Category: Blog

UAE anti Qatar Conference filled with Israeli Zionist, Neocons and Islamophobic speakers

Posted by media team on 14/09/2017 with 0 Comment

London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA) has been observing the UAE anti Qatar conference in the past few weeks. Our information, evidence and arguments have made clear today. Our statements said earlier that this conference is run by Zionist and Pro Israeli lobbyist in the US and the UK. The Conference speakers is the crystal clear evidence of our previous argument.

No speakers from the UK parliament, except 3 conservative, pro Israeli politicians. Meanwhile, the main speakers were paid and brought from the US. The names are all pro Israeli. Some of them are Israeli nationals, others have worked for Israel and others are lobbyists and apologists for it. One could call this Conference , (UAE-AIPAC) Conference.

Ironically, no Qatari opposition or nationals appeared to be speaking. LCPA reporters who attend the event said the number of audience as little as few dozens.

Some of the speakers are anti Muslims and run transatlantic organisations with Islamophobic agenda.

Here is a look at the speakers whose names were in the conference Booklet. Our teams have summarised the activities of those speakers and their relations with Israel and anti Islam agenda:

Dov S. Zakheim, is a is a dual Israeli/American citizen, political advisor and former official of the U.S. government where he occupied the position of undersecretary of Defense in the G.W. Bush Administration, 2001-2004. He is also a ordained rabbi and an orthodox Jew. He was involved in the sector of Israeli military industry such as Israeli fighter program, the IAI Lavi.

Dr. Alan Mendoza, is the Founder and the Executive Director of the Henry Jackson Society (HJS). Is one of the most controversial anti Muslim organisation in Europe, and the UK in particular. Henry Jackson Society has been promoting Islamophobia in the UK for years. The organisation is run by pro Israel Zionists and Neo Conservatives. The orgaanisation has waged campaigns against UK Muslim organisations, mosques and Muslims figures. The Right-wing Islamophobic thinktank is funded by Zionist and right wing fundamentalist organisations in the US. Alan Mendoza was a guest speaker at AIPAC (the American Israel Public Affairs Committee), the key pro-Israel lobbying group in the US. He told incited against Muslims in Europe by arguing, “The European Muslim population has doubled in the past 30 years and is predicted to double again by 2040’,

Bill Richardson , is a former US politician, a neocon and proud pro Israeli supporter. He is known of his very pro Israeli positions. He stated earlier in 2007 “I am firmly committed to one of the United States’ closest and most important allies – the State of Israel. Throughout my career, I’ve steadfastly supported Israel, obtaining a consistently pro-Israel voting record in Congress and defending Israeli interests as Ambassador to the United Nations.”

He announced he will for the US presidency in 2007 and announced a pledge of support for Israel where he promised, ” Ensure that the United States uses its all of its power within the United Nations to protect Israel’s sovereignty and national security… Provide Israel with the assistance and support to ensure its safety and security… stabilize this volatile region and reduce anti-American and anti-Israeli sentiments throughout the entire area…Pressure Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and other friends to reform their education systems. It is unacceptable for any country to teach hatred of Israel.”

General Charles (chuck) Wald, is the former Deputy Commander of United States European Command. General Wald is also another pro Israeli figure in Washington. His main duty was promoting the Israeli account on Israel where he wrote many articles calling for a military strike against Tehran.

James Rubin, is the former Assistant Secretary of State and spokesman for the US State Department during the Clinton era. He has made various anti Palestinian statements in the past and known of his support to Israel. James Rubin, appeared on MSNBC host Alex Wagner’s programme where he defended Israeli war on Gaza. He described Netanyahu as a “sharp character” and placed a “huge chunk” of the blame on Palestinians for why there are currently no “peace negotiations” between Israel and Palestine, while carefully displaying his judicious side by ascribing “some part” of the blame to the Israeli Prime Minister. reported by by (Charlotte Silver) in 2014.

