ZB Group

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5 Reasons Not to Pause PR this Fall

Image by Jackie Ramirez from Pixabay

You might think it’s prudent to pause your PR campaign this fall due to the media’s emphasis on the upcoming U.S. presidential election on November 5th. However, this strategy could be short-sighted. Here are five reasons to consider not hitting the pause button on PR this fall.

1) Many Journalists Don’t Cover Politics. Even though political news is a main focus right now, many reporters, freelance writers, producers, podcasters, bloggers, and newsletter editors, don’t cover politics or the election. Their beats may be lifestyle topics, consumer trends or products, travel, dining, technology, real estate, education, or small business. Therefore, they will need credible sources and experts to interview, interesting content and engaging stories to cover this fall and year-round.  

2) ‘Tis the Season for Holiday Gift Guide Pitching. The fall is a very busy time for media professionals who produce, write or contribute to holiday gift guides. Many have already requested 2024 holiday gift ideas for products and services and held workshops on tips for getting coverage. HGGs provide opportunities for brands and businesses to be featured by influencers, journalists, or TV and social media personalities, who consumers follow for ideas and advice. Pausing outreach efforts will greatly impact your chance for inclusion in these popular guides.

3) To Capitalize on early 2025 Media Opportunities. Perhaps you would like to create story ideas, an event, contest, giveaway, etc., for your brand pegged to the Super Bowl (February 9), Valentine’s Day (February 14), American Heart Month or U.S. Black History Month, (February 2025) or Women’s History Month (March 2025). If so, fall is a good time to get your strategy and action plan in place.

4) Consider Your 2025 Priorities and Inherent Lead Time. The time required to plan and implement a targeted media outreach campaign, special event, new product announcement, or facilitate thought leadership tactics such as bylined articles and speaking engagements, can take several months. Don’t wait until after the election to get started on these PR activities if they are among your priorities scheduled for 2025.

    5) Maintain Momentum for Successful Results. Your communications team may currently be working intently with reporters to arrange media interviews for your company or campaign’s spokesperson, coordinating details for an industry conference, a grand opening, or other focused project with a fall 2024 timetable. Pausing before or after the election will interrupt their progress and potentially impact the results.

    Please reach out with any questions.

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    Want Your Messages to Resonate? Communicate This

    Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

    You may have heard the word “authentic” was announced as the Merriam-Webster Word of the Year for 2023. It immediately resonated with us. This is the 20th anniversary of the company choosing a Word of the Year and evidently there was a huge volume of lookups for “authentic” at their site this year. “Authentic is what brands, social media influencers, and celebrities aspire to be,” wrote Merriam-Webster, the oldest dictionary publisher in the United States.

    P.R. and communication professionals are well-aware of the need for their clients to be authentic in any communication activities that they undertake. We counsel clients on the importance of conveying authenticity in their messaging to be considered credible and trustworthy. Believability is intrinsic to building relationships, creating a community, and fostering an honest dialogue with others.

    Today’s savvy consumers will tune out the messages from a spokesperson, CEO, or influencer who doesn’t appear genuine. An early December task force at the DealBook Summit featured a discussion about the creator economy. New York Times reporter Christine Muhlke in her piece, “For Content Creators, It’s the Wild Wild West,” reported on the task forces’ findings. She writes, “What creators and brands alike are after is authenticity: Influencers build an audience because they seem relatable. Brands know that the best way to reach consumers is to seem real – or at least align themselves with someone who is.”

    Emitting authenticity builds trust in your brand, company, or organization and should be apparent in all forms of external marketing communication activities including social media posts, media interviews, website videos, digital newsletters, and presentations.

    Nowadays, people don’t generally relate to perfectionism or an unattainable idealistic lifestyle. When a person, story, or message is portrayed as real or authentic it is more likely to make a positive impression. This new trend was reported in a WSJ story on November 1 showcasing mom influencers who shared what their true imperfect lives as busy moms look like. And similarly in 2023, more celebrities embraced make-up free looks showing off their authentic faces on social media.

    This year we saw another new trend promoted on social media called “deinfluencing.” Now some content creators and influencers are sharing their authentic thoughts about products and services they believe people do not need to buy. They are expressing their opinions on why certain beauty products, accessories or expensive clothing are not necessary and may be a waste of money.

