PR & Marketing Glossary of Terms for Entrepreneurs

Actionable relationship = a relationship that has marketing value because the person or group of people will take a specific action when asked to do so

Advertising = the placement of owned (media) content for a fee.  The rate varies depending on the location, duration, the number of people that are likely to see it, etc.

Angle = the focus of a story.  Often determined by an editor and written by a journalist

Assignment desk – a team of journalists that decide which stories their news-gathering colleagues pursue and which ‘make’

Assignment editor = a journalist that decides what stories are produced by journalists and which ‘make’

Assumption = an unproven view or assertion

Audience = a person or group of people passively consuming content 

AVE (Advertising Value Equivalency) = an arbitrary value attributed to earned media coverage, by adding a random multiplier (between 5 and 20) to the published advertising rate for a single insertion [e.g. advert space cost = $100.  AVE = 500 ($100 x 5)

Brand = the perception of your organization in the minds of the market.  It is based on a communicated set of values and an organizations ability to deliver them through both words and actions

Call To Action = explicit of implicit request for somebody to do something that has commercial-value for the organization making the request

Call To Action mechanism = the deliver mechanism for a marketing call to action

Commercially-valuable action = a [marketing] action that delivers a tangible value or impact to an organization

Commercially-valuable coverage = media coverage that delivers measurable value or impact to an organization

Content marketing = marketing that uses content as it’s primary promotional tool to compel a person or group to take a commercially-valuable action. Also see  marketing communication

Cut = to be removed from  consideration for publication or broadcast. Often because of space or relevance

Desired outcome = a specified outcome resulting from a deliberate and stated strategy

Digital marketing = marketing that uses electronic tools and distribution mechanisms to compel a person or group to take a commercially-valuable action

Distribution mechanism = the way a message or piece of content is delivered to an audience

Earned media = media coverage achieved without direct payment being made to the publisher

Hash = current position and distance to the desired destination.  Used in football to specify the distance to go to achieve a first down and the down.  For example, 3rd and 6

Hypothesis = a  supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation.

Journalist = somebody that investigates and writes a story for a media outlet

Key relationship = a person or group of people that are critical for an organization to achieve a stated goal

Make = to be published or broadcast

Marketing = a combination of price, product, place and promotion. A combination of elements designed to compel a defined individual or group of people to take a specific commercially-valuable action

Marketing communications = the promotion part of marketing.  It must include an implicit or explicit call to action (CTA)

Media Outlets = a magazine, website or broadcast channel

Media Pitch = a one-time request by an organization or agent to publish a particular story

Media Relations = a strategy of building mutually-beneficial relationships with key journalists and editors with the aim of becoming a source for stories on a specific topic or subject area

Message = a positioning statement communicated by an organization to internal and external stakeholders for a specific purpose.  Usually for the benefit of the organization

Mutual Benefit = a benefit that is experienced on both sites of a relationship

Native Advertising = advertising designed to look like editorial

Owned Media = content produced by an organization for the purposes of promotion and, typically, distributed via its own distribution channels. Distribution channels can include websites, social media platforms and email lists but are not exclusively

Perceived value = the value an organization places on a product or service

Positioning = presenting something in a way that intends to impact the way it is perceived

Promotion = publicity generated by or on behalf of the beneficiary.  Promotion is the 4th P of Marketing and is also known as marketing communication.  It must include a call to action (CTA) if being used as part of a marketing campaign

Public Relations = a process of building and maintaining strong mutually-beneficial relationships with the people that matter most to the achievement of a commercially valuable outcome

Publicity = a process of generating awareness as well as the outcome of the process

Paid Media = Also known as advertising.  Can be in print, web or out-of-home (billboard).  A term coined as part of the PESO content model

Relationship strength = the strength of a relationship between an organization and a person or people that are critical to it successfully achieving its stated goal

Riskiest assumption = an unproven view or assertion of which there is the least evidence to substantiate it

Shared Media = content created by an organization that is shared by employees, customers, partners, influencers, etc., with a wider group of people

Social Media = a community platform, usually online, intended to allow barrier-less communication with other members

Sources = people that can support an argument to a journalist writing a story

Timing – Any time-related issue that impacts on the success or failure of achieving a specific outcome 

Visual Identify = also known as visual look-and-feel.  The visual elements of an organization’s identity, including color palette, logo and user interface of a website.

 

Tagged With: Glossary, Marketing, Public Relations, Publicity, ScaleUps, Startups