Brigadier Shlomo Brom, is an Israeli military figure who served in the Air force and occupied senior positions. He is also research associate at the Institute for National Security Studies, joined the Jaffee Center in 1998 after a long career in the IDF. His most senior post in the IDF was director of the Strategic Planning Division in the Planning Branch of the General Staff. Brig. Gen. (ret.). Brig. Gen. Shlomo Brom (ret.) is a senior research associate in the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv. He participated in peace negotiations with Syria, Jordan and the Palestinians and Middle East regional security talks during the 1990s, and has also served as Israel’s deputy national-security adviser.

John Simpson, is a senior BBC Journalist. LCPA is certain that Simpson has never been aware of the organisers and their objectives; otherwise he would have never participated.

LCPA urges UK Government to expel UAE Ambassador, open Investigation

Posted by media team on 13/09/2017 with 0 Comment

London, 13/09/2017 – London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA) has urged the Conservative Government to expel UAE Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Sulaiman Hamid Almazroui. In a letter sent to the Prime Minister Theresa May, the Centre cited grim violations of landmark Diplomatic norms and protocols committed by UAE embassy in London.

The Centre argued in the letter that UAE embassy in London is involved in organizing a conference which aims to sabotage other countries’ image and stability which is a grim violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.

“We have been monitoring the UAE London conference titled, The Qatar, Global Security & Stability. Our constant observation concluded that UAE is using London is a vehicle to harm Qatar’s stability, security and political system. UAE is working tirelessly with US and UK based PR companies to create a Qatari opposition. UAE’s London embassy has paid, recruited individuals and companies to make this happen.” said LCPA spokesperson

The actions of are clearly fall out of the jurisdiction of the embassy and its duty.

“UAE’s behavior is very hypocritical and unethical. Whilst opposition parties and figures in UAE are thrown in jails, exposed to torture and civil society activities are banned; UAE is attempting to claim that such rights don’t exist in Qatar. Holding this conference will never whitewash the UAE’s image. If UAE Government is ever interested in freedom and liberty, then Home is where to start” added the letter

As stipulated in the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, Article 31(1) item iii which gives the ground for expelling diplomats, if they carry out, “An action relating to any professional or commercial activity exercised by the diplomatic agent in the receiving State outside his official functions.”

The letter sent earlier today demanded the Prime Minister to declare Mr. Almazroui as persona non grata and expel him immediately as per article 9 of Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. It also called on Mrs. May to investigate the UAE’s relation to this conference and the organisers.

-End-

Press Release: LCPA call on IFJ to revoke UAE Journalists Association/National Media Council memberships

Posted by media team on 11/09/2017 with 0 Comment

London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA) has called on International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) to immediately suspend and revoke the membership of UAE Journalists Association and UAE Journalists Association memberships due to their engagement in supporting UAE official political propaganda.

UAE National Media Council has instructed UAE Journalists Association and other local organisations to support the controversial anti Qatar conference.

LCPA confirms that the Emirate organisation is liaising with UAE security Service in drawing crowds for their anti Qatar conference titled, “Qatar Global Security & Stability Conference“ scheduled this week in London.

LCPA obtained a document which demonstrates the UAE Journalists Association is involved in organising the fake London event. The organisation is also paying individuals from across the Arab region, UK and Europe to take part in the event.

“We have lodged a complaint to the IFJ with regard to the flagrant behaviour of this organisation. We asked IFJ to revoke the membership of this organisation and any related individuals. The actions of this organisation violated the basic criteria of journalism such as accuracy, balance, objectivity and professionalism.” Said LCPA spokesman

The document shows that the organisation is inviting an individual to attend the event and promised to cover their accommodation, flight and any other cost.

UAE Journalists Association has also been circulating misguiding information for Arab media outlets about this conference in an attempt to make it succeed.

