If you intend to get the eye of the press, you have to think 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 instruct clients is that the press is not a service organization whose sole purpose is always to cover what PR people pitch them. Their business model is simple; they exist to see and entertain their readers, to allow them to grow their subscriber base and sell advertising against those numbers.
So, if you intend to participate in the "press game" it is critical to identify what wins the press loyal readers and increases their circulation...and then help them to complete it! The 1st step is to have together a power-packed pitch. In line with the Associated Press Stylebook the preferred term for a press release isn't press release; it's NEWS release. After all, it's not called a press-paper - it's called a NEWSpaper. Like it or not, public relations people don't get to determine what the news headlines is. Only news professionals get to achieve that if they choose what to write, print or air.
So, because your company opened a fresh store in Cincinnati, doesn't make it NEWS. However, there might perfectly be a nugget of newsworthiness that you can offer up to the press to be able to buy them interested in the opening of your store.
Where do you find 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 do you know what the news headlines of your day actually is. And, since it changes every day, you will need to stay on top of the news (or hire an agency to perform that function for you personally, and trust their judgment if they advise you of potential news hooks).
Determine How Your Story is Relevant - This is actually the lowest hanging fruit in the news headlines hook orchard trend press news. Look for anything in your company that is highly relevant to news taking invest your community or nationally. If you're opening a fresh bicycle shop in Los Angeles, then do some news searches to see what reporters have been writing about the area.
Say you learn that the location is economically depressed, in which case you can pitch to the press the proven fact that a fresh retailer opening there is a boost to the neighborhood economy, and that you're prepared to have a chance on success in that community. Or you might learn that bicycle ridership has increased nationally by 10 percent over the last year, with new riders indicating they've started as they are trying to get fit. You will pitch the neighborhood press on the angle that the new shop is aimed at capitalizing with this national trend.
This strategy is called "localizing" a national story, which every newspaper and TV producer loves. Because it's a national story, they will report it anyway, but they'd prefer to really have a local hook to allow them to be much more highly relevant to the neighborhood audience.
Develop Stories That Have a Beginning, Middle and End - Ensure you tell reporters a full story. Let's utilize the bicycle shop being an example. Opening a bicycle shop may not be a lot of an account 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 owner ever a competitive bicyclist? Have the owners used their familiarity with the game or inventory to greatly help any children's charities or causes? Are they active in their community? Identify the story behind the story, and you'll have a lot of opportunities to discover a news hook that's relevant.
Take Action - There is grounds 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 greatly help others, and in addition, it helps to produce sometimes un-newsworthy events relevant. Opening a bicycle shop isn't a huge deal, but holding a great opening event for a local children's charity makes the opening more relevant. If the owners utilize the event to greatly help raise money and donate excess inventory to needy children, it is both a worthwhile venture and a really heartwarming feel-good story worth news coverage.
Helping people must be its 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 it addittionally enables the charities to have their messages out to the community at large. Your organization improves its public image, and deservedly so, provided that the help is genuine and comes not from the pocketbook, but from the heart.
At the end of your day, a lot of the time you can find news hooks in even probably 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 will be informed or entertained by that which you have to tell them.
