By Jordan Baker, Founder of Fair Public Relations and former UK national journalist
You do not necessarily need a full PR agency to contribute to the media. A credible professional can sometimes secure interviews, expert quotations or relevant coverage through their own efforts. A small business might have somebody whose genuine experience helps journalists explain a topic, even if the company has no product launch or big announcement.
The difficulty is time. You may know your subject brilliantly but not know how to find the right journalist, translate specialist knowledge into an editorial angle, write an answer that meets a deadline or handle a follow-up. That has traditionally left businesses choosing between doing the work themselves and paying for a broader PR retainer.
Today there is a practical middle ground. A focused, done-for-you expert-commentary service can handle much of the writing and outreach while the specialist provides real knowledge. That is not a magic way to buy newspaper articles. It is a different way to organise the work.
Having worked as a national journalist and in PR, I would begin by asking what you genuinely have to offer the media. This guide explains the available routes, which kinds of small businesses are suitable, what costs and commitments actually mean, and when a fuller agency campaign is justified.
What does 'press coverage' actually mean?
The term can hide several very different outcomes. An independent journalist might quote a professional in a larger news article. A reporter might interview a founder for a business feature. An editor may choose to review a product, report a new development or publish a company announcement. A trade publication might use original industry research, while a local paper might cover a genuinely interesting regional story.
These outcomes differ in what the newsroom needs and what the business must supply. A specialist quotation may require demonstrable expertise and a clear answer to a question. A product review may need samples, photographs and a product that fits the publication. A company profile may require interesting facts beyond the founder's wish for attention.
A business should therefore describe the desired editorial contribution before choosing a provider. Simply asking for 'more press' is not enough to decide whether a DIY subscription, expert-commentary service or wider PR agency is suitable.
Do you need a big budget to get mentioned in the media?
No. Independent journalists may need a knowledgeable expert regardless of how much the source pays for PR. A qualified accountant, healthcare practitioner, employment specialist, designer or experienced founder may have useful insight on a genuine topic. When that insight helps readers, the journalist may decide to use it.
Money can buy support with research, planning, writing, pitching and account management. It does not buy an editor's obligation to publish the material. Even a large agency cannot guarantee an independent outlet will quote its client. Equally, an expert who spends nothing on professional PR may be featured because they happen to provide the right knowledge at the right time.
The practical budget question is which parts of the work you can perform properly yourself. If you are confident writing and pitching and can respond quickly, doing it yourself may make sense. If you have professional knowledge but limited time, paying a focused team to execute relevant media outreach could be more efficient than either doing everything alone or buying full campaign strategy.
What can you achieve by pitching yourself?
A motivated founder can research journalists, follow genuine media requests, develop story ideas and send useful direct emails. This approach gives you control over the topics and how often you pitch. It can teach you what publications actually need and help you build your understanding of earned media.
That is particularly valuable in the earliest stage of a business, when the founder has more time than cash or has not yet established a story suited to paid PR. It may also work when the organisation already employs somebody with relevant communications skills. A capable in-house marketer may be able to handle appropriate outreach without outsourcing the entire process.
However, DIY outreach requires discipline. You must qualify opportunities, understand deadlines, write relevant comments and verify every claim that carries your name. You may send many sensible pitches without receiving a reply. A good DIY plan acknowledges that editorial decisions are independent rather than treating silence as evidence the journalist failed to honour an arrangement.
Where do journalist-request platforms fit?
Journalist-request services can help people discover what reporters are looking for. ResponseSource distributes relevant enquiries through subscriptions, Editorielle offers media-opportunity access and pitching features, and Qwoted connects experts and PR professionals with opportunities through several plans. The features, subscriptions and additional services vary. Qwoted also markets managed assistance, and Editorielle describes an optional AI-supported drafting product.
These services can be useful tools. But the opportunity itself is only the beginning. You must still know whether your experience fits, produce information a journalist can use, meet deadlines and handle any questions. Some users enjoy that process and want direct control.
Another route is a press-release supplier such as PR Fire, which offers distribution and writing-plus-distribution services. That may suit a genuine announcement, but distribution is not equivalent to placing a specialist into relevant expert-commentary stories. Compare outcomes and who does the work before comparing headline fees.
Why is the work more involved than sending a quick email?
A journalist is not simply asking for any opinion. They are gathering information for a particular story, usually with an audience, angle and deadline in mind. A strong contribution should answer that question directly, offer a useful distinction or example, and come from a person who legitimately knows the subject.
Imagine a reporter asks why a common home-improvement trend may have drawbacks in certain properties. An interior designer can help explain lighting, layout, maintenance or practical use. A generic quotation about making a home beautiful adds little. Somebody must identify the relevant issue, gather the designer's experience, write an accurate response and deliver it to the appropriate person.