-End-

PRESS RELEASE: British media must be vigilant of anti Qatar, UAE sponsored conference

Posted by media team on 08/09/2017 with 0 Comment

PRESS RELEASE: British media must be vigilant of anti Qatar, UAE sponsored conference

For Immediate Publication:

London, 08/09/2017

London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA) invite British Media outlets to be vigilant of next week UAE’s anti Qatar sponsored conference, titled, “Global Security & Stability Conference”. UAE is funding and holding this conference under the disguise of “Qatari Opposition” where it claims to discuss the future of the country. However, the conference prime objective is to isolate Qatar and tighten the UAE, KSA, Bahrain siege on the country.

LCPA can confirm that a number of British MPs have dropped from the conference following our extensive awareness campaign. We also confirm that a keynote speaker and 3 academics have withdrew.

The centre has communicated British MPs, Lords and academics as well as many speakers and urged them to drop from this controversial event.

The efforts of these countries come amid a tight siege they imposed on the state of Qatar in unprecedented mediaeval and collective punishment manner. Sadly, UAE and its allies are trying to legalise this siege by all possible means including unscrupulous methods.

UAE’s attempt to hold such conference show the hypocrisy and double standards where they repress opposition and freedom of expression in their country, meanwhile they endorse for Qataris.

LCPA’s efforts seem to upset the organisers and UAE, as result we are undergoing massive propaganda and smearing campaign in an attempt to damage our credibility and image.

LCPA invite British Media outlets to be vigilant and question the real motive behind the event. Key Questions remain unanswered by organisers:

1- Which PR companies organise this event?

2- Why there is no paperwork and agenda for the event?

3- Why no names for speakers were announced, despite the claim of organisers that hundreds are due to attend and dozens to speak?

4- Who are the Qatari opposition figures? When did they become opposition? who funds them?

5- Why the UAE ministry of information is securing flights and accommodation for participants?

-End-

About London Centre for Public Affairs

London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA) is an independent, nongovernmental organisation based in London and has an operational scope across Europe. We offer unique and tailored consultancy advice in the fields of media, public affairs, politics and public relations. We seek to empower organizations such as media, charity and political organizations to achieve their objectives.

LCPA abide by the ethical standards of lobbying for good causes and provide clients with political and public policy advice that has been gained via personal contacts, political intelligence and from a wide spectrum of media outlets.

http://publicaffairs.org.uk/

For Media Enquires:

Media Team
Tel: +44-20-3468-5842
Email: info@publicaffairs.org.uk

PRESS RELEASE: Call on UK House of Lords to boycott UAE’s Conference aiming to legalise Qatar Siege

Posted by media team on 08/09/2017 with 0 Comment

Personalised copies of this letter have been sent to all members of the house of Lords.

Date: 08/09/2017

Ref: QU012/09

London, UK

Subject: Call on UK House of Lords to boycott UAE’s Conference aiming to legalise Qatar Siege

Dear …………..Lord/ Baroness

I hope this finds you in the best of good health.

I’m extending this letter on behalf of our organisation, London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA). London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA) is an international independent, nongovernmental organisation that has an operational scope across Europe.

We would like to pay your attention that the UAE government has been waging a negative media and political pressure campaign against the state of Qatar accusing it of promoting and supporting terrorism. UAE as well as Saudi Arabia and Bahrain spared no chance or efforts to defame and damage the image of the Qatari state.

According to Amnesty, the siege imposed on Qatar resulted in “Families ripped apart, freedom of expression suppression”. The organisation has also stated, ” Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are toying with the lives of thousands of Gulf residents as part of their dispute with Qatar, splitting up families and destroying peoples’ livelihoods and education, Amnesty International said today.” It also argued, ” “These drastic measures are already having a brutal effect, splitting children from parents and husbands from wives. People from across the region – not only from Qatar, but also from the states implementing these measures – risk losing jobs and having their education disrupted. All the states involved in this dispute must ensure their actions do not lead to human rights violations.”

The most recent episode in their efforts is holding an anti-Qatar conference in London where they “doctored” a Qatari opposition that never existed before. We have raised serious concerns to British lawmakers, decision makers, media and academics. London should not be the hub of this propaganda and legalising an inhumane siege.

