How to Get Press Coverage for Your Business in the UK (Without a PR Agency)

Most founders think press coverage works like this: write a press release, send it to as many journalists as possible, wait. Usually nothing happens, and they decide PR isn't for them.

That's not how most coverage gets won. Journalists don't need more press releases. They need useful, quick, credible input on the stories they're already writing, usually against a deadline.

If you can give them that, you can get featured without an agency, without contacts and without a big budget. This guide shows you how.

Why press coverage matters for B2B businesses

For a B2B company, coverage isn't about fame. It does three practical jobs.

It makes your sales outreach work better. Before a prospect replies to an email or takes a call, they look you up. If they find you quoted in their trade press, you're no longer a stranger. "As featured in" changes how a cold email reads.

It helps your website rank. Coverage in a real publication often comes with a link back to your site. Links from trusted sites are one of the strongest signals Google uses to decide who ranks.

It gets you into AI answers. Tools like ChatGPT and Google's AI results draw heavily on published articles. Being quoted in the right places makes it more likely your business comes up when someone asks for a recommendation in your area.

The types of coverage you can actually get

Not all coverage is a front-page feature. For most B2B businesses, these are the realistic wins:

• Expert comment. A quote from you in an article about your industry. This is the most common and the easiest to get.
• Reactive comment. A response to a news story while it's happening. Speed matters most here.
• Trade press features. Articles in the publications your customers read, such as industry magazines and sector news sites.
• Original research. A survey or data you've collected, which journalists can write a story around.
• Opinion pieces. An article written by you, published under your name.
• Podcasts and events. Not press in the strict sense, but they work the same way and build the same credibility.

Start with expert comment and trade press. They're the quickest wins and the most useful for B2B sales.

Step 1: Decide what you're an expert on

Journalists don't quote "a business". They quote someone who knows about a specific thing.

Pick two or three topics you can talk about with real authority. Not "marketing" or "business", but something narrower. For example:

• late payments and cash flow for small businesses
• hiring and retaining sales staff
• the cost of energy for manufacturers
• cyber security for small firms

These become the filter for every opportunity you consider. If a request doesn't fit one of your topics, skip it.

Step 2: Start with trade press

It's tempting to aim for the nationals first. For B2B businesses, trade press is usually more valuable.

Your customers read their industry publications closely. A quote in the magazine your buyers read every month is worth more to your sales pipeline than a passing mention in a national newspaper they skimmed once.

Trade publications are also easier to get into. They have smaller teams, a constant need for expert input and fewer people competing for each slot.

Make a list of the ten publications your customers actually read. Ask a few customers if you're not sure.

Step 3: Find the journalists who cover your area

Read recent articles in your target publications and note who wrote the ones related to your topics. That's your journalist list.

Keep it short. Ten to twenty relevant journalists you know something about is far more useful than a bought list of thousands. Follow them on LinkedIn or X, read what they write, and note what they cover.

When you do get in touch, you'll be able to say something relevant about their work, which already puts you ahead of most of the emails they receive.

Step 4: Find opportunities every day

This is where most coverage comes from. Every day, journalists publicly ask for expert sources, and stories break that need comment.

Journalist request services. Journalists post what they're looking for and experts respond. ResponseSource is a long-running paid service with a strong UK focus. Qwoted has free and paid plans and leans towards business, finance and tech. HARO and Source of Sources send email digests, though they skew towards US media.

The #journorequest hashtag. UK journalists use it on X and increasingly on Bluesky to ask for sources. A saved search for the hashtag plus your topic takes a minute to check.

News alerts. Set up Google Alerts for your topics and your industry, so you see stories as they break.

Your target publications. Check their sites regularly. Some publish forward features lists showing what they'll cover in coming months.

The catch is consistency. Opportunities go fast, often within hours, and checking all of these sources every day takes time. It's the part most founders give up on first.

Step 5: Write comments journalists actually use

A journalist on deadline might get dozens of responses to one request. Most are long, generic or barely disguised sales pitches. They're looking for the one they can drop straight into their article.

Say a journalist asks for comment on why small businesses are struggling with late payments.

The response that gets ignored:

Hi, I'm the founder of XYZ Accounting, a leading accountancy firm with over 15 years of experience helping businesses across the UK. We offer a full range of services including bookkeeping, payroll and cash flow management. Late payments are a big problem for small businesses and we help our clients deal with them every day. Please visit our website for more information.

The response that gets used:

"Most small firms don't chase late invoices because they're worried about damaging the relationship. But a client who pays 60 days late on a 30-day invoice is effectively borrowing from you interest-free. The firms that cope best send a polite reminder the day an invoice is due, not a month after, and agree payment terms in writing before any work starts."

