If you sent out a press release and then got a call from the media, then it is pretty easy to figure out how that person found you and why he or she thinks of you as an expert. But, what if you have an established presence and are maintaining an ongoing public relations campaign? Why did that reporter, writer, editor or producer call you? Why call you now?
Does it really matter how someone found you? YES, it does.
Knowing HOW someone found you and WHY they want to interview you helps you figure out how to invest your precious PR time and energy in future months.
For the past 15 years, when a media call arrives out of the blue I’ve always asked, “What made you want to interview [Client]? How did you find [him or her]?” More often than not, I learn that good media placements beget more good media opportunities and placements.
Here are actual responses or results leaned from asking this question:
An actual answer received today from a freelance writer on assignment for a publication we’ve worked with in the past: “My editor told me to interview her.”
I’ve seen her quoted a lot and so she’s been on my list for a while now.
I was asked to find an expert on the East Coast, the West Coast and in the middle of the US. I saw [your client] quoted in [a named national publication] and you’re in Austin, TX. Bingo!
I found [your client] through Google.
I started a new job and inherited a basket full of stuff. This cool [product] was in here and your business card was taped to it. Looks like the press release was thrown away, but the pitch letter is here.
I saw [your client’s book] on Amazon Books.
I heard [your CEO] speak at a trade show earlier this year.
I kept your media pitch sent in an email [from last month, a few months ago and eight months ago have been answers given].
I really just like the title of [your client’s book].
I saw [your client] quoted in another magazine [read: our competitor on the newsstand].
Think about the answer received from a writer or producer and let this guide your next purposeful, proactive media relations activity. Your content and approach made you newsworthy once, why not again?
Final Thought: The best interviews can often mean you are offered another interview by a different publication or station. Best interview practices to be discussed in my next blog post!
A colleague and I used to fantasize about a business we called Plain Talk PR. We both liked our jobs doing corporate comm work for a large company, but there were days when we joked about the need to simply cut to the chase. Usually this conversation came up after a news release had gone through two dozen revisions between the marketers and the lawyers. We, the PR people responsible for using the news release as a communications tool, vigilantly battled marketing-speak and its “solutions” and the lengthy qualifiers and disclaimers aimed at minimizing future legal action.
At Plain Talk PR, news announcements would still be strategic but they would also be transparent — which, coincidentally, is what makes it newsworthy and interesting. In fact, the Plain Talk approach could be applied to marketing, investor relations, employee communications and more.
Ah-ha! This week, I found Plain Talk concepts in action, thanks to the Alamo Drafthouse. One element of Plain Talk principles is to let the voice of the customer tell your story.This video portrayal of an angry customer’s phone call is earning fans and friends all over the United States, in part because it is so transparent. (This is uncensored.)
In what situations would you present the voice of an angry customer to all of your paying clients? When you firmly believe in the values you are upholding — the values that build your brand and your reputation. In this case, the Alamo Drafthouse is enforcing its well-known no talking, no texting rule.
Besides transparency, what are some other principles of Plain Talk PR, and how could you apply it when talking with clients, employees, peers and prospects?
From RISE, to SXSWi sessions and Expert’s Academy in Santa Clara, CA, content – content – content was the continual drumbeat of March 2011. Anybody who is anybody wove this message into their discussion points, article, speech or blog post. Laura and I believe in good content too.
Good content begins every conversation. And, in both writing and speaking, the message itself is as important as how you share it and who is standing around to hear it. The directive to anyone who wants to write, reach out to the media or launch a PR/Marketing campaign is loud and clear. But, HOW should one go about creating good content?
Ask yourself these questions. The answers will give you the content needed to start a meaningful conversation.
What business questions do I get asked over and over again? What is my best advice or answers to these questions?
What product or process questions do I get asked over and over again?
What do I do or make differently than the best competitors in my space?
What problems am I solving for my current customers? My potential customers?
What are the five words people use to describe me? My business? My products and services?
What tips and advice do I want to share with the world?
The answers can now be grouped into headlines or linked together as thoughts.
