Be Careful What You Ask For

I was recently talking with a small, grassroots organization working on affordable housing. (Affordable housing in Massachusetts? What a concept!) He told me about his public relations nightmare. He circulated a press release about rising housing costs. A reporter from the local paper called and but didn’t want to talk to him. The reporter wanted to interview clients from member agencies that were directly impacted and he needed the contacts that same day. Unfortunately, grassroots guy was taken by surprise. He didn’t have any such contacts lined up and had to scramble to get some or risk loosing the story opportunity. Unfortunately, the person he was able to get on such short notice had a skeleton or two in the closet and made for an unfavorable story.

It’s easy to see how a grassroots organizer who is the head of public relations, volunteer coordinator, fundraiser, chief cook, and bottle washer could be caught off guard. But, for anyone who is experience in working with the media, this situation was completely predictable. If you’re going to court the press, you have to be prepared for success. With respect to this story, this means two things:

Lesson 1: If a reporter calls you, he or she will always be on deadline. That means you will have a very narrow window of opportunity to respond. If you don’t give them what they need in time, you could loose the story. What’s worse, they will remember your organization as unresponsive and may not consider you at all for the next story opportunity. The good news is that if you are well prepared you will be remembered as a reliable source and it will give you an edge over competing sources of news. First, the journalist’s schedule is not a mystery. Daily, Weekly, and Monthly publications all have their own rhythms. Many publications produce a media calendar and some of them list story deadlines. You can also just contact the publication and ask, probably the editor. They appreciate it when you try to make their life easier. Second, be available. Make sure they have your cell phone or pager number and return calls right away. Also make sure other key players in your organization are ready to respond promptly.

Lesson 2: Journalists don’t want to write about just dry facts. They want someone to quote and the closer to the center of the story the better. That often means they won’t want to talk to you. If they are writing about a lack of affordable housing, they will want to talk to someone who was directly affected by a housing crisis. Before you send a press release, think about who the journalist may want to interview and try to get them lined up in advance.

These two lessons aren’t all there is to know about working with the media, but if you take them to heart you will definitely improve your odds.