Taking PR back to basics

What is the media's goal? To get publicity you must be newsworthy. Being newsworthy means you meet one of the media's three goals. You inform, educate or entertain. Your story must also be timely. Before pursuing a story, editors, reporters and producers ask themselves, why would our readers, viewers or listeners be interested in this now?

After spending the past eight years in the industry of public relations, I remain of the opinion that this industry is hopeless when it comes to using the media, let alone using it effectively.

I have seen, including in my own organisation, people writing press releases to try and sell product. Leave this to promotions. It is not media relations.

I know PR people who do not only fail to read newspapers (daily) and listen to the news, but who also actually detest the idea of news. And these are the people who hope to put their clients in the news. I know PR people who still think Ken Owen is editor of the Sunday Times and that Ukhozi FM is a shebeen in Soweto and not one of the all-time biggest radio stations in South Africa.

Asked a similar question by an editor last year I wrote that there were many reasons why the public relations industry is failing to use the media well. Firstly it is the misnomer that communication is a soft skill. That everything else is strategic, but communication is just a surrogate in the family of corporate disciplines.

All but a few public relations practitioners I have come across - and believe me, contrary to popular myth, mostly those who have been in the industry for donkey's years - have no clue what makes media relations different from renting a car. They just execute inept thoughts mistaken for communication genius.

Secondly is lack of understanding of what the media want and how the media work. Most public relations firms are full of dolly birds trained in public relations management (read event coordination, administration and client liaison, mostly smiling foolishly while making silly promises) and none of them really know a thing about a newsroom.

Public relations people do no know what makes news. They do not know what it means to be a journalist, having to live with 10 badly written media releases a day, when you'd rather focus on real news, even if it's why Michael Jackson is playing with children or Paris Hilton is shooting another exciting video. Few public relations people have never been inside a newsroom. They do not have media contacts. They buy media lists and their version of dealing with the media is sending them nonsensical gifts or wining and dining them hoping that this would catapult their clients' news on the front pages.

Ideally, I think nobody should ever be allowed within 100 kilometres of media relations work if he or she has never been a journalist before. For let's face it, PR people should be the same as journalists. They should be nosy. They should know what makes news. They should be news junkies. They should write well. They should know something about everything. They must have an opinion.

But short of this option, PR people must go back to the basic rules, because the game has not changed. Here's a checklist:

Attitude. Make sure that whoever approaches a journalist has enough life experience under his/her belt and sufficient self-confidence so as not to be intimidated by an editor or producer (nor to convey that impression).

That said believe in your story. The best public relations people see themselves as resources of news and information who work with journalists to fill valuable time and print space.

Don't waste reporters' time. When you call, communicate, in sharp and crystallised fashion, the essence of the story. Keep it brief, respect deadlines and ask in advance if the moment is clear for that editor/ producer.

Personalise. I've seen too many impersonal, photocopied pitch letters. If you send something in advance to a call, or as a follow-up to a call, personalise. Keep your cover note as brief as possible.

Respect the 'no' and be prepared for it. Ask quick, important questions: What is it about this story that doesn't seem right for you? Is there anyone else for whom this story might work better? Suggest how the story can be adapted to the outlet's needs. Best of all, suggest three to five different angles in advance. This reduces chances for rejection.

But when you get your final 'no', let it go and release it. And if you've handled the approach professionally and cordially, you'll always be able to come back with another story at another time. Regard your list of cultivated contacts as resources and investments for the long-haul, not for quick fix purposes.

Occasionally, pass along an item of interest that lies outside your own sphere of self-interest. Be someone who's not always out to get something. Also, supply your most important contacts with your home phone number.

Get out from behind your desk. The better you get to know the journalist on a one-to-one basis, the better your chance of a receptive ear.

Getting beyond voice mail. Leave a succinct, provocative, targeted message. If you don't hear from them in two days, try calling well before 9am or leave a message with an editorial assistant or colleague. Call back that other person to learn if your message was received and if there's a return message.

If this fails, it is about you, not the media. Quit!