Public Relations (PR) is often misunderstood – there are many myths that don’t help the industry and dissuade people from embarking on doing their own PR or enlisting the services of a consultant to help them. Exploding those myths is the first stage in trying to unravel a subject that, for the uninitiated, can seem quite daunting. Exploding the myths Any publicity is good publicity – the idea that any press and media coverage is a good thing is naïve in the least. It’s much better not to get coverage than to get coverage for the wrong things. After Gerald Ratner, who owned the Ratners jewellery chain, said his jewellery was ‘crap’, and it was reported widely in the press and media, he saw his business collapse as customers and shareholders turned their backs. Think about how you react to stories which highlight bad customer service or underhand tactics. Most people will not think favourably about these companies and will make a note of not using their products or services. Any stunt can get good PR – whatever you do there needs to be ‘news’ value for it to be reported. There is a huge risk with stunts and budgets can escalate out of control. You can find yourself with a stunt that takes time, effort and money to organise only for it to receive no attention. Many stunts do get press and media attention but remember that they need careful planning – often accompanied by big budgets. Even so, there is a risk that they can go wrong or attract attention for all the wrong reasons. Only specialists can do PR – anyone can do PR as long as they have a good understanding of how it works, the right tools and channels and can take time to learn the necessary skills. The most important thing to remember is that your PR should be part of an ongoing plan. Do not be put off if you fail to get instant results. It’s true to say, however, that the more experience you get the more confident and capable you will become. Consultants/specialists have much to offer but you can make great inroads yourself. You have to have contacts to get coverage in the media – contacts are useful and you can build these up over time but the really important aspect to nail down is understanding what make a ‘news’ story. Once you have this cracked you can tailor your material to ensure that you give your audiences, and the press and media, what they want. A journalist will take a great ‘news’ story from you whether they know you or not. Your aim is to make their job as easy as possible. These myths are taken as an excerpt from the Profile Matters DIY PR Toolkit. There are, of course, many other myths - that PR is free, that you only get coverage if you wine and dine journalists, that you need to be able to write to do your own PR. All these myths only serve to undermine the value of PR and discourage organisations from using it effectively in the marketing mix. Using PR to build your profile and protect your reputation can help you influence the audiences that are important to you - I invite you to access more free articles, tips and information on this and other subjects by visiting the ‘free stuff‘ section of the website - http://www.profilematters.co.uk/resources.php You can also receive regular advice, support and information by signing up to the newsletter - http://www.profilematters.co.uk Debbie Leven - Profile Matters Tags: journalist, media, news, newspapers, PR, press, public relations, publicity, radio, TV Related PostsPost a comment
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