Now think about what messages you have that answer this question: How do you make lives different? How can you make them better?
When you look at all of the answers, push yourself and ask, “so what?” Keep asking that same question until you find a distilled answer that is original and has meaning. Think about the smaller audience within your larger audience. Does your answer benefit that smaller audience? If not, then ask “so what?” again.
All of the answers you capture will give you a very good start on creating great content.
Earlier this month, I was fortunate to share my experience as a publicist, communications strategist and dancer in a presentation during RISE 2011. Many entrepreneurs, artists and organizations come to us with some straightforward PR questions: Should I write a news release? What’s a press kit? How do I contact the media? While media relations is not the only way that a PR program communicates and persuades audiences, working with news media is a huge part of our heritage. Its traditions are alive and well in the converged/online/interactive/social media age.
At RISE I discussed the journalistic roots of public relations and what that means for anyone who wants to communicate with media about their company, cause, product or service. This is primer in press kit materials with a few examples from our clients.
In sum: Every PR program moves through six main positions: who, what, where, when, why and how? Like a dancer must move through five basic positions before she can innovate, press kit materials must communicate in a journalistic style in order to tell a story and earn a place in the news.
Spring break in Austin means South by Southwest, a 10-day long series of conferences and festivals for pros in the interactive, film and music industries. What on earth does that mean to an entrepreneur, small biz owner, nonprofit organization — or communications pros like us?
Usually when I tell people that I’m attending SXSW, they smile enthusiastically and ask if I’m going to see any good shows or movies. That’s because SXSW has its roots as a music event (conference + festival) followed by a star-lit film event and the like for multimedia/online/Internet/web industries. According to Austin news reports, about 35 percent more people are now attending the Interactive conference (19,000 registrations) and festival than are attending the music conference/festival (14,000 registrations) — wow, now that’s a sign of the times.
What sign? What times? It would be so 2oth century-sounding to call it convergence, but the truth is creative expression has roots in every medium — whether sound, image or information and computer-based. The best example of this was an opening-night party that featured live music, physics experiments and a series of 5-minute talks imagining our world in 2021, a mere 10 years ahead. It was my first event for five days of conference-going and evening party-going, and it set the stage for me.
Outside Ignite SXSW, you could bring your own shirt for a custom print job from Sanctuary On-site printing.
The event was Ignite SXSW at the Austin Music Hall. Doors opened at 6 p.m. (Don’t imagine a late-night hipster crowd. Think vendor logoed shirts and ironic tees.) I enjoyed mingling with Dorkbot’s high-charged guests. Then I did a double take when I spotted Michael Dell, and it took me five minutes to get the nerve, but I finally introduced myself and thanked him for all he does for Central Texas.
At Ignite SXSW, as the band played on, human and robotic guests could browse a dozen or so demonstration tables hosted by diverse orgs like the UT College of Engineering and open source activists — or even mug for the camera in Microsoft’s photo booth, emblazoned with “Microsoft Loves Startups.” I introduced myself to organizer Joshua Baer, a well-respected Austin-based entrepreneur who, with his wife, produces and “writes the checks” for the Ignite Austin events and hopes that people get something out of it. (I was an early adopter of his OtherInbox service, which launched as a clever way to create email boxes on the fly so that you could avoid spam and manage multiple accounts — I may have been too early of an adopter, but that’s another story. My intuitive reach often exceeds my cognitive grasp.)
But my longest conversation happened at the ACE Academy table.
ACE Academy is a Austin-based private school for gifted and talented children. I learned about their upcoming ACE Innovation Fair, a one-day event devoted to inspiring creativity in the arts & sciences, which to me is all about the art of the possible. Learn how things work, learn what problems need to be solved, and with some creativity and effort, you can imagine — and invent– a possible solution.
As talked, I kept thinking “how can I help them?” Though I have a creative bent, I’m not particularly inventive or crafty. I don’t make anything to sell. My main asset is information or at least, the ability to ask the right questions. That’s where our creativity as PR people applies: at the intersection of information, curiousity and communication.
