Tag Archives: media relations

Client Lessons in Getting Squeezed

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Our profession is about helping our clients. Helping to garner media attention, to develop marketing strategy, and even to understand the ever-changing world of social media. And then there are those instances when our clients teach us a thing or two. These lessons don’t always pertain to our industry or their expertise, but are valuable as the latest PR Daily tool list or the latest and greatest new app.

I recently had the privilege of traveling to Denver, CO to take part in our client’s, Odyssey Teams, largest training solution session with DaVita HealthCare Partners.  As a result of this session, over 1,400 prosthetic hands were assembled to distribute to developing countries, and while this was inspiring, it’s what Odyssey Teams’ facilitator, Lain Hensley, said during the program that was ruminating in my brain on the plane ride home.

Odyssey Teams Food for Thought:

Think of an orange, when you squeeze it what comes out? Juice.

More often than not in the public relations industry we are being “squeezed”: by clients, by colleagues, by deadlines. The point of this analogy is to become aware of what is extracted from you when you are under pressure, or “squeezed.” What comes out of you when you’re squeezed? Is it productivity, kindness and support or negativity, blame and defeat?

In public relations it’s our job to know everything about our clients, but it’s important to remember that they can teach us things that cannot be found in a boiler plate or FAQ.  What have your clients taught you lately?

 

Just Say Thank You

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We call them. Send emails. Then follow up emails. Subsequently we write requesting clips or hard-copies of the coverage they’ve kindly bestowed upon us. But the one email (or better yet handwritten note), we as PR pros should get in the habit of sending to reporters is a simple thank-you.

It all boils down to the Golden Rule, “treat others as you’d like to be treated.” Don’t you appreciate when reporters compliment your story idea? Don’t lie, you do.

John Seelmeyer, editor of the Northern Nevada Business Weekly, said that times have not changed as far as common courtesy goes. “My mother taught me that the magic words are ‘please’ and ‘thank-you’ and I think they carry as much magic today as they did when I was an ill-mannered 8 year-old at the kitchen table,” Seelmeyer said. “We all are people in this business, and basic human decency is very valuable.”

In the PR world, having a sense of urgency is like breathing; often times we feel compelled to send a thank you note accompanied by a pitch. While this is fine, it is not necessary. You have their email, you’ve just successfully worked together on a story, and chances are they will respond to you again if you were to pitch them.

Be a gracious loser, if a reporter responds with a “no” (and inevitably they will) thank them before moving on to the next. They’ve taken the time to respond to you and graciously decline, show them the same courtesy.

Many reporters have monetary parameters they must abide by regarding gifts. Some must stay within a $25 limit, others have no bounds. Journalism ethics classes have debated for years if gifts sway reporters to be more inclined to cover a story.

Truthfully, it depends on the reporter; some can be bought for a bottle of wine others wouldn’t dare go near that corked bribe.  So how do we, as PR pros, stay on the ethical side of things?

Here are some gratitude guidelines for PR pros to follow:

  1. Only give gifts to say thank you, and mean it. If you are giving something with hopes of something in return…put it back on the shelf.
  2. Separate your P’s and thank-Q’s. Pitches are pitches and thank-you’s are thank-you’s, try not to combine the two.
  3. Know if their newspaper has monetary limits and respect them.
  4. Dust off those stamps and your stationary and write a personal thank-you note.
  5. Get in the habit of saying thank-you regardless if they’ve done the story.
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Playing Nice in the Sandbox

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Someone wise once told me that “communication is key,” while we were navigating the boundaries of our developing relationship. Those words still ring true, especially in the work environment.

Communicating effectively in the workplace can be challenging. With varying personalities throughout the office it can be difficult to find the right way to make yourself heard effectively. So whether your boss is the kind of manager straight out of the Devil Wears Prada, or someone who you love and think of as family, here are some tips for getting your message across.

It’s important to be assertive when communicating, but effectively so. According to family therapist Virginia Satir, two popular but ineffective styles are placating and blaming.

Placators place themselves below others to protect themselves. An example of a placating statement is:  That’s OK that you didn’t take time to write that press release for me yesterday.  I know you’re busy.

