How Brands Get Featured in Top Gift Guides Without a PR Agency – Gloria Chou, PR Coach for SmallBiz

PR doesn’t have to be a black box—or a budget buster. In this episode of Retention Chronicles, Mariah sits down with Gloria Chou, a former diplomat turned PR coach, to unpack how ecommerce brands can land top-tier media coverage without an agency or huge following. Gloria shares her CPR pitch framework that’s helped thousands of founders get featured in outlets like BuzzFeed, Oprah’s Favorite Things, and Refinery29 using nothing but cold emails.From leveraging seasonal trends to finding the right journalists and tracking results, this conversation is a masterclass in scrappy, strategic PR. If you're a Shopify brand looking to turn press into profit, this one’s for you.Episode Timestamps:00:00 – 02:59 → Intro & why post-purchase experience matters03:00 – 05:30 → Gloria’s unconventional path to PR & why small brands can win05:30 – 11:40 → The power of PR: SEO, credibility, and the CPR pitch formula11:40 – 16:00 → Personalization, pitching journalists, and building relationships16:00 – 20:00 → Follow-up strategies, seasonal pitching, and time-saving tips20:00 – 23:00 → Maximizing ROI: tracking, repurposing, and compounding value23:00 – 25:30 → How PR builds retention and beats influencer marketing25:30 – 28:30 → Favorite tools: Substack, Source of Sources, and Gloria’s free masterclass28:30 – End → Where to find Gloria’s resources & final takeawaysResources:Free PR Masterclass