    “The trend signals that traditional influencer marketing — a $16.4 billion industry last year — has reached an inflection point, experts say. Younger consumers increasingly see through the influencer-brand partnerships, calling companies out for going too far, and creators for prioritizing money over authenticity and promoting overconsumption.” Read the full article in The Washington Post about “deinfluencers” here.

    We’ll be watching and will share noteworthy trends that will impact the effectiveness of your messaging in 2024 in future blog posts.

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    7 Things a Well-Planned Media Relations Initiative and My Trip to Paris Have in Common

    Travel is back after three years of pandemic restrictions. Visiting Europe is a first choice for many people vacationing this summer. This New York Times article explains the reasons for its popularity and this one discusses why travelers are flocking to Paris in particular.

    My husband and I were fortunate to have the opportunity to visit Paris this past spring. It was my first time in France. The museums, delicious food and wine, charming neighborhoods, and centuries-old historic sites, were all unforgettable.

    This got me thinking — the steps followed so that our trip met our expectations and went smoothly, are similar to those when we thoughtfully develop and implement a media relations plan for a client.

    Here are seven ways our memorable vacation and our results-oriented media relations plans are similar.

    RESEARCH – About four months before our trip, I read travel books, spent time researching online, and spoke with Gary Lee Kraut, a tour guide and editor of France Revisited. I also consulted with my brother who is a longtime travel professional and other family members and friends for their recommendations.

    The first steps in creating a media relations plan generally include investing time to: learn about our client’s business, ascertain their ideal customers, understand their marketing strategy, find out about business challenges, inquire about new products or upcoming announcements, events, etc., and familiarize ourselves with their unique story.

    PLANNING – Our itinerary included historic sites, museums, dinners at brasseries and bistros, a scenic boat cruise (during which I snapped the photo above of the Eiffel Tower), a guided walking tour led by Gary Kraut of the Marais neighborhood and nearby points of interest, and time for shopping.

    We found out that May 1 is Labor Day and a public holiday in France when many things are closed. Therefore, on that day we planned to visit Montmartre where famous artists lived, worked and socialized.

    Planning for an effective media relations project requires developing one that will achieve a client’s goals. Creating a target media list, writing press materials and crafting story ideas that align with the brand’s news, products, services, messages, and audience, are a few key components.

    BOOKING – We pre-booked most activities; some are featured on the Paris Museum Pass and others are not. We didn’t want to miss out on seeing certain iconic sites or spend time in long lines.  

    Similarly, we reach out to reporters, bloggers, and influencers to pitch story ideas that will resonate, arrange interviews, fulfill necessary requests, schedule on-site visits, and complete other pertinent tasks, in advance.

    ENJOYMENT – We intentionally didn’t overbook. For example, we spent the entire day visiting the stunning Palace of Versailles and its beautiful gardens to enjoy them at a leisurely pace. On another full day we rode the Paris Metro to Montmartre where we donned berets to explore this charming area.

    It was a delight to stroll through the manicured gardens at Versailles

    Had fun climbing the hills in Montmartre

    A media interview should be an enjoyable experience and opportunity for the interviewee to share their knowledge about a subject and connect with their audience. Prior to any media interview we prepare our clients (or their spokespeople) on best practices and how to field potential questions to ensure it will be worthwhile.

    FLEXIBILITY – We made some changes to the itinerary while there. For example, we wanted to be near the Paris Opera House (Palace Garnier) for our 2pm tour, so we shopped in the area instead of visiting the Monet Marmottan Museum that morning as we had planned. We went to this museum on another day.

    Listening to our Paris Opera House guide

    We intentionally left two evenings open and by doing so, joined Gary Kraut for a fun small group champagne and wine tasting tour that he organized.

    We met the owner Morgane Fleury, who shared the story behind her family-run business which produces the bio-dynamic Champagne Fleury

    Being flexible is important during a media relations initiative. Perhaps the latest news cycle or the need to fulfill last minute media requests, must take precedence over tasks that were originally planned.

    DOCUMENTATION – We’ll create a photo album to document our trip including these favorites.

