Published Articles by Maris Somerville Copyright - All Rights Reserved Partnership Between a Business' PR counsel, Essential for Optimal Results © 2004 by Maris Somerville Of the multi channels of product and service marketing, public relations seems to be the one most often misunderstood to the degree that it's sometimes viewed as an amorphous promotional device, a little like ectoplasm that occasionally takes solid shape as media stories. Some corporate marketers see it as the stepchild of advertising, and still others find it so mysterious, that they adopt a laissez-faire policy with their PR people until it's time for them to account for how they spent the PR budget. This is fine if the company and its PR people could read each other’s minds, and since that's not possible, the next best thing is verbal communications. The corporate marketer must communicate goals and objectives, and the PR representative must advise client or employer of how it intends to fulfill those goals and quantify results. Information sharing is at the core of a successful PR program. This means that the company must provide the tools for PR, including feedback and a budget commensurate with the level of PR activity. It must dedicate time for brainstorming story angles, and above all, approve content in a timely manner: Explain your goals and objectives thoroughly to your PR representative. He or she should prepare an annual plan that meets each goal with strategies and tactics for achieving it. Included in the plan should be clear methods for measuring the outcome. One way to measure publicity is to arm your PR counsel with a dedicated 800 telephone number or code they can use in their press releases. This way, callers who read a published article can refer to the code, and you can trace back the call to publicity Unless the company’s product or service is brand new, upscale, and/or unusual, which endows it with a virginal message to editors, on-going development of story hooks is essential. Set aside face or telephone time each month to explore story ideas with your PR counsel. Story “hooks” can be hinged on lifestyle and behavioral trends, providing fresh media fodder. Approve press releases and kit materials, quickly. Many small PR agencies can’t afford errors and omission insurance, which is why they insist on written approval of their press releases. The sooner you approve the material, the sooner your stories are published. Budget for results. Your PR people cannot provide $5,000 a month in services if you’ve only budgeted $2,500. It must assign staff to the account, and because the process is service-intensive, press kit reproduction, media request fulfillment, media clipping services, long distance telephone and other costs have to be billed back. If you’re keen on keeping down costs, make a deal with your agency that if they refrain from marking up the bills, you’ll pay within 30 days. Give your PR people enough time to produce. It can take up to a year and beyond to “plant” stories, because media lead times are getting farther out. If an editor promises a full-page feature but the results are only a quarter page, it’s likely that more advertising space was sold that month, eclipsing editorial space. Travel Scams Surface During Tough Economic Times While most travel writers are well respected, hard-working professionals, the recent economic recession has produced a bumper crop of people purporting to be travel writers, whose stories are never published. They ask to be included on media tours; they want complimentary hotel accommodations; airline tickets, or other considerations; and all too often, they receive them just for the asking. Recently, a public relations executive took a call from a writer who had heard about a media tour being conducted to a destination resort that featured air transportation and accommodations. Her credentials were excellent. As proof, she provided at least six photocopies of recent by-lined feature articles from major national magazines. For all appearances she was the kind of writer for whose attention public relations people vigorously compete. Why, then, did the executive decide to call the magazines' editors to verify the stories? Because the writer made two suspicious claims. First, she stated she had been assigned to take the trip by a well-known magazine, which reputedly will not accept stories from travel writers who take free trips. Second, she claimed she had an assignment from an in-flight magazine for an issue that followed the media tour by two months. The fact is, no in-flight editor will accept a freelance story that close to the publication date. After contacting the editors to verify the "writer's" stories, it was revealed that on at least one, she had deleted the real author's name, stripped in her own by-line, and photocopied the article. Every hotelier and travel industry public relations professional has such stories. They range from instances in which a "writer" submits a photocopy of a falsified editor's "letter of assignment," to unwitting invitations to people who adroitly position themselves as writers, regularly take media trips, and never produce a story. By observing a few simple screening procedures, you'll be able to identify the writers worth hosting: Don't be afraid to ask for references. If you conduct a media tour and receive expressions of interest from writers you don't know, ask them to name two or three PR representatives with whom they have worked. Then, call the representative, and ask if he or she was pleased with the writers' efforts. If a freelance writer claims to be on story assignment, ask for an original letter of assignment from the editor. It's not always a guarantee that the story will be published, but it authenticates the writer. Watch out for people claiming to be newspaper or magazine staff writers and editors, who in reality are advertising sales people. Advertising is a crucial channel of marketing, but it should never be confused with editorial. When conducting background checks on writers, always ask for original tear sheets of their stories. Remember the photocopies with the stripped-in by-lines? If you receive a request for free accommodations from someone claiming to be an editor, don't be shy about calling the publication to verify that the person is indeed on staff, or is a contributing writer. Suggest that your PR representative make a study of those publications that allow staff or freelance contributors to take free media trips for story-gathering purposes. It will make the screening process so much easier. By knowing how to cull the professional travel writers from those who aren't, you're certain to see more than just the promise of a story. -0- Pre-Event Stress Can Be Eliminated With Airtight Planning Who of us hasn't awakened the night before an important event we've organized, the success of which might influence our company's reputation in the business community, and lain awake thinking about everything that could go wrong. Maybe we flash on a half-forgotten task, terrified that it might have slipped through the cracks. Or, we're gripped by paranoia, uncertain whether a crucial agenda item was completed, because we forgot to double check. This is the stuff that nightmares are made of. The fact is, almost all potential problems in special-event planning can be anticipated and avoided. The following check list highlights critical problem-prone areas, and ways to deal with them: Assemble a reliable committee, and thoroughly discuss the framework for the event. Prepare a check list of everything that needs to be arranged, then assign responsibilities. Second-guess everything that could go wrong, and brainstorm solutions. Never assume that the media you invite will attend. You can increase the chances, by holding the event in a central location on Tuesday or Thursday, and avoiding rush hour. Before you calendar the event, check with your local chamber of commerce and convention and visitors bureau to identify events that could compete and dilute turn-out. Don't forget to check published date books. If your event is on the same day as the anniversary of a historic international commemoration, schedule it another time, or devise a clever tie-in. If publicity is involved, meet with your public relations representative, and set measurable publicity goals. Clearly identify your company's markets and the media that reach them. Hold a photo planning session with your committee before the event. Decide what pictures you want taken, and of whom, and the publications most likely to use them. Your publicist can then be specific in telling the photographer what to take, so that important opportunities aren't lost. Most editors keep photo files, and it is particularly true of trade publications that they will use topical photos if they're of good quality. Hire a professional photographer who can bring along a photographic assistant to take names. It's excruciating to pour over photos and try to put names to faces after the fact. A good publicity photographer can process photos the next day so that the temporal news aspects are not lost. Prepare a tight script, and do a walk-through several days ahead. You will be surprised how many problems can be anticipated and corrected. Your script should contain the framework for the event, as well as a timetable, and where everyone, including speakers, should be at the proper time. After the affair, put together a scrapbook that includes photos, news releases, guest lists, invitation, feature stories, and published news accounts. Don't forget a copy of your budget. That way, when you plan your next event, you don't have to re-invent the wheel. Last, do a postmortem while the experience is fresh in your mind. List everything you would have done differently, and why. Include this in your scrapbook for future events. Even with the best-laid plans, things sometimes go wrong. But with careful planning, you can create an event that is memorable for its accomplishments, not its disasters. -0- Contact: Somerville Associates