6 tips for landing press coverage for Houston entrepreneurs, business owners

Guest column

Want to secure press coverage on your company this year? Here's what you need to know. Photo via All You Need Method

If you’re looking to build brand awareness, establish trust and credibility, and reach more customers in 2023, landing a press placement can be impactful for your small business. A traditional PR placement, also known as “earned media,” is one of the most valuable endorsements for a business, and you do have to earn it.

The good news is that in today’s digital landscape you don’t need a PR agency or consultant to land press coverage, you can pursue media coverage on your own. By prioritizing your brand foundation and telling your brand story through your owned channels (such as your website, newsletter and social media platforms), you can capture the attention of the media. Pair a strong brand and storytelling with the appropriate tactics for working with editors, and you will be set up for success.

Read our insider tips below to help you secure press coverage for your business this year.

1. Good PR starts with your brand

If you’ve ever wondered how to catch the attention of an editor, it starts with your brand — and by brand, we don’t just mean your branding (logo, colors, fonts, etc.) — although that is one component.

Good PR starts with a good story, one that is unique and differentiated. Editors are looking for more than just a product or service – they are looking for something special and new that their readers will benefit from.

Building your brand is about establishing the personality and story behind your business that goes beyond sales and promotions. Taking the time to build your brand is one of the best investments you can make as a small business owner. Not only will it help with your PR and marketing efforts, but it will also support your overall long-term success.

Building a brand foundation and learning how to tell your brand story includes your company positioning, your values, articulating what makes you different, crafting your founding story, refining your visual aesthetic and tone of voice, and much more.

Being able to communicate what makes you different, what you stand for, what you have to offer, and what you want to be known for – and developing a brand aesthetic that reflects your unique point of view – will allow you to stand out from the competition and capture the attention of the media.

2. Tell your own story

In our digital world brands are being discovered online. This means that your website and Instagram channel are often the first impression of your business to both consumers and editors. That said, it’s essential for your success that your digital presence communicates and reflects your brand foundation – the personality and substance behind your business. One question to consider is if your ideal customer or editor came to your website or Instagram for 30 seconds, would they walk away knowing the three most important things about your business and with a clear idea of what you stand for, what makes you different, and what you have to offer?

Your owned channels also provide an exciting opportunity to connect directly with your ideal customers, influencers, potential partners, as well as the media. By sharing your brand narrative consistently across your owned channels, you have the potential to build a meaningful relationship with your audience that can grow into loyal followers and customers.

The key is communicating consistently – you want your brand to be cohesive across all channels, so that everything from an Instagram post to your homepage reflects the unique brand positioning you’ve established. To achieve a consistent brand narrative, you want to make sure your messaging, photography, copywriting, graphics, and any other creative materials reflect the brand foundation you’ve built.

An invaluable practice at any stage of business is to conduct a brand audit in order to evaluate if your digital channels are communicating your brand foundation effectively. Read our three steps for conducting a brand audit here.

3. Draft and organize your materials

Drafting and organizing materials is one of the first tasks to tackle when preparing to reach out to the media. Editors are inundated with emails (thousands and thousands a day) and receiving easy-to-review dropbox links and files makes their job much easier. A lengthy email without a clear hook is a sure way to end up in someone’s Trash folder and left unread.

We cannot express enough how important photography is for securing press. Many publications rely on a brand’s photography. Without images it is oftentimes impossible for an editor to cover a brand. This goes for your personal brand too - if you’re an expert or offer a service, you will also need to provide a professional headshot or lifestyle image. Brands with consumer products will also need to show product photography.