    Pablo Picasso’s “La Lecture” on view at the Picasso Museum.
    “The Kiss” at the Rodin Museum
    The Orsay Museum is housed in a former railway station exhibiting a vast collection by impressionists and post-impressionists

    Upon a project’s completion, we document our results by sending clients a comprehensive report of the print, digital or broadcast coverage generated. It may contain copies of published stories, interviews, product features, reviews, blog posts, videos and images, along with other relevant information.

    SHARING RESULTS – We’ve shared details and photos with friends and family fondly reliving our trip.

    We encourage clients to share the media coverage that was garnered from influential third parties to benefit from the positive validation. Posting it on the company’s website, on social media channels, in newsletters, and sharing it with staff, clients or customers is recommended. This helps builds community, drives traffic and SEO, showcases the coverage, establishes credibility, and strengthens brand reputation.

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    Why Media Coverage Will Benefit Your Brand: A Look at Various Types

    Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

    As you plan for 2023, working with journalists and content creators should be a priority and here’s why. Cultivating and leveraging these relationships will help your brand or company to connect, engage, inform, influence and communicate with your intended audience in credible and relatable ways.

    Pre-internet before Google or social media, journalists were a primary resource for keeping the public abreast of news and information. Newspapers, magazines, TV and radio were the main conduits of mass communication. However, since the internet was created in the early 1980s a whole new dimension subsequently changed the way news and content is produced, consumed and shared.

    Today, in addition to mainstream national and local media outlets, a plethora of content creators and new kinds of media companies have taken off. The widespread creation and use of digital tools, smartphone apps and social media, contributed to this sea change.

    Now consumers discover new things, make recommendations to friends and family, are entertained or hear about the latest trends in a variety of ways. And brands have multiple options beyond traditional advertising for sharing their messages. For example, Katie Couric, the former TODAY co-anchor and former CBS News anchor, founded Katie Couric Media in 2017 to collaborate with brands “to create purpose-driven content.”

    Here’s how working with journalists, content creators and subsets of each, will benefit your brand.

    JOURNALISTS

    According to the American Press Institute, “The journalist places the public good above all else and uses certain methods – the foundation of which is a discipline of verification – to gather and assess what he or she finds.” Journalists may be employed by one news organization full-time, freelance independently, appear on-air or contribute to several different outlets.

    Editors pursue a story idea based on the value they believe it will bring to their audience. Many receive hundreds of pitches a day because a mention, interview or story in noteworthy media outlets, conveys inherent credibility and authority for the subjects that are cited. Writers, producers, editors, and reporters are not compensated by the brands or companies they cover. This type of media coverage is known as Earned Media as depicted in the PESO model. 

    According to the Pew Research Center’s Social Media and News Fact Sheet, today, half of U.S. adults get news at least sometimes from social media. Reporters often share their work on social media to gain new subscribers as the WSJ is doing on YouTube and with newsletters. Some journalists also host podcasts and report for other media networks to reach new audiences. Their stories are findable online so an article or video segment spotlighting your brand can have long-term marketing benefits.

    Lifestyle Experts and E-Commerce Sites

    You may have noticed product review and recommendation sites affiliated with major media companies. Inclusion in these, offers opportunities for brand exposure and sales. The media company earns a commission when a consumer clicks or make a purchase through an affiliate link. The products are chosen based on research, reporting and what they think their viewers and readers would find useful and will like.

    New York Magazine’s Strategist is one, The New York Times’ Wirecutter and The Wall Street Journal’s Buy Side are two others. On the broadcast side, NBC’s TODAY Steals & Deals with lifestyle contributor Jill Martin and GMA’s Deals & Steals with Tory Johnson, are popular consumer-focused segments that are integrated with e-commerce sites.

    CONTENT CREATORS

    Content creators write or produce media content on various topics in the form of a blog, video, infographic, website copy, or something else. Bloggers and social media influencers are often referred to as content creators. They are sought out by brands due to their large followings on social media and high levels of engagement. Here’s a brief look at them.

    Bloggers

    Blogs offer varied opportunities for featured coverage. From food and beverage, travel and beauty, to tech and business, they run the gamut in subject matter and target audience. Bloggers set their own rules regarding brand collaborations. For some, blogging is a full-time business but for others it may be part of their work in addition to hosting a TV show, podcast, teaching or writing books.

