PR straight talk – What are journalists looking for from businesses? Interview with a journalist

So how do you make it happen? How do you achieve the PR success you want.

Well, the first thing is to take a deep breath. You are working hard, and you should give yourself a chance. PR is not your skillset, any more than being a surgeon is mine – it takes training and discipline.

• One of the first things you have to accept is that journalists, bloggers, and vloggers are people. They need you to connect with them on a personal, human level. ‘That can be time-consuming I hear you say’. “Well, yes; it is”. However, to achieve excellent traction in the press, you have to spend the time to understand what the journalists write about and what they are covering at that time.

• The second thing is patience. Journalists receive 100s and 1000s of releases. If they do read all of them (which I cannot imagine they can), it will take time. So please do not keep harassing them, it can be frustrating.

• Timing is everything.  Do you know the day or time that they print/publish their content?

• Presentation is key. Learn about the formats and requirements of the publication. Images that are too small or are not clear enough, it will almost guarantee your story ending in the bin.

Listen to this interview

This interview with a journalist from Guestlist magazine explains how you can go about achieving coverage – LISTEN HERE (start listening from about 30:00)

Listen from 30mins in

Questions

• Is building and controlling the narrative of your business important to you?
• Would you like more customers to really understand the true value your business can bring to their lives?

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