There are a wide range of materials you may need based on your industry, but here are the essentials:

  • About page: a one-page document outlining the who, what, when, where, and why of your company
  • Bio: an overview of your background and why you started your company, with a few personal details
  • Line Sheet: images, pricing and key details for product collections
  • Product photography: Lay flats of your product on a white seamless background
  • Lifestyle photography: Images that bring your product or service to life by showing them in use
  • Headshot: Professional photo of the founder or expert styled in a way that is relevant to the brand. I.e. if you’re a chef or a nutritionist, take your headshot in a beautiful kitchen, if you’re an artist or interior designer take your headshot in your studio

4. Research, research, research

We often get asked how to know who to reach out to. Every publication is different, which is why research is very important. Taking the time to properly research will save you a lot of time in the long-run and allow you to pinpoint which outlets and contacts are the best fit for your business. As you research, be sure to organize contact information and notes into a media list so you can keep track of who to reach out to and any feedback you receive.

We have a free media list template that you can download here.

When researching, keep these four tips in mind:

  • Be targeted – Focus on publications whose audience matches your own and who feel like a fit with your brand aesthetic and values
  • Scope out the competition - Where have your competitors, or brands and experts you admire, been featured?
  • Read recent articles - Whether you pick up magazines or do a Google search, look and see who has been writing about brands or other experts in your industry lately. When you use Google Search, use the Tools option to narrow down your search to articles in the past 6 months or year.
  • Look at the masthead - A magazine’s masthead is a list of its editorial staff and can give you helpful insight into who covers which category. You can usually find a masthead online, or in the front pages of a print publication.

5. Think like an editor

Editors are looking for interesting stories, new items, and pieces that will pop on a page. They work off of editorial calendars, and many magazines have set themes for each month. You can Google a magazine’s editorial calendar to find out their upcoming themes and think about where there might be a fit for your product or service, or for you as the founder of your business.

To think like an editor, keep these three tips in mind:

  1. Utilize Editorial Calendars. Most reputable magazines, outline outlets, and even blogs, share an annual “editorial calendar” on their website. Editorial calendars outline the theme for each issue, the date the issue comes out, and the topics they are covering. While editorial calendars are technically created for advertisers, they are an invaluable free resource for PR planning if you know how to use them to your advantage.
  2. Learn Lead Times. Be sure to keep what PR professionals call “lead times'' in mind. There are two main categories most publications and media outlets fall into: long lead and short lead. Long lead publications are typically glossy print publications or special issues of a newspaper that work about working three to six months in advance. For example, if you want to pitch an item for a holiday gift guide in a December issue (which hits stands in November) you want to be ready to send that information to the publication in July. Short lead publications and/or outlets include daily newspapers, weekly magazines, online outlets, such as digital versions of magazines and blogs, and broadcast news. Their lead times can range from a month in advance, to a week or even less.
  3. Understand What is “Newsworthy” vs. Seasonal/Evergreen. Editors cover what is new and newsworthy, as well as seasonal and evergreen topics that are relevant to their readers. When thinking about what you have to pitch, such as a specific product, consider whether it is evergreen and can be covered at any time, or if it is a seasonal item. This will guide the timing and context of your pitch.

6. Build relationships

Building relationships is incredibly impactful when it comes to landing press placements. Reaching out in a personal way, gifting your product or service, and keeping in touch with editors and writers over time will increase your chances of being covered with the right fit arrives.

When reaching out to editors, what do you have to offer? News? Tips? A cool new product collection to check out? This is not a transactional relationship, think long term and how you can be a resource for this editor or publication beyond what you are pitching at this moment.

Personalization and authenticity are key. Your first email to an editor should not be a “pitch” or a press release, it should be an introduction of yourself and your business. Be sure to research each person in advance and follow them on social media so you can personalize each email – mention a recent article of theirs that you enjoyed reading, or a recent Instagram post on their feed that you found interesting.

If you are able to set up a call, Zoom, or in person meeting, that is ideal for relationship building. We also recommend offering to gift your product or service to contacts at outlets that are on the top of your dream press list. This goes a long way and will allow them to be able to speak about your product or service from firsthand experience.

Lastly, be sure to follow up. If you don’t hear back, there is a good chance they missed your first email. Wait a couple of weeks and send a nice follow up. Remember, this is a long game and it takes time.

