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The Single Best PR Advice for 2009 – Think Like a News Organization

The problem with many companies trying to get PR and media coverage is they think like a company. They need to think like a news organization about themselves, their industry, and the communities in which they play. In the first Marketing Edge episode for 2009 we talk with Kevin Dugan, co-author of the Bad Pitch Blog. The Bad Pitch Blog is a must read for any PR or corporate communications professional, and more importantly, clients of PR organizations. Why clients? Because you don’t want to put your organization or your firm in a situation where the pitch becomes the news. We get into how not to craft a bad pitch and approaching PR with a different perspective in part because social media has changed the landscape of public relations Meanwhile here’s an old PR versus new PR list for 2009, Kind of like a PR fashionista list. Old PR Thinking News is only when the company has a new product, version or customer. News is something you distribute to the news media Avoid discussion of controversial subjects that impact the company No discussion of company strategy or internal debate Limit most of communication to print or text New PR Thinking Evaluate potential news items as if you were an editorial board of a multimedia publishing company monthly if not more frequently. Consider information as it is perceived by a variety of communities impacted by your company, that’s who really determines news. News can be targeted by community participation, posted to a blog, included in a podcast and a variety of other means, you don’t need to blanket the world Use the right medium, audio, video, print, mash-up, others to convey the story Get involved in issues that matter to your industry, whether you take a position or participate in the debate, don’t sit on the sidelines. You are your own media outlet, create a channel like blip.tv, blog, podcast, slide share, and make it easy for users to share with others. Video is not limited to TV, fully integrated multimedia news organizations may well be the right target for a pitch that was previously considered the realm of television.