In a letter sent to British MPs earlier, LCPA raised serious concerns about an upcoming event titled “The Qatar, Global Security & Stability Conference,” which claims to “seek a resolution to the regional crisis and a more stable future for Qatar.”

Indeed, this event could have negative implication on both countries’ bilateral relations. Qatar’s investment in the UK has reached a record high of more than £35 billion, with £5.3 billion – a remarkable 98% increase – in the last three years. This is golden relationship that must be protected

The Conference is due to take place on 14th September 2017 seems to be yet another UAE endeavour to damage the flourishing Qatar-UK relations and the wider Qatar-EU unshakable bonds. It will contribute to tightening the siege on Qatar and may have negative implications on the Qatari people.

Thus, we urge you to boycott the conference titled, “The Qatar, Global Security & Stability Conference” which is part of a wider KSA-UAE-Bahrain campaign aiming to isolate Qatar on international level. No guest speakers nor paperwork announced so far despite being 5 days to the actual event. Whilst, organisers claimed that hundreds will take part in the event.

We also urge you to take action against UAE, Bahrain, KSA unethical siege imposed on Qatar. It’s worth noting that those countries have notorious record of human rights violations against their people and across the Middle East.

Looking Forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely Yours,
J Baker
Head of Communication & Liaison

London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA)
Tel: 0044203468 5842
E-mail: info@publicaffairs.org.uk
Brussels Office: Brussels@publicaffairs.org.uk

Press Release: LCPA Urges UK MPs to Develop Relations with Qatar

Posted by media team on 07/09/2017 with 0 Comment

London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA) has urged members of the UK parliament to work towards developing relations with Qatar, adding that the UK government must play a leading role in ending any restrictions imposed on the country.

In a letter sent to British MPs, LCPA raised concerns about an upcoming event titled “The Qatar, Global Security & Stability Conference,” which claims to “seek a resolution to the regional crisis and a more stable future for Qatar.”

“We will be cautiously observing the conference,” said a spokesperson for the LCPA. “We believe that it will not contribute in bringing about reconciliation between the Gulf states and as an organisation interested in UK/Europe public affairs, our centre vows to challenge such activities by reaching out to UK parliamentarians and decision makers.”

“Indeed, this event could have negative implication on both countries’ bilateral relations. Qatar’sinvestment in the UK has reached a record high of more than £35 billion, with £5.3 billion – a remarkable 98% increase – in the last three years. This is golden relationship that must be protected,” the spokesperson continued.

About London Centre for Public Affairs

London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA) is an independent, nongovernmental organisation based in London and has an operational scope across Europe. We offer unique and tailored consultancy advice in the fields of media, public affairs, politics and public relations. We seek to empower organisations such as media, charity and political organisations to achieve their objectives.

Call on UK MPs to boycott UAE’s Controversial Conference in London

Posted by media team on 07/09/2017 with 0 Comment

This Letter has been submitted to members of House of Commons and Members of House of Lords.
The letter warns MPS, Lords and Baronesses not to be misled by anti-Qatar Conference funded by UAE.

Read the letter below for full details.

For Story Background, click here.

London, UK
Ref: QU010/09

Subject: Call on UK MPs to boycott UAE’s Controversial Conference in London

Dear …………..MP

I hope this finds you in the best of good health.

I’m extending this letter on behalf of our organisation, London Centre For Public Affairs.

The efforts of these countries come amid a tight siege they imposed on the state of Qatar in unprecedented mediaeval and collective punishment manner.

The most recent episode in their efforts is holding an anti-Qatar conference in London where they “doctored” a Qatari opposition that never existed before.

We would like to remind you that the UK-Qatar relationship is strategic with Qatari investments estimated of more than £35 billion and trade worth over £6 billion per year. Thus, it’s important to preserve the relationship with Qatar and refuse any attempt to link it with terrorism or violence as circulated by the above-mentioned countries.

