sending emails or giving discounts).
• Show off good reviews on your website and social media.

#2 Share success stories

• Tell stories about how your customers have succeeded in using your product/service.
• Share content made by your customers.

#3 A brand's reputation means teamwork

• Teach your team to ask for reviews and talk to customers.
• Ensure they learn how to use such content.

Why not both?

You can fix problems and share good news at the same time. When people trust you, they're more likely to buy from you again and again. You can also use reputation marketing software to see reviews and share good feedback. Let's work on examples. 👇

Example 1️⃣

A private clinic fixes patient complaints (=protects reputation) and shares positive reviews on its website (=boosts sales).

Example 2️⃣

An online store handles a bad review nicely (=protects reputation) and posts a video of a happy customer (=boosts sales).

How to combine reputation marketing & management for the best results

Reputation management and reputation marketing differ, but they are similar on some points. Once you combine them, your business's reputation can spike.

Reputation management is your safety net

Better safe than sorry, right?

So once you hit a positive reputation, you need all hands on deck to maintain it. Monitor brand sentiment to catch issues early. Follow your reputation and keep it in line with your brand messaging.

Unfortunately, sometimes crises arise through external forces.

To properly manage your company's brand reputation and keep your brand's image set in bright colors, you should have a crisis response plan on hand. The last thing you would like to focus on when something happens is scrambling and fighting with time to look after your company's reputation.

Another angle to cover reputation case is in handling negative reviews and feedback. Your online reputation is always in danger because of the virtual anonymity on the internet. Sometimes people say things just to say something.

And sometimes negative messages are valid. In both cases, you need to handle it calmly and professionally to minimize long-term damage.

Reputation can shift fast. These 16 PR crisis management examples show how brands reacted when things went wrong – take a look and fine-tune your strategy if you spot any weak spots..

Reputation marketing is your amplifier

Even the best sound sometimes needs an amplifier to carry it. Your company's reputation needs this sort of boost.

Push positive reviews, media mentions, and brand stories into the spotlight. Focus on local reputation marketing and communities. Reputation marketing matters because it helps you build a quality bond and become a reliable option on the market. It's how even the biggest brand started.

Optimize search results so your best content ranks above any negatives. Your online reputation marketing strategy should involve fighting with not-so-sweet opinions as well. It happens.

But bad reviews doesn't mean your brand's reputation immediately goes down. One unhappy customer does not cross out the positive reputation you've gained. Focus on highlighting it.

Use proactive PR to establish authority before you ever have to defend it. Being one step ahead pays off.

Activities that cover reputation marketing differ from those for management because they help you establish your position and build a strong online reputation.

Let's expand on each of these points to create a more detailed and actionable list. 👇

How to create a reputation marketing strategy: step by step

Step 1: Audit what’s is going on - know your starting point

1️⃣ Google your company (and key people)

• Go beyond just your company name. To get a real business reputation overview you should search for variations, common misspellings, and related keywords.
• Analyze the first page of Google results. What kind of content appears? Is this your content (kudos for SEO efforts)? Or does your reputation marketing rely on news, rankings, and reviews?
• Pay attention to Google's "People also ask" and "Related searches" sections. This can give you insights into common questions and concerns. Look at what your brand's reputation is related to.

2️⃣ Check reviews, social media, and media mentions

• Systematically review platforms like Yelp, Trustpilot, Google My Business, and industry-specific review sites. Positive brand images come from these as well.
• Monitor social media channels (X, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn) for mentions, comments, and trends.
• Use reputation marketing software to cover social listening and keep up to date with your business reputation across the web.
• Compile a list of all media mentions (news articles, blog posts, podcasts, videos). Note the tone and context of each mention. Good reputation marketing software should help you with this.

3️⃣ Identify what’s missing in your reputation marketing efforts

• Look for gaps in your online presence. Are there negative reviews that need addressing? Are there important keywords where competitors rank higher? This is a vital part of your strategy.
• Pinpoint any inconsistencies in your brand messaging or visual identity across different platforms.
• Determine if there are any outdated or inaccurate online pieces of information that could damage your company's reputation.

Step 2: Craft your brand narrative

1️⃣ You don’t have to be the best, but you do need to be memorable

• Focus on your unique value proposition and what sets you apart from competitors. Create a reputation marketing strategy that will help you stay at the top of people's minds.
• Identify the emotional connection you want to create with your audience.
• Think about what you want customers to say about you when they recommend you to others.

2️⃣ Pick key messages (2-3) that define your brand

• Create concise and compelling messages that reflect your core values and brand personality.
• Ensure these messages are coherent across all platforms and communication channels.

💡 While creating pillars of your reputation marketing, consider your target audience and tailor your messages to resonate with their needs and interests.

Step 3: Get your reputation marketing anchors in place

1️⃣ Strengthen Google search results

• First, optimize your website and content for relevant keywords.
• Create high-quality, informative, and engaging content that provides value to your audience. Informative and well-optimized articles, landing pages, and posts are the core of online reputation marketing.
• Build high-quality backlinks to your site. Create a net of them. One of the biggest benefits of reputation marketing is that you become visible all across the internet.

💡 Ensure your Google My Business profile is filled out and well-optimized as well. Reputation marketing software may help you with that.

2️⃣ Secure media mentions and press coverage

• Develop relationships with journalists and industry influencers.
• Build a net of places where you can publish whenever something new comes up. Use reputation marketing strategy software to search for media and names you should know.
• Participate in events and conferences to create some relationships within the industry.

Use tools like Prowly to respond to journalist queries. You can also create personalized press releases.

3️⃣ Use testimonials and reviews in your favor

Create a system for collecting and displaying customer testimonials and reviews on your website and social media.

Step 4: Keep the momentum going

1️⃣ Respond to reviews and engage with your audience

• Show that you are listening and value customer feedback. Reputation marketing is all about relationships.
• Respond to all positive and negative reviews in a timely and professional way.
• Engage with your audience on social media. Answer questions, respond to comments, and participate in conversations.

2️⃣ Stay visible

• Maintain a consistent presence on social media by posting regularly and engaging with your audience. Contribute to industry blogs, forums, and publications to stay at the top of their minds.
• Continue to seek out media opportunities and press coverage.

3️⃣ Monitor public perception and adjust as needed

• Regularly monitor your online reputation using social listening and reputation management tools.
• Analyze data and insights to identify trends and potential issues. Be ready to adapt your reputation marketing efforts.

Step 5: Tools that make reputation marketing easy

1️⃣ Tools for monitoring

• Google Alerts: Free and simple tool for tracking mentions of your brand and keywords.
• Mention: Tracks mentions across the web and social media, offering sentiment analysis.
• Brandwatch: Powerful social listening platform with advanced analytics and reporting.

Prowly: Includes print and broadcast monitoring in addition to online mentions, making it useful for comprehensive tracking. You can also create press releases and search for the most suitable media outlets.

2️⃣ Tools for managing reviews

• Trustpilot: Platform for collecting and displaying customer reviews.
• Google My Business: Essential for managing your business's presence on Google Search and Maps.

3️⃣ Tools for Comprehensive Reputation Management

These tools often combine monitoring, social listening, review management, and reporting into one platform. If you are looking for more tips on choosing a media monitoring tool, check out our guide: How to do media monitoring.

💡 If you are looking for all-in-one reputation marketing software, check out Prowly. You can use this tool for social monitoring, media monitoring, and press release management.

Reputation marketing – if you're not using it, you're playing defence

Think of reputation marketing as building a good relationship with everyone who sees your brand.

To keep that relationship strong, you need to talk to people (engage), listen to what they're saying (monitor), and be ready to adapt if necessary (adapt).

Managing brand reputation with the right tools makes this whole process much easier. When you do these things well, you build trust and become a brand people genuinely like and believe in.

The post Reputation Marketing: How to Shape Public Perception appeared first on Prowly.

Today, we're going to show you what media press kits are and how you can store your media kit assets online with tools such as Prowly's Online Newsroom.

Media kit definition

A media kit, also known as a press kit, is a pre-packaged set of promotional materials that provides information about a business, product, or event.

It is designed to give journalists and media outlets a comprehensive snapshot of what makes the subject newsworthy, often including company background, detailed product descriptions, press releases, high-quality images, and contact information for media inquirie

The main purpose of a press kit is to be the definitive source of information on a topic for journalists who want to write a story around it. When companies create media kits, they ensure that the journalists have the most recent, accurate and up-to-date information on that topic.

Media kit vs press kit - what’s the difference 

The two terms are similar and, in general, they describe a collection of promotional materials collected for media representatives. They are commonly used interchangeably too, but there are slight differences that you should be aware of:

A press kit is a more traditional term, describing materials for the press or journalists. This includes press releases, images, background information and contact details.

A media kit is a more modern term that describes materials for a different audience - bloggers, influencers, content creators, and others. Besides press releases and images, a media kit contains other media formats, such as videos, infographics, statistics, social media profiles and more.

Both solve the same problem - offering relevant information to people who may be willing to talk about and promote a brand, event, person or something else.

