CAFÉ BUUNNI/B. CAMPOT
Media and public relations work takes time. And as a small business owner, you will not have much of this. You will have to prioritize and get the help you need to succeed. In our case, we hired
a neighborhood mom with a PR background to help us write our
initial press releases and opening announcements. In hindsight
this was really smart because we were consumed with the actual
opening of our business. We made sure that all coverage, no matter how small or large, was promptly announced and linked to on
our Web site, and we made sure to reach out and thank the writers
who took time to cover our shop.
LESSON 5: SERENDIPITY
And then sometimes things just happen. MTV decided to do a
show based in our neighborhood and filmed their actors having
coffee at Café Buunni. We woke up one morning to an email from
a close friend alerting us that we were in the Wall Street Journal
and scrambled to find a paper copy. In both these instances, we
didn't do anything to seek the coverage. We were in the right
place at the right time, and our story was linked to a larger
story. In both cases, we were featured as a key element of this
neighborhood, a new landmark in its evolution. Some of that
luck comes down to putting your all into the business you run.
Generating positive publicity is very important. But once the
word gets out about your business—whether through hard work
or good fortune—it's essential that your product, service and
atmosphere be well-tended.
freshcup.com May 2013
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