UAE and its PR companies are due to hold controversial conference London. The Conference planned to take place on 14th September 2017 seems to be yet another UAE endeavor to damage the flourishing Qatar-UK relations and the wider Qatar-EU unshakable bonds.

The conference titled, “The Qatar, Global Security & Stability Conference” is part of KSA-UAE-Bahrain campaign which aims at isolating Qatar on international level. No guest speakers nor paperwork announced so far despite being 7 days to actual event. Whilst, organisers claimed that hundreds will take part in the event.

London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA) call on UK MPs, politicians not to fall victims for this controversial and propaganda event.

Sincerely Yours,
J Baker
Head of Communication & Liaison

London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA)
Tel: 0044203468 5842
E-mail: info@publicaffairs.org.uk
Brussels Office: Brussels@publicaffairs.org.uk

London UAE’s bogus conference attempts to damage Qatar-UK relations

Posted by media team on 05/09/2017 with 0 Comment

LCPA, London, UK (05.09.2017) – UAE controversial fake conference has been announced late august 2017 in London, UK. The Conference planned to take place on 14th September 2017 seems to be yet another UAE endeavour to damage the flourishing Qatar-UK relations and the wider Qatar-EU unshakable bonds.

The conference titled, “The Qatar, Global Security & Stability Conference” is part of KSA-UAE-Bahrain campaign which aims at isolating Qatar on international level. LCPA has learnt that this event is being run by US media consultancy company which has contentious history of running similar fake and negative campaigns.

No guest speakers nor paperwork were announced so far despite being 8 days far from the actual event. Whilst, organisers claimed that hundreds will take part in the event.

London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA) warn UK MPs, politicians not to fall victims of a hoax conference which apparently has no announced speakers nor working agenda. The hoax conference has not even announced its venue!

LCPA is observing cautiously this conference and other UAE negative lobby and pressure efforts in the UK.

As an organisation interested in the UK-Europe Public Affairs, our centre vows to stop such activities by reaching out to UK parliamentarians and decision makers to expose this fake event. The

UAE’s “Qatari-made” opposition leader, Khalid al-Hail who is supposedly organising the conference has been recruited to do this job for UAE. AL -Hail has never worked in politics before and he is being pushed hardly by UAE intelligence and its media outlets in new attempt to damage Qatar’s image.

Our centre will also contact Daniel Kawczynski MP who has been mislead by the organisers.
“Indeed, this is a very notorious bogus event that aims at damaging Qatar image and meddling its relations with UK and Europe. Qatar’s investment in the UK has reached a record high of more than £35 billion with £5.3 billion – a remarkable 98% increase in the last 3 years. This is golden relation that must not be affected to satisfy the foreign UAE’s goals.” said LCPA spokesperson.

The Centre will conduct an immediate campaign to stop this conference from achieving its misleading goals. We believe in strong UK relations with Qatar and refuse any external efforts to ruin the ever flourishing bonds with Qatar. Recently, Secretary of State for International Trade, Dr Liam Fox stated, ” And as our countries go from strength to strength, we can be assured that this bond is stronger than ever.”

LCPA will reach to the UK Government as well as the Foreign Affairs Committee to expose the goals of the organisers.

For Further Media Enquires
Contact us on:
John O. Baker, Or Adam Talbort
London Centre For Public Affairs (LCPA)
Tel: 020-3468 5842
E-: info@publicaffairs.org.uk

Online Reputation Management Tips

Posted by media team on 17/04/2016 with 0 Comment

Are negative search results hurting your business? Does your company lack any presence in the search results at all? No matter what issues you face, having control of your online reputation is possible with the right strategy.

In this article we are going to provide some of the most effective online reputation management tips to help you use the search results to grow and protect your business.

What is Online Reputation Management?

The easiest way to explain online reputation management (ORM) is to show you. Go to Google, do a search for your name, your company’s name or your product’s name and take note of what shows up in the search results.

Do you see something negative?
Do you only see a couple, or no, results for a website or blog that you control?

