National Press Coverage

2012-02-14 10:51:05 by Frank

I was in a meeting with a client yesterday and they asked me how to get more mind share in the national press. The answer: “Be available. Stay informed.” Sounds simple but so many CEOs are happy to talk to the press when they have a major announcement to make but don’t want to spend time returning the favour by helping the media out with insight and comment when a journalist needs to add depth or analysis to a story. It’s all very well drafting lofty thought leadership articles, but when a journalist calls to ask you to expand on your ideas or give examples then you need to take that call. The trouble with many PROs is that they do not have the ear of the CEO and so are not able to get across to him or her the importance of two-way communication with the media.

The staying informed part is vital if you are to hook into the news media’s agenda. You are always going to get more press coverage if you can add to their agenda rather than always pitching your own. Think outside the box. One of our clients is a telecoms specialist but he is also a great advocate of engineering apprenticeships so he is happy to comment on all matters to do with developing engineering talent and this got his company into the hallowed pages of the Telegraph last week when they were doing a feature on the subject of apprenticeships.

You might have strong views on environmental issues, so do your homework and make sure you can offer knowledgeable comment when your PR agency or internal PR person comes to you with an opportunity. You can offer insight on areas like mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, employment issues; in short anything that, as a business leader you have experience of or exposure to. In short, comment should not be limited to your narrow field of specialisation; tap into your broader business and life experience as that will fit with the media agenda more often than the latest developments in your field.