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Kathryn Worsham Humphries and Carla M. Nikitaidis are the Co-Creators of All You Need Method, a PR and brand strategy consulting firm for small business owners, creative entrepreneurs, and digital creators who are looking to build a brand and raise brand awareness through PR, content marketing, and partnerships. They offer support through their online course, The Brand Starter Kit, 1:1 Strategy Sessions, and custom client projects.

What does your company plan on bringing into the new year — and how do you plan to communicate your efforts? Photo courtesy of All You Need Method

5 PR and marketing tips for Houston startups and small businesses in 2021

guest column

The past year has been a rollercoaster for small businesses. When the pandemic hit, every single person was affected. We've all had to pivot in some way either personally, professionally, or both.

As public relations and marketing professionals who specialize in working with small businesses, we've spent the last 10 months in the trenches with our clients, advising and helping business owners and entrepreneurs navigate these uncertain times. While small business revenue is down since January 2020, it's not all doom and gloom out there – we've seen many other businesses experience unexpected success and growth, and according to economists, we are entering the greatest entrepreneurial economy of our time.

And as we start this new year, there is no better time to invest in business growth and planning. Below are five tips to help you get started.

1. Get smart on your PR

Whether you know a little or a lot about public relations, marketing, and social media, take some time to get caught up on the current landscape. It is constantly changing, and having a better understanding of how traditional media, social media, paid marketing, owned content and all other components can benefit your business will inform decisions about where to allocate your time and resources.

First, assess what stage of business you are in as well as your business goals to determine what PR and marketing tools could be most beneficial to your growth at this time. Not all small businesses are prepared, financially or otherwise, to invest in PR, and there are fundamental steps you can do on your own to get your business positioned to succeed.

With online education booming, there are many free resources and tools at your disposal. We created All You Need Method to simplify PR and marketing for small business owners. You can download our Free PR Roadmap on our website to assess what level of PR support is right for your business. We also created The PR Starter Kit online course to give small business owners the fundamental tools they need to use PR, marketing, and social media to support business growth and build a lasting brand – and it only takes a few hours to complete.

2. Revisit your target audience

The world has changed significantly over the past year and so have the wants, needs, habits, and interests of consumers. As a small business, it's imperative to understand your target audience's current problems in order to relate to them, build trust, and deliver a product or service that is meeting their needs.

Before investing time and financial resources creating and executing a 2021 business plan, take a step back and consider your ideal customer. Outline how the past year has created opportunities or challenges in their life, problems they are facing, new shopping habits, lifestyle shifts, communication preferences, concerns, etc. If you have more than one ideal customer, work through this exercise for each.

With this new perspective, you will be equipped to make business decisions through the lens of how you can better serve your customers, rather than how to increase revenue.

3. Stand for something

Brands that are succeeding today are the brands that are authentic, vulnerable, and that stand for something. According to a global study by Zeno Group in July 2020, consumers are 4 to 6 times more likely to purchase and champion purpose-driven companies.

Having a purpose doesn't require a brand to have a philanthropy component or an outspoken political stance – it's about identifying your specific values and making them apparent through your messaging and leadership within your industry. Values could include committing to sustainable production methods, outstanding customer service, commitment to diversity, or supporting a specific cause. What is most important is that your values are authentic and that you can stand behind them long-term.

As the founder/owner of a small business, you have an opportunity to put a face and values behind the brand so that your company is about more than selling something.

4. Clarify your message

After revisiting your target audience and carefully considering your brand values, incorporate those findings into your messaging. Conduct an audit of your website, social media channels, and all external facing materials, and update your messaging to ensure that if your ideal customer had a 30 second encounter with your brand, they would walk away with your most important messaging points. Important points to consider as you craft new messaging include:

  • How your product or service solves a problem for or benefits your target audience
  • Brand values
  • Points of differentiation

5. Be authentic and communicative

Before the days of social media, a brand had to rely on third parties, including editorials and ads in magazines and newspapers, to spread the word about their brand. Social media and all "owned channels," including a brand's website, blog, and newsletter, have leveled the playing field and allow small business owners to have control over their communication with customers. Through your owned channels, a brand can decide what to post and when, which is incredibly valuable.

