How To Ignite a PR Campaign & Land Media Coverage 


If you launch a PR campaign by pitching what you want, you might get some media coverage, but probably not much.  If you pitch what the media wants, you’re positioned to succeed.  So what does the media want?  The media wants informative, entertaining, educational, compelling stories.  They want strong stories that grab the attention of their readers viewers and listeners, but apart from that, to be perfectly honest, not even the media knows exactly what they want. They’re scrambling to find stories, just like you’re working to pitch them stories.  They are continually searching, looking for new stories, and working on new ideas, articles and segments.

If you think you know what the media wants, chances are you’re wrong.  You’re most likely focusing on what you want and hoping that the media reacts the same way.  But that’s where the disconnect comes in.  We’re generally so thrilled by our idea, project, company, product or service that we’re sure the rest of the world, particularly the media, will react the same way.  But, that’s not how it works.

A successful PR or media relations campaign does not work on wishful thinking.  To launch an effective public relations campaign you’re going to succeed only if you learn how the media thinks.  If you assume you know what they want, chances are your assumptions are going to be wrong.   You have to study, do your homework and review the various magazines, newspapers, TV shows and online media sites. When it comes to landing media coverage, the bottom line is delivering a good story, but, and I can’t repeat this enough, don’t assume because you find a story of interest, the media will like it as well.

Take time to review the various media outlets, study the formats, as well as the types of stories they’ve run in the past. In truth, apart from breaking news and celebrity train wrecks no one really knows what the media wants because what they want is constantly changing.

The best way to succeed is to think like a producer, think like a journalist. Study the particular print or electronic media you are targeting. Who is their target audience? What is the age range? Is it a male or female audience?   What segments or articles do they usually run? Now, keeping your business, product, service or talent in mind, what type of story would work?
When you want to pitch a story to the media pitch according to the media’s needs, not yours; remember that the story you’re convinced is the most fascinating story in the world, just might not meet with that same reaction in the media world. So be creative, give it a hook, an angle or an approach that is focused on the media’s needs. Turn it from a sales pitch into a news story.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2012

Steinberg, Scott. “Matches” Photo. Mashable. 25 May 2012. 09 Aug 2012. <http://mashable.com/2012/05/25/crowdfunding-mistakes/>