Last month’s PRSA Independent Counselors meeting on Dead Public Relations Tactics provided great insights coupled with funny stories from panel speakers, including: Connie Bryant, Newell Rubbermaid; Nancy Rogers, BOLDface Communications, Green Earth PR Network; Chris Schroder, Schroder PR; and moderator: Ed Van Herik, Independent Counselor. So Five PR tactics deemed dead, or near dead:
(Paper. Paper is so out, paper actually takes numbers 1, 2 and 3!)
- Press Releases. While the press release itself is not dead (?), a printed-on-letterhead press release sent via mail or fax is certainly not necessary today. (Hint: rhymes with e-mail.)
- Press Kits. Big money used to be spent packaging stories in pretty folders with series of four-color brochures, letterhead-printed fact sheets, business cards, etc. Big waste of money now. Reporters don’t have filing cabinets; today they work on laptops.
- Some clients still insist on mass distributing press releases and press kits, in spite of assurances from their hired experts that journalists do not read them (and if you emailed it, you run the risk of getting blocked for being a spammer).
- A fancy kit or picture may catch a reporter’s eye, which means wow, you might get them on the phone. But if they’re interested, you have to resend the materials because they “filed” it right away.
- And yes, after we pitch and call and get the reporter on the phone and interested in the news/story, they ask for…wait for it…a press release. Sigh.
- Faxes. See number 1. If it is paper, it’s not being read.
- Newsrooms sometimes turn off the fax machines. If it’s breaking news, it cannot sit in a pile of paper until someone reads it.
Exception: Paper can be the cut through, that thing that stands out–for the right outlet, pitch and client. Obviously not anything breaking, but PAPER could cut through the electronic din of emails, tweets, RSS feeds for the right story or event.
….
- Newsrooms sometimes turn off the fax machines. If it’s breaking news, it cannot sit in a pile of paper until someone reads it.
- Press Conferences. Breaking, hard news gets press conference coverage, and that is not usually for a “good” story. Press conferences cover politics, crises, major stories impacting national or regional audiences, or other urgent news. Like Balloon Boy or annoying reality TV people.
- Trade shows. Connections are down, fewer media outlets are going, and they send fewer reporters. They have their place for some marketing programs, but trade shows aren’t what they once were.
Exception: Product Demonstrations. Rather than a boring press conference or trade show release, a smart engaging product demonstration can be a good way to present a new product or service to a group of reporters. Bonus if you can pull together multiple brands within your industry and offer a joint demonstration where reporters can get more information for their time invested.
So check yourself PR pro. As professionals, it’s our job to keep current and understand how media audiences respond to our tactics and adjust those tactics for best responses. If you’re still sending out faxes, printing and sending pricey media kits, hosting press conferences for every news announcement, consider this a permission slip to stop it. You’re in danger of getting a headstone in the PR graveyard.
What would you add to Dead PR Tactics?
This was a joint blog post by Davina K. Brewer, with some great suggestions from Jenny Schmitt.
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Good points all. I wouldn’t can the press kit just yet — an online version is a great resource if there is a range of real information in it rather than just spin and glitz (especially for journalists who take their jobs seriously and actually write articles rather than just reprinting a press release under their own name). I once worked for a university where the President said that he looked forward to the day when the programming was as polished as the publications, which really was an indictment of some serious over-spin!
It is also worth noting that the use of fax varies from place to place. I was in the Persian Gulf region for almost 7 years recently and not having/using a fax would be a real liability there in PR. I’ve been told this is true in India as well (which makes sense given the percentage of the population of the Gulf that is actually from India). My area is film — and, with film festivals, press conferences are a valuable part of the festival, but they are very focused on a particular director or film so that may increase their value. The goal is strategic use of press conferences rather than one for each little thing.
Not too sure about the future of the everyday media tour. There has to be such a greater purpose to them these days to get the media out.
I agree that tradeshow traffic is down and that marketing/PR dollars can probably be better utilized than on a swanky booth staffed by attractive actors giving away t-shirts. That said, relationship building with media at the larger industry shows is very much alive and can be done inexpensively. For example, I took a couple of executives to Supercomm (large telecom tradeshow) a couple of weeks ago and conducted 11 quality interviews and another five over the phone. We put out a press release, but mainly gave updates and discussed trends. This generated immediate ink, strengthened relationships and only cost a few thousand bucks in travel. The key is to select the right shows and secure the meetings with the most influential media early.
Susan– Good point about faxes, and how it varies from place to place. It’s important to keep channels open, not rely on only one distribution channel.
Capital Idea– True, media need a good reason to show up for a media tour.
Todd– You’re right, spending money smarter can work. One social media pro shared this story on a blog (can’t find the link): the client paid for the beverage napkins–with key messages on them–for use on a few key flights heading to a big trade show, a small expense that generated a big return in their trade show presence.
Thanks for reading, sharing your comments.