Earned media is forecast to gain favor among clients and general counsel in 2019 according to the Legal Marketing Association (LMA), which released its “PR Predictions” for this year in a recent podcast.
Leading PR professionals, a lawyer, and a former journalist rounded out the LMA panel discussion/podcast on ways to differentiate and raise your firm’s visibility in 2019. After years of law firms creating their own content (and some might say an excessive amount of content), the experts on this panel placed a high value on the return of obtaining coverage in the news media for its third party credibility.
What is the best way to communicate with the media?
Earned media correlates to reporters writing their own stories about you, versus paid opportunities or creating your own content.
Recently, I met a business reporter from The Kansas City Star at a Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) event. After she explained her industry focus, she answered questions. I asked about the press release. Was it relevant today?
The reporter, in her late twenties, answered “yes” - with a few caveats.
She said, “press releases are a good way to capture my attention and bring an issue or product to my focus.” What bothers her about press releases is when they “don’t tell a story or explain how the product would impact the community.” Her pet peeves included long headlines. Her biggest pet peeve in a press release was the use of exclamation points. She stated, “Journalists don’t use them. Why should you?”
I next reached out to a very experienced reporter, a former lawyer, now working for public radio following a long career in print for business and legal publications. His comments were similar. He values a press release because “it alerts me to something I might otherwise not know about.” His biggest complaint was “overselling, overhyping and lacking content.” He added he “always checks the facts of a press release.” And if it is summarizing an article, he reads the original.
Finally, a third reporter who covers the legal industry told me, ”I can't be everywhere, and neither can a lot of reporters, so there's definitely a role for news releases in breaking news/making announcements for companies and organizations.”
"Reporters aren’t interested in doing a commercial for your business..."
The reporter also indicated that PR teams need to do their homework and find out who covers what. “I get press releases frequently for stories about industries/beats I don't cover. If something off-beat has a hook or tie-in for what I do as a legal writer, that helps a lot.”
How can we make media pitches newsworthy instead of annoying?
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Offer solid news ideas. Reporters aren’t interested in doing a commercial for your business;
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Write like a journalist. Use short, declarative sentences;
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Know the news cycle. Don’t pitch an idea that has already been done;
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Dig until you find the “kernel” of information that makes this press release a story that will grab their readers. I once interviewed a Chicago attorney for a standard “new hire” announcement. He told me the normal list of information and as almost an afterthought, mentioned he was “rappelling down the side of a Chicago hotel for charity.” THAT kernel grabbed the media’s interest. Not only did they write the story, they captured the moment when he was about to rappel down the building. It made the front page of the issue;
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Personalize your release with quotes that tell the story. Nothing is more boring than an entire press release with no quotes;
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Unless your client objects, be available. You cannot issue a release and then disappear.
...often the best way to gain favorable coverage is through long-term relationships with reporters.
The press release works both ways – use it as a tool to increase the odds that information about your company is correct and key messaging is used.
However, often the best way to gain favorable coverage is through long-term relationships with reporters. It also helps when the tough calls come.
You cannot expect coverage of your business or law firm if you are always closed off to media inquiries at all times. A story idea told over coffee to one reporter is sometimes better than sending your messages everywhere at once. Reporters like exclusives. Choose a favored reporter to break the story and share it later on your social.
PR folks can help journalists along by providing them with accurate, interesting and newsworthy information. All of this can take time but if a story appears about a case win or firm growth, it may not only enhance your company’s reputation but also bring in new business for you.
*Listen to the LMA podcast: Prediction, Possibilities, and Problems: What's Coming for Legal PR in 2019 with John Buchanan (Sheppard Mullin), John Corey (Greentarget), Jamie Diaferia (Infinite Global) and Ken Gary (Baretz+Brunelle).
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[Heather McMichael is the Media Relations Manager at Shook, Hardy & Bacon and a former television journalist. She can be reached at podcasts@listentolawyers.com]
