How to Build a PR Strategy That Drives Growth
What a real PR strategy actually looks like — and why most companies are still getting it wrong.
We've watched a lot of companies burn through marketing budgets chasing paid reach while their competitors quietly built the kind of credibility that compounds. Paid attention is rented. Earned attention is owned. The difference matters more than most people realize until it's too late.
Here's what's changed: PR is no longer just about awareness. With AI tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity reshaping how buyers find and vet brands, strategic PR now directly determines whether your company shows up when prospects are forming their shortlists. The stakes are different now.
Most founders we talk to already believe in PR. The problem is what they do with that belief. A press release here, a podcast appearance if someone reaches out, a social post when there's something to announce. That's not a strategy. That's a reaction — and reactive PR rarely moves the needle on anything that matters.
Why PR Strategy Is Crucial for Growth
A PR strategy does three things a scattershot approach can't: it focuses your message on the audiences that actually matter to your business, coordinates your efforts across channels instead of letting them work against each other, and keeps you visible consistently — not just when you have something to announce.
Done right, it's not a cost center. It's the infrastructure that makes everything else work harder — awareness that converts, trust that retains, credibility that compounds.
Building Your PR strategy: The Essential Steps
1. Assess Your Current Position
Before you build anything, you need to understand where you actually are. What's working in your communications right now? Where are the gaps? What are competitors doing that's getting traction? And critically: does your brand voice feel distinctly yours, or could it have come from any company in your space? If it's the latter, that's the first thing to fix
2. Define Goals Tied to Business Outcomes
Most PR strategies fall apart because the objectives are vague. Impressions aren't a business outcome. Qualified leads are. Partnership inquiries are. Sales conversations that reference your coverage are. Build your strategy around the metrics that actually connect to how your business grows — and think about what success looks like in the next six months, not just the next news cycle.
3. Know Who You're Actually Trying to Reach
You can't be everything to everyone — and the brands that break through are the ones that resist trying. Potential customers matter, obviously. But so do investors, potential partners, and the journalists who shape the conversation in your category. Each group needs different messages delivered through different channels. Map that out before you start pitching anything.
4. Develop Core Messages That Resonate
Your core messages are the backbone of everything you say publicly. What problem do you solve? Why does your approach work? What have you actually proven? These need to be clear enough for anyone to understand and specific enough to be memorable — and they need to show up consistently across every channel. When a founder gives a podcast interview, writes a LinkedIn post, or answers a journalist's question, the core themes should be recognizable. That consistency is what builds credibility that compounds.
5. Invest in Media Relationships Early
The best PR doesn't come from a well-crafted pitch. It comes from genuine relationships with the people who shape conversations in your industry. Journalists and podcasters are looking for sources they can trust — not talking heads promoting their own thing. Lead with value consistently and coverage follows. That means engaging with their work before you need something, sharing real insights when you're not pitching, and being responsive when they're on deadline. These relationships are assets that compound over time.
6. Track Metrics That Connect to Revenue
If your reporting is built around impressions and AVEs, you're measuring the wrong things. Track qualified traffic from earned media, leads generated from thought leadership, sales conversations that reference your coverage, partnership inquiries that came through PR channels. These numbers tell you if your strategy is working. The others tell you very little — and they definitely don't pay the bills.
7. Treat PR as an Ongoing Initiative
The brands that get PR right aren't running campaigns. They're running a continuous program that evolves as their business evolves. Review results regularly. What's driving real outcomes? What's generating activity but not impact? Use those insights to refine continuously — and stay visible even when you don't have big news to share. Especially then.
What It Takes to Make PR Work
Building a PR strategy that drives growth isn't complicated. But it requires commitment — to being consistent when results feel slow, to measuring honestly, to adjusting based on what you actually learn rather than what you hoped would work.
The companies that do this right become the ones journalists reach out to for expert commentary. The ones prospects already trust before the first sales call. The brands that stand out in a crowded market without having to buy their way in.
In 2026, with attention more fragmented and trust harder to earn than ever, that's not a competitive advantage. It's table stakes.
At Jennifer Bett Communications, we build strategic PR frameworks for founders and brands who are serious about growth. If you want to talk about your story, we're listening.