10 Tips for Tech PR in Germany

© www.unicat-communications.com

10 Tips
for Starting
Technology PR
in Germany
by unicat communications

10 Tips for Starting Technology PR in Germany

Germany is the leading European economy
and given the size of the market and business
potential, it is the ideal basis for expanding
business internationally.


If you are responsible for marketing or PR at
a B2B tech company and want to enter the
German market or give your existing PR a
fresh start, the following 10 tips will help you
to understand what it takes to do successful
PR in Germany.
Although the fundamental PR and marketing
practices work similar to any Western market,
there are some important cultural and
market particularities.

March 5, 2014

Page 2

1. Tip: Quick Results

For a successful start that brings tangible
and measurable success quickly, focus
mainly on Product PR and content
marketing formats that help sales to sell
and generate leads.


Use specific messages, media and
influencers for different target groups of
decision makers from technical to C-level.
Vertical communication is very beneficial
and the German media landscape offers a
lot of opportunities to communicate
industry-specific technology benefits.
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2. Tip: Show that you are a Local Player

Corporate PR can support German business
best by showing your company’s commitment
for the local market, channel partners,
employees and customers.


Show that you are a local player that
understands the market and is able to offer
local service and support.
With the exception of the very big global
players, international corporate
communication content such as financial
reporting is a waste of time and resources.
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3. Tip: Give your Company a German Face


Use spokespeople such as German CEO,
country manager or experts to give your
company a “local face”. Speak with a
“German voice” in trade and business press,
on your website, blogs and social media.

By the way, the most import social network
for doing business in Germany is XING.
LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook are less
important.

March 5, 2014

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4. Tip: Facts and Figures

You consider Germans as
exceptionally rational?
You are absolutely right!


We just love anything that is based
on facts and figures. Studies,
market research or any kind of
relevant data usually bring
excellent press coverage and
marketing response rates.

March 5, 2014

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5. Tip: Leadership Positioning

The German public is very critical when it comes to
marketing buzzwords such as “leading”, “innovative”, etc.
Press releases or B2B marketing content that are too
promotional or read like advertising copy will fail.


That doesn’t mean that leadership communication isn’t
important. Define your market position and communicate
your company as the leader in a relevant area – be it
innovation, quality, service or price leadership. Define
USPs that really are convincing to German customers.

Be prepared to deliver proof points for your leadership
messages based on facts and figures.

March 5, 2014

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6. Tip: Native Content

Don’t simply have your PR and marketing
content translated. It needs to be localized
in terms of specific requirements of German
media and business culture.


If possible, work with German customer or
analyst references and endorsements. Also
consider local rules and regulations that often
are stricter than in the rest of the world.

March 5, 2014

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7. Tip: Use Pitches Carefully

PR pitches are a delicate topic in Germany.
If you contact a journalist, you really need
to be able to offer a true added value
such as exclusive content, additional data,
or contacts with experts.


Be selective and limit pitches to the very
important topics. If you call a journalist to
simply announce a press release, he or she
will see this as a waste of time.

March 5, 2014

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8. Tip: Personal Relations


Like in the rest of the world, establishing press relations is
based on personal relations. Arrange regular meetings
with key journalists and your German spokesperson.

German trade journalists often prefer to speak with your
company’s technology, market or industry experts rather
than with somebody from C-level. If your experts perform
well both in terms of knowledge and media savviness,
reporters will come back to them for expert quotes,
interviews or ask for bylined articles.

Business journalist love to speak to high-level people
that are not too shy to express their own opinion and view
on the market.

March 5, 2014

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9. Tip: Be Responsive and Pro-active

Make sure to be pro-active and react
quickly. Your Germany PR team needs to
be able to anticipate journalists’
needs for expert advice and opinion
pieces when trending topics come up.
.


If reporters or bloggers ask for
comments, quotes or interviews you need
to have a well-practiced local team and
spokespeople that are able to add a
local twist to the story.

March 5, 2014

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10. Tip: Select the Right Agency Partner

Work with a PR agency that specializes on the tech
sector and insist to have seasoned B2B experts
in the team. In addition to media savviness and a
creative mind, they need sound technology
knowledge and an understanding of your
business models, sales channels and how the
German tech market works.

Make sure that your agency has experience in
working in international marketing and PR teams
and is able to act independently in any given
frame of communication governance.

March 5, 2014

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25 Years of Experience in Tech PR

• PR agency based in Germany’s hi-tech cluster
Munich
• Strategic communications for Technology Leaders
• Founded 1989, independently owned
• Focus on IT, high-tech, innovation
• B2B specialists


• Long-term customer relationships
(5+ years on average)
• Very low employee turnover
(on average 8 years of affiliation)
• 70% of clients and references are international

March 5, 2014

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What Makes us Unique

We specialize exclusively
on technology and B2B.


We understand how media
and tech markets work.

We know the way tech
companies do business.

March 5, 2014

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Get in Touch!

Thomas Konrad
Senior PR Consultant
unicat communications
Phone: +49 89 743452-20


thomas.konrad@unicat-communications.de
http://www.unicat-communications.com/
http://www.linkedin.com/in/thomaskonradmuc
unicat communications
Gabi Eckart & Anja Seubert GbR
Alois-Gilg-Weg 7, 81373 Munich, Germany

March 5, 2014

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10 Tips for Tech PR in Germany

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10 Tips for Tech PR in Germany