Companies are finding more impact, dollar-for-dollar, when they take a strategic, organized approach to media positioning for their overall marketing. But how do you make the most of the two-edged sword of working with a writer/editor/blogger?
In our 25-plus years of corporate positioning and media relations, we’ve cataloged dozens of tips, tactics and important strategies to working effectively with media.
Here’s our Top Ten from the list:
1) Build a bulletproof message and plan.
Don’t even think of talking to writers or embarking on an outreach campaign before you are ready — a message-development or refinement exercise to articulate your differentiation and message, an outreach strategy, or a plan for particular media interviews. Specify goals for the effort, how to get there, contingency plans and review/feedback. Reporters expect firms to have defined their message and be ready to “tell the story.”
2) Pick your shots, and your media venue.
A press release has its place, but it doesn’t replace the all-important individualized approach to key writers in media that are read by your clients and customers. As for information prepared for media, write things in newsworthy fashion, which is what writers and their readers want. And picking your shots has never been more important, now that we’re in the world of “everyone’s a blogger/journalist”. Treat everyone fairly, but prioritizing is crucial for best results.
3 ) Do your homework before talking/writing.
Approach any interview – phone, video or online – the same way you prepare for a client presentation, by doing some research on the opportunity and understanding your mutual objectives. Plan ahead the key marketing points that you want to get across, within the framework of the writer’s needs…and read a few of their pieces. Consider their next-step needs and suggest secondary resources, studies or other tools.
4) Help the media do their job: It starts with 5 W’s.
Give writers the basic who, what, when, where and why of a topic, and back it up with evidence, studies, project-examples and the like. Contact a writer out of the blue on occasion, with an idea or a response to something they wrote.
5) Writers are people..build a relationship.
They’re busy like you, so respect their time. Follow through on what you promised to do or to send them. Give them an opportunity to build a relationship with you over time. If you use social media, connect with them online and respond to posts that resonate with you. If you meet, you can offer to buy lunch but don’t make a fuss if their company policy forbids “freebies”, which is still the case with top-tier and highly principled journalists.
6) Being candid usually wins
Writers want to write fair, accurate stories and you may need to tell them that a particular story premise is slightly off, or isn’t realistic. If they have misleading information or are ill-informed, correct their facts. Sending a follow-up email, immediately, that articulates key points and gives them an opportunity to quote more exactly. But write the way you talk, not in boring marketing-speak.
7) …and only go “off the record” with great care.
Executives should never go “off the record” – meaning, you trust the writer to tell them something as useful background but they promise not to use it — unless a situation truly demands it. For clarity, it’s smart to repeat your key comments, and ask them to re-characterize things back to you. Get briefed on rules of engagement with the media that are more critical with sensitive interviews, such as “on background”, “embargo” etc.
8) In a crisis, face the facts and play for the long term.
Crises can hit most every organization, but not all of them handle it well. Start with a crisis communications plan as part of your emergency/crisis response plan for business operations. Designate emergency spokespeople and make their off-hours numbers accessible. If a crisis hits, prepare to communicate to the media, the public, customers, investors and employees – to avoid misinformation and a deeper crisis.
9) If it’s not to your liking, don’t take it personally.
Writers have to write about companies and events that are newsworthy, and your bad fortune or one-off connection may be news despite efforts in a different direction. If a published story reflects poorly, check it for accuracy and advise the writer of mistakes. And analyze the experience so that you learn from it, as you plan a campaign to move past bad news, or work to counter the potential of web-proliferation.
10) Trust your communications person as a C-level advisor.
Your communications officer or marketing counsel has to have the full picture, and that starts in the C-suite. CEOs, execs and principals must trust their p.r. person with in-depth information in order to get the best advice and results.
Media-marketing success can hardly be boiled down to just Ten Tips, but it’s illustrative of how writers boil things down in one article. And, besides, lists are easier to read.
As for our other tips and tactics, call or email us and we’ll be happy to share more with you: ron (at) heckmanncomms.com or (510) 652-5800.