Be Upfront And Honest At This Time Of Year

How much do you give? And how much will you get in return? Not Christmas presents, on this occasion, but goods or services in return for coverage. (As I was mulling this subject, in fact, I was reminded of a PR friend who dreads this time of year when all the nation’s editors get in touch to find out if the latest hot restaurants will be willing to host their staff party…)

Anyway, back to the matter in hand. These negotiations are very clear when it comes to things like travel trips, but it’s a bit murkier in the food bracket.

I recently commissioned a feature related to private chefs and chose one case study to lead with, including photography of her. She said ahead of the shoot that she would expect to be reimbursed for the cost of the food needed to make the pictures look good. That’s all very sensible and easy to sign off on. (I try to keep a pretty close eye on costs as any sensible editor does.)

But after the shoot she billed us not just for the food costs but also her usual fee, which I admit to finding quite peculiar. The article will promote her business, after all, and we were careful to time the shoot so that it didn’t take her away from a paying job. Plus, of course, it wasn’t mentioned in the first instance.

You’ll all be reading this thinking ‘clearly this person does not have a PR’ and you’d be right, but I have experienced miscommunication or just plain misleading discussions before, and with PRs involved. So this is just a reminder, at a time of year when favours and deals are struck perhaps more than usual, to be upfront and honest. I like it when we all get along!