14 Things to Avoid Doing When Contacting the Media

Things to avoid doing when contacting the media

It probably seems strange to talk about what not to do when contacting the media rather than how to communicate with them but, when building relationships with journalists your reputation is everything. We always remember a bad experience more than a good one so you need to make sure that your first impression is the best. Knowing what not to do is key.

The following are a few of the essential things to avoid doing when dealing with the press:

1. They're not here to buy

The language you use to speak to journalists is very different to how you speak to a potential customer. It's important to remember that journalists are not here to buy anything, they just want to know the interesting facts. The language used in marketing and sales collateral does not automatically translate when communicating with journalists.

2. Have you given them enough detail?

Journalists today are very busy people. Many media houses have reduced the number of journalists on their teams so you have one person doing a job that could have been previously covered by two to four people, so their time is precious. Your job when contacting them is to make their life easier by giving them everything they could possibly need to write a story. Give them any additional information that you think could help.

3. Sometimes it's not good to talk

It's important to identify an individual journalist's communication preferences as many journalists just don't want you to call. You know yourself when you're busy working on something what a big interruption a phone call can be, journalists are no different. With social media today, many journalists only want you to contact them on Twitter or other social media tools. When you think of making a call, ask yourself, "Is this the best option?"

4. Modesty is the best policy

We all have the client or a personal requirement to be perceived as the biggest and the best at what we do or the product we sell. Therefore, we want to appear in what we perceive to be the biggest and the best media outlets, but we have to be realistic. You know where you stand in the pecking order of media interests. Don't try and badger Bloomberg news to write about your local florist business. Have modest goals, and don't fill a journalist's inbox with an uninteresting story unless, of course, you have a story about a new breed of plant that can cure a formerly fatal disease!

 5. Yawn... not another boring story

We have highlighted earlier just how busy journalists are and they spend a lot of their time being pitched very dull stories. When pitching, ask yourself, 'Would I be interested in reading that headline?' or 'Would I even expect to read a headline around this pitch idea?' I know it's a hard fact to swallow, but many times, you know the answer to these questions is no. Don't forget to add the 'sizzle' to your story to make it more interesting.

6. Check, check and check again

Beware journalists are quick to pick up on spelling mistakes and bad grammar, as they and everyone should. With the advent of social media you don't want to become the next viral story a journalist uses to demonstrate a bad example of communication. Make sure you check everything over and over again. Better still get someone else to proofread your copy before sending.

7. Spamming - the blanket email or press release

Just as we hate marketing calls for services that are not relevant to us and are obviously not targeted at us, journalists dislike receiving the blanket email or press release that is irrelevant to their requirements. Also, receiving too many emails from you in a short period of time is a very annoying practice. Space out your communication and make sure it is relevant.

8. One article on a topic does not an expert make

You should always do research to see which journalists write about a subject before contacting them, but when you do, make sure that they cover this topic regularly and that the article you found was not a one-off. Nothing annoys a journalist more than a communication that states that you read something they wrote over a year ago and assumed they were the expert on that subject. If you take time to research, you can make sure you are contacting the right person.

9. STOP SHOUTING PLEASE!

Punctuation is very important to journalists and the way you write to them can again place your pitch in the trash pile. Writing your subject heading in caps locked is not a way to get you noticed, as shouting at them does not make your story more noticeable (writing in caps lock is interpreted as shouting in written form). Create an eye-catching headline with words instead.

10. Learn to trust their judgement

Embargoes and NDAs (non-disclosure agreements) are delicate ground when dealing with journalists. Yes, the media like exclusives but they also want to keep as good a relationship with you as you do with them. So learn to trust them. Don't over-emphasize the embargo or NDA agreement and annoy the journalist by spelling it out to them. Use these documents wisely. The story is important to you, but is it important to the world? Does it realistically need an embargo or NDA or are you insulting the journalist's intelligence?


11. The callback

Unlike the world of the glamorous film industry the callback is not a good thing when it comes to journalists. When you have contacted a journalist, you should never have to chase them. If your information is written well and is interesting they should quickly get back in touch with you. If they don't, you usually shouldn't call them back to ask the question, "Did you receive my press release?" You won't be popular.

12. PRs should be seen and not heard

The journalist has finally agreed to do an interview and the client is talking but not necessarily getting across the points that you briefed him. You think, 'they're not saying what we told them to, they're off message' and helpfully chip in... Don't! You are only there to observe and administrate. Unless you are asked a direct question your job is to say nothing. 'PR Speak' is usually obvious as it is often closed and inhuman, a journalist wants a spokesperson to be themselves, using their own language and not obviously rehearsed.

13. Please can you tell me when and how...

You are not the editor of the publication so asking to see the copy before it is published is usually a big no, no. The same goes for asking when it will be issued, although that's more acceptable. Some trade magazines offer you the chance to review copy before it's printed but in general this is not the practice and asking a journalist can annoy them.

14. Never be demanding

You are, unfortunately, at the mercy of the editor. If the work gets published and isn't what you expected, you shouldn't demand them to change it simply because you don't like it or don't agree with their interpretation of the facts. You can ask for corrections of factual inaccuracy, but even then, you can't guarantee that these changes will happen.

15. One size does not fit all

Most importantly, you must remember that not all journalists are the same. Try and find out important information about your key journalists: How they like to work and what time it is best to contact them - not on deadline! - for instance. If you have the opportunity to build relationships with your top-tier journalists, this knowledge becomes less important. However, it's not always possible to do this. Just remember you don't want your first contact to be the one the journalist remembers because you annoyed them!

Now that you know what not to do and how to avoid the pitfalls of communicating with journalists, you can start pitching. Good luck!