PR for charities is very popular, as a low cost and effective form of marketing. The only issue is finding the right public relations agency, as there are hundreds around the UK all with different industry experience.
We always advise talking to PR agencies that are experienced in doing PR for charities and non-profits.
Just fill in the form to get free advice and quotes from 5 local PR companies that have experience of PR for charities and non-profit organisations.
Public relations is all about getting media exposure, and this is something that is very important for you. This is what moves donors to become interested in the work you are doing, and hopefully become involved, perhaps at least by giving regular donations.
According to the Register of Charities there are just under 200,000 charities in the UK, so there are two aspects for which you need support:
The problem is that marketing and advertising can be expensive, certainly considering some avenues of PR or advertising. We have all seen adverts from charities such as NSPCC on prime time TV which will have cost them a lot of money.
PR agencies do not offer special rates for you, and advertising companies do not give free advertising; however you do not need to spend large sums on advertising in order to get the media coverage you need.
What they can do is to offer good advice, and create specifically focused campaigns, in order to raise brand awareness and exposure.
Another option is you could do some online PR; this is very affordable, at around £40 per press release, and there are even some sites that offer free on-line media support. Asking an agency to look over your article before submission is wise, but if you are a good writer then there should be no issues.
There are a wide number of media companies that have experience working in the charity sector in the UK, offering targeted media coverage and targeted advertising to support you. It is wise to select a company that does understand about marketing for charities and what is required from the campaign.
Public relations is all about stirring up positive media exposure, and for all charities that is what is needed.
Whether your charity is an animal charity, helping the homeless getting media exposure ticks a number of boxes.
The need of marketing for charities is important, with 66,000 charities in the UK, standing out is important if you are to get donations.
Every industry has its media publications. For example, animal charities would look for media exposure in magazines such as BBC Wildlife or Horse Illustrated. Children’s charities would look for media exposure in National Geographic Kids or CBeebies.
Every charity wants to get into the mainstream media, to have a mention on the BBC news or an article in the Daily Mail.
Positive media exposure highlights the cause of your charity and should draw in more donations or direct support by volunteers across a range or rolls within the charity.
The search engines keep a keen eye on the media, if your charity gets a mention on one of the main news outlets such as CNN or Sky News, then your website will most likely jump up the ranks to page 1.
You need to consider the cost side of your marketing, possibly more so than other business sectors, PR costs need to be keen.
There is the stigma that charities spend too much money on marketing. Most days we will see TV adverts for charities, which we all know are not free of charge. The charity would have had to pay a marketing agency to produce the advert and then pay the TV channel for the air time.
Shopping around and comparison of prices is advised in order to find a cost effective company. As a price comparison website, we want to help you get the best public relations agency for the lowest price.
Coupled into price is experience; finding a public relations agency that understands the market you are in is just as important than cost if not more so.
Experience counts for everything in the media, not just in knowing the right media contacts for the industry, but also in knowing one’s way around the market.
There are many public relations agencies around the UK that have experience in working in this sector; just fill out the quote form opposite to get free media advice and quotes to compare costs.
All PR companies are different, each with different experience. Some PR companies have just started trading, others have been around for decades.
All PR agencies are privately owned and are profit making. It is therefore necessary to shop around and compare quotes.
Comparing quotes for public relations is not about finding the cheapest agency, but getting a feel for a reasonable price to pay.
All PR companies will charge a monthly fee for your media support. This would be based on how much time you require them to work for you.
With public relations, you do not get what you pay for. The most expensive PR company does not make them the best, however choosing the cheapest PR company is not the right thing to do.
It is about finding the ‘right’ PR company for your charity.