Swanson Russell

I’m a public relations counsel at Swanson Russell. Lots of people think they know what I do for a living. After all, they’ve watched the television character Samantha Jones host corporate galas and celebrity book launch parties on Sex and the City…that’s what PR people do, right?

Well…kind of. While the basic principles of public relations hold steady regardless of industry, the tactics that I use for my clients are most likely NOT the ones that Samantha used. (And let’s just leave it at that.)

If you’ve managed to find your way to our blog, you may already know that Swanson Russell specializes in marketing communications for a handful of industries, one of which is the green industry—my area of focus. My clients market products and services like sprinkler systems, fertilizers, gardening tools and skid steer loaders. Not everyone finds these products as fascinating as I do (seriously!). In the almost five years since I started working at Swanson Russell, I’ve learned more about those products than I ever thought possible. I’ll be out for a run in my neighborhood, and I’ll find myself critiquing the sprinkler system outside a neighbor’s house (too much inefficient misting and fogging can signal the need for a pressure-regulating spray or rotor, in case you were wondering.)

While hosting a glitzy gala might be fun, you can probably see that it may not be the best way to communicate the value and performance of a sprinkler head or a controlled release fertilizer. So, what does a PR professional in the green industry do?  It’s my job to garner consistent, positive publicity for my clients, their products and their services. Over time, the right kind of publicity can position any company as an industry leader and a subject-matter expert to its customers and prospects. Here are some basic rules about how to obtain positive PR in the green industry. 

Learn as much as you can about your products and services.

Before you can communicate intelligently and confidently about any topic, you have to have a firm grasp of it. If you don’t understand how your fertilizer is better than a competing product, you’re not going to be able to convince anyone else that it is. Your knowledge level reflects upon your overall understanding of your target audiences and how your company can help them do their jobs faster, easier and better. Bottom line—it’s pretty tough to be an effective PR representative if you don’t “get it.”

Nurture relationships with green industry media.

The green industry is served by a distinct group of publications, websites and blogs. Your audience gets much of their information from these sources. Do your research, introduce yourself to these editors and bloggers and find ways to provide informative, educational content that presents your products and services in a positive light. Understand the pressures under which they work, and then develop a relationship based upon helping one another. You need them to help you gain exposure for your products or services; they need you for photos, interview contacts and fresh editorial content. That leads us to the next very important point.

Develop informative and educational content.

These days, good PR is often all about providing good editorial content for the magazines, websites and blogs within your industry. And, understanding the difference between editorial and promotional voice is key. No editor or blogger wants to publish a free ad for you. Editorial content educates, informs and entertains. Become a regular reader of green industry publications, blogs and message boards. Come up with topics that are both “hot” within the green industry and relevant to your products and services. If you’re a good writer, pitch bylined articles on these topics to your green industry media connections. If you’re not, pitch the ideas to the media, and offer to set up interviews with your client contacts and provide product samples when appropriate.

Find ways to repurpose your content.

Sometimes, you can even write one piece of content and use it for multiple purposes, generating even more positive PR. For example, more communities and commercial properties are using non-potable water for irrigation. So, I wrote a white paper about water harvesting methods and the right sprinkler system components to use with non-potable water, using a few of my client’s products as examples. Then, I took that information, re-worked it into an appropriate format for a trade magazine article which I then pitched and placed. From there, a green industry newsletter picked up the article and published a link to it, sending it out to thousands of subscribers. I was able to push out a link to the article via my client’s Facebook and Twitter pages. That’s a lot of positive PR spawned by one good idea.

Don’t get complacent.

Today’s customers—whether they’re businesses or individual consumers—are rapidly changing. Their demographics are far different from just a few short years ago, as is the way they prefer to find and receive information. If you’ve been in PR for a few years, it’s easy to think the same tried-and-true methods you’re using today will work tomorrow….and the next day, and the day after that. The fact is that landscape contractors, gardeners and golf course superintendents are people, not just “target audiences.” Take the time to get to know these people as well as you can, learn their preferences and then use PR strategies and tactics that resonate with them. Subscribe to both PR and green industry newsletters, and try to stay on top of the newest developments in PR. Don’t be afraid to go beyond your comfort zone and try out some new ideas.

So there you go….green industry PR may not be all about galas, fancy grand openings or attending movie premieres with Smith Jarrett. (Sorry for yet another Sex and the City reference). But it’s a wonderful industry filled with great people, amazing products and innovative ideas. It’s an industry that gives PR professionals the chance to become truly engaged with products and services that not only employ millions of people but also make the world a more beautiful place. And really, that’s pretty glamorous.