| |
STRATEGIC
PUBLIC RELATIONS
Many years ago
I worked for a CEO who used to have a philosophy about PR that he
repeated often. "PR," he would say, "is the best
form of free advertising there is."
I mention it
for two reasons:
1. It's a comment
I still hear all the time.
2. He was wrong:
PR is definitely not advertising—and it sure isn't free.
What he meant
though is obvious. The costs of creating a press release, of delivering
it to a list of reporters and editors, and of having someone available
to answer questions if the release is picked up are minimal. And
for that little amount, lo and behold, you get a nice few column
inches of space in a publication—space you paid not a nickel
for. (And of course, today, let's not forget all of us who create
press releases that are picked up only on our own web sites.)
But creating
press releases is the least significant element of what PR is all
about.
PR, strategically,
is the process of controlling the public perception of your company
and the people who work for and run your company. It is a concerted,
continual effort to maintain positive, self-sustaining relationships
with the people who influence the marketplace. Who drive public
opinion.
As a statement
of purpose, that's a long way from "free advertising."
Press release
pickup is the easy part. And the least credible. Your markets understand
that you created the release, you planted the release, you worked
on the editor to publish the piece . . . they recognize that it
is in fact fundamentally promotional.
THE
PR BURDEN YOU CARRY
The real job
of PR is get the industry influencers—the analysts, and the
trade and mainstream press—to watch you on their own, consider
what impact you have on the industry and report on you. That puts
three burdens on you:
1. You have to
cultivate relationships with these groups.
2. You have to
make sure that what you do is worth covering.
3. You have to
make sure that what you do is going to generate positive instead
of negative press.
Oh, look. I've
just listed the key components of strategic public relations. And,
not surprisingly, there's not a word about press releases and backgrounders
and corporate overviews.
Achieving those
goals is what you pay a PR agency five-figure monthly retainers
for. Not for backgrounders and press releases and corporate overviews.
Any good copywriter can write a press release in an hour.
WHAT
GOOD PR FIRMS DO
A
truly strategic public relations firm focuses on those three goals:
on controlling your image in the public eye. And that's what they
should be talking about when they pitch you. In fact, it's one of
the benchmarks I use when I work with clients in selecting an agency.
Not to suggest this is the only criterion, but I'm extremely suspicious
of firms that come in with a portfolio of press pickups and articles
in Business Week (and trust me you can't swing a cat without hitting
a firm that got something in one of the mainstream business weeklies).
Rather, I look for firms that focus on developing you as a company
to watch.
As in all things,
setting the goal helps you determine the objectives to reach it.
A goal of press pickup—at its most enticing and flattering,
a feature story in Business Week—is wrong-minded.
That's a core
truth for most companies—when you're competing for mainstream
press with Bill Gates and Jeffrey Immelt . . . well you know who's
going to get the ink.
Rather, a goal
of positioning you with the press and analyst community as a company
to pay attention to, and of working with you to ensure that what
they find when they do pay attention is positive and valuable, is
where the strategic road should take you.
Tactically, this
involves press and analyst presentations, industry event participation,
strong positive image for key players, and more.
That's a whole
different ballgame. And worth its weight in retainer.
Want to weigh
in? Click here to tell
us what you think
Want to receive these articles by email on the second and fourth
Tuesday of every month? Give us your information here:
|
