Developing a Comprehensive Public Relations Strategy

Public relations is not just blindly writing press releases or pitching journalists, but a comprehensive strategy designed to promote your business. The following steps should help you determine whether or not your company has developed a comprehensive public relations strategy.

The goal of public … Read more

Public Relations and Journalism: More Similar Than You Might Think

There’s an old joke among journalists: “It’s okay. If I lose my job, I’ll just become a public relations flak.” Believe me, every journalist has thought about it more than once, especially when freelance writing wasn’t paying the bills. After all, what company o… Read more

The Public Relations Balancing Act: Access vs. Privacy

For public relations professionals, preserving a client’s privacy can be difficult when you’re also trying to cater to the needs of your press contacts. Recently, my employer changed its guidelines regarding how much access clients will have to our products.… Read more

Public Relations Basics: Preparing for a Media Interview

Recently, I was transcribing a very casual media interview; it was an amiable chat, even when the questions got tough. Listening to the tape, I was struck by my constant “um’s” and “ah’s.” I came to the interview well-prepared, and I still sometimes sounded as if I … Read more

Blind Dates: Preparing for a Media Interview

If you’ve ever been on a blind date, you know it can be a harrowing experience. You’re thrust into a situation — one you may not even want to be in — and the only information you usually have is second hand. You want to make a good impression — unless you’re trying to get h… Read more

Public Relations Role Models: What You Can Learn From Pro Athletes

By now we all know it’s rarely worthwhile to hold up professional athletes as role models. While athletes still rank as popular heroes for kids, we’ve definitely seen a shift in the past decade to more traditional role models — teachers, doctors, etc. But one arena where it is worth loo… Read more

How to Stand Out in a Crowded Public Relations Industry

High energy prices, troubled industries, flatlining online advertising growth, and geopolitical concerns are just some of the headwinds the U.S. economy faces these days. One would think that these issues would also impact spending on public relations, but that does not appear to be the case. Good new… Read more

Turning the Tables: A Journalist Talks Public Relations

A while back, a friend who works in the public relations industry cornered me with a few questions. The following discussion about public relations and the media takes a little peek into how the two intertwined industries relate to each other.

Q: Would you ever consider moving to the dark side of public rel… Read more

Public Relations vs. Journalism: Clashing Agendas

It’s perhaps one of the longest running questions in public relations: How do you deal with a journalist who has an agenda? Some journalists do have agendas; columnists are paid to comment on the news and provide opinion, not just report the news. Even in traditional reporting, sometimes a persona… Read more

Public Relations Basics: Avoiding Press Leaks and Fixing Mistakes

In the world of public relations, press leaks can be damaging affairs. Sensitive internal information being sent to journalists can wreck a company’s reputation, cost it customers or clients, or even land it in legal hot water. But how can public relations consultants prevent press leaks, or at l… Read more