While securing press and advertising opportunities is valuable to growth and brand awareness, it's largely outside of one's control. Focus your time and financial resources on communicating with your audience by creating content for your owned channels. Creating content and posting consistently can seem overwhelming to a solopreneur or small team, but there are ways to make it manageable:

  • Pick only a few owned channels to focus on, prioritizing platforms you are most familiar with using and where your audience is most active
  • Quality and consistency are more important than quantity. If you're only posting once a week due to bandwidth, commit to that frequency and increase frequency as you are able
  • To inspire and inform content creation, think about how you can serve your customers through your areas of expertise and what is relevant to both your brand and audience (events, holidays, partnerships, new product launches, etc.)
  • Create a content calendar so that you can plan out posts a month in advance to avoid last minute scrambling to decide what to post

Once you've worked through these five tips, make a plan to support your business goals - and start thinking in two phases.

  • Phase 1: Pandemic Home Stretch - Although there is hope with a COVID-19 vaccine, we know we will likely be dealing with the effects indefinitely. Use this time of uncertainty to get your business in the best shape possible.
  • Phase 2: Post Pandemic - How do you want your business or brand to show up when the world opens back up? It feels far off, but it is closer than you think and there is a huge opportunity for those who are willing to put in the work now.

Remember, these challenging times will pass. There is massive opportunity for the businesses and brands who are willing to reflect, pivot, and plan for a brighter future.

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Kathryn Worsham Humphries and Carla M. Nikitaidis are the co-creators of Houston-based All You Need Method, a PR and marketing resource for small business owners and entrepreneurs.

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Houston investor calls for all angels to move the ecosystem forward

houston innovators podcast episode 233

One of the biggest components of a well-functioning startup ecosystem is inarguably access to capital, and Mitra Miller is dedicated to enhancing education around investment and growing Houston's investor base.

As vice president and board member of the Houston Angel Network, the oldest angel network in Texas and one of the most active angel networks in the country, Miller strives to provide guidance to new and emerging angel investors as well as founders seeking to raise money from them.

"Most founders have no idea or understanding of how investors think — we are not an ATM," Miller says on the Houston Innovators Podcast. "We are really partners you are getting married to for the next 5, 8, 10 years — sometimes longer. We need to bring your allies in every sense of the word."



HAN, a nonprofit, provides a unique opportunity for its members, as Miller explains. The group consists of around 100 individuals from all business backgrounds, so evaluating companies together brings more than just a wealth of capital — but also a wealth of knowledge.

"What HAN provides is access to investments," Miller says, adding that members have the benefit in evaluating companies together with people from different backgrounds. "Inside a group like HAN, we have extraordinary expertise."

In addition to educating both founders and investors in the process, Miller has dedicated herself to providing opportunities for students in low-income parts of Houston to learn about the startup world. Eight years ago, she founded Eagle Investors, an organization that provides a year-long program that culminates in a group of students participating as judges for the Rice Business Plan Competition.

"They spend a year learning about innovation, entrepreneurship, and investing by meeting local investors, entrepreneurs, and service providers. They go around Houston to get to visit and ... experience all of the ecosystem," Miller says.

At RBPC, the cohort of high school students evaluate the pitches and select a company to provide a $5,000 prize.

Miller herself has been a judge at RBPC for 20 years now, and she's had a front row seat for watching Houston develop as an ecosystem. She's seen the city make real progress, but has one major call to action.

"The piece that I am most aware of that I would like to see grow is activating more accredited investors who are interested in this asset class of early-stage companies and plugging in," Miller says. "They can also invest their time and knowledge to help companies in our region grow and scale."

Report: Houston secures spot on list of top 50 startup cities

by the numbers

A new ranking signals great promise for the growth of Houston’s startup network.

Houston ranks among the world’s top 50 startup cities on a new list from PitchBook, a provider of data and research about capital markets. In fact, Houston comes in at No. 50 in the ranking. But if you dig deeper into the data, Houston comes out on top in one key category.

