TL;DR
Brand mentions are the currency of digital visibility.
Each time your company gets referenced online – whether in articles, social posts, forums, or reviews – you’re building authority, expanding your reach, and potentially earning valuable backlinks.
The best part? You don’t need a massive PR budget to get people talking about your brand. With the right strategies and consistent effort, you can generate meaningful mentions without spending a penny.
1. Create genuinely shareable content
The most reliable way to earn brand mentions is creating content people actually want to reference. This means going beyond basic blog posts to produce resources that become go-to references in your industry.
Think comprehensive guides, original research, interactive tools, or data visualisations that simplify complex topics. When your content becomes the definitive resource on a subject, mentions follow naturally as others cite your work.
The key is solving real problems or answering questions your audience genuinely cares about, not just creating content for content’s sake.
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2. Contribute expert quotes to journalists
Platforms like HARO (Help a Reporter Out), ResponseSource, and Qwoted connect journalists with expert sources for stories they’re writing. Sign up, respond promptly to relevant queries, and you’ll start appearing in publications as a quoted expert.
Each quote typically includes your name, title, and company – instant brand mentions in credible publications. The secret to success is responding quickly (journalists work to tight deadlines) and providing genuinely insightful comments rather than thinly veiled sales pitches.
Set aside 15 minutes each morning to scan new queries and respond to anything relevant. Consistency matters more than perfection.
3. Engage meaningfully in industry communities
Reddit, industry-specific forums, LinkedIn groups, and Slack communities offer opportunities to build reputation and earn mentions organically. The catch? You need to genuinely help people, not just promote yourself.
- Answer questions thoroughly
- Share insights from your experience
- Contribute to discussions without expecting immediate returns.
Over time, community members start mentioning your brand when others ask for recommendations or resources.
Focus on one or two communities where your ideal customers actually hang out, rather than spreading yourself thin across dozens of platforms.
4. Comment on relevant news and trends
When major industry news breaks or trends emerge, early commentary can earn mentions as publications round up expert perspectives. Set up Google Alerts for key industry topics and be ready to share informed opinions quickly.
Write LinkedIn posts, tweet threads, or quick blog responses offering unique angles on developing stories. Journalists often scan social media for expert reactions when developing follow-up coverage.
Speed matters here – being third to offer insightful commentary is worth more than being tenth with a slightly better take.
5. Leverage your founder’s personal brand
People connect with people more readily than they connect with faceless companies. Your founder or key team members likely have personal networks and credibility that can drive brand mentions.
Encourage leadership to share insights on LinkedIn, speak at virtual events, participate in podcasts, or write guest articles under their own names, whilst naturally referencing the company. Personal brands often grow faster than company brands, creating a rising tide that lifts both.
This works particularly well for service businesses where expertise and relationships drive growth.
6. Create free tools or resources
Calculators, templates, checklists, or simple tools that solve specific problems get shared and mentioned repeatedly. Unlike content that gets consumed once, useful tools earn ongoing mentions as people discover and recommend them.
A mortgage calculator, content calendar template, or industry benchmark tool becomes a resource people bookmark and share. Each share represents potential brand mentions and backlinks.
The tool doesn’t need to be complex – simple solutions to common frustrations often perform best.
7. Conduct and publish original research
Original data stands out in a sea of recycled opinions. Survey your customers, analyse industry trends, or compile statistics that reveal something new about your market.
Publications love citing original research because it gives their content credibility and freshness. A single well-promoted survey or data study can generate months of mentions as different outlets reference your findings.
Even small-scale research (50-100 responses) can yield newsworthy insights if you’re asking the right questions.
8. Build relationships with micro-influencers
Forget chasing celebrity influencers with millions of followers. Micro-influencers in your niche – people with 5,000 to 50,000 engaged followers – often deliver better results and work without payment if you approach them correctly.
Send your product for an honest review, offer early access to new features, or simply build genuine relationships by engaging with their content. When they mention your brand to their engaged audience, it carries weight because their followers trust their recommendations.
Quality of audience matters far more than quantity of followers.
9. Answer questions on Q&A platforms
Quora, Reddit, and niche Q&A sites are filled with people actively seeking solutions. Providing genuinely helpful answers – with your expertise and brand visible in your profile – builds visibility and earns mentions over time.
The best answers get upvoted, linked to, and referenced in articles as writers research topics. Focus on demonstrating expertise rather than pushing products, and mentions follow naturally.
Set a reminder to spend 30 minutes weekly answering questions in your area of expertise.
10. Participate in industry awards and rankings
Many industry awards are free to enter, and even shortlisting generates brand mentions across award websites, social media, and industry publications. Winners benefit from extended coverage and credibility boosts.
Look for legitimate awards in your sector rather than pay-to-win schemes. Being recognised as a top software tool, fastest-growing company, or best employer creates validation that gets mentioned repeatedly.
The application process itself often forces useful reflection on what makes your business distinctive.
11. Create visual assets people want to use
Infographics, charts, and visual explainers get shared far more than text alone. Create visual content that simplifies complex information, and make it easy for others to use by offering embed codes or download options.
When publications and blogs use your visual assets, they typically credit the source – earning you brand mentions and often backlinks. Focus on evergreen topics that remain relevant rather than trending news that dates quickly.
Tools like Canva make professional-looking visuals accessible even without design expertise.
12. Collaborate with non-competing brands
Partner with complementary businesses for co-created content, joint webinars, or shared resources. Each collaboration introduces your brand to a new audience and generates mentions across both companies’ channels.
A project management tool might partner with a time-tracking app, or a coffee roaster with a sustainable packaging company. The key is finding partners whose audiences overlap with yours without directly competing.
These partnerships often cost nothing but time and creativity whilst delivering mentions to both parties.
Making brand mentions work harder
📝 Track your mentions properly
Set up Google Alerts and consider tools like Mention or Brand24 to monitor when your brand gets referenced. This helps you:
- Engage with positive mentions to strengthen relationships
- Address negative mentions before they become problems
- Identify unlinked mentions you can convert to backlinks
- Understand which strategies generate the most buzz.
You can’t optimise what you don’t measure, and tracking mentions reveals which tactics deliver results worth doubling down on.
🤝 Convert mentions into relationships
Each brand mention represents a potential relationship. When someone mentions your brand positively, thank them, share their content, and look for ways to collaborate in future.
These relationships compound over time, turning one-off mentions into ongoing advocates who reference your brand repeatedly.
👋 Be consistently valuable, not occasionally promotional
The brands that earn the most organic mentions focus relentlessly on being helpful. They answer questions, share insights, create resources, and contribute to their communities without constantly asking for something in return.
This generosity creates goodwill that translates into mentions, recommendations, and advocacy far more effectively than any amount of self-promotion.
Building momentum that lasts
Brand mentions compound over time. Early efforts might feel slow, but as your reputation builds and content accumulates, mentions begin to snowball. Content you created months ago continues generating mentions, relationships you’ve nurtured start paying dividends, and your brand becomes a natural reference point in your industry.
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