What digital press kits are used for

In general, press kits are used for any kind of situation when you need press coverage around a business or brand. Also called an electronic press kit, it has a few common use cases:

• For a new product launch
• For sharing company news
• For promoting a merger or acquisition
• For announcing a special event
• For announcing the appointment of a new CEO or a leader

The most common place for a digital media kit is the footer section of a website, where journalists can easily find it.

How do you prepare a media kit? 

If you're wondering what is in a press kit and how to make a press kit of your own, we’ve prepared a full guide for you.

1️⃣ Choose a format for your media kit. As we’ll discuss in a minute, there are two main choices: to host it on your website or create a PDF file. We suggest the first option, but we’ll let you make your own choice.

2️⃣ Write a short company overview. Include the most important information. When the company was founded, who the founders are, as well as the most important milestones.

3️⃣ Gather your media assets. Logos, photos, testimonials, fact sheets, case studies, media mentions, product images, a short bio of the founder - anything that a member of the press might find useful for their next piece.

Last but not least, put it up on your website. This brings us to our next point.

Where to keep a media kit? 

In the old days, a media kit was something that you would prepare and send out by mail to journalists you wanted to cover your story. Nowadays, a digital press kit is the accepted format, and having your information online makes things easier for both you and the journalists.

Having said that, there are two options for hosting your digital media kit.

Keeping the media kit online

Many brands have a digital media kit section on their website, typically in their footer. But you could do more than that.

You could create a media kit in Prowly's Newsroom.

Unlike a website page, our Newsroom gives you insights about specific traffic sources as well as journalist engagement, which you can track in the app. And you can store your media kit online easily - building a newsroom in Prowly is super simple.

Not only that, but Prowly offers a full set of PR tools, allowing you to create press releases and pitch hand-picked journalists, all in one app.

Creating a PDF with the media kit

The second option is creating a PDF that you can distribute on your website or through email. But this is the worse of the two options, since PDFs are more difficult to edit and the moment you send them out, you can no longer update them. This means a journalist could be sitting on outdated information.

Using the Newsroom in Prowly means you don't have to worry about any information getting lost or not keeping up to date. Besides having all your info in one place, an online newsroom can be beneficial for your website's SEO.

Press kit format

Every good press kit follows an established pattern and there are certain sections you should include:

• Press release
• Boilerplate
• Company overview
• Executive bios
• Media contacts
• High-resolution images
• Logos and branding assets
• Product or service information
• Fact sheet
• Testimonials or case studies
• FAQs
• Recent media coverage
• Social media links

Press release

An online press kit should include some press releases covering the 5 Ws - who, what, when, where and why.

💡Looking for a full guide on how to write a press release? Read our recent article on “How to Write a Press Release (With Tips From PR Pros)”.

If you're putting the press kit on your website, you're going to have multiple press releases, so make sure to sort them chronologically. This way, the person covering your story will have an easier time finding the most relevant information without the need to do too much research.

Boilerplate

A standardized set of the most important pieces of information about your company that you would typically include in a press release. Company overview, history, market and geographic presence, awards, and recognitions - these are just some of the things you should include here.

💡To create a decent boilerplate, use our guide on How to Write a Press Release Boilerplate.

Company overview

The most important information about your company - the date it was founded, important milestones, awards, people who run and manage the company, and other crucial details. List what you do and what kind of problems you solve - and for what kind of audience.

Executive bios

Short biographies of the key people at your company, ideally at the management level. If the journalist wants to add details about them in a story they're covering, this is the source you want them to go to, rather than doing online research or getting their data from Wikipedia.

Media contacts

Your online media kit should include a list of contact details with the individuals who are the best to reach out to in case of questions, interview requests, calls, and more. Just like the rest of the digital media kit, keep this information up to date.

High-resolution images

Media professionals can easily find images of your brand, product, or key personnel online. But why make them do it when you can provide them with great images yourself? Control the narrative and include the kinds of images you want to be seen in news stories, blogs, and other types of content.

Logos and branding assets

When bloggers and journalists write about you, they're going to include your branding, such as your logo. Make sure to include one in high resolution and which is up to date. You don't want a blogger to use a logo that is 10 years old that they grabbed off of their Google search results.

Product or service information

If you're promoting a specific product or service, your company press kit should include the most important, unbiased bits of data around it. For example, if you're selling and promoting a perfume, you can mention who designed it, what the notes are, and what seasons you would typically wear it in.

Fact sheet

As the name suggests, this is a list of the most important facts about your business. Include details such as:

• Official company name
• Founding date
• Mission statement
• Founders/CEOs
• Statistics and data about the business
• Important milestones and awards
• and others

Testimonials and case studies

If you have reputable customers who can put in a good word about your company, ask them to write a testimonial or record a short video talking about you and your work. Case studies are another excellent format that can bring you benefits in marketing and sales, not just in public relations.

FAQs

If you're wondering what to include in a media kit, this typically doesn't come to mind, but it can be very helpful for journalists. As you work with them, you'll probably get similar questions throughout the years, such as "What is your main product?" or "Where does your company have branches?"

List these questions and their answers in the FAQ section of your online press kit.

Recent media coverage

An online media kit typically includes examples of other stories someone else wrote about your company. Be they newspaper articles, blogs, videos, or something else, they can show your business in a good light and the blogger can mention them in a new story.

Social media links

Add links to your most important social media profiles in your digital press kit. Whether a journalist wants to tag you once they post about you, take some screenshots, or just add the links to their story, the information should be made readily available and kept up to date.

Media kit examples

If you're wondering what is in a media kit, the best place to get started is by using some inspiration. Here are some great company media kit examples you can learn from.

This example of an online newsroom by Access Ventures, an investment company, that doesn't have much info about their business. However, they have a very vivid newsroom section with up-to-date stories covering all sorts of news and announcements about the company. This newsroom was created in Prowly.

Another great example is one from Intercom, one of the biggest software companies today.

Besides the latest company news, there are the most important brand assets a journalist may need when they want to write about Intercom.

On the other hand, another famous software brand, Slack, has static materials, such as brand logos, product screenshots and leadership photos, and does not include their newest press releases:

And another giant in the world of media, Spotify Germany, has a media kit that is a bit more elaborate:

It's on-brand, looks great as a part of a website, and has all the right information all on one page. Mostly because it was built in Prowly.

💡For more great examples of press kits, this article is a great starting point.

Frequently asked questions

What is in a media kit?

Different companies include different details in their media kits. However, the typical media kit includes the following: press releases, boilerplate, company overview, media contacts, high-res images, logos and other brand assets, product and service information, fact sheet, testimonials and case studies, FAQs, recent media coverage, and social media links.

How do you usually prepare a media kit?

To prepare a media kit, you should gather all the materials mentioned in the previous question. Start off with getting the most important information about the company, then follow up with digital media. and you’ll be well on your way to creating a media kit of your own.

What is the role of a press kit?

A press kit should give journalists (or whoever is writing) the most important information about your business all in one place. Instead of searching the web, they should be able to find the most important information on your website or in a file that you’ve sent them.

Conclusion 

Having a company press kit is key if you want to make it easy for journalists to cover stories about you, all the while including the most recent and relevant information. And if you're worried about how to make a media kit, the great news is that the days of sending them in the mail or via PDF are over.

With PR software such as Prowly, you can create your company press kit, add the right materials, and pitch journalists directly from the app. And the best part is - you can try it for free!

The post What Is a Media Kit? Definition, Examples + How To Guide appeared first on Prowly.

Company's reputation can be its most valuable asset – or its greatest liability. And it is a fragile side of its overall image.

Anyone can share an opinion and experience on social media, so managing your brand's reputation has never been more critical.

A reputation management platform is a powerful tool designed to give you a leg up. You can monitor the online buzz about your brand and quickly answer any comments shared by users.

Brand awareness is more than numbers—it’s about making an impact. Leverage insights from surveys, social buzz, and analytics to craft bold strategies that amplify recognition and fuel growth.

What is reputation management software

A reputation management platform is a tool that will help you maintain and enhance your online presence.

How does it work?

It follows online reviews, monitors brand mentions, and analyzes sentiment across platforms, providing you with real and actionable date. A good reputation management tool should alert you to customer feedback and discussions about your brand on social media, review sites, and in various online forums.

They should get you the info you need quickly so you can react to any negative or positive customer feedback and take care of your brand's online reputation in real time. This gives you an advantage and the ability to keep always one step ahead as well as nip any potential crisis in the bud.

Use Prowly's all-in-one software to follow mentions and analyze sentiment. Set up alerts and react promptly to any buzz.

How does reputation management work exactly?

Imagine you are managing the reputation of a beauty eCommerce business and using online reputation management tools.

You can receive real-time notifications about negative product reviews or immediately register complaints about shipping delays. By quickly addressing these issues – such as reviewing a given batch of products or switching to another delivery company, or even offering one-time discounts to effected customers, you can mitigate potential damage to your company or client's reputation and improve customer satisfaction.

This proactive way not only helps in resolving immediate concerns but also fosters trust and loyalty among customers. You've saved your brand's reputation before it got any worse and needed damage control.

Why your business needs reputation management software

Reputation management software helps the best businesses monitor customer feedback consistently. By tracking reviews and comments on platforms like Google, Yelp, and across social media, businesses can quickly spot and address any concerns or opportunities.