Professional boundaries matter as well. A medical comment may need careful verification; a legal answer may differ by jurisdiction; financial statements may require professional review. Good PR cannot manufacture expertise. It helps communicate what an appropriate source genuinely knows while identifying questions that the source should decline.
What does a done-for-you expert-commentary service do?
A focused managed service aims to take on the execution around a credible spokesperson. It can assess topical opportunities, understand the subject's relevance to the expert, gather real professional input, create journalist-ready material, contact suitable media, follow up and report on activity.
At Fair Public Relations, that is the purpose of Expert Commentary PR. We do not simply forward a stream of journalist requests and tell the client to answer them. The team develops relevant commentary angles, drafts pitches from authentic knowledge and undertakes direct outreach. Where the subject genuinely supports it, the service can include up to two expert-commentary press releases per month.
It is not an unlimited news service. We do not promise two releases regardless of newsworthiness or turn every ordinary event into a promotional announcement. We also do not use the DIY request platforms mentioned here as our operating delivery model; they are alternatives a business may compare when deciding how to organise its own work.
Who is this middle option best suited to?
The strongest fit is somebody whose professional insight could genuinely help a journalist explain a relevant issue. That might be an accountant, lawyer, psychologist, HR professional, interior designer, chef, property expert or founder with demonstrable experience in a specific industry. The person must be able to substantiate the claimed expertise and cooperate with reasonable requests for background or approval.
It can also suit a startup or small business with a lean team. The business may have marketing covered in-house but lack the capacity to research expert stories and pitch journalists. A specialist media service can supplement those efforts without replacing the company's wider brand or marketing programme.
It is not appropriate simply because a business is small. A newly launched product brand whose objective is reviews, retailer listings or an announcement may need broader PR. A founder who wants coverage of their personal story rather than commentary on a subject may require strategic positioning. The right service follows the journalism opportunity, not the company size alone.
Does an experienced founder count as a media expert?
Sometimes, but experience needs to be relevant. A founder with a professional history in employment, technology, design, food, education or another field may have an informed perspective that a journalist can use. Starting a company does not automatically make somebody qualified to offer medical advice, interpret laws or speak for an entire industry.
A useful test is to remove the business name from the proposed quotation. Would the insight still help a reader understand something? If yes, there may be editorial value independent of the company's advertising goals. If the substance is only that the founder's service is excellent, the contribution is promotional rather than expert commentary.
The agency also needs to establish the right geographic or regulatory boundaries. Experience in one national market may not qualify somebody to interpret rules in another. Being careful about those limitations can make an expert a more reliable source over time.
Can this help a business with no marketing department?
Yes, when the business has the right kind of spokesperson and a realistic expectation of what the service covers. A sole practitioner or small firm may be able to answer occasional technical questions but have nobody to monitor the wider news agenda. A managed service can handle the specialist PR execution that otherwise goes undone.
This does not remove all client involvement. The source must provide honest biographical material, relevant professional information and accurate insight. Some opportunities will require quick responses or an interview. If a client cannot participate at all, it is difficult for the agency to represent their expertise credibly.
The absence of a marketing department is not necessarily a disadvantage. What matters is whether the firm has something useful to contribute and can approve it. PR cannot compensate for unsupported qualifications or a business that refuses to explain its own specialist perspective.
Can expert coverage improve SEO or appear in AI answers?
Relevant independent coverage may support professional authority and brand awareness. If a journalist quotes somebody accurately, a potential customer could see their name associated with a subject. An article may include an editorial link to the business or professional website, which can help discovery. Some stories will mention only the expert and omit a link altogether.
Search engines and AI systems may encounter published editorial material alongside other publicly available information. That can contribute to a wider online record of the person's knowledge, but the connection is not deterministic. A PR service cannot guarantee Google rankings, backlinks, ChatGPT recommendations, AI Overview inclusion, citations or customer enquiries.
Treat earned coverage as one part of a broader credibility programme. Accurate website descriptions, transparent service information, independent reviews and relevant published work all help people assess a business. A quotation should also be valuable as journalism, regardless of whether it produces an immediate digital marketing result.
What if the real goal is to promote a product or company?
Then be careful. An expert's comment is not a product review, a founder profile, a launch story or a commercial endorsement. Journalists may choose to include the expert's name without discussing the services their organisation sells. If the business expects the article to promote the company, a specialist expert-only package may disappoint it even if the pitching is competent.
A broader PR campaign may be appropriate when the organisation has meaningful company news, product stories, customer evidence, research or a founder narrative to develop. That can require photography, product samples, strategic work, positioning, different audiences and more account management. It is work beyond merely responding to journalist questions.
Fair's Standard PR is designed for suitable wider campaigns. It is important that clients can distinguish that service from Expert Commentary PR rather than assuming the latter is simply the former at a lower fee.
How much does the managed middle option cost?