If you answered ‘yes’ to either of these questions, then you have some work to do – specifically some online reputation management work.

Online reputation management is all about establishing yourself as a credible, authoritative resource for whatever it is you do and keeping the most relevant, useful results about you or your business on the first page of the search engines. Just about every transaction starts online now and if a prospective or current client sees something negative about you or your business as a top result, then you are taking a huge risk of losing that opportunity, and many others.

Tips to Manage Your Online Reputation

Reputation management has become a necessity for many businesses as mobile applications and websites allow competitors and customers to litter the Internet with whatever they please. This transparency is definitely a step in the right direction as it gives power back to the consumer. Unfortunately, there will always be that one company that relies on bashing their competitors or that one past client who makes their sole purpose in life to bring down your company because of one bad mistake you might have made.

On the positive side, a solid reputation management campaign can help your business not only bury negative or damaging search results, but it can place your most important business news, web assets and client interactions at the top of frequented search results pages.

Google has actually given the nod to reputation management by posting some advice of their own on how to manage your reputation through search results. Combining some of this advice with that of many other reputation management professionals, we are going to simplify online reputation management for you and provide you with the most useful and necessary tips.

Claim Your Brand Name

The first step to managing your online reputation is to claim your brand name online. Whether your brand is your name itself, your business name or your product name, you need to make sure that no one else has control of misrepresenting you online by controlling a piece of your brand.

To do this, use one of the following web services to lock up every instance of your brand name online:

TIP:

Be consistent. Use one name across the board. For example, if your company name is XYZ Clothing, then use “xyzclothing” as your username for all of the services available through the 3 resources above.

Manage Your Brand Name

Once you have locked up the 300+ username accounts found through the resources above, the next thing to do is to manage them. Now, there is no possible way that you are going to properly manage all 300+ accounts so instead of spreading your time across all of these just focus on the top 10-25 (listed below). The 80-20 rule applies to these accounts as it does with many other things in business: the top 20% of these services will account for 80% or more of what is most effective.

Top Online Reputation Management Accounts

TIP:

With each of these listed accounts, you MUST (at the very least) complete your profile 100% by adding some content, a photo, your info and links to other websites / accounts of yours.

Monitor Your Brand Name

Claiming and managing your brand name are only 2 parts of the equation when it comes to establishing and improving your online reputation. One of the most important pieces of reputation management is actually monitoring your brand online. Monitoring search results, blog posts, tweets, status updates and other mentions online can be an extremely difficult and time consuming task. Fortunately, there are some fantastic tools available for businesses to properly monitor their brand name.

Top Brand Monitoring Tools

With all of these resources, you will need to enter in your top search terms that you want to monitor. For example, if your company is XYZ Clothing then one of your search terms would be “xyz clothing”. These resources will query the major search engines, blogs and online mentions to let you know what has been picked up by the search engines.

TIP:

Setup Google Alerts to automatically email you when a new mention comes up in the results. On top of that, check the search results at least once a week for your brand name to always keep a pulse on what these search results say about your brand.

Repair Your Brand Name

Keeping your brand name and online reputation completely spotless can be challenging if your business has had a checkered past. Fortunately, as we have shown, there are many ways to manage and monitor your brand online. In the case where you do happen to come across something that is less than favorable for your company, immediate action needs to be taken so your company and brand do not suffer from the wrong kind of publicity. Before action can be taken and you get worried, it is important that you understand what can and cannot be done.

Top Tips for Removing or Burying Negative Search Results

If you control where the result is coming from, then simply remove the mention of it from your site / blog
If you don’t control the content, then send a request to the site’s webmaster.
When the content has been removed, expedite the removal of the result by using the Google URL removal tool
Create profiles (top ones mentioned above) to help push negative results off of the first page
Post client testimonials on your website, blog, forum and social media profiles to bury negative comments
PUBLISH QUALITY CONTENT….lots of it!