This quick response not only resolves issues but also builds trust with customers, showing them that their feedback matters.

Here's why it is so important in the digital whirlwind era (and how to handle potential crises well).

For instance, a restaurant that promptly replies to both positive and negative reviews signals its commitment to customer satisfaction, which can boost loyalty and encourage repeat visits.

So reputation management services may help you:

1. Protect brand reputation via safeguarding positive brand image. You can track and address negative reviews and comments promptly.
2. Enhance customer relations via monitoring customer feedback in real time. You can respond quickly to concerns and build stronger relationships with your customers.
3. Increase online visibility by managing your online reputation across various platforms, ensuring that positive content is highlighted, which can attract more customers and enhance brand trust.
4. Facilitate data analysis thanks to valuable insights into customer sentiment and behavior, you can make data-based decisions and tailor your reputation management strategy on the go.
5. Streamline workflow by automating monitoring and response processes, saving time and resources and allowing you to focus on growth rather than performing manual reputation management tasks.
6. Build trust and credibility via a strong online reputation. You can foster trust among consumers and attract new clients thanks to positive online reviews and a sterling business's reputation.

Threats of not using a reputation management tool

What may happen if you ignore online feedback?

It can pose significant risks. First, it's damage to your brand's reputation. You can lose trust and potential customers. Moreover, negative reviews can deter prospective clients. Studies show that almost half of internet shoppers trust online opinions as much as recommendations from friends and family.

Here are more articles that dive deep into the topic of PR crisis and reputation management:
▪️ Best PR Crisis Management Software Comparison: 6 Options to Consider
▪️ 16 PR Crisis Management Examples: What (Not) to Do
▪️ PR Crisis Management Guide (w/ Strategies and Examples)
▪️ How to Write a Crisis Press Release (Examples and Templates)
▪️ Social Media Reputation Management: How to Control Your Online Image

Key features to look for in reputation management software

#1 Centralized dashboard for monitoring multiple channels

A centralized dashboard allows you to monitor your online reputation across various platforms including Google, Yelp, and social media platforms all in one place.

Such a feature provides a comprehensive overview of feedback and reviews so you can stay up to date with your brand's reputation. Moreover, it reduces the time you would need to spend switching between different tools, allowing teams to focus on strategic responses rather than administrative tasks.

How to do it?

With Prowly you can collect queries from various platforms and keep your finger on the pulse with the buzz about your brands.

This online reputation management tool allows you to follow social media platforms, forums, and news websites. You can also follow both broadcast and print media to ensure that your brand's reputation is protected from all potential threats.

#2 Automated alerts for reviews or mentions

Automated alerts provide businesses with immediate notifications whenever new reviews or mentions are posted online. This feature enables organizations to respond swiftly to feedback. With real-time notifications, you can tackle potential issues before they escalate. This helps you to preserve a positive image of your company.

How to do it?

Prowly notifies you about any new mention of your brand. So it gives you the opportunity to timely respond to reviews and demonstrate to customers that their opinions matter. Which may turn into a loyal and trustworthy customer base. You can also filter what notifications you receive by region, language, and sentiment, among others.

#3 Sentiment analysis and reporting tools

Sentiment analysis is a feature that any solid online reputation management tools should provide. With it you can evaluate the tone of customer reviews as they come in, categorizing them as positive, negative, or neutral. This way, you can understand public perception better, quicker and adjust your strategy in real time.

How to do it?

With Prowly, every mention of your brand can be detected and categorized as negative, positive or neutral. Thanks to it you have the possibility to put down a crisis before it gains momentum. Moreover, you can also take care of your brand's reputation by identifying areas for improvement and making informed decisions about your portfolio.

#4 Competitive benchmarking

By comparing your reputation metrics against your competitors, you can get insights into industry standards. It may help you identify areas for improvement.

You can follow keywords and mentions about your competitors with Prowly. It allows you to set your strategic position and highlight your USP.

#5 Social listening

Usually, online reputation management tools offer a set of features dedicated to social listening across media platforms. This supports understanding what is being said about your brand on social media and helps in managing your brand online.

How to do it?

Prowly tracks:

• Coverage on X, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram
• Likes, shares and comments for each of the above
• Mention sentiment (with the option to adjust in case of errors)

You can use these to gain a comprehensive overview of your social media presence and plan your actions accordingly.

💡 Tip: If you want to make your PR strategy truly robust, read these articles to learn how to manage your brand reputation and protect its reputation.

Four top reputation management software options

#1 Prowly

Prowly is a standout choice in reputation management tools. This platform offers comprehensive features tailored to enhance public relations efforts. With this online reputation management tool you gain access to an extensive media database of over 1 million contacts.

Moreover, you can effectively pitch user stories and monitor online mentions via robust media monitoring and social listening tools.

Another big pro, a user-friendly interface that minimizes the learning curve, making this reputation management tool is accessible for PR professionals at all experience levels. And you can try it for 7 days for free.

Below you can find a comparison with other options, like Cision or Prezly.

💡 If you want to dive into this topic more, you can check out our comprehensive guide that includes a full online reputation management tools comparison.

Tools comparison

Cision

Cision offers a comprehensive range of tools dedicated to PR professionals.

This online reputation management tool gives you a vast media database and advanced analytics. Additionally, it offers excellent social listening and brand monitoring options across multiple channels.

However, its powerful features can be a bit complex, which may mean that new users will need some time to get familiar with the platform.

MuckRack

This online reputation management platform specializes in media monitoring and provides a huge journalist database.

This tool allows you to track coverage and analyze the effectiveness of your PR campaigns. The platform is designed to simplify connecting with journalists and managing media relations.

Prezly

Prezly focuses on contact management and email pitching while providing a dedicated online newsroom feature.

This online reputation management tool may be particularly beneficial for companies that aim to enhance their media relations and boost their storytelling capabilities.

Here's how Cision, Muck Rack and Prezly compare to other software options:
▪️ 7 Best Cision Alternatives in 2025
▪️ Muck Rack vs. Cision vs. Prowly: 2025 Feature & Pricing Comparison
▪️ Cision vs Meltwater vs Prowly – 2025 Pricing & Feature Comparison
▪️ Prezly Pricing in 2025: How Much Does Prezly Cost?
▪️ Top Prezly Alternatives for 2025 (Pricing Plans & Features)
▪️ Top 7 Muck Rack Alternatives You Should Consider in 2025
▪️ Muck Rack Pricing in 2025 – How Much Does it Cost?

Tips for using reputation management software

So let's assume you've already chosen an online reputation management tool.

To get the most out of it follow these tips:

1. Set up automated alerts

Configure automated alerts for new reviews and mentions across all platforms. Such action ensures you’re always aware of what people are saying about your brand.

2. Create response templates

Develop customizable response templates for both positive and negative reviews. With an online reputation management tool, you can maintain a consistent tone. It may also speed up your response time.

3. Engage professionally with negative reviews

A bitter pill to swallow, but not everyone will be a fan of yours. When responding to negative reviews, stay professional and empathetic. Acknowledge the customer's experience. If appropriate, apologize and offer a solution. You can also invite them to a discussion via DMs. This way, you show that you value their feedback and are ready to make improvements.

4. Use insights to refine marketing strategies

A solid online reputation management tool gives you valuable data. And you can make crucial decisions based on it. Sentiment analysis and trends reviews, use them to refine your marketing strategies.

Your brand's reputation is based on understanding customer perceptions. And this data allows you to tailor your messaging and offerings accordingly.

To sum up

Reputation isn’t just managed—it’s engineered.

With public sentiment shifting in real time, staying ahead means more than just monitoring chatter; it’s about shaping the conversation.

The right tools don’t just track mentions—they equip you to navigate crises, amplify wins, and fine-tune your strategy with precision. In a landscape where perception drives profitability, a proactive approach isn’t a luxury—it’s your competitive edge.

The post How to Choose the Best Reputation Management Software? (+ Examples) appeared first on Prowly.

Corporate reputation impacts all business aspects: from who buys your products through partnerships, stock market results, and even job candidates. All of which translates into your financial results.

And the good news is, it can be managed. It's called effective corporate reputation management. It consists on several strategies and techniques that you can adjust to your company needs — and this article is here to help you out.

Imagine having a tool that simplifies your media relations and crisis communication, ensuring your brand’s story is always on point. Ready to take control of your corporate reputation management? Try Prowly for free for 7 days, no strings attached.

What is corporate reputation management?

Let's set some common ground by answering the most important questions first.

1. What is corporate reputation (with examples)?
   Corporate reputation is the image and beliefs linked to your company. For example: Apple tries to link their image with user privacy.

2. What are the four components of reputation management?
   Brand monitoring, responding to feedback, encouraging positive opinions, and dealing with negative comments.

3. What are the top three factors of corporate reputation?
   Quality, safety, and the respect you show in your services and products.

4. What is the meaning of reputation management?
   Reputation management means influencing what stakeholders think about your organization.

Elements of corporate reputation management (w/ examples)

A company's corporate reputation strategy isn't a monolith: each element interacts with the others. Let's see what areas count most in corporate reputation management.

