Quick Tips

Consistency is Key When The Media Inquiries Heat Up

Dealing with an onslaught of media attention can be quite overwhelming, but you should look at it as an opportunity to maintain a positive relationship with the press.  In fact, how you respond during times like these is often just as important as what you say.

Lessons learned while handling high profile cases – such as Sawmill’s current work on behalf of the family of Chandra Levy (the young woman whose remains were found in Washington D.C.’s Rock Creek Park a year after disappearing and who had romantic ties to a Congressman) – include the following:

• Sometimes the best – or only – option is to not talk to the media. But a terse “no comment” isn’t the solution. You need to say something so the media will have a comment to include in a story. Work with your PR firm to craft an appropriate message.

• In the Chandra Levy case, the family elected to stay out of the press after the initial hard news interest in the case ended. Today, they want their attorney and law enforcement officials to take the calls and provide updates, so as to not further sensationalize the case. Our job is to re-direct inquiries to the proper authorities and help preserve the family’s desires for privacy. This is important to the family, and it can only help.

• When in this mode, the PR firm’s role is to manage media inquiries so every reporter and producer is handled professionally and consistently. Playing favorites is not fair to the media, and will come back to haunt you at a later time.

• If you decide it’s in your best interest to handle the press this way, make sure the media understands your rules and that everyone is getting the same treatment. Once you break them, you lose credibility.

Tips Archive

Making Press Releases Work Harder For You
Are you overlooking a powerful way to increase your Web site’s ranking on Google and other search engines? Press releases not only convey news, but when they’re properly optimized and distributed they can play an important role in your search engine rankings. Here’s how:

• Launch your press release into cyberspace with a paid wire service.
  Major search engines rate Web sites based on the number of links to them. One way to create more of them is to use a paid wire service. Your news will reach editors directly, and it places your release – and a live link to your URL – where search engines can find and rank your site.
  
• Add multi-media content to your releases.
  Scroll through wire service news feeds and you’ll see how difficult it is to get your headline and story noticed. A logo on the wire service release will grab an editor’s attention, as will a photo or digital video. Surveys show that press releases with multi-media content are most likely to be picked up by the media.
  
• Be where the media seeks experts.
  If you have an expert, register his or her bio – with links back to your URL – in the online media expert databases.
  
• Get instant links from the major news portals.
  Another reason to send your optimized news via the wire services is that in most cases it will be automatically posted on searchable sites such as Yahoo! Google News and Factiva. This creates instant links from multiple online sources.
  
• Finally, make sure your ‘News’ section contains…news.
  Keeping your press center up to date creates more online links, and it also shows that you are keeping current. If the last press release on your site is dated sometime in 2003, what does that say about your company?

How to Get the Publicity Ball Rolling

Like most business people, you probably know the value that positive press can bring to your organization. However, you probably also know that getting a publicity campaign up and running can be a daunting challenge for the uninitiated.

Here are five easy ways to get the publicity ball rolling and reap the benefits of news coverage:

• Create a publicity strategy that supports your goals.
  What makes your company newsworthy, i.e. new products, new services, company expansion? How does your organization differ from the competition? How do you want to be perceived?

• Develop publicity materials.
  Help the reporter tell the story by providing tools such as an overview of the company, fact sheets, executive bios and photos, the company logo, product shots, and relevant charts and graphs. Post these in your Web site’s press section.

• Build a targeted media list.
  Knowing who covers your industry is critical and can eliminate false starts. Study what types of articles your key reporters write, so you can tailor your pitch.

• Be creative.
  Sending out a press release is just one option. How about using photos, offering yourself to be interviewed, writing a letter to the editor or a column, or providing background materials? In short, become a credible resource to reporters.
  
• Dedication pays off.
  The most successful publicity campaigns are ongoing, well thought out and multi-faceted – all requiring time, patience and skill. Dedicate these important responsibilities to someone on staff (or hire a pro!), so you can focus on leading your company.