Understanding public relations demographics can help take your business to the next level by allowing you to better communicate with your audience. PR demographics can also help you save money by showing you which advertising methods work and which don't.

The Internet has changed the public relations strategy of many businesses. In the past your business may have been severely limited by your local demographic, but now you can launch well-targeted campaigns to reach your desired audience anywhere in the world. Consider the following to get the most out of your PR research:

1. Public relations demographic research helps determine your target audience

2. Campaigns based on advertising statistics are better targeted

3. Using PR stats to establish a relationship with your audience builds long-term success

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Use public relations stats to identify your audience

The most successful businesses are the ones that have a clear-cut audience that they communicate with effectively. Many businesses struggle with identifying their target audience and, as a result, their PR campaign sends a mixed message. One way to identify your audience is to see who other successful companies in your niche are targeting.

I recommend: FreeDemographics.com gives business owners a free resource for thorough public relations statistics. STAT-USA is another great source for public relations demographic reports. Their database consists of statistics from the federal government that are designed to help businesses.

Hire a firm that specializes in public relations demographics

Public relations statistics and demographics information gathering can be a complex and overwhelming task. If you don't have the time and resources to do the research and analysis yourself, hire a firm that specializes in evaluating a company's PR demographics research needs and tailoring a plan to meet those needs. Whether you're weathering a PR crisis or just trying to figure out how to best reach your target market, sometimes it's best to step aside and let the pro's handle it.

I recommend: Decision Demographics will handle all of your demographics needs, from expanding a membership base or capitalizing on population trends to enhancing your marketing strategy. Or try J. Stokes & Associates, a public relations firm that provides a full gamut of public relations demographics services, from project inception through execution.

Buy demographic reports to obtain public relations demographic information

Demographic information is widely used to target PR or advertising campaigns, but no matter what you use PR demographics for, you must start out with reliable demographics information. Even if you don't want to lay out the big bucks for a consulting firm, you can still obtain actionable information by buying ready-made demographics reports so that you can create well-targeted ads to help your business increase profits and maximize cost-efficiency by eliminating spending on unsuccessful advertising techniques.

I recommend: BuyDemographics.com has geography-based demographics reports in sizes from .25 to 100 miles in radius. DemoReports.com offers a variety of reports, including county level, Metropolitan Statistical Area, or zip code.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Consistency is the key to managing a campaign based on public relations demographics. Pick a message and stick with it.