The city earns a growth score of 63.8 out of 100 — the highest growth score of any U.S. city and the seventh highest growth score in the world. In the growth bucket, Houston sits between between Paris (64.4) and Washington, D.C. (61.7).

The PitchBook growth score reflects short-term, midterm, and long-term growth momentum for activity surrounding venture capital deals, exits, and fundraising for the past six years.

PitchBook’s highest growth score (86.5) goes to Hefei, a Chinese manufacturing hub for electric vehicles, solar panels, liquid crystal displays, home appliances, and Lenovo computers.

The overall ranking is based on a scoring system that relies on proprietary PitchBook data about private companies. The system’s growth and development scores are based on data related to deals, exits, fundraising and other factors.

Houston earns a development score of 34.1 out of 100, which puts it in 50th place globally in that regard. This score measures the size and maturity of a city’s startup network.

Topping the overall list is San Francisco, followed by New York City and Beijing. Elsewhere in Texas, Austin appears at No. 16 and Dallas at No. 36.

The ranking “helps founders, operators, and investors assess locations when deciding where to expand or invest,” says PitchBook.

“Network effects matter in venture capital: Investors get more than half of their deals through referrals, according to research led by Harvard professor Paul Gompers,” PitchBook goes on to say. “So it stands to reason that dealmakers should seek these networks out when deciding where to do business.”

4 Houston universities earn top spots for graduate programs in Texas

top schools

Houston's top-tier universities have done it again. U.S. News and World Report has four Houston-area universities among the best grad schools in the state, with some departments landing among the top 100 in the country.

U.S. News publishes its annual national "Best Graduate Schools" rankings, which look at several programs including business, education, engineering, fine arts, health, and many others. For the 2024 report, the publication decided to withhold its rankings for engineering and medical schools. It also changed the methodology for ranking business schools by adding a new "salary indicator" based on a graduate's profession.

U.S. News also added new rankings for doctoral and master's programs in several medical fields for the first time in four years, or even longer in some cases. New specialty program rankings include audiology, occupational therapy, physical therapy, pharmacy, nurse midwifery, speech-language pathology, nurse anesthesia, and social work.

"Depending on the job or field, earning a graduate degree may lead to higher earnings, career advancement and specialized skill development," wrote Sarah Wood, a U.S. News Education reporter. "But with several types of degrees and hundreds of graduate schools, it can be difficult to narrow down the options."

Without further ado, here's how the local schools ranked:

Rice University's Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business maintained its position as No. 2 in Texas, but slipped from its former No. 24 spot in the 2023 report to No. 29 overall in the nation in 2024. Its entrepreneurship program tied for No. 8 in the U.S, while its part-time MBA program ranked No. 15 overall.

Houston's University of Texas Health Science Centerearned the No. 3 spots in Texas for its masters and doctorate nursing programs, with the programs earning the No. 31 and No. 45 spots overall in the nation. The school ranked No. 25 nationally in the ranking of Best Public Health schools, and No. 36 for its nursing-anesthesia program.

Prairie View A&M University's Northwest Houston Center ranked No. 5 in Texas and No. 117 in the nation for its master's nursing program. Its Doctor of Nursing Practice program ranked No. 8 statewide, and No. 139 nationally.

The University of Houstonmoved up one spot to claim No. 4 spot in Texas for its graduate education program, and improved by seven spots to claim No. 63 nationally. Its graduate business school also performed better than last year to claim No. 56 in the nation, according to the report. The University of Houston Law Center is the fifth best in Texas, and 68th best in the U.S. Most notably, its health care law program earned top nods for being the seventh best in the country.

Among the new specialty program rankings, UH's pharmacy school ranked No. 41 nationally, while the speech-language pathology program earned No. 44 overall. The graduate social work and public affairs programs ranked No. 67 and No. 76, respectively, in the nation.

The full list of best graduate schools can be found on usnews.com.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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