Challenges faced by PR pros – Series – Scenario 3 – Quantum of Coverage VS Quality

This week I would request all members to please share your insights and experiences in dealing with clients with unrealistic expectations. Yes I am sure most of you are thinking that this is not something new and most often we have clients telling us during monthly reviews that the number of hits this month are very low and it should have been about ummm…..may be 100 clips? We often end of up sulking among ourselves that the client is very demanding and has huge expectations from PR. So who sets these expectations – the Corporate Communications Head/Marketing & Sales Head. If the Corporate Communications Head has some PR background he would set achievable targets for PR and also set the expectations internally as well however if the Marketing & Sales Head is the decision maker and has less understanding about PR and its value, the agency should take the efforts of educating the client on ‘How PR works’ and how it can help enhance the company’s image/reputation.

So the point that I would like all of us to throw light on is, does getting quantum of coverage help  enhance company’s brand and visibility or  quality of coverage in the appropriate target media reaching the target audience more helpful?

Would request all PR pros and Corporate Communication professionals to come forward and have an interesting discussion and debate on this topic.

* Discussion Series : Initiated by Richa Seth

Exclusive or First Interview – a dilemma faced by PR pros – Scenario 2 – Series – Challenges faced by PR pros

With the increasing number of media channels – print, electronic, wire/online, most media channels are finding ways to get a competitive edge over the other by using various strategies. One of the strategies used by electronic channels and print media is to get an Exclusive or First Interview from companies on any major announcement which will help them get more viewership (TRP)/readership. This policy often puts PR pros into a tight spot especially if the announcement to be made is an important one and requires a mass reach.

I would request all team members to please share your thoughts on what can be done to manage such requests and communicate the announcement to the key stakeholders of the client.

Challenges faced by PR pros – Series – Scenario 1

Scenario – 1 – Demanding Client – No spokesperson, No new announcements. Expectation: Pan India media mileage.

Ever come across a client who is very enthusiastic about PR but has no spokesperson available for media interviews? And has no new announcements to share but expects an ongoing and extremely active PR campaign across India? So what are the strategies & tactics one can explore to build an ongoing pan India campaign? Listed below are some strategies and tactics that can be used:

1. Create a quarterly campaign based on client’s objectives, target audience and key markets – Share ideas which can be explored on traditional as well as new media (Read social media/company’s owned online properties).
2. Content is the key for any communication – One can get cues from industry trend stories featured in not only mainline media but trade magazines, online portals, company newsletter and don’t forget to ask you client for research reports (as most companies subscribe to these reports). Data extracted from these can be used to draft interesting pitch notes for Email interviews, Authored articles, Infographics, Photo features, Stats & Trivia
3. Case Studies – Success case studies are alwaysa great way of showcasing the company’s worth in the industry. PR pros need to be aware of specific columns across media which feature case studies. Keep a track of business & trade magazines as well online portals for the same.
4. Research Reports/Whitepapers published by the company : This can be shared exclusively with a select mediawhich reaches the appropriate target audience
5. Media – Once the content is ready and approved by the client, prepare an exhaustive list of target media across cities and make sure online media as well as regional media is included.

Any more thoughts on PR strategies which can be adopted in the above situation?