Blamers lack accountability by putting themselves above others, in an effort to shift the focus away from them. An example of a placating statement is: If you had written that press release for me yesterday, I wouldn’t be behind.

Either passively placating or aggressively blaming keeps individuals from developing mutually supportive relationships at work. Co-workers need to learn to “level” with one another.

Leveling is an effective assertive communication style where you put forth requests and opinions directly. This allows people to articulate their issue without blaming or being harsh.

An example of a leveling statement is: I’m upset that you didn’t write the press release for me yesterday.  I was counting on you. If we’re going to work together on projects, I need to know that I can count on you when you commit to things.

A tried and true method for communicating is the “I Message.”

An example of an “I Message” is: When you didn’t write the press release for me yesterday I felt frustrated and angry.  In the future I’d like you to let me know in advance so I can plan accordingly.  Is that agreeable? Learning to communicate this way can be awkward at first so here is a fool proof formula to help you:

“I” Statement Formula:

  • When you…
  • I felt/thought/decided…
  • I’d like to ask that you…
  • Will you agree to that?

Reference: On Course Strategies for Success in College and in Life, Sixth Edition. Downing, S (2011).

Your staff will get you new business

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As an agency that provides a variety of services to other businesses, the Abbi Agency crew is no strangers to proposals.

You know, those 12, 13 page documents comprised of brilliant ideas we’ve conjured up when examining, meeting with, and researching what we hope becomes our next client.

We believe that template proposals are a detriment to businesses such as ours. We tell all of our clients that they are different; and we believe it. Each one deserves our creativity and originality to build their campaigns.

Part of my position at the agency is to write these proposals. I compile the initial strategy, sometimes without anything but a phone interview of the potential client, and organize it on paper, to deliver straight to the person that will ultimately make the decision on whether to hire us or not.

After work on countless (almost serious there) proposals throughout my career, I’ve learned one thing: they are best when they are a collaboration piece. And here’s why they need every office ingredient to make a winning cake.

  1. Your intern will help: Interns may be the freshest professionals around your office, but they have something really special to offer: they are eager to stand out. They’ll research the most, and because of their desire to be different and make their mark, will sometimes give you the most innovative ideas. True, they can be a little off sometimes. But don’t discount them purely based on inexperience.
  2. Your social media person is cool: Just because you’ve got a youngin’ sitting on their Mac in corner furiously Tweeting and Tubmling, doesn’t mean they can’t be an essential part of the creative process. First off, they know how to get people involved and what makes people talk. That’s their forte. And because of that, they’re on top of trending topics, and are experts at gathering analytics and tracking progress of campaigns and conversation sentiment. You need to offer your potential client that skill.
  3. The CFO keeps you in line: They are organized in the thoughts, skills, and production. They will narrow down ideas into what works in specific time frames, what’s worth doing based on the amount you’re charging, and they help to gather all the brilliant thinking into an organized timeline. Basically, they can help you send a document that doesn’t look like your brain just vomited ideas all over paper.
  4. Finally, the writer: We’ve got one at The Abbi Agency- he comes in, sits at a barren desk, plugs in, types all day, takes a few phone calls, and leaves promptly at 5 pm. He’s on his game and very much in his own world. BUT, we even need him for the proposal process. Why? Because he helps the lines of creativity and reality meet. He knows what works and what doesn’t for media, how time affects things like sudden announcements, lengthy pitches, etc. He’s also good at putting a beginning and end on things. That’s always nice.

Of course, we have key players who contribute to every proposal, but without the variety of personalities we seek advice/insight from on a regular basis, we wouldn’t be able to deliver such well thought out, creative ideas as we do. Never take your team for granted and work to find everyone’s talents- they just may land you a new contract!

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10 Ways PR Can Grow Your Business: A Lesson in the Basics

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By Amanda Horn, account coordinator

A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of being the agent of inspiration for a room full of bright-eyed entrepreneurs (not an easy role to play in an economy still trying to rebound). On behalf of The Abbi Agency I delivered a presentation on what it is we, as PR professionals, actually do to help people leverage the limelight.

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