So why do I go to SXSW? Especially, why go to the part without red carpet premieres, private parties and back-stage passes? (I did that when I worked for KLRU and Austin City Limits — it’s fun, too.)
I go because I am always inspired by and learn something from people who creating and inventing something — businesses, social change, music, film or media. And those sharp minds still only have 24 hours in their days, so they often need a sidekick to support their communications efforts. So we do have something in common.
It’s where Anne and I thrive, in exploring the possibilities of communication to help people, artists, entrepreneurs to grow and get what they want.
So my call to my Austin friends, peers — ACE Innovation needs our help. They need sponsors, demonstrators, and vendors to spark kids’ imaginations, to show them the symbiotic relationship between creativity and science, imagination and invention. ACE Innovation is coming up FAST, April 16 in right here in Austin — the Live Music Capital of the World, home of Austin City Limits, for decades the home of problem-solving entrepreneurs including Michael Dell, John Mackey, Dr. James Truchard and Jeff Kodosky to a new generation of problem-solvers like Joshua Baer and many more, such as the mentors of Capital Factory.
In spite of — not because of — the local and now international media circus surrounding it, SXSW earns a special place in my heart. It is the pulse of creative lives, well-lived.
For several years, these questions have become the heart of many conversations with our clients. You started a business, a practice or a venture to do things better, differently or perhaps, to do something that hadn’t been done before. Whatever was bothering you – you decided to do something about it.
Our client Kathy Kelley, founder of HysterSisters, first did something about it in 1998, when she created online conversations about women’s experiences with hysterectomy. Take note: that was 13 years ago. “Conversation” as a business and communications strategy isn’t brand new with social media – it’s been popularized because it’s never been easier (perhaps too easy?). Conversation – then and now – is the key.
In fall 2009, we were conversing with Kathy about what parts of the business were “bothering” her. It wasn’t search engine optimization, advertising or click-through rates. Women were flocking to her website. But Kathy felt like they arrived too late. How she could get more women to visit HysterSisters before their surgeries? This was bothering her. What could she do about it?
Over the course of several months, we formed a plan and a team. Our goal was to raise awareness of the importance of second opinions. Call it whatever you like – a social marketing campaign, an informational website, a passalong video, a message platform, a social media campaign – we created a program for communicating about the importance of second opinions. It uses all of those tools and launched under the name “Give Me a Second.” It has been viewed by patients around the world and presented to doctors and women’s groups in North America and Europe.
So, we ask you. What is bothering you, and what are you going to do about it? No matter your industry, your answer will give you something to talk about.
Who knew it? I’ve been Rippling. And Laura’s been Rippling. This month we learned a new name for the way we’ve always led our business and personal lives: a Ripple.
Steve Harper, author of The Ripple Effect, spoke to Freelance Austin this month. He shared the concept of how whenever you make an impact, big or small, then you’ve created a Ripple. Conversely, when you openly share your thoughts and resources, then you will ultimately create Ripples that lead to new worthy connections.
Our Latest Ripple: Last fall a good friend and long-time colleague emailed us on a Sunday afternoon. She serves on a local non-profit board of directors, and that non-profit was in a PR pinch. With a press announcement planned in less than four days, they needed public relations support to pull it off seamlessly. Were we available to help? We said “yes” and then figured out how to make it happen.
The non-profit organization garnered television coverage, radio coverage and a feature in the Austin American-Statesman. We were sent beautiful bouquets of flowers and lovely thank you notes. We couldn’t have been happier to make this happen for such a worthy organization. It felt good to make a difference and we considered the engagement one of our good deeds for the month.
Then, we were asked to come in and visit with the executive director. We had a wonderful discussion with her, a staff member and the board member that made the original outreach to us. Ripple.
Less than a month later, we were hired to manage an important national outreach campaign for them. Ripple. In his book, Steve discusses three Ripple Rules of business:
Ripples can be caused by even the smallest of pebbles.
Ripples bounce back to us.
