Published
by Susan Young
Professional Speaker, Author, Media Advisor & Award-Winning Entrepreneur Winner of the “Entrepreneur of the Year” Award from The Edison Chamber of Commerce www.getinfrontcommunications.com Copyright 2005, all rights reserved. May not be reprinted without permission.
**Register Now for Our New PR Phone Coaching
Class!** A Small Business Owner’s “Media Tool Box” - more info below -
The Incredible Shrinking News Hole
Competition to get your organization news coverage
has always been fierce. If you haven’t noticed, it’s
gotten even tougher in 2005. Businesses and non-
profits are competing with tsunami’s, a war, bank
monopolies, blogs, Vioxx trials and hurricanes.
What’s a PR pro to do?
In the last month alone, I found out that a 30-minute public affairs show at a regional radio station has been scrapped and that a cable TV station that covers four counties in the heart of Central New Jersey got its proverbial plug pulled, effective January 1. These were two excellent media outlets for my clients and places where I had top-notch relationships with the hosts and producers. The reality is that there likely won’t be any new programming on these or other stations in the near future. Indeed there are shrinking news holes that result in more competition. More people like you and me battling it out for news coverage. It not only forces us to work harder but we have to think in different and more creative ways. In this type of market, the pressure on proactive media relations and not reactive media relations is greater than ever. With 2006 just days away, here are a few key tips for proactive public relations in the new year. • Target your media with a laser-like focus. Reducing your media distribution list can help you to get maximum impact. I often find more success when fewer emails are sent to better contacts. I have seen too many media lists with publisher’s names taken from websites. These are typically not the people who decide on the day-to-day coverage and review pitches and press releases. Get straight to the reporters and editors who are in the newsrooms. People do business with other people, not business cards. Nurture those relationships! • Educate your staff about the fine art of pitching stories. Pitching stories is a specialized skill that requires ongoing training and support. Many PR folks have never stepped foot in a newsroom and don’t have a real understanding of how news decisions are made. Professional development is often needed when it comes to approach, pitch and follow-up. Make the investment of time and money. • Plan a strategic media/pr program with measurable goals. Develop a strategic plan with a clear definition of success and then work your plan. Spend time preparing an amazing media campaign and working it. In the end, you should be able to measure your results with better placements and an improved bottom line. |
|
|
Communication Quote “Nature has given us two ears, but only one mouth. This may be nature's way of telling us that listening is vital to our ability to communicate." -English Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli One of My Favorite Quotes “Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” -John Wooden, basketball coach
**PR Phone Coaching Class**
Need a guest speaker or Keynote address? We
provide customized presentations on topics
including:
|
|
|
Speaking Events Meet Susan Young at New Millennium Bank located at 57 Livingston Avenue in New Brunswick for "The Power of PR: Keys to Public Relations Success" on Tuesday, January 10, 2006 at 8:00 a.m. It is open to the public. For more information call 732-306- 0040 Meet Susan Young at The Bernardsville Public Library located at 1 Anderson Hill Road for a presentation on “Communicating with Confidence” on Tuesday, January 17, 2006 at 9:00 a.m. It is open to the public. Meet Susan Young at the Middlesex County Regional Chamber of Commerce breakfast seminar for her presentation, “Communicating with Confidence.” It's being held at The Chubb Institute in North Brunswick on Friday, January 20, 2006 from 8:30 a.m.-9:45 a.m. It is open to the public. Register at www.mcrcc.org or call 732-821-1700 Susan Young will also appear at the Delaware Press Association on Thursday, February 9, 2006 for her presentation, "The Four Questions: Moving from Mediocre to Magnificent." This is a private event. Sign Me Up! To unsubscribe please reply with a blank e-mail to syoung@getinfrontcommunications.com |
|
|
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
|
