(This week, PR News editors Phil Hall and Courtney M. Barnes cringe as the telephone rings with yet another call from a publicist asking after a recent press
release.)
PHIL: A day doesn't pass without some publicist (usually at the account level, but often at a mid-manager and occasionally at the senior level) calling me to ask if I
received a press release about so-and-so or such-and-such. I try to be as pleasant as possible in fielding these inquiries, but it is often a chore since we receive so many press
releases in the course of the day and I cannot remember every single one that comes in. There must be a better way for publicists to follow up on their press release
distribution.
COURTNEY: As a general rule, I prefer not to get follow-up calls inquiring about press-release receipts. If the press release is relevant to PR News' audience
and summed up in a thought-provoking message line, I will respond to the sender. Often times I think the crux of the problem isn't the follow-up call, but the press release
itself. All too often PR professionals (or, in many cases, their assistants) don't target the right publications; they just toss the release into the cyber wind tunnel and let it
fall where it may. When it falls into my inbox and it has nothing to do with our coverage, I press delete. When I get a follow-up phone call about it, I tune out.
PHIL: That brings back a bizarre memory for me. When I was an editor of a national banking journal some years ago, I used to get press releases from a major ice cream
manufacturer about their latest flavors and promotions. Why an ice cream company was sending press releases to a banking magazine was never quite clear, although I must say the
glutton in me used to look forward to reading about what flavors were being launch. But back to our dilemma: We're starting a new year and facing the same old problem. What kind
of a New Year's resolution can PR professionals adhere to that would spare us from another 12 months of phone calls inquiring "Did you get our press release?"
COURTNEY: Well, there are a few pointers that come to mind. The first is to keep press releases short, sweet and to the point. The second: Make the subject line
snappy. Third, and most important, is to tell me why this is applicable to my newsletter. That information should be the first thing that catches my eye; otherwise, truth be
told, I won't pay much attention. Fourth and finally, remember that a follow-up call is only appropriate in a few scenarios: If I have expressed interest in the subject matter,
or if you have reason to believe I didn't get the first release (i.e., it bounced back, you received an out-of-office reply). It's best to operate under the "Don't call us, we'll
call you" philosophy that seems to work so well in so many other businesses - acting, for example. And while these suggestions are specific to PR News, I'm sure that
journalists at media outlets everywhere will appreciate the greatest gesture of all: Silence.
PHIL: Silence may be golden, but having faith in journalists and editors to recognize strong news value also contains some significant auric content.
(Comments? Questions? Share your opinions with the editors: [email protected] and [email protected].)