The guaranteed coverage scam

Word reaches the Media Majlis gossip hotline of a new service that has F&B flacks in a flap this week.

This isn’t one of the many wonderful pro-rata offerings that have sprung up from local agencies around the world recently.

Just another crack at the very tried, very tested and extremely tired guaranteed coverage game.

Everything about it screams belated Aprils Fools. But, very sadly, it isn’t.

It’s hard to see how any brand will benefit from AI-generated press releases which are guaranteed to be published by unnamed media sources with zero human counsel or consideration.

And even if the people behind these ventures always claim that they aren’t trying to replace traditional PR, it still feels like snake oil dressed up as innovation.

Make no mistake, this is not sour grapes from another vendor.

We welcome competition that helps to evolve and grow the entire industry. Carma’s recent webinar series on the Gulf conflict was superb.

And I’ll freely admit that Roxhill offers AI-powered tools across its media intelligence ecosystem to help PRs make informed decisions about their campaign work.

But – like every reputable agency and ethical media outlet out there – we don’t rely on automation, we don’t guarantee results and we don’t promise coverage.

This undermines the very essence of why PR is such a valuable and integral part of the communications environment. And does nothing to further the industry’s attempts at proving its value.

Because there is no such thing as guaranteed coverage. At least, not anything resembling meaningful coverage.

There is earned and there is paid. Anything else is just low-quality SEO.

So, if anyone reading this wants some real, human-led support during these trying times, feel free to email me direct for some recommendations of local agencies I’m sure would be happy to help you.

Or you could approach a local freelancer direct, of which there are many.

There’s a crowd-sourced list here which grows by the day.