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FEATURE SOCIAL MEDIA & PR QA


Q. What is PR? A. In the dictionary you will find that public relations, or as it is commonly known, PR, involves the “cultivation of favourable relations for organisations, governments, businesses and products with its publics and audiences through the use of a variety of communication channels and tools.” However, when people ask me I tell them the main goal of public relations is to enhance and protect a company’s reputation, because this is the essence of PR.


Q. Why PR? What can PR do for my business that advertising or marketing can’t? A. The main point of difference is that PR is more credible. While advertising and marketing is paid for, PR is a concerted effort to communicate a company’s news/message/story to the target audience – and this will only be done should the media actually believe in the story enough to take it to their readers. Whether you are a large corporation, a small business, or maybe expanding into a new country or geographical area, PR is an important tool.


Q. How can exhibitors at Arab Health use PR effectively? A. A good PR professional can help you create a unified message that helps your marketing and business development. They can help you define your product or service from the customer’s point- of-view, get you on the speaker’s panel at trade shows and conventions, get articles about your firm in the relevant publications, and help with collateral material development. Editors are bombarded with press releases and stories every day. Make sure you have a story interesting enough to stand out. Preparation is key! Apart from the news and core messages you want to


with Sonja Ohly, Director of Grayling Momentum PR agency, Dubai, UAE


convey, preparation should include a media friendly profile of the company, product or service (no advertising copy) in English and Arabic, as well as a media Q&A or FAQ document. Images of products in high resolution are also a must. Historically, healthcare companies in the UAE have not been very active in media relations and industry news has mainly been limited to new product launches and trade events. The media’s understanding and exposure to healthcare topics has been, and still is, rather limited. So, to summarise, exhibitors need to understand the landscape, make sure their news is exciting and stands out from the rest, prepare well beforehand and they will definitely see a return on investment.


Q. How can overseas exhibitors effectively use PR to better access the Middle East healthcare market before, during and after the show? A. I think the key to PR in any market is to ensure sufficient locally or regionally relevant facts, figures, trends and/or data, which are sure to capture the interest of the stakeholders, including media. Additionally, it is important to remember to localize all press material to the point where it seems as if the content was generated in the Middle East, and to only discuss products and services, which are of direct relevance to the region. Before the show: Do your research and


ensure you understand the local media landscape. Write relevant press material, know what you are going to announce, and prepare your spokespeople with the correct messages. During the show: Make sure


spokespeople are available at all times for media interviews as they are very busy and will be unable to stick to a strict schedule. After the show: Evaluate the coverage


to check that the right messages were conveyed and decide on next steps if you wish to sustain PR activity in the market.


Q. What are the benefits to hiring a PR agency? A. A good PR agency will ensure that all the above steps will be completed without a hitch. Additionally, an agency will already have a sound knowledge of the market, existing relationships with the media and experience in handling PR at such shows – making the entire campaign more successful overall. The agency will also be able to advise on what kind of topics are sensitive and what the focus should be on in order to grab the attention of the media. ■


AH


 MORE INFO: For more information on PR and how it can help your company, visit www. graylingmomentum.com


Arab Health Issue 5 2011 79


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