The Public Relations Blog

A key component of the PESO model

News media is a major component of the Paid, Earned, Shared and Owned model. In fact for me, it’s my favorite part of public relations – assisting clients and companies in gaining news media. News media is often referred to as earned media, and it’s the content that third-party entities (namely media outlets) create about your company and your brand, its products, and its services. 

Know the best way to connect with reporters

Pitching to the media can be difficult, especially if your PR and marketing departments aren’t used to reaching out and connecting with the media on you and your company’s behalf. It can be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. That’s why we created the 21 mistakes you’re making when you pitch the news media – to help your team feel more comfortable and confident as they reach out to journalists. 

One mistake we often hear from companies is their teams are sending more than one email to a single outlet. This is number 12 in our list of 21 mistakes. There is a right way and a wrong way to do this. 

As marketers and public relations pros, we’ve likely all wanted to have an amazing April Fools’ Day prank as a fun way to bring attention to our brand.

In the right circumstances, April Fools’ Day pranks can make for great PR.

In the wrong circumstances, April Fools’ Day pranks can make for really bad PR.

Even the least experienced PR professionals know, as with any joke, there are many potential April Fools’ Day pitfalls to consider. Avoiding backlash should be a top priority.

Know how to best share your company’s message

Earned media coverage is built awareness about your company through efforts like media relations (connecting with reporters), blogger relations, influencers, and word-of-mouth. It’s counterpart is paid media, which is advertisements that you or your company creates or pays for about itself. We have many clients ask us the difference between earned and paid media, and in the same breath, they also ask us to create a press release to earn media coverage.

Clear up some issues that could arise after getting a TV story

Having your company’s story on TV is an exciting time. You’ll be getting a lot more eyes on your company and putting your name out there. However, during the process, there are some questions you might have related to the online version of the story, such as the video not appearing or if they’ll post the story online at all.

At Axia Public Relations, we’ve noticed our clients ask these main questions. To help people navigate the process, we’re answering these questions, so people can go through the news process more smoothly.

What to do if your executive/spokesperson/client isn’t fit to be the face of the organization

As public relations professionals, we’ve worked with a plethora of companies, clients, and spokespeople. Some are perfect spokespeople while others need a few spokesperson training sessions, and then there are the ones that shouldn’t or can’t be the face of the company. 

Finding a spokesperson for your company can be a daunting task, and having a conversation with a spokesperson who truly isn’t the best fit to represent your company is even more difficult. As an outside PR firm, having the conversation with a client about who the best spokesperson is can be easier than having the conversation internally with a superior. So how do you navigate that difficult conversation? 

Be a better resource for the media

As newsrooms continue to shrink, they rely more and more on their reporters to write for print and online as well as take their own photos and videos. With reporters doing more, newspapers also rely on PR professionals and a company’s PR and marketing department to submit stories – in an inverted pyramid style – and images for publication. 

Story ideas and submissions are relatively easy to provide to a media outlet. Many companies struggle with submitting photos that newspapers and magazines will and can use. Here are some tips that will help you and your team submit quality photos the media will use. 

Our PR agency created this 20-step process for getting earned media coverage for your company

We’ve previously discussed what earned media is and its role in public relations. However, knowing about earned media is one thing, and doing it is another. For someone unfamiliar with this process, it can seem almost impossible to know where to begin and how to get through it. However, there is help.

At Axia Public Relations, we’ve developed our own system for earned media we’d like to share with you. Here is a visual chart showing how we do things and an explanation of each step.

Newsroom veteran shares the roles and how of getting a story on TV

Throughout my 20 years in TV and radio newsrooms, I’ve received many calls from PR professionals. It’s clear some don’t know their way around a newsroom. So let me provide you with a roadmap because there is no better way to get your story ignored than pitching it to the wrong contact.

Virtual press conferences are great ways to reach your audience safely

The way we communicate is ever-evolving and as technology improves, people are finding more ways to share messages on a broader scale to reach numerous audiences.

One way is through virtual press conferences. 

Virtual press conferences are cost-effective and allow reporters and news outlets to attend safely from the comfort of their homes or offices.