The Blog of Brandon Milford - Marketing, Entrepreneurship, and Design

I’ve talked about this before and I thought it was worth revisiting.

Starting out our marketing consisted primarily of public relations and that’s
what it took to get our software off the ground. Like many young businesses we
didn’t have excess capital to invest in advertising our software. As we have
grown this has given us the opportunity to invest more in advertising. It reads
a bit like a catch twenty-two, but I have learned that you must establish your
brand, message, and software in the minds of consumers via public relations and
ensure that it remains through advertising.

So here we are knee deep in Web 2.0 and this has never been
more apparent. The web apps that are achieving the greatest success are doing
so with very little invested in marketing. These companies are establishing
themselves in the market by creating a loyal following through public relations.
As marketers it’s a must that we pay close attention and learn from what is
going on around us right now.

From what I have observed I am seeing the current trends in
public relations for these companies that contribute to their success:

• A successful blog: Most, if not all, successful Web 2.0 companies have built a loyal following via their blog. This seems to be the standard public relations tool for Web 2.0.

• Great design: The design of their website and application is always easy on the eyes and usability is never ignored. This is critical in creating PR for their software. If you build
       something that gets people talking they will share their experience with others. Great design and usability can do just that.

• Free version: At the very least you will find a free trial, but typically there is a free, but limited, version of the software that you can use indefinitely. We offer a free trial of our software and it is the perfect ‘door’ in which to welcome customers. They take the software for a ‘test drive’ and if they like it, they buy it, and tell others.

• Fill a niche: Successful Web 2.0 companies fill a niche within the market and cater only to this group. They typically avoid attempting to be everything to everyone. This allows them to be the first or the best to focus solely on a certain niche and can create significant buzz in doing so.

• Small team: Most are made up of teams of no more than ten. I think most of the time this is preferred (ie:five friends get together and build a web app), but a key point worth
       mentioning is this typically results in those who built the application, supporting the application. Who better to answer questions about the way the software works than the person who built it? From a public relations point of view customers can get to know everyone on the team. That’s rapport that can go a long way.

• Reaching out and educating others: One of the best ways they establish a following is by reaching out and educating others. You will see members from these companies speaking at conferences such as South by Southwest and Carson Worskshops, to name a few. Many are also published and have a book that shares their knowledge with others. Keeping your name and face out there helps establish you as an expert in your field and is one of the best ways to build relationships with your customers.

Thinking about the way companies of Web 2.0 market their
software has opened my eyes to the importance of public relations. I once
thought that advertising could do it all. Starting out I thought, “if only I
had ‘x’ amount of capital to purchase this ad we could rake in the customers”.
In retrospect our initial marketing via public relations was critical for us
and laid a solid foundation for all marketing that came afterwards. Al Ries put
it best; “PR builds brands. Advertising maintains brands. Advertising should
not try to put a new idea in the consumer’s mind. Advertising should use ideas
that are already there.”

It takes much more than investing money in advertising your
products to reach the top of your industry. As I’ve learned public relations is
the solid foundation that all other marketing efforts should be built upon.