There are about 3,500 cybersecurity companies across 17 categories operating throughout the United States right now, according to both IT-Harvest and Cyber DB.
So, on any given day, an IT security firm must beat back competitors in the market before it can even begin to battle the bots, phishing scams and ransomware attacks that are a part of your trade.
And, you won’t be able to do that with marketing and advertising alone. Most, if not all, of your competitors are probably using a similar marketing strategy that will provide them with a healthy lead bank and website traffic ranking. But, to truly stand out from your peers, you need to build relationships with potential customers, the media and influencers to boost your good reputation and your trustworthiness. And, this takes public relations.
Be a thought leader
Offering opinions on the most common threats and providing solutions to your target audience pays off
In the world of high technology, you need to be on the cutting edge of all the latest cybersecurity threats and solutions to even be considered a player. But, this can’t happen overnight. Becoming a cybersecurity thought leader takes a steady stream of blogs, social media posts and interviews with both the general news and trade media over a long period of time. Offering opinions on the most common threats and providing solutions to your target audience pays off when it comes time for these potential clients to invest in their IT security.
Cybersecurity is a complex journey, so in order to become respected on a wide range of layered security control topics, you need to demonstrate that you have a depth of knowledge and capabilities and can convey them in ways that non-technical consumers can understand. Once this audience sees that you know what you’re talking about and appear to care about cybersecurity outside of the sales process, you will gain their trust – and hopefully their business.
Produce respected content
Becoming a thought leader means that you need to always be pushing fresh content that is both educational and entertaining.
This type of content should never be “salesy” and should be offered in good faith to readers, viewers and listeners, alike. If you’re invited to go onto a podcast, it’s OK to say your company’s name periodically and even refer to specific examples where you’ve solved a customer’s issue, but a good host will cut you off if you start to make a sales pitch.
Longform advertisement
Spend your content space on helping others solve their cybersecurity issues
The same is true for the social media and blog post material you create: letting the reader know you and your company have expertise on an issue is fine, but posting a longform advertisement is just boring. People already see enough advertising in their life and won’t spend time reading material that prolongs that exposure.
Spend your content space on helping others solve their cybersecurity issues while notifying them of upcoming threats they may soon see online. This helps you define your brand and boost your visibility.
Follow the news cycle
Fortunately, the news media is still genuinely interested in cyberattacks thanks to some high-profile incidents that have cost citizens their money, their time and even their ability to vote or shop online. That means you have a plethora of interesting topics you can discuss on a near-daily basis that will be of interest to the news media and trade publications. Offering up your thoughts and opinions on ongoing news stories is one way to become better known to both the media and potential customers.
Studies have shown that consumers trust earned media 92% more than they trust paid advertising
Done right, this can generate a lot of organic – or earned – news media and solidify you as a thought leader who is providing fresh and respected content. Earned media is publicity garnered from channels outside of those that you pay for or own. This can be anything from a retweet or repost to a news article that quotes you or someone from your company. And earned media is as good as gold.
Studies have shown that consumers trust earned media 92% more than they trust paid advertising. That means that the more you’re requoted on social media, the more your blogs are shared and the more you’re quoted in traditional media, the more trustworthy you become.
How a PR agency can help?
But, if you’re a busy professional who is either still working in the field or working to guide your cybersecurity company off the ground, you may not have time to consistently write fresh content and contact the media to provide your expertise. This is where a public relations agency comes in handy. The right PR partner can seamlessly help you produce new content and contact the media on your behalf.
PR helps you build a good reputation, presents you and your company in a positive light and influences how potential clients see you. PR is a component of your overall marketing budget but one that should not be neglected.
Not only is it the one thing your competitors probably aren’t doing but is also the thing that will help your company stand out ahead of the others.