Fair's Expert Commentary PR costs £397 per month in the UK, US$497 in the US and CAD$747 in Canada. Our broader Standard PR costs £797, US$997 and CAD$1,497 respectively. Both have a three-month initial commitment followed by one full billing cycle's notice under our terms.
The specialist UK starting commitment is three monthly fees of £397, or £1,191 before any applicable taxes or extras. For a business considering the purchase, that is substantially more than a low-cost DIY tool and substantially less than many wider agency retainers. The lower fee is possible because the scope is specific: expert-media research, writing, pitching and follow-up without wider company campaigning or scheduled monthly strategic account meetings.
A professional service agreement is not the same as a cancel-anytime subscription. Compare the cost of your time, what you can do yourself, the type of editorial support you actually need and the limits of the contract. Paying less for the wrong service is rarely a bargain.
What happens during the first three months?
The first step should be suitability and honest positioning. The team needs to understand the spokesperson's subject, work experience, qualifications where necessary, geographic remit, professional restrictions and availability. It should identify which stories the source could legitimately help with and which should be avoided.
The following work involves assessing relevant live opportunities and developing suitable proactive expert ideas. Sometimes the news agenda will offer a strong match; at other times the most responsible decision is not to pitch something unrelated. The spokesperson should be prepared to give concise input and approve factual claims when needed.
At the end of the initial period, examine the actual activities, the relevance of journalist enquiries, any useful follow-up, interviews and published coverage. The publication decision remains independent. No credible agency should describe an unacknowledged pitch as a secured feature or invent reasons to call a quiet period a campaign success.
How should a small business judge whether it is working?
Measure what the provider can actually demonstrate. Has the team understood the expert's subject? Were journalists approached with relevant, accurate material? Did the responses answer a genuine editorial need? Is the source being represented truthfully? Can the client see what happened and what remains pending?
If an article appears, assess the publication, context and attribution. A precise contribution in a specialist trade outlet may be more relevant than a passing mention in a large title whose audience is unlikely to care. Check whether the piece was earned editorial or paid content, and do not confuse a link-free quotation with a failed placement.
Commercial outcomes can be observed but not guaranteed. It may be useful to ask new enquiries how they heard about the business or monitor referral visits, while acknowledging that causation is difficult to prove. A realistic review is about relevance, workmanship, evidence and potential value rather than a guaranteed number of articles.
When should you stay with DIY?
DIY may be the best choice when cash is tight, time is available and the person handling outreach enjoys writing and dealing with journalists. It can also suit a founder who is learning what their subject has to offer the media and is not yet ready to pay a team.
If you are comfortable with the process, there may be no reason to outsource. You could use a suitable subscription, build your own journalist knowledge or focus on genuinely useful direct contacts. Just avoid sending mass messages to people whose work is unrelated to your subject.
For a very early business, product development and customer service may deserve attention before PR. If nobody in the organisation can supply an interesting story, credible expertise or proper supporting evidence, paid outreach will not solve that fundamental problem.
When should you choose Standard PR or another wider agency?
Choose wider support when you need somebody to develop and manage a broader story programme, not just pitch specialist commentary. This may include suitable company announcements, product campaigns, founder positioning, launches, customer stories, research-led angles, thought leadership and ongoing account management.
A more complex business may need event communications, crisis work, investor relations, multiple markets or other specialist services outside Fair's Standard PR scope. In that case, the right choice may be a different kind of agency entirely. Honest advice should identify those limits instead of fitting every prospect into the same package.
Before purchasing, ask the provider what kinds of stories it would actually pursue, who will develop them, what evidence is required, what approvals are needed and which work is not included. Those questions are more useful than asking only whether the monthly price fits your budget.
A practical decision framework for a busy founder
Imagine your desired press outcome as a sentence. If it is 'a journalist quotes my professional view on a relevant issue', the first thing to test is whether you have real, demonstrable expertise. If it is 'a journalist reviews our new product' or 'the paper writes about our expansion', the company or product is the story. These call for different approaches.
Next, consider who will do the work. Can somebody in-house identify relevant reporters, write suitable material and answer questions reliably? If so, DIY may be enough. If the expertise exists but nobody can handle pitching, done-for-you expert commentary may fill that gap. If the business needs strategic development, broader account-managed PR is more appropriate.
Finally, compare commitment and realistic outcomes. An independent journalist may decline the pitch regardless of cost. Buy the work and judgement you need, not an imagined guarantee of results. A good provider should make that decision easier and be willing to say when its service is not the right fit.
How should a small business choose its first expert topics?
Start with the knowledge you can defend in public. A good exercise is to write down five questions customers or clients regularly ask, explain why those questions matter, and identify the source's firsthand experience. An employment adviser may be comfortable explaining broad workplace procedures within their remit, whereas a retail founder may better understand sourcing, distribution or customer behaviour in a narrow field.
