Be a Media Relations Specialist – Be Newsworthy

Earned media is more important than ever. The economic crisis has forced many organizations to slash their advertising budgets and rely on PR, or “earned media,” to get their message out. Targeted PR is considerably less expensive than advertising and helps establish third-party credibility.

But do you have a story to tell? To get reporters interested, you have to be newsworthy. This means your story is intriguing enough to entice a reporter to take your call, read your email (and maybe even respond), or, best-case scenario, agree to meet you for coffee.

Keep in mind that reporters receive dozens of pitches every week. At the major media outlets, they may receive dozens of pitches every day. The competition for media mindshare is fierce. So while you (or your client) may think your story belongs on the front page of the New York Times, the newspaper’s editors probably won’t.

The most effective PR pros will manage their client’s expectations realistically from the onset. Don’t promise the Washington Post and deliver the Smallville Times. For most organizations, a good media “hit” is a feature article in their local newspaper or trade publication. Therefore, set goals that are measurable and achievable.

The following checklist will help you determine whether it’s time to pitch a story or wait until a meatier opportunity comes along.

A newsworthy story includes at least one of the following attributes:

1. Local

People care about events that happen close to home. A warehouse fire in Atlanta has local interest but probably won’t be covered in other cities, unless it’s catastrophic (significant fatalities, explosions, etc.). Then it’s a national story as well (see “Catastrophic” below).

Consider this scenario: A real estate developer is breaking ground on a new shopping center – a legitimate news hook for the local newspaper and maybe real estate trade publications, especially if there’s a unique twist to the project (see “Unusual” below). Will Business Week care? Probably not, but the developers are reaching their target audience (i.e., local retailers and future shoppers), and that’s the goal.

2. Controversial

How many times does your local TV news show cover a city council meeting? Probably not much – they’re routine and (no offense) rather dull. But what if 100 angry citizens show up to protest a proposed sales tax increase? Now that’s a newsworthy event.

Or, say the local Chamber of Commerce learns about the city council’s proposed new sales tax. Concerned that it might negatively affect local businesses, the Chamber issues a statement strongly disagreeing with the “controversial” proposed tax. You get the picture.

3. Seasonal

We’ve all seen them – the feel-good Thanksgiving news stories or the profile of a local war hero on Veteran’s Day. Maybe they’re cliche, but the media is always looking for a local angle when covering holidays, anniversaries, etc. Check your calendar to see when an upcoming event may present an opportunity for your organization to pitch a timely story.

4. Unusual (first, largest, smallest, etc.)

Reporters like stories that are exceptions to the rule. Remember the real estate developer breaking ground on a new retail complex? What if the complex will house the area’s first outdoor ice-skating rink? Go through the checklist. It’s local and it’s the first. What if the rink is the largest in the Southeast? Even more potential media interest.

5. Human interest

A human interest story is the PR equivalent of a homerun, but they’re hard to score, especially as newspapers scale back on staff and “feature” writers. Pitching a human interest story requires creativity and finding the right reporter at the right time. Suppose that the real estate developer wants to build an ice rink in his shopping center because he’s a former professional hockey player and loves the sport? Interesting…

6. Catastrophic

Catastrophic (i.e. hurricanes, tornadoes, bombs) will always be newsworthy – because they’re unusual, involve a human interest component and, frankly, feed our natural fascination with cataclysmic events.

From a PR perspective, a catastrophic event might highlight the actions of a non-profit, a corporate donation, or an even individual act of kindness (i.e., relief supplies for Hurricane Katrina victims).

7. Visual

Never underestimate the power of telling your story visually. If your media pitch includes a visual hook, you’re ahead of the game. The city’s first ice skating rink on opening day – local, unusual and visual!

8. Celebrity

Let’s put it this way: everything President Obama does is newsworthy because of his celebrity – playing basketball, buying a new dog, walking down the Capitol steps. That’s why he has an entire press team to handle the volume of media requests he gets in a single day.

Karen Preiss Miller is a partner in JKP Group, a marketing communications consulting company. For more tips, visit this site

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Tags: newsworthy, media, media relations, specialist, relations