Rethinking Strategies 

From time to time, one of my published features leads to a PR pitching me a feature in a similar vein. Presumably, they’ve read said feature, liked it – or specifically, liked the coverage it afforded the person or brand in question – and have decided they’d like similar coverage for one of their clients. I’m never sure whether the directive has come from the PR, or from their client. Nor will I ever: the extent to which brands pressure their PRs (“x got a spread in the Daily Blah – why can’t you get that for me?”) is a trade secret to which, as a journalist, I will never be party. 

The moral of the story is this: to a journalist, “news” needs to mean more than just “news about your brand”. A new style of bag in a new colourway really isn’t enough. The best PRs know this instinctively. The rest need to rethink their strategies.