Jane Smith, Founder, XYZ Accounting

The second one works because it:

• answers the question directly
• offers a real opinion or practical point, not a description of the business
• is short enough to use as written
• is already in quote marks, with a name and job title

A few rules that make a big difference:

• Reply fast. Within the first hour or two if you can.
• Answer only what was asked. Don't add a sales pitch.
• Include your name, job title, company and website so the journalist has everything.
• Offer something extra if it helps, such as a statistic, an example or availability for a quick call.
• Never attach large files. Offer them instead.

Step 6: Comment on the news

When a big story breaks in your industry, journalists need people to explain what it means. This is called reactive PR or newsjacking.

Say the government announces a change that affects your customers. Within a few hours, send a short comment to the journalists on your list who cover that area: what the change means in practice, who it affects most and what businesses should do.

Timing is everything. A comment sent the morning a story breaks can be used. The same comment sent two days later won't be.

Step 7: Create your own news

When nothing is happening, make something happen. The most reliable way for a B2B business is original data.

Run a short survey of your customers or your industry. Ten questions, a few hundred responses, and you have something new to say. A headline like "X% of UK manufacturers say energy costs have delayed hiring" is a story. "We're a great manufacturer supplier" isn't.

Data also keeps working. Journalists cite it for months, and every citation can bring another link to your site.

Step 8: Make it easy to feature you

Before a journalist uses your comment, they may check you out. Make sure there's something to find:

• A simple press page on your website, with a short company description, a professional photo of you and your contact details.
• An up-to-date LinkedIn profile that matches what you've told them.
• A list of past coverage once you have some. It shows you're a reliable source.

Step 9: Use every piece of coverage in sales

Coverage is only half the value. The other half is what you do with it.

• Add an "As featured in" section to your website.
• Mention relevant coverage in sales emails and proposals.
• Share it on LinkedIn, with your view on the topic rather than just "we're in the news".
• Add it to your email signature for a few weeks.

A prospect who has seen you quoted in their trade press is far more likely to reply.

What about press releases?

Press releases still have a place, just a smaller one than most people think.

They work when you have genuine news, such as a significant contract, a new product, investment or original research, and you send them to a small number of relevant journalists.

They don't work as a general way to get attention. A release about a new website or a minor hire, sent to hundreds of journalists, will almost always be ignored.

Common mistakes

• Pitching your company instead of a story. Journalists write for their readers, not for you.
• Sending the same email to everyone. It shows, and it gets deleted.
• Being slow. Most opportunities are gone within a day.
• Responding to requests that don't fit. It wastes your time and damages your reputation with that journalist.
• Giving up after a few weeks. Coverage builds over months. Journalists come back to sources who have been useful before.

How long does it take?

If you respond to relevant requests consistently, a first piece of coverage within the first month or two is realistic, often in trade press.

Regular coverage takes longer, usually a few months of steady effort, because it depends on journalists getting to know you as someone reliable. The good news is that it compounds. Once a journalist has quoted you once, they're more likely to come back.

Doing it yourself vs getting help

Everything in this guide can be done yourself. What it really costs is time: checking for opportunities every day, writing tailored comments fast, keeping track of journalists and following up.

If you want to keep it in-house but cut the time it takes, Go7 Radar finds relevant press opportunities for your business every morning, alongside sales opportunities, and suggests comment angles you can adapt and send.

If you'd rather it was done for you, Go7 runs press alongside signal-led sales outreach. Our Managed Acquisition plan includes PR signals and article press, and the Acquisition + Authority plan adds deeper PR such as research-led campaigns. You get sales meetings and coverage from one team, and the coverage makes your outreach more credible.

Not sure where to start? Get a free Growth Report. We'll show you where your best press and sales opportunities are right now.

FAQs

How can a small business get press coverage for free? Respond to journalist requests that match your expertise, comment quickly on news in your industry, and pitch useful stories to trade publications your customers read. None of these cost money, but they do take consistent time.

What's the best way to find journalist requests in the UK? Common options include ResponseSource (paid, UK-focused), Qwoted (free and paid), the #journorequest hashtag on X and Bluesky, and email digests such as HARO and Source of Sources. Checking a few of these every day gives you the best chance.

Do press releases still work? For genuine news sent to a small number of relevant journalists, yes. As a general way to get attention, rarely. Most coverage for small businesses now comes from expert comment rather than press releases.

Is trade press or national press better for B2B? For most B2B businesses, trade press. Your customers read their industry publications closely, and trade titles are easier to get into.

How long does PR take to work? A first piece of coverage within one to two months is realistic with consistent effort. Regular coverage usually builds over a few months as journalists get to know you as a reliable source.

Does press coverage help SEO? Yes. Coverage often includes a link to your website, and links from trusted publications are one of the strongest signals search engines use. It also makes your business more likely to appear in AI-generated answers.