The best thing you can do to protect, manage and monitor your brand and online reputation is to post a lot of really good, interesting, useful content. This content should be / could be about pretty much anything that has to do with your business, clients, products, solutions, challenges, etc. There are literally thousands of things you can write about and post online. In addition, content does not just need to be text. Content can and should be videos, photos, podcasts, e-books and newsletters as well.

Source

Create as many web assets for your brand as you can and keep them populated with great content. Do these 2 things consistently and your brand will be about as protected as it can get.

The 6 PR Tips Every Startup Should Employ

Posted by media team on 17/04/2016 with 0 Comment

Today there are more than 30 startups in the United States, Europe and China that are valued at $1 billion or more and that number is expected to increase. With 100 million startups opening up each year and 472 million entrepreneurs worldwide, competition to become the next big thing is brutal.

What does this mean for startups looking to establish their brand, get press coverage and gain recognition? The truth is, in the beginning it is tough. You will find it challenging to cut through all the competitive noise to establish your brand and get the media to pay attention to your company. However, there are strategies you can employ to establish yourself as a startup that cannot be ignored.

Here are six PR tips every startup should use to help gain a competitive advantage.

1. Be ready. First and foremost, you need to be prepared. If your product is not the best version of itself, you won’t get any good product reviews, no reporter will cover you and you will most likely experience backlash and negative press. And believe us, there is such thing as bad press. So, make sure you are completely ready before employing any PR strategies.

Related: Want to Get the Most Out of Your PR Pro? Follow These 5 Tips.

2. Establish your identity. Before you can tell the world who you are, make sure you know how to answer that question. To establish your identity, ask yourself: What are our values? What exactly is our company culture? What makes us different from our competitors? Are we doing something that no one else is doing? What makes us uniquely us? It’s important to define those answers and incorporate your identity, values and culture in every aspect of your startup. If you aren’t sure, ask those around you for help. Make a spreadsheet of the answers and rate which responses are the same. If there are too many different answers there is an issue. Fix it before telling your story.

3. Share your story. Learning to communicate a great story is an integral part of PR. After you’ve established your identity, you need to work on creating a narrative, or your startups story. If you want to stand out in the eyes of the press, investors and your target demographic, you must have a great story to share about who you are and how you got started. It will not only help you connect to your audience, but it will also make it hard for them to forget you. Incorporate this narrative in social media, in your messaging, during interviews and any other opportunity to talk about your startup. And a big key factor, use your company name in each narrative. Many people talk in superlatives instead of facts. Every sentence shared should be a soundbyte for media.

Related: Why ‘Pixie-Dust’ PR Programs Are Bad for Startups

4. Make sure there is CEO visibility. Your CEO or founder is your mouthpiece that plays an instrumental role in shaping your company’s image, brand and culture. Therefore he or she needs to be accessible and visible to the public. This means they must have a presence on social media, a positive relationship with the press and the ability to share your story flawlessly. Not only will their visibility create credibility and leadership in your industry, but it will also get them in front of the right people to help expand the business.

5.Don’t ignore social media. Establishing your brand and staying above the fray is all encompassing, time consuming and a lot of hard work. However, don’t forget the importance of creating a social-media strategy that represents your brand, your values and culture. In fact, you need to create an engaging social-media plan from the beginning to grow your presence. A good execution strategy for social media will allow you to establish your identity and credibility in your industry, share your story and position your CEO as a thought leader and pioneer. You need to dedicate time to directly engage with your followers, answer questions, share information and include them in the conversation.

6. Hire if you need help. Launching a startup is difficult and implementing strong PR strategies when you are just getting your foot off the ground can be challenging. The good news is you don’t have to do it alone, you can hire a professional. That said, you need to make sure they are a great match for your business and are excited about your plans. A good PR firm will help you establish a strong identity, effectively communicate your story to the right people, create thought leadership opportunities for your CEO and establish an engaging social-media program. They will build your brand, help you stand out, increase your visibility and get you in front of decision makers.
by Shana Starr

Source