Got product?
If not, you'll have a hard time getting the time of day from hype-weary journalists covering high-tech beats. Too many have been burned writing about vaporware innovations
that never came to fruition. The first thing they'll ask for is references - of customers who've used your product and of analysts who've got an opinion about it. Not
testimonials. Phone numbers.
Got press releases? They won't care. Today's reporters want access to CEOs and other key players in the digerati. Because they know the tastiest high-tech leads don't come
shrink-wrapped like airline food, but rather are served up through personal emails and phone calls, and garnished with exclusive privileges.
"Despite the fabulous advent of the Internet, there is not unlimited bandwidth where reporters are concerned," says Deborah Branscum, a contributing editor to Newsweek
and Upside. "We're on the receiving end of spam blasts that are sent to everyone, without regard as to whether it's something we even cover. I end up getting stories
because a smart PR person who I know and like ends up sending me a personalized email pitch. Then I might refer to the press release for background later."
In fact, many contend that press releases have become more of an I/R staple than a media relations necessity in the new economy. They're more often accessed on corporate Web
sites - and in the digital annals of investor haunts like Yahoo and Motley Fool - after product announcements have been made, serving mainly as technical primers that spell
out the details about the product. They don't break news.
In the tech market, the best laid media plans start with an industry analyst tour that gives these key influencers a heads-up on the product while it's in beta testing.
"They're the experts. The press goes to them to find out whether the technology is real or not and if it holds any real value," says Craig Librett, VP at Miller-Shandwick
Technologies.
A common mistake, however, is assuming reporters' and analysts' tech brainwaves operate on the same frequency. "People always want to give me a demo and march through the
PowerPoint slides they've created for their VC's," Branscum says. "I would pay people not to show me slides that slice the market into various pies and showcase the
inevitable pyramid. It's tedious. I want to ask the questions that interest me, in a non-linear way."
Be a Geek God
Naturally, high-tech media mavens come with different angles and agendas. Trade journalists tend to be more nerd-savvy, and apt to "talk bits and bytes" with developers,
while mainstream outlets (e.g., CNN and BusinessWeek) care most about the business benefits of the product and will want access to the CFO, Librett says.
But don't pass the baton to your R&D techies and financial wizards too quickly. Although reporters will want to tap other sources inside your company, wise PR officers
cultivate their own personal expertise and talk turkey with journalists before referring them to the higher-ups for gravy. Those who don't only perpetuate reporters' impression
of PR pros as an impediment to the journalistic process, bemoans one corporate counselor who prefers not to be named. "You should know as much about the technology as the
reporter does," he says.
If You Build It, They Will Write
In the new economy, relationships still count for everything. The sharpest PR counselors strengthen ties by giving reporters access to key industry players, even if there's
no direct payoff for the company. Got an employee who worked in the anti-trust division of the Justice Department? Invite her to go to lunch with your reporter contact who's
covering the Microsoft trial.
When it comes time for hard pitching, never underestimate the incestuous proclivities of the media. Your company's software may be old news, but tie it to the hot story du
jour and you've got instant mileage. When major etailers suffered hack attacks in February, Miller-Shandwick scored extra ink and airtime for NetScout Systems - a client whose
software monitors enterprise networks to provide early warning signs of problems. The agency pitchedNetScout as a local company offering protection against the threat of cyber
warfare. Presto.
"Reporters are always looking for comments about how the product ties into big stories that are already out there," says Priya Sousa, manager of marketing and ebusiness
communications for Merisel Inc., a computer products distributor. Help a reporter keep up with the Dow Joneses, and you've got a friend.
Finally, a note for the tragically hip: speak to be understood, and kill the buzzwords before they kill you. "Right now everybody is using 'best of breed,' " says Branscum.
"Why is this something you want to say about your product? It makes me imagine that there are all these routers down there mating in the dark, preparing to emerge from their
kennels."
(Branscum, [email protected]; Librett, 617/351-4129; Sousa, 416/240-7012)