An article I read not too long ago talked about the value of Public Relations outreaches. I couldn’t agree more, and wanted to share some personal experiences with our readers on the value of good Public Relations (PR) outreaches and how you can do this too.

People in our business often complain about media bias against the HUD Code manufactured housing industry in particular. While there is no doubt a common negative perception, there is a sure way to change that and that is through one on one direct efforts. You don’t need to win everyone over, just enough people to keep you busy and profitable. Newspaper editors are often willing to share a different perspective. If you approach them professionally and often enough (don’t bug them to death, don’t be a total stranger either – some place in between) so they think of you when a need comes up for them. Magazines are interested in topical stories that fit their publication’s theme.

I’ll show you some personal results from outreaches to various (then) local media for clients and firms I was working with at the time.

The most recent just hit the Chicago SunTimes NewsGroup today. For some months, I’ve been in touch with a number of local editors. One in particular that I’ve chatted with had been in a modern manufactured home and was open to sharing something with readers. He’d carried some Press Releases I’d sent him previously (a different type of PR). I suggested doing guest columns with him, and he indicated interest but at the time, he couldn’t commit. When their Spring Showcase of Homes came up, they decided to contact a total of 6 local housing pros for Guest Columns. They had very specific parameters, this couldn’t be advertising, we could mention a firm but not promote it, etc. They asked us a question, and we got to give an answer to that question.

In my case, I lobbied for the question too. While I don’t always get the head line I want, this time I thankfully did. Frankly, I wasn’t crazy about the photo, but all in all, this was a win for the Industry and I did get the firm I do marketing for favorably mentioned. A reduced size version of the article appears below.

Emails and calls have already resulted from prospects, and the website stats reports increased activity as well. In fact, I’m having a hard time editing this, from phone calls coming in from readers.

Now the Chicago SunTimes published over 700,000 copies of this article above. I won’t predict how many will read it, but what I know is that one gent that called remarked how he’d cut this article out and he and his wife were going to share it with others too. Along with numerous other image and marketing efforts, all of these are drops that fill a glass over time with good impressions of our factory built housing industry’s products.

I’ll share thumbnails of other successful PR efforts below. One was from a project in the Houston Metro, below.

The one which follows was one of the most successful series of PR efforts. It was in a market area of perhaps 350,000 people in WI. The first one published was a response to a very negative story about manufactured homes that ran in the local newspaper. I didn’t chew the editor out when I called. We spoke calmly, and I pointed out some areas of disagreement and my ‘why.’ He not only listened, but he invited me to do a guest column – which was my goal for the call. I did, it is the long column in the background of this collage. Next came an article and photo in a local Village newsletter that went out to every one of the some 14,000 residents of that town.

Once that published, I took those to a local magazine that published for the ‘golden age’ set. I invited them to do a story. They did. Their article read almost like an advertorial, they used the “T” word one time (ouch) but the rest of it was simply grand. They even used some factoids and graphics I shared with them and they gave us a strong plug. It didn’t cost us a nickel, other than the cost of the time.

Those three articles make up the collage above. What isn’t in this collage was the 2nd magazine article. That one was published to the Baby Boomer audience. I contacted that editor, and asked if they would do an article? Again, the answer was “yes.” No cost PR. All of these, with proper credit, then became potential hand outs for arriving guests, for contacts with public officials or web based info for all to see. Thus the value of the articles continued.

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Now while this does feel good personally and professionally to get into print, the point I want to make is that YOU and YOUR firm can and should do these same outreaches!

Imagine if just 10% of the half a million or so people in our industry would make similar efforts with their local media! Imagine not one here and one there, but hundreds or thousands of articles – from sea to shining sea – that extolled the values and virtues of Manufactured and Modular Homes! That is a proven way of building value and improving public relations via media outreaches.

In fact, I’m sure that many of you are doing media outreach efforts. Clayton has considerable success with this. I’d love to hear associations or businesses – from you – and share the results of your outreaches. I’d also be happy to answer questions from those who’ve tried media outreaches but maybe haven’t gotten the result they hoped for from their efforts.

My tips for media PR efforts in a nut shell are:

1. Contact every local publication over time and stay in periodic touch with them.
2. Approach them from the perspective of the type of publication they have. Example:
• If it is a business publication, approach them with business news.
• If it is a real estate publication, approach them with a housing type item.
• If it is a family magazine, approach them with a story that focuses on how factory built homes can enhance the family’s lifestyle through affordable quality living, etc.
3. Always be warm – not overly friendly, professional. Be calm and be informed.
4. Offer to be a resource for them on news topics that may involved manufactured homes.
5. When necessary, resist the temptation to toot the horn of your business. If they offer it, obviously that is great. It is enough that you get the MH Industry’s image improving. Believe me, people will find the person who WROTE that industry building article.
6. Try to be squeaky clean. When or if something goes wrong and you are asked about it, don’t cover it up, admit it, fix it as best you can and then move on. People will forgive a mistake, and forget it. What they don’t normally forgive is a cover up or the shady deal.
7. Make sure your contact and your proposed content is valid and quality writing, have someone who knows how check and edit it for you.

As a professional in a challenged industry, let’s not just gripe and moan about problems, lets work to solve them! I love the Henry Ford quotation that fits this issue:

“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.”

What’s our goal? Improved public image and improved sales! Keep your eyes on the goal. Look at the many ways to accomplish that goal. Many of those ways are covered in articles or blog posts right here at www.MHMSM.com.

Keep your eyes on the goal, work towards that goal every day. Good PR with the media is one way to get you there.##