#1 Quality of services

A basic yet often overlooked element of your brand reputation management strategy. Quality (and quality/price ratio) is often the most efficient trigger in word-of-mouth marketing. People enjoy both giving and receiving recommendations.

Often, it's hard to cover up a poor offer's quality — even with the most thoughtful corporate reputation management.

#2 Executives and leadership

Each person that makes it into the spotlight is paramount to any reputation management strategy. Your executives not only decide on the direction your company image takes: they can make it or break it with what they publish.

The most obvious example here is Elon Musk, who both raised and drowned companies with his image. And I'm willing to bet that each industry and niche has their own, lesser-known Musk.

#3 CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility)

The impact companies have on the environment (both nature and social) gets even more attention — especially in the face of mandatory ESG compliance regulations.

For PR specialists, CSR actions taken by the company usually make a pleasant topic to share with the world.

#4 Work culture

The way your company treats its employees impacts not only your employer brand — but makes for another element of your corporate reputation.

Google is a company that builds their image on their workplace culture, among other things. Nevertheless, their recent layoffs in 2024 (and the form they took) cast a different light on what was once a carefully crafted strategy.

#5 Partnerships

Brand partnerships might be the strongest way to show what you care about as an organization. From events, like music festivals or sport games, through sportsmen and travellers, there's a wide array of options out there.

#5 Online and media presence

Online and media aren't only about what you say — but also what is said about you. Pay attention to what is visible after a quick Google search.

Prowly gathers and analyzes online mentions from various sources so that you can keep a hold of your online reputation management.

#6 Customer service

The way you take care of your customers after their purchase has a heavy impact on word-of-mouth. Beware that's not only what you promise, but how you execute it.

A good example comes from Osprey, a backpack maker that offers an All Mighty Guarantee, promising to repair or replace your backpack if the need arises. And as Reddit confirms, they stand by their promise.

#7 Crisis management

In corporate reputation management, a PR crisis is as inevitable as taxes. And your crisis management strategy can seriously impact your corporate reputation for years to follow. Remember Facebook x Cambridge Analytica? That was almost 10 years ago — and yet is still associated with Meta, their lack of transparency, and their failure to offer acceptable reactions.

A crisis press release is a powerful tool to mitigate potential harm. Check out our crisis press release guide and have them ready before you need them!

💡 Tip: If you want to make your PR strategy truly robust, learn how to measure, report, and protect your brand with this article on brand reputation management.

Tools for managing corporate reputation

There's technology for almost everything and managing corporate reputation is no exception. The right tools can help you:

• gather precise opinions, meaning you learn what is really being said about your company
• discover trends from your target group
• track how they feel about you

Let's get into the details.

#1 What do they say about your company?

You'll find the answer in social monitoring tools.

First, let's start with an important distinction: social listening vs social monitoring. Social listening is about uncovering trends and the feelings of the general public. Social media monitoring gives you precise mentions and quotes.

And that's why we'll start with social media monitoring tools — to get the "what."

With a tool like Prowly, you can quickly get an understanding of the newest, relevant mentions covering all the keywords you want to watch. You also get more context, with information about the author and outlet (in case of media publications), as well as potential reach.

If you wish, you can get instant notifications or digests of the mentions you shouldn't miss. With this in hand, you can use social media listening for increasing customer advocacy — and boost your corporate reputation.

#2 How do they feel about your company?

Now it's time to get real value from all those gathered mentions: what, in general, does your public think about you?

Here social listening and sentiment analysis tools get center stage.

Social listening tools analyze the sound and context of each mention to rate the sentiment: positive, negative, or neutral. So you can observe changes in mention quality, not only the number.

Dashboards like this are available in Prowly for each mention you choose. So you get all the crucial info at just a glance.

Social listening helps you assess the impact of your corporate reputation management strategy. Connecting the dots between your actions and general public perception, you can choose the most efficient tactics.

Company reputation management: a step by step guide

Let's see what it takes to start managing corporate reputation consciously. What are the company brand reputation must have?

1. Get others on board

Managing corporate reputation isn't a one-person task. You need to cooperate with all types of specialists.

To get started, you need to align with:

• executive board
• marketing
• customer-facing teams

Each area will bring a unique perspective which will prove valuable in setting the ground for corporate brand reputation and brand crisis management.

2. Audit your situation

To get started, you need to know where you are. Gather all the places where your company is mentioned: from official profiles to Reddit threads.

Make sure to cover:

• all type of mentions of your brand
• online reviews
• news coverage, blogs, forums and comments mentioning your brand
• influencers and journalists writing about you
• claimed and unclaimed business profiles
• industry and brand-related search phrases

As you can see, it's mostly online reputation management. And if your company is often mentioned in traditional media, we encourage you to include all sources.

👉 How can Prowly help? Media monitoring can help you track brand and industry mentions across outlets and journalists covering your topics of interest, both online and in traditional media as well.

3. Understand the data

Once you have all the data in hand, it's time for in-depth analysis and interpretation. Drawing appropriate conclusions is vital for planning your next steps as well as for long-term strategies.

Here's where teamwork is most crucial. With appropriate backgrounds and skills, you can gather insights on how your actions and industry events shaped the perception of your brand.

It's also a time for understanding the processes you have in your company, whether it's about PR plans or the way you treat client complaints. All of it impacts your image and are therefore important for any corporate reputation management strategy.

4. Vet your competitors

Your competition is a great source. They're potentially struggling with similar issues and an in-depth analysis of their actions (or lack thereof) may result in surprising insights. While we don't encourage you to literally copy their solutions, competitive research is a definite must-have.

Make sure to check on any of their past brand crises, as they will be relevant for crafting your corporate reputation management strategy.

Apart from your direct competition, you can extend your research to find inspiration. Some companies excel in their corporate reputation management strategy, and certainly there's a lot to learn from. Even if their ideas aren't directly applicable to your industry, they might spark the creative flow and inspire.

Keep reading — we'll provide some examples later on!

👉 How can Prowly help? With Prowly, you can track mentions covering all your competitors across key industries.

5. Identify the risks

As you approach the topic consciously, there are certainly several threats you will be able to spot. Is it about the negative information available online? Or maybe a lack of initiative and control over what's published about your company?

List all the potential threats you've noticed and brainstorm potential solutions. Our article on PR crisis management strategies might be of help!

6. List the opportunities

Hopefully, you have also uncovered some opportunities of where to work on your corporate reputation. Choose ideas based on your available resources, skillsets, and potential impact — for sure you'll spot some low-hanging fruit.

Maybe it's high time to check out influencer PR? Or try and encourage your clients to leave positive reviews?

👉 How can Prowly help? Take a look at Prowly's rich media database to get in touch with relevant journalists and influencers.

7. Act with patience

Even the best corporate reputation strategy can't stay on paper. Nevertheless, results will come with time — especially if the corporate reputation management area was previously neglected.

👉 How can Prowly help? Share your narrative in an online newsroom and track your results across several useful metrics.

Effective corporate reputation management strategy

Each corporate reputation management strategy is a unique mix, yet the main ingredients remain the same. Take a look at some of the areas you'll tackle.

Harmful information management

Negative (or simply false) information that's available online — your worst challenge when it comes to managing corporate reputation. Limiting its impact can take years and lots of effort.

Review management

Reviews are a powerful tool for corporate reputation — and you shouldn't leave them up to chance.

1. Your first task is to assess the probability of negative reviews. You should be aware of customers' opinions and the way your customer service replies to their concerns.
2. What's more, you can encourage satisfied users to leave positive reviews. Be it with an incentive or just a kind request, an influx of honest, positive reviews is always welcome.
3. The third area of review management are the replies. If possible, don't leave reviews without reactions from your company. It's a great opportunity to show you care about your clients and to mitigate potential harm from negative reviews.

Content marketing and SEO

Content marketing and SEO add up in your corporate reputation management. With thoughtful articles, videos and other publications that are easy to find via search engines, you can increase your industry authority and strengthen your reputation.

Content you publish can make or break trust, especially if you tackle controversial topics.

Social media

Social media is known for its crisis potential. As a situation can quickly get out of control after even just one comment, you need to have a plan in place — and a quick reaction time.

Make sure to add social presence management elements to your corporate reputation strategy. When you handle it proactively, it's can be a great point of leverage to strengthen your image.

Brand monitoring

Ongoing monitoring and optimization is key to effective corporate reputation management. It helps you keep your list of threats and opportunities up to date, as well as uncovers fresh insights about your audience.

This element can be decisive in the success of your corporate reputation management strategy, as it includes constant adjustments to new challenges.

Good corporate reputation management — example

Get inspired with this unconventional reputation management strategy!

Red Bull

Red Bull's corporate reputation strategy is thoughtfully executed. With their strategic partnerships, they put their slogan into real world.

Red Bull participates in an enormous range of events: from sports and music to beating world records in slack lines. Through non-conventional tactics, they create an image that resonates with their target audience.

Bad reputation management — example

Let's look at one of the punchiest examples of bad reputation management.

Car manufacturer's emissions scandal

In 2015, it turned out that a major German automotive manufacturer, Volkswagen, used a so-called "defeat device" in diesel engines to hide the real amount of harmful emissions. In 11 million of its cars sold worldwide.

