PR, STRATEGIC PLANNING & THE JOURNALIST
PR is all about creating and enforcing a strategic angle, but what happens once it lands in a journalist’s inbox?
Unlike advertising, your media release, your strategic PR angle and your business’ reputation rest in the mercy of a journalist’s mind and the angle they decide to take with your story. So how do you know how they will react and is it safe for your business?
Truth be known, you will never truly know what angle a journalist will take until you send it through. Even if they’ve told you how they intend to use your name and information, they are humans and they too can change their mind and are subject to guidance from a higher level in their organisation.
Journalists are professionals who like to make sure their readers are engaged and interested and if that means controversy, a different angle or quoting your competitor then they will do it. Your best bet is to know a bit about the journalist and make sure your angle suits the publication and that it will stand up to process of good journalistic research.
Clients often ask if they will have the opportunity to review an article before it is printed in the newspaper or magazine in question. Esther Schindler of the Internet Press Guild (IPG) says that businesses that are proactive in PR shouldn’t expect to read the finished article any sooner than the general public. Why? For two very good reason-
- A journalist is being paid to give their opinion of the product to their readers and while it’s understood that contributors would like to know journalist responses, it’s rare this would happen before it sees print. Journalists are writing for the readers, and not for your approval or disapproval.
- Second, if a journalist said anything with which you disagreed, the lead time from article submission to paper is often measured in months, and you would have the opportunity to complain to the publication (and to the world in general) before the readers even knew about the review. So much for objectivity!
Tips
- Use a PR company with a solid reputation in your industry for having strong media contacts. This will allow for informal communication with the journalist about story ideas.
- Read other articles by the targeted journalist and check out the companies they have written about. Does the article express a truthful, balanced opinion and perception of the company?
- Don’t pitch loose or high spin angles. Trick journalists and they will trick you back, but they have the power to do it publicly.
- Expect your story to be researched. Think from a journalist perspective, who would you ring for more information? Where would you look for further quotes to validate the story? Who would you ask for a conflicting view?
- Don’t hold back appropriate information, which the public have access to anyway. Prices, statistics, product specifications, if you want a balanced article you have to give the journalist the right information
- Lastly, give the journalist space to find their own spin on your angle and trust that you have done enough research to know they have good journalistic skills.