    Bloggers may write a feature, host a giveaway, interview a founder, write a review, or offer gift guide opportunities. They will generally use a product or service before recommending it to their readers. If they receive free products, services or a fee, it will be clearly stated as such on their blog. They are also active on social media sharing their blog posts, which provides additional exposure for brands.

    Brands

    A brand may maintain a blog on their company website creating an Owned Media channel with relevant advice, news, tips, current research, surveys, guides, etc. This represents another type of content creation that serves as a resource for consumers and the media.

    Social Media Influencers

    Social media influencers may engage in paid collaborations that include sponsored posts, how-to videos or posting photos with or using a brand. Caitlin Covington is an influencer who in this New York Times profile says she was paid $10,000 to $15,000 for two different sponsored posts. Well-known celebrities can command even higher fees for endorsements on their social media channels if they enter into brand partnerships. Known as influencer marketing, these activities are also referred to as Paid Media.

    To reach younger people, TikTok stars were invited to the White House in September and other influencers with a combined following of more than 67 million visited in October before the midterm elections.

    There are all kinds of influencers to potentially partner with based upon their personas and audience demographics. Carefully consider if they align with your products, services, budget and marketing goals before collaborating.

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    Today’s expansive media landscape offers many opportunities to share your messages and garner impactful visibility, authority, credibility, and engagement with your target audience. We can help you determine and implement a results-oriented marketing communications strategy that is right for you.

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    How Nuance is Relevant when Working with the Media

    Image by Shotkitimages from Pixabay

    “Nuances are subtle shades of anything and everything. To notice and live them is a very refined way to experience our life,” writes Diane Von Furstenberg, the legendary fashion designer, philanthropist, and trailblazing businesswoman in her latest book, Own It The Secret To Life profiled by Vogue.

    She shares her life secrets and advice with readers by spotlighting particular words starting with the letter A-to-Z. Nuance is included in the N grouping. She explains in the book, “To achieve this task, I picked words that speak to me most and reflected on their meanings.”

    The word nuance resonates with us. Like any professional service business, ours has nuances inherent to the elements involved when we garner media coverage for clients. For an inside look, here are nine instances where nuance comes into play during the process.

    Target Media List

    Where do you start? Define your audience – who do you want to reach? We identify the appropriate media outlets and curate a list that aligns with your audience and marketing goals. We also monitor media opportunities that arise and may be a good fit for your story, potentially adding them to our list.

    Supporting Materials

    High-resolution images and quality video that help describe or tell your story are important to have on hand. We advise on what kinds of digital assets are suitable for the media’s purposes and use. In addition, we create press materials that convey the nuances of your business and why it’s newsworthy.

    Spokesperson

    Who will speak on behalf of your company? Consider the CEO, founder, a designer, research specialist, marketing executive or someone involved with another aspect. An author, industry expert or popular personality who is partnering with your company on an event or brand initiative, may also be appropriate.

    Media Outreach

    We understand the nuances and needs of the different types of media and reach out with story ideas created specifically for the journalists, bloggers, podcasters, or influencers. Some may be interested in an interview while others in content for their columns, segments, roundups, trend pieces, or bylined articles.

    Message Communication

    We explain the nuances of how to share your key messages in a clear, concise, non-commercial way to inform the outlet’s readers, listeners or viewers so they will want to learn more.

    Interview Types

    Zoom, in-studio, by phone, or via a written Q&A, are all potential interview formats. We help spokespeople master the nuances of each type beforehand, so they are comfortable regardless.

    Interview Questions

    In most cases we will be able to share the types of questions in advance, but generally not the exact ones. As in any conversation, sometimes one question leads to another that can’t be foreseen. Therefore, the spokesperson must be prepared to answer any questions in a calm, confident manner.

    Advance Preparation

    Preparation is key! Practicing prior to an interview will help ensure the spokesperson is ready and confident. We conduct mock interviews and share tips concerning the nuances of body language, delivery, messaging and interview etiquette, among others, so the interview goes well and smoothly.

    Merchandise the Coverage

    Sharing the stories on your social media networks (tag the reporter and outlet in your posts), website, with staff, and in customer newsletters is beneficial. Each method has its own nuances but conveying the excitement of being featured by third-party influential sources to your community should be an overall goal.  

    Questions?

    Reach out and we’ll be happy to explain more.