What's more, they had just launched a campaign praising their cars' low emissions.

Even though they took action, like the resignation of their CEO and the recalling of effected cars, the brand (and financial) impact of the scandal was tremendous.

Their credibility was destroyed, as well as their stock price, which fell by about a third. As much as they have invested in the world's most extensive switch-over program and regained popularity since, the issue still hasn't been forgotten and often appears in social media.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are many approaches to effective reputation management. Strategies like content removal or customer engagement provide outcomes, yet you can take the best steps only after careful research.

Hopefully, with this guide in hand, you'll know where to start. With the wise use of tools, you'll be able to get your corporate reputation management plan running in no time!

The post Corporate Reputation Management: Strategies for PR Pros appeared first on Prowly.

Learn proven strategies for managing brand reputation and building trust with your customers, using tools like Prowly, in this guide for PR professionals.

Ready to start managing your reputation right away? Add media monitoring, an online newsroom, reports based on data, and more to your PR stack.

What is PR reputation management?

Reputation PR is managing the opinion that your target audience has about your organization. It involves communication, actions, performance, and - most importantly - identity and values.

What’s the difference between PR and reputation management?

Both Public Relations and Reputation Management aim to shape public perception of a company. Yet, they use different methods and aim for goals which make them complementary.

👉🏼 PR primarily takes care of image and visibility. For that goal, it uses media outreach and communication: like press releases and building relationships with journalists.

👉🏼 Reputation management improves the perception of a company or individual. Its crucial role is addressing negative issues: often before they arise.

As you can see from those statements, the goal of public relations is wider, as is the scope of their actions. They include media relations, content creation, and event management. Reputation management, in turn, has more in common with crisis management. It tackles customer feedback and handles online presence.

Of course, these areas overlap - and you might even find yourself often covering both public relations and reputation management.

Still, PR is more about reaching a wider audience, and reputation management about what this audience thinks about you.

P.S. Here’s an article that might come in handy if you’re looking for a tool to measure the impact of your communication efforts.

Reputation management in PR - why should you care?

Why is reputation management important in PR? There are four good reasons:

1️⃣ Enhanced credibility and trust

Any purchase decision is easier when you trust the seller - and some are even triggered by this factor.

That's true in other business areas as well. For example, on the job market, nearly 70% of candidates would reject a job offer from a company with a bad reputation, even if they were unemployed.

2️⃣ Competitive advantage

Brand reputation is hard to emulate, and that's why it becomes such a valuable differentiator for your clients.

3️⃣ Improved customer loyalty

Reputation PR actions can foster relationships with your customer base - or drastically damage them.

In fact, changing their opinion about your company can make customers even reverse a purchase - 87% of respondents claim to have done so.

4️⃣ Financial performance

Although you can't put a precise number on your brand's reputation, it definitely influences your financial performance.

Sudden drops in your reputation will be visible even in your financial reports. Customers might choose the competition, or you may lose valuable partnerships with other stakeholders. Similarly, if you're trying to attract investors, your reputation will be a factor - apart from your results.

💡 Tip: Read this full guide on social media reputation to get a complete picture of your PR strategy.

Four components of reputation management

What are the four key steps of reputation management? Let's review them briefly:

1. Monitoring: staying aware of what is said about your company.
2. Response: when crisis management enters the scene - aiming to diminish the negative outcome of a situation.
3. Improvement: taking insights from previous crises and using them to prevent similar situations.
4. Proactive communication: remembering to take action as soon as possible, before you're obliged to.

Mastering these steps is essential for effective corporate reputation management, ensuring your brand remains resilient and trusted. You can take care of all four plus report your actions—all with just one tool designed for PR professionals. Manage all your PR with Prowly for 7 days free.

Taking control of PR reputation: examples and strategies

The issue with brand reputation is that you can't dictate what people should think about you. Nevertheless, with public relations reputation management, you can influence the conversation.

Let's see 5 strategies and (online) reputation management examples that help you achieve this goal.

#1 Strategy: proactive communication & sentiment analysis

Reputation management in public relations relies heavily on preventing a crisis from escalating. Here, your best ally is proactive communication!

You can (and should!) use tools to keep track of and analyze all mentions about your company. Most of them let you measure not only the volume of mentions, but also provide you with sentiment analysis. That's how you can quickly assess the predominant approach towards your company.

If you're looking for tool recommendations, check out our article on the best sentiment analysis tools for PR.

Find out more details about PR reputation management techniques from the dedicated PR Episodes 2023 Q&A session. You'll learn there how to identify and mitigate risks related to your company’s reputation, as well as the most effective ways of responding to any crisis.

In this 20 minute episode, Tonya McKenzie (PR & Leadership Consultant, CEO of Sand&Shores) answers all questions. Her company helps clients tell their stories, elevate their message, and build a strong reputation in the media and the communities they serve.

Or simply read our "How to Use Sentiment Analysis in PR" guide.

💡 Tip: If you want to make your PR strategy truly robust, read these articles to learn how to manage your brand reputation and protect its reputation.

👉🏼 Example: JetBlue

JetBlue faced significant operational disruptions in 2007 when a winter storm left passengers stranded on the tarmac for hours. The CEO issued a public apology and introduced a Customer Bill of Rights, which outlined compensation for any future delays. This proactive communication helped restore trust and showed their commitment to customer service.

💡 Lessons learned: Communication is not only about statements: actions you take after an incident speak much louder.

#2 Strategy: Monitoring and addressing feedback

Online PR and reputation management includes managing opinions - both the positives and negatives.

How can Media Monitoring help you out here?

• Engage Media Monitoring: Set up with Prowly’s Media Monitoring to track mentions of your brand across different channels. Monitor both traditional media and social media to gauge the public’s response to your news and actions.
• Analyze Feedback: Use insights gained from media monitoring to understand the sentiment around your brand and identify any areas needing attention.

Naturally, not all brand and topical mentions will be relevant to you. No worries!

Prowly’s AI identifies the context, sentiment, and over 15 other properties of each press hit and social mention. You can use this information to set up specific filters and ensure you'll only see the mentions that you want to see.

Examples of filters:

• Keyword combinations & context
• Topic of each mention and website (1000+ available)
• Estimated mention reach
• Region and language
• Platform (Instagram, X, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube)

👉🏼 Example: KFC

When KFC faced a chicken shortage in the UK in 2018, they responded with humor and transparency, admitting to the mishap through a rearranged "FCK" apology in a full-page newspaper ad. They continuously updated customers about the situation, effectively managing customer feedback and preventing further reputation damage.

💡 Lessons learned: Humor is valuable, but success lies in timely action and transparency.

#3 Strategy: rapid response in crisis

Crises always come, no matter how much you do to avoid them. In reputation management, the speed of your response is crucial.

There are two areas that play a major role in crisis management: how fast you find out about a new issue, and how prepared you are to reply.

The first area is all about alerts and media monitoring. With custom notifications, you can quickly find out when your brand reputation is in danger.

Set up email notifications for digests and alerts to get a full picture of your brand health. Create custom alerts so you can analyze any unusual spikes in mentions, monitor press hits in top-tier publications, and more.

With these notifications, you can:

• Receive recurring summaries of top mentions with key data
• Quickly react to mentions with negative sentiment
• Track trends, industry news, and competitors

Although you can't predict all possible crisis scenarios, your replies will have some elements in common. Make sure to prepare drafts of press releases in advance that you can issue in times of crisis. Prowly's Press Release Creator will help you store your drafts and craft the perfect official statement.

👉🏼 Example: Tylenol (Johnson & Johnson)

In 1982, after reports that Tylenol capsules had been contaminated with potassium cyanide and resulted in several deaths, Johnson & Johnson quickly pulled $100 million worth of product from store shelves.

They communicated openly about the steps taken to ensure public safety and introduced tamper-proof packaging, which restored public confidence and set a new industry standard.

💡 Lessons learned: Even if your reaction involves short-term costs, the impact on you brand's reputation can be much pricier.

Understanding how effective crisis management can safeguard your brand's reputation is crucial. For concrete examples of PR crises and their handling, see our article on 16 PR Crisis Management Examples.

#4 Strategy: engaging with stakeholders

Reputation PR includes taking care of your stakeholders, as they often hugely influence public opinion. Make sure to keep an updated list of all stakeholders and plan outsteps you'd take in times of crisis ahead of time.

👉🏼 Example: Starbucks

After a 2018 incident where two African American men were arrested at a Philadelphia Starbucks, the company closed over 8,000 U.S. stores to perform racial-bias education for their employees. Starbucks' engagement with stakeholders, including the affected individuals, community leaders, and the public, helped mitigate damage to their reputation.

💡 Lessons learned: Closing all stores for a day is a huge decision - and an important proof of action for stakeholders.

#5 Strategy: leveraging positive media relations

PR tools help you manage those relations. With a media database, you can cover online PR news and reputation management. Prowly gives you access to over 1M journalists' contacts, based in and outside of the U.S. It's super easy to browse: you get advanced filtering options to show only relevant contacts.

After you choose suitable contacts, you can pitch them directly from the platform - and see their important stats, like openings and replies. Building relationships is even easier with 1-1 personalized outreach!

