You have built a good business, you have a story to tell and you want to attract more customers. Unfortunately, not enough people have heard of your company.

Getting news coverage in the press is an important part of any sales and marketing strategy. For better or worse, opinions are formed by what people see and hear in print, radio and television. Good press can help the selling of your products and services. After you do get coverage, the reprinted piece can be used in your marketing material for added credibility.

How do you start to get the media to notice your company (without breaking the law)? Most local publications actively look for content about businesses in the community they serve. After all, they do need to write about something.

“The best way to improve a company’s chances of garnering press coverage is by being able to supply media with something more than an elevator pitch about your product or services,” said Christine Attalla, president of Downers Grove, Ill.-based PR Results.

The last thing a reporter wants to report on is a thinly disguised promotion for your product. Instead, they will often refer you to their advertising department where this type of promotion belongs.

“Reporters are often searching for comments, opinions and analysis on industry topics to help them write articles,” Attalla said.

She added: “By positioning a top-level executive within your company as an authoritative expert who is able to provide the media with bigger-picture content (such as trends in your industry, colorful commentary on timely and newsworthy subjects or even forecasting how a specific industry will evolve to meet customer demands), companies can expose themselves to another level and a range of publicity apart from the purely promotional.”

Keep your message simple and relevant. Think before you answer. The printed word is forever. If you don’t know the answer to something, say you don’t have the slightest idea but of course you’ll get back to the reporter with someone that does.

Most PR people agree that if you can help the journalist as a resource, you will eventually get publicity and simultaneously establish your company as a leading industry expert and authority in the field. This will typically lead to profitable things for your company.

But how do you establish yourself as an expert?

Early on in the process, Dvora Ivankowski of the Chicago-based 4SIGHT Consortium recommends that you just “give away your knowledge by writing articles for online publications and offer to help readers and participants in forums.” I suggest that you build up to writing an extended white paper about an area of expertise and distribute it to whoever is interested.

Susan Caplan of SC Associates describes other activities that have been successful in getting media attention:

1. Join your local chamber of commerce and ask if they can write a short item about your business in their newsletter. This will also force your company to articulate what you are the best at in your field.
2. Conduct classes or workshops on an area of company expertise. To get started, team up with other individuals who complement your business and perform these speaking engagements together to drive attendance.
3. Sponsor a contest or survey that is relevant to your business and announce the winners.
4. Support your industry by making a significant charitable contribution to an area that will move things in a new direction.

Finally, don’t forget the human side of your business. Companies are ultimately about people. Reporters are always interested in reporting on the path that other entrepreneurs have taken.

This is why the “My Biggest Mistake” feature at the Chicago Tribune has become popular over the past few months. According to Rob Kaiser at the Tribune, the feature allows business owners to open up about a significant mistake they made in their careers and reveal the lessons that were learned. He says reading the feature is like “telling a friend a story.”

It takes a long time to establish a network of relationships among local publications and trade journals. Be consistent and put forth a sustained effort. Getting media attention for your company is not a one-shot time but rather an all-the-time thing. Be patient. It takes time.

Finally, Dave Lundy of Aileron Communications (who is also a Chicago Sun-Times columnist) sums up dealing with the press in this way: “Keep it real. No reporter wants to hear about what you think you can do. They want to know about what you have done.”