If you wish to get the attention of the press, you have to consider such as the press.
In the 20+ years I've been in public areas relations, one of the very most difficult aspects of the overall game to teach clients is that the press is not really a service organization whose sole purpose is to cover what PR people pitch them. Their enterprize model is straightforward; they exist to see and entertain their readers, so they can grow their subscriber base and sell advertising against those numbers.
So, if you wish to participate in the "press game" it is critical to acknowledge what wins the press loyal readers and increases their circulation...and then make them to accomplish it! Step one is to have together a power-packed pitch. According to the Associated Press Stylebook the most well-liked term for a press release isn't press release; it's NEWS release. In the end, it's not called a press-paper - it's called a NEWSpaper. Want it or not, public relations people don't get to ascertain what the news headlines is. Only news professionals get to do that once they choose what to create, print or air.
So, just because your company opened a brand new store in Cincinnati, doesn't ensure it is NEWS. However, there may perfectly be considered a nugget of newsworthiness that you could offer up to the press in order to buy them enthusiastic about the opening of your store.
Where do you discover those nuggets? Here are a few suggestions to assist you mine the news headlines gold in all of your announcements:
Read Your Local Newspapers -You can't look for a news hook until you know what the news headlines of the afternoon actually is. And, as it changes each and every day, you need to remain on top of the news (or hire an agency to perform that function for you, and trust their judgment once they advise you of potential news hooks).
Determine How Your Story is Relevant - This is the lowest hanging fruit in the news headlines hook orchard trend press news. Search for anything in your company that's strongly related news taking devote your community or nationally. If you're opening a brand new bicycle shop in Los Angeles, then do some news searches to see what reporters have now been authoring the area.
Say you see that the location is economically depressed, in which case you can pitch to the press the indisputable fact that a brand new retailer opening there is a boost to the local economy, and that you're ready to take a chance on success for the reason that community. Or you could see that bicycle ridership has increased nationally by 10 percent over the last year, with new riders indicating they've started because they are trying to get fit. You can now pitch the local press on the angle that the new shop is directed at capitalizing with this national trend.
This strategy is recognized as "localizing" a national story, which every newspaper and TV producer loves. Because it's a national story, they are going to report it anyway, but they'd prefer to have a local hook so they can be more strongly related the local audience.
Develop Stories That Have a Beginning, Middle and End - Make sure you tell reporters a complete story. Let's utilize the bicycle shop as an example. Opening a bicycle shop might not be a lot of a tale by itself, but what's the story behind the story? Did the owners overcome any unusual obstacles in fulfilling the dream of opening their store? Was the master ever a competitive bicyclist? Have the owners used their knowledge of the activity or inventory to simply help any children's charities or causes? Are they active inside their community? Identify the story behind the story, and you'll have plenty of opportunities to find a news hook that's relevant.
Take Action - There is reasons why so many commercial enterprises and not-for-profit charities and community organizations partner up for special events - it's a win-win situation for everyone. It's very important to every commercial enterprise to become a good citizen and use some of the resources to simply help others, and it also helps to produce sometimes un-newsworthy events relevant. Opening a bicycle shop isn't a big deal, but holding a grand opening event for an area children's charity makes the opening more relevant. If the owners utilize the event to simply help raise money and donate excess inventory to needy children, it is both a suitable venture and a genuinely heartwarming feel-good story worth news coverage.
Helping people should really be a unique reward, needless to say, but that's also why newspapers and charities love these events. It not merely gives editors and TV crews something joyful and pleased to report, but inaddition it enables the charities to have their messages out to the city at large. Your business improves its public image, and deservedly so, as long as the help is genuine and comes not from the pocketbook, but from the heart.
At the end of the afternoon, all of the time you will find news hooks in even the most mundane of news releases. The key thing to remember is that the focus of the release isn't to sell, sell, sell - it's to convince a reporter that you have news to report and that their readers would be informed or entertained by what you have to inform them.
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