👉🏼 Example: Microsoft

In response to concerns about government surveillance, Microsoft increased transparency about user data requests and enhanced data encryption. They communicated these steps through the media, enhancing their reputation as a protector of user privacy and strengthening media relations.

💡 Lessons learned: If Microsoft public relations reputation experts hadn't put in the time needed to create media relations, the communication plan wouldn't have worked out. Think about public relations reputation management as an investment for tougher times.

Brand values and social responsibility: key to sustainable PR reputation management

Consistent brand values

Your public reputation is rooted in company values and the coherence between your communication and choices. Remember that actions speak louder than words - as seen in this LEGO example:

👉🏼 Example: LEGO

LEGO ended its promotional contract with Shell in response to a Greenpeace campaign about Shell's environmental impact. By prioritizing its commitment to environmental sustainability over commercial interests, LEGO reinforced its brand values and maintained a positive reputation among consumers.

Reputation management PR experts on social responsibility

Willing to learn more about social responsibility? Watch PR Episodes 2023 by Prowly!

Reputation management PR experts, Molly Baker McPherson and Claire Baumann, talk about how to turn abstract concepts into concrete solutions. Both women are active CSR practitioners, helping companies make a real impact.

👉🏼 Baumann has two decades of expertise in this topic, with her background involving leadership roles at McKinsey.org, the United Nations Foundation, and the Obama Administration’s State Department.

👉🏼 McPherson is an expert in public relations and emergency management. She's a podcast host, bestselling author, and creator of a popular TikTok account that makes PR crises easy to follow and easy to avoid.

Manage your reputation like a pro

Is reputation management necessary to PR strategy? It's vital, as reputation PR includes crisis management plans. Both areas are complementary, as you can't ignore the role of PR in reputation management.

That's why PR tools work like a charm - especially for digital PR brand reputation. Prowly is a modern, affordable solution designed for PR specialists. Manage media relations and take care of your reputation all in one tool!

Try Prowly for free for 7 days. No strings attached.

The post Reputation PR: Effective Strategies & Management Tips (w/ Examples) appeared first on Prowly.

PR packages are a powerful tool for brands to build relationships and generate buzz. This article unveils everything you need to know about crafting impactful PR packages, from inspiring ideas to effective strategies.

Learn how to choose the right products, create a captivating presentation, and leave a lasting impression that drives results:

• What is a PR package?
• Do you even need PR packages? Why PR lists and packages matter
• When to send a PR package
• Track the performance of PR package posts
• 12 best PR package examples for every industry
• Beauty PR package examples
• PR packages for fashion brands
• New restaurant/ cocktail bar opening invite PR packages
• Coffee/tea food shop PR package ideas
• Book PR package ideas
• Stationery PR package ideas
• Measure the impact of your PR campaigns

Monitoring your campaign's effectiveness and brand reputation becomes a piece of cake 🍰 when you prioritize social listening. Keep an eye on your audience's conversations and sentiments towards your brand, stay informed, and react quickly.

What is a PR package?

So in a nutshell, what are these mysterious boxes many influencers receive? These influencer boxes usually include a selection of free products, samples, or other branded materials.

What is a PR box?

Basically, these boxes are PR packages, but mostly used for special occasions or announcements. "PR package" is a more general term that can encompass a wide range of promotional materials and formats.

🎯 The goal is to increase brand awareness, make some buzz, and thus increase sales rates.

The idea is simple:

1. Once a brand launches new products, it sends them out to influencers.
2. They then show these products to their followers and increase their audience’s curiosity about the new items.

P. S. Discover more ideas and inspiration by exploring this guide to brand awareness campaigns, complete with examples to spark your creativity.

However, many brands do this, so now you have to think outside the box - literally.

👉🏼 Unique influencer packaging ideas are a must.
They can prolong brand recognition and potentially establish itself as the preferred choice among consumers.

👉🏼 Some companies send PR packages with personal notes.
Each is dedicated to a different social media influencer. Even simple personalization (such as changing only the name of the recipient on the card) makes a long-lasting impression and fits into the current industry trends.

Such activities create a bond between the audience and a brand and improve its PR.

Do you even need PR packages? Why PR lists and packages matter

What is a PR list?

To receive a PR package, you have to be on THE LIST.

Sounds like a joke from “Mean Girls?”

Luckily it’s a bit different, although a journalist or influencer needs to meet specific criteria to get there.

PR lists are just specific collections of media contacts. That means they cover contact details and the areas of interest of journalists, bloggers, and influencers.

Such listings help with aiming outreach, personalizing pitches, and building media relationships. They also aid in tracking and analyzing outreach campaigns to refine communication strategies.

PR package benefits

👉🏼 Visibility and Awareness

PR packages help brands present their products or services to the world. This happens via influencers, journalists, and other media contacts, enhancing online visibility and creating excitement.

👉🏼 Relationship Building

By offering valuable content and information, brands can forge connections and credibility with influencers and journalists. This can prepare the ground for potential collaborations in the future.

👉🏼 Media Coverage and Exposure

PR packages and PR lists are crucial for brands seeking media coverage and exposure. Influencers show your products in their content and present the benefits of using them. In other words, PR packages can be part of your digital PR tactics.

When to send a PR package?

1️⃣ Product Launches

New products require some buzz. Sending PR packages before the official launch generates curiosity and gives customers a hint of what is coming. Below you can see a PR package sent by the Pixi brand to a beauty influencer.

2️⃣ Seasonal Campaigns

Throughout the year, companies often have the chance to send seasonal PR packages. One trendy idea is to send advent calendars to influencers, who then open them day by day on social media for everyone to see (or open them with their followers).

3️⃣ Collaborations and Partnerships

There is no better way to announce a new collab than showcasing hints via PR packages. Collaboration merch is one the the best PR packages that one could get.

4️⃣ Special Events

One of the PR box’s intentions may be to invite. Whether it's to host a charity event your brand is patronizing or to announce a new collaboration. Every occasion is a good reason to celebrate (and send PR packages).

5️⃣ Brand Anniversaries or Milestones

Let people know that you’ve reached a certain level. PR boxes can be a way to tell others about your journey and celebrate with your community.

6️⃣ Fostering Media Relations

Sending a PR package is also a good way to improve relationships with media outlets. An example of such is the buzz created around the Barbie movie. Many outlets and hot names receive pink goods to make the buzz even louder.

7️⃣ Introducing a new product

Not every occasion calls for a grand launch; sometimes, it's about introducing a single product or service to the market. As with the Taco Bell SOS Kit, which the company sent to influencers to show users how to make their own Taco Bell at home.

Track the performance of PR package posts

You should monitor & listen to what’s being said about the packages. The main differences between these two can be found in the tab below.

But if you want to dig a little deeper, you can check out the full article: What's the difference between social listening and monitoring in PR.  

Thanks to social listening you can identify relevant influencers and brand advocates with engaged audiences to send PR packages to.

Then you can set up monitoring streams in Prowly.

It’s good practice to create monitoring streams specifically for influencers who received the PR packages. Establish streams to track mentions of their social media profiles, blog posts, and relevant hashtags or keywords linked to the PR campaign or products.

You can also easily identify the impact. To formulate a strategy, it's essential to understand what is effective and what is not.

Social listening data lets you:
👉🏼 Determine whose PR package unboxings are generating the most engagement, reach, and positive sentiment.
👉🏼 Analyze patterns and trends in influencer performance to identify those who are most successful in amplifying your brand's message.

12 best PR package examples and ideas for every industry

Beauty PR package examples

#1 Glossier

This beauty brand positions itself as a fun and minimal skincare option. Its design is simple and its communication matches that simplicity. So their packages couldn't be any different. Minimalistic, elegant and simple.

Takeaways for PR pros: Keep it simple. Try to minimize plastic and other non-eco-friendly materials. Send the essentials and focus on the message.

#2 Gisou

Gisou is a well-known hair and skincare brand. They position their brand as sophisticated and high-class. Their branding and product give a sense of luxury which their  PR packages to influencers embody.

Takeaways for PR pros: Try to include coherent surprises, like scented candles or water bottles.

#3 Drunk elephant

Below you can see a Drunk Elephant PR box which includes many, and we mean it, many products from the brand. The whole package seems to be wrapped up in a funny colorful way, which are coherent with the colors used in their branding.

They sent products in a vanity case. Which kept it protected in transit and was a nice touch the influencer could use daily. Keeping the brand in her mind.

Takeaways for PR pros: Think about the package. Consider not only the box itself, but also how to securely pack the product inside. If you can incorporate branding and position it as a daily essential, it is a win-win situation.

#4 Pixi

What are PR packages in the beauty industry? Sometimes they could be like small works of art. Pixi knows how this works and each of their boxes is done subtly and coherently with their branding and collections.

Takeaways for PR pros: Remember to indicate what kind of products are inside and how to use them. If you sent packages before a premiere, highlight its date.

#5 Rare beauty

This particular Rare Beauty PR box is an example of more minimalistic packing. What is the PR package in this case? You can see it includes a catalog of products, branded with a picture of Selena Gomez, the founder and face of the company.

