The Public Relations Blog

How to get quality internal news for external PR

As a public relations professional working for a large corporation, staying in the know of important happenings within your company can sometimes be a challenge, especially if there is a large remote workforce or highly siloed structure. Other factors that limit the flow of newsworthy developments reaching your desk include lack of quality sources, the C-suite being unaware of what makes a good topic for a news release and an internal misunderstanding of the function of the PR department.

Take these steps to increase your feed of high quality PR content.

Unlike consumer-facing companies, like Dunkin’ Donuts and Nike, the technology B2B space is often niche or super-techy, making public relations efforts a bit more challenging. Tech B2B companies don’t require recognition from the average Joe or Jane. Instead, they look to other companies that benefit from their product offerings, which typically exist within the enterprise, cloud or back end. Even so, audiences for news from B2B companies consist of potential customers, media and, of course, analysts. Therefore, to gain greater profile in the minds of potential customers and other key demographics, B2B companies desiring a more aggressive PR push should consider the following tips to get the ball rolling.

3 tips for using an unexpected event to earn positive media coverage

Football fans across the nation found themselves riveted last week by a digit. It was a strange deflection from the anticipated rivalry set to play out this past weekend as the New England Patriots took on the cinderella Jacksonville Jaguars.

A thumb stole center stage.

What does a thumb have to do with public relations you may ask?

Tom Brady, widely recognized as a superior athlete, Gisele’s husband and first string quarterback for the New England Patriots, injured his thumb during a practice prior to the scheduled playoff game. The injury itself isn’t really the news. How the injury became news is.

Learn the best methods of establishing relationships with media representatives

Email is a terrific way to pitch to journalists. Most people use this tool to communicate – it saves time and it’s efficient. So how can you ensure that media representatives open your email pitch instead of instantly deleting it? While there’s no definitive answer, you can increase your chances of connecting with journalists if you follow these do’s and don’ts in your emails:

When I worked in Silicon Valley, a front-page story in The Wall Street Journal was the “ungettable get.” Our teams would persevere for weeks trying to figure out a way to get their venture-backed technology startup onto the front page of the Dow Jones-owned media outlet. Our efforts often felt futile, as the Journal covers mostly business news with significant financial or industry-shattering impact.

As numerous public relations firms have predicted since the beginning of the year, a key facet to every successful campaign in 2018 will be the story. From cave drawings and legendary tales to biblical passages and novels, the art of storytelling captivates us. And the foundation of all good stories, of course, is the unexpected adventure contained within.

The ability to craft unique narratives seeps through the souls of PR professionals. We look beyond what everyone else sees and often unearth unexpected elements that make our clients’ stories come to life. From those nuggets, we create unique stories to share with key demographics as well as the media.

How do companies discover the useful snippets necessary for a unique, creative and authentic corporate narrative?

If you don’t know exactly how to define public relations, you're not alone. Many professionals in the PR industry have trouble defining public relations. In fact, there are a few definitions that focus on different aspects of public relations and its role for your company.

This is one story in our series on how you can save money with a PR firm. Read about four more ways you can save with a PR firmas well.

Every company wants to save money. However, no company ever grew from cutting its public relations efforts. There are smarter ways to save.

How to grow your brand using a press release

Everything in the world of public relations and communications is changing fast. There are many new tactics, techniques and tools you can use to build mutually beneficial relationships with your public. How does the old-school press release fit in? Some PR pros say it’s dead; others contend that news releases are still relevant in PR today. Here are three reasons why the news release is still an effective marketing tool.

2 companies respond in very different ways to a PR crisis

In October 2017, Amazon debuted Amazon Key, its answer to the ongoing problem of porch theft. Home delivery of everything from groceries to jewelry has become ubiquitous as Amazon’s market share grows and influences American shopping patterns. Meanwhile, package purloiners have learned to reach for the low-hanging fruit of unattended front-door parcels. Enter the Amazon Key, a cloud-based security camera linked to a door lock that grants delivery people admittance to drop off packages, safeguarded with autolock settings at their departure.

One problem: As with all internet-connected devices, Amazon Key is vulnerable to hacking.

Cybersecurity company Rhino Security Labs exploited an authorization point in the wireless connection to take the entire device offline. To a remote user viewing the video feed, it appears the entry is secure. While offline, a hacker keeps the internet-controlled key in the open position without immediate detection. These vulnerabilities allow either a delivery person covert re-entry to the home or clever criminals to override the system immediately following a delivery to access a victim’s home for their own nefarious purposes.

Here is where public relations professionals’ dreams and nightmares coincide.