We made the journey down to Brighton last week for the second BrightonSEO conference of the year, and we left feeling motivated and inspired!

Now don’t let the name throw you; BrightonSEO might have started off as a small SEO conference but it has soon become one of Europe’s biggest digital marketing meet-ups. With around 3500 in attendance, there are a number of detailed, informative seminars on throughout the day covering topics including social media, email marketing and, of course, search marketing.

Whilst we like to keep on top of the latest SEO news, we decided to take this as an opportunity to learn more about the things we do at Red Marlin on a daily basis – PR and social media. We’ve produced a series of blogs highlighting a few of the things we learned in Brighton. Want to read the previous two? The first was about the rise of influencer marketing, and the second about how brands can connect with consumers on an emotional level. Here’s the final one…

• You don’t need big budgets to get big coverage

Working with an unknown brand, very little or no budget, and need to get coverage? We’ve all been there. So how can you get around it?

Challenge gives you the opportunity to be creative!

Three key things you can instantly focus on are data, assets and attitude.

There is a world of data out there. The likes of The Kauffman Index, gov.uk and Eurostat are just some of the great resources available to tap into. You can use open source data to create something unique for your brand. By creating something unique, you’re giving websites and publications a reason to link back to you!

Using data adds authority to your content, as well as a voice that you wouldn’t usually have.

Working hand-in-hand with data is assets. We’re not all blessed with fantastic Photoshop skills, and we don’t all work in agencies that have graphic design teams. Fear not! There are some wonderful resources out there that will help you.

One such resource is Piktochart, which helps you step-by-step to create professional looking and visually appealing infographics. Using a platform like Piktochart can help your content stand out from the crowd. It’s important to take the time to develop a consistent house style for your graphics (remember what we said about brand voice?).

One key thing to remember when creating assets is that publishers won’t always take your asset. This can be for a number of reasons; they don’t like the style, they want to use their own style, their publication doesn’t publish graphics. So it’s important to have a solid data story to support your graphic.

The final thing to focus on when looking to get coverage is attitude. Remember, you are not asking for something, you are the one giving the content. You are doing the job for the journalist – so have confidence in your brand, your story and yourself!

A big thanks to Bobbi Brant for her talk at BrightonSEO, providing the inspiration for this blog post! You can find her full presentation here.