Guy Kawasaki posted an article on his blog written by Glenn Kelman of Redfin about why companies should move to a do-it-yourself PR strategy. In essence, the PR game is not what it was five years ago. Forget hiring an agency and spending the standard $5,000-$20,000 fee per month to have your account handed off to an associate who knows little more than you do about how to pitch ideas and stories. The most important part of a good PR pitch has always been the value in the idea that is being pitched.

In the past, PR reps would scroll through their Rolodexes, call press contacts and pitch them ideas for stories. The value in this was that information about companies and press contacts used to be much harder to come by. From the companies' perspective, the press contact was hidden, and the press contact had no idea who to contact at a company about new innovations. Now, mainly due to the internet, both companies and members of the press have the same ability to search each other out and discuss story ideas.

Take some time to think about how you can help those who are in a position to write about your company to do so. Kelman's article provides some excellent insights. It's not just about pitching story ideas; you can also create the content you would like to see distributed. Write an article and contact an editor of an online publication and pitch them on the idea of running the story. Who knows your company, your product and your service better than you?

Think about what you can offer to a reader that is informative, interesting and adds value. Creating this valuable content is going to get you noticed and get free publicity for your company. Who can argue with anything free nowadays? The more people hear about your company, the more apt they are to want to learn more about you, thus creating a huge opportunity to convert them.