Takeaways for PR pros: Make your packages even more personal and human with pictures. It could be a picture of your team, the founder, or a celebrity you've collaborated with.

PR package examples for tech brands

#1 Google

It would be nice to receive a box from Google, don't you think? In the B2B world, relationships with influencers and brand ambassadors are so important. Usually, there is more money on the table and decisions are made collegially. So you need to be as convincing as you possibly can.

Takeaways for PR pros: Don't skimp on generosity. Send the influencer multiple products, even if they're slightly pricier on the market.

#2 Prowly

At Prowly, we sent to our brand ambassadors and PR pros that take part in our events PR boxes to thank them for their support.

All the branding was outside the box but what was inside was strictly practical. We added things they could use daily. Moreover, we made sure the quality of each piece was top-notch. We’re talking green, soy candles instead of artificial wax, an easy to recycle box, a good quality natural fabric tote bag.

Takeaways for PR pros: Go green and use eco or natural materials in your packages. We mean both the wrapping and items.

PR packages for fashion brands

Sezane

What are PR packages in the fashion industry? A feeling like Christmas came early to every influencer. By making a note, as Sezane did, you can make it even more personal and start bonding.

Takeaways for PR pros: Follow your brand ambassadors and learn about their habits or style. Send items that would be practical and useful to them.

New restaurant/ cocktail bar opening invite PR packages

The big date is approaching and you have no idea how to create some buzz about your new spot?

Send the local influencers (or even households in the neighborhood) stuff connected to your new place. You can make a package with a pack of the coffee beans you would use, a wine (an alcohol free version would be a good choice, too), and do not forget about an invite and the menu!

Get inspired by this example 👇🏼

Takeaways for PR pros: Let people taste what your spot would be like. Send some hints of products/courses that they could find on the menu.

Coffee/tea food shop PR package ideas

PR packages from coffee shops and the like don’t have to (but can) be very complex. Overall, they should focus on the right message.

So do not send your whole range of products. Give a hint of what they can expect and use products they could buy at your place.

See how Chamberlain Coffee PR packages nailed the game: matcha PR box and canned coffee.

Takeaways for PR pros: What about some DIY products? Giving influencers something to do on their own is a good way to get stuck in your audience's memory for longer.

Book PR package ideas

Any bookworms out there?

If you want to open a spot for the readers, what you can do is collaborate with authors and send some premiere-related boxes or make your packages show the whole range of books your customers could find.

Watch the unboxing of the first (and second) book PR box on Instagram

Takeaways for PR pros: If you decide to send several books, remember to add items related to the plot. This would show that you are also a reader and you are ready to give advice to expand their TBRs (To Be Reads).

Stationery PR package ideas

Cute stationery items are made for being sent as PR packages.

There’s a but! Do not send pens and notebooks just as everybody does in their welcome/thank you packs.

Pick products that will please the eye and be useful. You can create a whole package of your products to show them in action, just like on the first and second example below.

Takeaways for PR pros: Put some effort into your box and make it personal. Add notes and show your recipients it is a thoughtful effort.

Measure the impact of your PR campaigns

What comes afterward is measuring and analyzing the effects. How can you get valuable and practical data?

Monitor mentions and engagement

Monitor the volume and sentiment of mentions related to the selected influencers and the PR packages they received. Track engagement metrics, such as likes, comments, shares and retweets on their social media posts and blog content featuring the PR packages.

Track reach and impressions

Keep track of the reach and impressions generated by the influencers' content featuring the PR packages. Measure the number of views, impressions, and potential reach of their social media posts and blog articles.

With Prowly you can measure many relevant metrics, such as Share of Voice.

Analyze audience sentiment

Analyze audience sentiment towards the influencers' content featuring the PR packages. Monitor positive, negative, and neutral sentiments to understand overall audience perceptions and reactions to the PR campaign.

You can also set email notifications to keep aware of any negative mention spikes to quickly mitigate rising PR crises.

Assess content performance

Assess the performance of the influencers' content featuring the PR packages. Look for trends in the content formats, messaging, and visual elements that resonate most with your audience.

You can also ask your influencers for exact numbers from their social media stats.

Provide feedback and support

Use the insights gathered from social listening to provide feedback and support to your influencers. Acknowledge their efforts, share positive feedback with them, and offer assistance or additional resources as needed to optimize their content performance.

Create PR packages and track them with ease

Delivering PR boxes for brand ambassadors and influencers is a nice way to create a bond with them and expand your brand recognition. The harder thing is to pick the right recipients. For that, Prowly's got your back.

Check out our extensive database and craft your pitch with Prowly AI. Save some time with the help of the proper tools and reach out to the right influencers.

The post All You Need to Know About PR Packages: Examples, Ideas and Strategies appeared first on Prowly.

When a reputation crisis hits your company, you must take action to rebuild your public image. Otherwise, your brand might end up losing market value and plunging into a financial deep hole. 

So, how should brand leaders avoid reputational damage that might steer catastrophic events like bankruptcy, liquidation, and insolvency?

This article dives into the brand reputation crisis by providing an eight-step process that you can follow to avert the crisis and rebuild your image.

Brand reputation management after a crisis

1. Analyze the level of damage caused

The first step to take when your brand suffers from a reputation crisis is assessing its severity. This is where you take a step back to analyze the depth of the damage caused. 

To understand how serious the situation is, you should quantify changes in corporate reputation, a downtick in perception among employees and stakeholders, and a negative attitude towards the company.

During the initial assessment, it is important to identify any executives or specific brand entities that are directly responsible for the event. 

Remember that the brand crisis is reflected online, so keep track of the situation on social media platforms as well as Google search results. You will also need to capture non-media metrics such as sales performance, profitability, and share prices.

Conducting a thorough evaluation of the crisis and its impact on the brand provides the basis for all responses to customer and media inquiries. It is crucial to how stakeholders react throughout the recovery process.

To navigate a corporate crisis successfully, you must have all the data at hand, while carefully separating facts from fiction. All this is what this step involves.

💡 Tip: Read the full guide on social media reputation here.

2. Get in touch with key stakeholders and investors

Once you have a clear picture of the current situation, it is time to communicate the impact of the crisis. The first group of people to appease should be major stakeholders in your brand. These include business partners, investors, customers, and other primary stakeholders.

Here, you need to formally provide details of how events unfolded, leading to the crisis. Additionally, let them know what measures you’re taking to resolve the situation. Your ability to bring the company back into alignment rests on how well you can engage key stakeholders.

If you’re looking for reputation crisis examples and how companies dealt with it, look no further. A case-in-point is when Twitter was compromised and accounts of notable public figures used for a cryptocurrency scam in July 2019. Twitter Support informed all affected users as well as the Twitter community what happened and how they’re dealing with the situation before leveraging the press.

Reputation crisis example from Twitter

When informing customers what happened, always strive to remain honest. Otherwise, you will ruin the situation and jeopardize public trust. 

In 2011, when Target suffered a major security breach, they tried to downplay the number of credit card details compromised at the beginning, which reduced their credibility when the actual statistics showcasing the real hack were released.

However, when monitoring social media channels, keep in mind that many users have recently moved from Twitter to its alternatives. We have listed the most popular ones in this article.

3. Thoughtfully plan your media communication strategy

The aim of every reputation management strategy after a crisis is to shape public perception. Part of this will involve leveraging the media, where brand leaders issue a public statement and pick the right person to deliver it. This might not be easy as it sounds since you’re defending your brand’s position in the court of public opinion. For this reason, you need to understand the impact of your press release.

In most cases, any of these three situations will apply when communicating with the media.

The first is when your brand is at fault. Here, you need to acknowledge and take ownership of the mistake. An attempt to conceal the truth or deflect blame on another party will only worsen your brand reputation. So, deliver an apology letting the public know that you recognize the failure and that your brand is absolutely committed to resolving the problem.

Another situation is when you’re not at fault. Here, you do not just roll over, take the blame, and deliver a half-hearted apology. The public might perceive your brand as weak, which is equally damaging. Instead, stand up and remain firm to your brand’s position.

The third scenario is when the reputational damage stems from a mistruth published online or by local news outlets. While seeking retraction might seem helpful, it is important to take a more collaborative path by asking the journalist or writer responsible to politely apologize and share the true version. This will promote better understanding and enhance public trust.

Worth a mention is that not every crisis requires you to contact the media. In some situations, you can pull away from media inquiries and only communicate when you can.

P.S. Here’s an article that might come in handy if you’re looking for a tool to measure the impact of your communication efforts.

4. Focus on strong internal communication

Employees are the best ambassadors your brand has during a crisis. As part of the leadership, you should ensure all employees understand the reputation crisis and why it happened. You should also empower them so that they contribute to alleviating the high-heated situation by embracing corrective actions. 

While not every employee can proactively defend your brand, you can start by picking the most enthusiastic and training them.

Other than training, you can provide rewards and incentives for motivation. The ultimate goal is to build a culture where all employees can proactively protect the brand image when a crisis hits.

5. Adjust your social media response plan 

Over 65% of business leaders believe that social media can worsen a brand crisis, which is true in today’s socially-driven world. However, you can enhance the restoration process by taking control of your communication platforms. This means taking charge of conversations on your website affiliated blogs, social media channels, review websites, and any other online platform.