Ripples continue long after we can no longer see them.
We did what we thought was the right course of action for a colleague and friend. The Ripple bounced back.
Final take: Don’t put your head under the water. Put yourself out there and see what comes back to you. Sometimes the metaphor will play out very clearly. Other times the rings on the water will blend together and create a beautiful, unique pattern that has no clear beginning or end.
Here’s the third and final way toAsk for What you Want. Media have to make a lot of decisions. Tell them what you want. Don’t make a writer guess what success should look like. Define it.
#3 Point to the Media Coverage You Want
This “ask” can be done over and over again when working with print media. Read the media and know your target publications well. Now, figure out the section of the newspaper or magazine that you want and write your pitch in a style that works for that section. Make it easy on the writers and editors. Don’t make them guess what to DO with your news.
If you know it is a blurb and not a feature, then own that and pitch accordingly. Be concise, specific and useful. Then ask yourself, “Is my pitch a newsworthy item that I can easily see in this section of the publication?” In essence, you’ve asked for coverage in the area you want and defined your own success in the process.
So, which idea has inspired you? Please share your comments below.
I still routinely ask for what I want. This summer I was checking out at a department store and asked the salesperson, “You don’t happen to have any coupons out right now?” She replied, “Yes I do. Here’s 15 percent off your total.” And it is as easy as that.
We’ve worked with the The Clutter Diet since fall 2007 http://www.clutterdiet.com/news.php. After much media success and online recognition, we were ready to take Lorie’s presence and reach to the next level.
Here’s a second way you can Ask for What you Want.
#2 Position Yourself as an Expert and Become a (National) Spokesperson
In October 2009, we were brainstorming possible non-profit partnerships and initiatives with Lorie Marrero, founder of www.clutterdiet.com, and author of the best-selling book Clutter Diet: The Skinny on Organizing Your Home and Taking Control of Your Life. We asked ourselves the following questions:
Question: Why did Lorie start The Clutter Diet?
Answer: To Help The Most People. To date she’s helped thousands in 18 different countries.
Question: What is the Clutter Diet’s core business?
Answer: Organizing and Decluttering.
Question: What do her clients end up with after a few weeks on the Clutter Diet?
Answer: An organized life, more time, many times – more money, and a donation pile or two.
We then reached out to Goodwill Industries International and introduced Goodwill to Lorie Marrero. How could the two partner to help spread Goodwill’s message? Little did we know that GII was getting ready to launch the Donate Movement and needed a national spokesperson. Lorie became the national spokesperson and launched the Donate Movement on June 28, 2010. Watch the Donate Movement PSA featuring Lorie Marrero.
Just ask for what you want. We cold-called Goodwill and made an introduction. Now Lorie works with them closely.
Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been able to walk right up to anyone and ask for anything. A couple of eggs from the neighbor when my mom realized that we didn’t have enough for a recipe. A discount at my favorite store. This trait serves me well personally – and professionally.
Why? Because we DREAM BIG with our clients. What do you WANT? How will that HELP your business? Then, as communications strategists, we help them ask for it. Here is the first of three examples that show how to ask — and receive it on a silver platter.
#1 Get An Expert Behind Your Message
When launching www.givemeasecond.com, Kathy Kelley, CEO of HysterSisters.com, wanted a doctor’s opinion to complement her own. We read news coverage of our issue and found an articulate, passionate doctor named Lori Warren, M.D., who was interviewed on the CBS Evening News. Her strong message about minimally invasive surgical procedures aligned with our message to women: always get a second opinion.
Dr. Warren believes in patient advocacy and support. We contacted her and asked if she would meet Kathy Kelley by phone. After they got to know each other, we asked Dr. Warren to serve as an expert resource whom we may quote in our press release and other materials. Then we took advantage of her travel schedule and conducted a video interview, which goes into our press materials and online newsroom.
Thinking about your business, who is an expert in your field that you need to meet? How can that person support your message and business initiatives?
Next post: ASKING FOR WHAT YOU WANT, and how to do something every day that moves your business forward.