Now consider the readership. A national consumer publication may want a clear everyday explanation. A professional trade outlet may need detailed implications for a specific industry. A local reporter may prefer insight grounded in a real community or regional market. One expert can sometimes serve more than one audience, but the same generic response will not always suit them all.
Remove subjects outside the spokesperson's competence. An impressive career does not allow someone to speculate about legal outcomes, diagnose health conditions or interpret complex financial rules without appropriate qualifications. That filter may shrink the list of pitchable topics, but it increases credibility and can save the expert and PR team considerable wasted effort.
What if an article publishes your name but no website link?
First assess the article itself. Did the journalist accurately identify the source and reflect their expertise? Was the topic relevant to the professional audience? Is the quote fair and contextualised? A useful expert contribution can be a legitimate earned-media result even when the publisher does not include a business URL.
A backlink can be helpful for referral traffic and wider web discovery, but independent editorial linking remains the publisher's choice. Some journalists are writing short news stories that simply do not include commercial links. Demanding that they insert a link as the price of a quote could undermine the relationship and may make the source less attractive in future.
For reporting purposes, record the verified article, publication, relevant attribution, any actual link and its context separately. Do not convert an unlinked mention into a claim that a backlink was earned. Equally, do not ignore the value of a thoughtful trade quotation simply because it lacks a link. Credibility, visibility and search performance are related objectives, but they are not identical measurements.
What professional restrictions should be checked before pitching?
If the subject involves regulated work or sensitive information, preparation is essential. A healthcare professional may need to avoid personal diagnosis, misleading certainty or claims unsupported by evidence. A lawyer should know whether the issue is within the jurisdiction they practise in and whether comment could affect a client or ongoing case. A financial adviser may be bound by specific regulatory and organisational communication requirements.
The agency should know these boundaries before promising rapid responses. The client needs a way to approve new factual claims and correct language that overstates a professional conclusion. Where the requirements are uncertain, it may be appropriate to decline a particular enquiry or seek suitable internal or independent review.
Professional judgement can also prevent reputational harm beyond formal regulation. A small-business owner describing an anonymised client situation may still disclose enough details to identify somebody. A founder predicting national trends from a handful of personal observations may mislead a reader. Credible PR requires honesty about the limits of knowledge, not simply a persuasive writing style.
What is a realistic decision for the first three months?
Think of the initial term as an opportunity to establish whether the work and editorial fit make sense, not a contractual promise of a fixed number of newspaper articles. During that period, the team should understand the expert, establish suitable topics, pursue credible opportunities and record what actually happened. The client should be ready to contribute professional insight rather than expecting their expertise to be invented.
At review, ask whether the pitching was relevant, accurate and professionally handled. Look at actual journalist engagement, interviews and published coverage where they exist. An unanswered request is not a published result, but it may still provide information about whether the subject was timely or well matched. If the news agenda rarely produces suitable opportunities for a very narrow topic, that is important to acknowledge.
If you need broader campaign storytelling, product launches or a company profile, discuss a scope change rather than trying to turn every expert quote into business news. If your marketing team can now confidently handle some of the work itself, DIY may be a sensible next step. If the expert is receiving relevant opportunities and the process is manageable, continuing focused managed PR might be justified. The decision should follow evidence and objectives rather than habit.
Frequently asked questions
Can a small business get media coverage without a PR agency?
Yes, when it has a genuine story or credible expert and can handle journalist outreach itself. Publication always remains an independent editorial decision. Some businesses prefer professional help with this work.
Is the £397 service a way to promote my products or new business?
No. Fair's £397 UK Expert Commentary PR is for suitable professional commentary. Product publicity, company announcements, founder campaigns and wider strategy require Standard PR or another appropriate service.
Will expert quotations always include my business name or a backlink?
No. A publication may quote an individual's professional insight without linking to the company, and it may decide not to use the response at all. Backlinks, SEO improvements and AI citations are never guaranteed.
Does Fair's service require a contract?
Yes. Both Expert Commentary PR and Standard PR have a three-month initial commitment, then require one full billing cycle's notice under the applicable terms. The services differ in scope as well as price.
The right PR support should match the story
You do not have to choose between doing absolutely everything yourself and paying for a full PR campaign. If you have legitimate expert knowledge and would like an experienced team to research, draft and pitch it, Expert Commentary PR may be the right middle route.
If the focus is your company's products, services, founder narrative or wider publicity programme, explore Standard PR. You can compare our two services, read our DIY PR alternatives guide or tell us about your goals. We'll assess the fit before recommending the work.
About the author
Jordan Baker is the founder of Fair Public Relations and a former UK national journalist with more than a decade of experience in journalism and PR. He writes about small-business PR, SEO and GEO strategy, AI search, earned media and practical ways businesses can build credible visibility without wasting money on work they do not yet need.
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