As expected, you should publish a formal apology across all these platforms. The apology should be brief and factual. Starbucks did this when apologizing for a racist incident.   

Reputation crisis example from Starbucks

Alternatively, you can publish a video of the same where a top executive like the CEO delivers the apology message.

Another smart move? Learn from the best. Check out this article featuring 16 PR crisis management examples — see what went well (and what went wrong), why it happened, and how you can apply those lessons to your brand. Then check your social media reputation management and fine-tune your crisis strategy with a few practical tips.

After issuing a statement, you must track all hashtags and keywords that feature your brand. Here, you can use a brand monitoring tool that alerts you whenever online users talk about your brand. 

This way, it will be easier to swiftly respond to all comments. Showing the online community that you care about the situation can really pay off when it comes to maintaining good relationships with customers.

When responding to online messages, always remain consistent. You should ensure all subsequent responses reflect your brand position as portrayed in the initial statement.

And don't overlook traditional media when monitoring mentions! Be sure to check mentions in print magazines, radio programs, and television.

You can do this manually if you work for a small client, but to ensure you capture mentions nationally and internationally, consider using a tool that automates the process. That way, you'll never miss a mention—whether it's online or offline.

Combine online media monitoring with print and broadcast monitoring in Prowly to have mentions from both digital and traditional news sources at your fingertips—all in one place.

6. Maintain transparency when handling public issues

Rebuilding your reputation after the crisis is often a battle with all the negative content that blew up your image in the first place. Typically, this involves revising your content, removing content, suppressing damaging content, and publishing positive content relentlessly.

As you deal with content, remember that corporate reputation lies in your delivery, and not your promises. In order for clients to continue working with your brand, they need assurance that you can deal with the current crisis effectively. Here, you must transparently demonstrate how you’re fixing the problem. If you make any promises during the crisis, be sure to fulfill them for the business to survive.

7. Reinstate trust and core corporate values

Trust is one of the defining characteristics of success in today’s corporate world. This is why regaining consumer trust is important for your brand to successfully rebuild its reputation after the crisis. Even if you’ve almost taken full control at this point, you should not relax. Instead, ensure your brand conveys positive aspects such as accreditations, financial stability, longevity, and all positive feedback acquired in the past.

This is an opportunity for the brand to speak in one voice while demonstrating its core values to the public. You should remind customers of the strides the company has taken over the years to attain its current success. The bottom line here is assuring customers of your commitment and showing what measures you have in place to ensure success moving forward.

8. Look into the future

When the PR crisis is over and everyone is feeling relieved and looking forward to returning to normality, remember there’s still one more thing to do. This is planning your brand’s future. The crisis should be an opportunity to assess how you can maintain your brand’s reputation in the long-term.

Warren Buffet once said that “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.” For this reason, every brand should put in place a concrete plan for ensuring a similar crisis does not occur again. 

Amending your internal processes, training employees proactively, and creating a reputation crisis management plan are some steps you can take to protect your brand in the future.

💡 Tip: If you want to make your PR strategy truly robust, read these articles to learn how to manage your brand reputation and protect its reputation.

Conclusion

Rebuilding a reputation after a crisis takes a solid strategy, strong commitment, and self-discipline. In today’s highly competitive world, some adversaries will always want to see your brand fall. 

However, you shouldn’t let a single brand reputation crisis define your failure. Use the tips outlined above to get your brand’s reputation back in order and come out stronger.

Written by Adela Belin @Writers Per Hour, cover photo by Étienne Godiard on Unsplash

The post How to Recover from a Reputation Crisis and Rebuild Your Brand appeared first on Prowly.

However, do you also think about the effects of the frequency of your publicity? Can it have a detrimental effect? Turns out that there can be such a thing as too much publicity after all. 

Here’s what media overexposure means, how to avoid it, and how to take back control of your media presence in case media overexposure happens to you. 

• Media overexposure - meaning
• How to avoid media overexposure
• How to take back control of your media presence

What is media overexposure? 

“Overexposure” can be described as an excessive amount of media coverage, resulting in the audience losing interest in the message. One rule of thumb is to consider overexposure an exception rather than the rule. However, if overexposure should occur, it may not be as damaging as you think.

Your reputation, embodied by your name, precedes you. It becomes essential when media coverage explodes to assess and evaluate your exposure to regain a sense of control and prevent audience burnout. 

Your name is an asset. It's yours to protect. You may need to consider and record any hype around your name, investigate the obtainment of media coverage, benchmark the results of campaigns, get ownership of assets where possible, and find mentions of your name so that you can protect it as exposure begins to escalate. 

How to avoid media overexposure

Are you getting prepared to ride the next wave of the press? Investigating and benchmarking current exposure in terms of current KPIs and measuring its impact will help prepare you for the future highs and lows of your publicity. 

Outline the stages of your various publicity campaigns. Analyze, control, and measure media coverage across all channels to produce tangible results. At the same time, identify the most suitable opportunities for you to next engage with the media using a range of techniques. 

Don't forget to actively seek opportunities based on the connections you have already made and build relationships with the press so as not to burn bridges. You may manage a peak in publicity more naturally by building loyal relationships with your audience, too. 

Creating a public persona needs to maximize a strong understanding of your target audience for long-term sustainability. Today's public relations strategies need to involve how audiences receive information and their reactions.

Prevent audience burnout for PR

PR is about long-term goals, which means selecting appearances and interviews to increase your know, like, and trust factor. Offering limited availability instead of attending every opportunity may help you maintain a high level of credibility. 

This approach requires cherry-picking interviews and appearance requests for maximum value. The decision of what offers to accept or decline is up to you and your team. You will be more likely to be asked to share your opinion, with the more value you can add. Provide value, and people will continue seeking your expertise. 

Make sure your audience perceives you as credible by staying on topic and avoiding giving the impression of overexposure.

Strive to become a thought leader

Media outlets know that their audiences like to see familiar faces, so they strive to provide a proportion of familiarity in their publicity. In this case, the problem with too much "familiarity" or "overexposure" can be predictability or repetitiveness, and audiences will have nothing new to learn. 

For this reason, successful public figures decide what areas of expertise are most important to them and focus on those. 

Consistency of the message is a powerful strategy for springboarding new ideas. The best message statements are fact-based, engaging, understandable to your audience, and memorable. Positioning yourself as a thought leader in this way can gain you a reputation as an expert in your field. 

Thought leaders are highly sought-after experts in their industries, with valued opinions by other professionals and the public. They can set a pace for their industry, inspire innovation, and become role models for others. 

Create space for people to digest your message

If you aim to create maximum impact, save yourself from exhaustion, and get the best return on your investment, focus on more specialized media outlets if you feel that you are becoming overexposed by mainstream media outlets. 

Avoid negative publicity by creating space for people to digest your message and reach a positive peak before returning for another cycle. 
The trick is to know when to stay in the background as part of a structured effort.

Laying low maintains the clarity of your message and coordinated consistency across all channels, including local press and all forms of online media.

How to take back control of your media presence

A crisis has your brand in its grip. What are you going to do?

If you find yourself feeling overexposed, do not overcompensate by making too many public statements about the matter because this will likely further increase the attention paid to your actions. Often, well-crafted information given by a spokesperson will suffice in managing overexposure without further action.

If you have an online newsroom, you should make good use of it in tough moments like these. Publish an official statement and take back control of your media presence - unlike actual media coverage, an online press room is where you completely control the narrative and decide what to make public.

In addition to having prepared quotes available, a professional spokesperson can stick to the message and sound bites when speaking with the media; doing so helps ensure that any negative comments made by others will be offset at least partially by positive comments made by the spokesperson. 

When you share messages with your audience and ask them to assess you, it is essential that you have something new to share. When you over-communicate, you ask for targeted criticism from your audience because they will dig deeper into your work if you have nothing further to share with them.

A PR strategy for surviving an overexposure

Many people believe that they can “control” their image by controlling what media they appear in. It’s true that media outlets looking for stories will accept a certain amount of control from contributors, but in the end, the media will do whatever makes them money. 

The ability to control the media is best exemplified by staying on message, sticking to a positive and controlled tone, and working to cultivate relationships with journalists. 

Once you have gained a large amount of media exposure, minimize your interactions with the media to assess and manage the results. Decide in advance what goals you aim to achieve by pursuing further PR, and what happens next. 

Establish your current and intended audience, get comfortable with your message, make it believable, and pick your strategy. Consider every aspect of communicating a message. You can then gain preemptive control over the way future news stories may be framed. 

A strong PR strategy will ensure that you’re the first to set the tone of new stories since you have a firsthand understanding of the news and industry dialogue. 

Your PR campaign following an unexpected overwhelm of publicity will become a virtual 'blueprint' for any communications and media coverage that follows, including an updated distribution plan for managing relevant media channels, outlets, and publications.

Media exposure can be a complex, delicate matter that requires careful consideration. It is vital to expose your message in the marketplace repeatedly, but not so often that consumers grow tired of seeing it. 

Cover photo by Etienne Boulanger

The post Media Overexposure: How to Take Back Control of Your Media Presence appeared first on Prowly.