I picked up this book to read because I’m interested in capitalism (though not for the reason that most business book authors are). Needless to say, this book definitely wasn’t “for” me. This book bills itself as a resource for new companies/startups to convince them of the need for PR for brand awareness and more. This book certainly fulfilled its purpose, so even if it wasn’t a book I necessarily enjoyed, it was a success in what it set out to do.

However, one thing that impacted this review is the author’s statement that a company/startup should not engage in a political stance on its social media profiles because it’s too divisive. I think that is an older PR idea that doesn’t really work for the era we're in, at least it doesn’t work for me as a consumer. I could forgive this if the book was published in 2019 (though consumers wanting a business’ stance on certain political issues to be a factor that informs their loyalty to the brand certainly felt important post 2016). However, this book was published in 2022. After the huge wave of statements, D&I initiatives, and more in 2020 following the huge social movement that was ignited by George Floyd’s murder. To be apolitical is something I would assume is very difficult for a brand to do today, and most likely bad advice. I can say that as a consumer, I do assume that no statement on politics is very much a statement.

What makes it even more egregious is the discussion of a brand’s values informing how they operate, market, brand themselves, etc. Patagonia was the example used for this, and it’s a good example. But explaining how being pro-environmentalism is an important part of their brand identity, and then explaining several chapters later that you shouldn’t take a political stance seemed to kind of miss the point. Patagonia’s environmental stance is political, and was likely recognized as even more political after Trump rolled back so many environmental and climate protections. Regardless of what side of that issue you’re on, it is political. Not acknowledging that and actively advising against it was frustrating, and turned me off from the idea of PR. It didn't give me the idea that companies are values based at all, it just gave me the impression that they say they are values based insofar as it helps their profit.

I received this book courtesy of NetGalley and Greenleaf Audiobooks in exchange for an honest review.

You Need PR is a simple introduction to the basic principles of public relations designed for entrepreneurs and small business owners looking to bootstrap their PR on a budget.

What to expect:
- Basic understanding of public relations
- Solidify your learning by providing real life examples
- Actionable strategy to get you started on your PR journey

For those new to the field, you will find lots of insight into the world of PR and practical assets to facilitate your PR strategy.

Coming from an advertising background, it was interesting to see the application of branding and market positioning for public relations and provided insight into how marketing and PR can work together for a holistic approach.

Big thank you to Jenna Guarneri, Greenleaf Audiobooks and Netgalley for early access to the You Need PR audiobook.

As a small business owner, I was looking forward to reading this book! I am still new to NetGalley, and didn’t fully understand the archival process, so this book was archived before I could read it. I was so intrigued by it, though, that I looked up Amazon reviews, & I’m glad I did! Other reviewers confirmed I had to find it for myself, &, again, I’m glad I did! The pace of my life right now has limited my ability to implement some of these strategies, but my customer interactions are definitely going to be more intentional, & I’ll be picking this book back up when my life slows down.

This book is about basic PR principles for your early-stage start up, especially if you don't have the funds for hiring a PR person/outsource it.

I can imagine this book being super helpful to a lot of people, including those who want to create a "brand," including a personal brand. Especially these days, we are all basically personal brands, without which in a lot of industries we are basically nothing. It tells you how to approach reporters, how to, including how often to, curate your social media feed, and how to approach your brand as its intended audience.

This book gives us useful actionable tips about how to curate the image of your brand in an extremely accessible way from an industry expert, which includes examples of why certain things work and why others don't.

"You Need PR" is an excellent go-to primer on the public relations and marketing industry for early-stage entrepreneurs and startups. 


What I loved:

- Easy-to-digest explaination of public relations (PR)...the who, what, when, where and why.

- How to strategize, create and integrate all aspects of positioning, branding and messaging before you go to market with a message for the media.

- How to target the right media and then create a media kit, press release and personalized pitch for each reporter.

- Brief case study examples to drive points home.

- End-of-chapter summaries.

- Approachable, easy listening narration.


What I didn't love:

- No real "juicy" nuggets for the long-time PR practioner.

- Downloadable PDF with visual aids to support the book was unavailable for early reviewers.


Special thanks to the author, Jenna Guarneri, and E-Audio Ltd for an advanced listener copy of the audiobook via the NetGalley app.

Review:

“You need PR!” by Jenna Guarneri is a must-read for anyone out there looking to start a business right when it comes to public relations!

In just little under 6 hours, Jenna Guarneri’s audiobook touches on a lot of points for getting a right start in the world of public relations. Her book covers a lot of best practices from various industries for doing good PR in a manner which is captivating from the first until the last moments! Having experience in this domain, I recognised a lot of the good practices mentioned by Jenna, and I can confirm that they actually work (provided the customer follows the said advice)!

Special thanks to NetGalley, Greenleaf Audiobooks, An Inc Original, and the editorial team for giving me the opportunity to review the ARC in audiobook format and to you, my reader, for taking the time to read this honest personal book review.

If you are interested in other of my book reviews, make sure to follow me on GoodReads!

#LifeLongLearning #YouNeedPR #NetGalley

Jenna Guarneri blows it out of the park with You Need PR, it is exactly as it claims to be, an approachable guide to public relations for early-stage companies. Guarneri separates public relations from marketing and the importance of having someone that can do both, but Guarneri also makes breaks it down so that a company owner or a small start-up could do it themselves, at least in the beginning. I was a huge fan of the audiobook which also comes with downloadable material, which is great and helpful. From branding to approaching and cultivating relationships with members of the press, how to prepare your press kits, when to reach out to reporters, and so much more you will find that and so much more in You Need PR.